With the arrival of a new Spring season, comes the chance to test the aging body. To see what another year of diminishing physical attributes might offer. Of course I speak with a bit of wry humor as after all - it is what it is.
Against that backdrop, I began another year with good friend and partner Mother Nature. The first outing took me down south of the border into Connecticut where it was a day destined to be part social - part outdoor activity. On my list has been a sight know in past years as Robbers Cave that indeed did have an association with a long ago crime in Winsted. This is a rugged area that can be approached from several directions but in the end it is either from the bottom - or the top.
Joining with a friend, we took a stab at coming in from the lower elevations which necessitated a lot of climbing, often over very large boulders. Eventually we turned back near a small waterfall believing we were in close proximity, but still not quite at the site. This was later confirmed to be true when the two of us joined area cavers at an anniversary get together later that afternoon. So a future trip is planned.
The following weekend brought me together with a south county bud for a trip on over to the Catskill Mountains in New York. The first stop was the famed Kaaterskill Falls. We poked around a bit looking for access to rocks known to be in the area (such as Alligator Rock) but many roads were found to be closed this early in the season. Then it was over to Stony Clove for the Devil's Tombstone (also known as Picnic Rock and even Pulpit Rock) before heading up to Prattsville for Pratt Rocks. On the ride back towards Catskill, we got a quick glimpse of Road Cut Cave (if it is even still open) a childhood memory when I visited it before this section of highway was opened.
Back in the Berkshires, we caught up with a neat perched rock not far off a back road, but still 'new' to the two of us! BR>
