6 April 2012 Four Stops

I was on my way home from Cortland and wanted to enjoy the journey. A colleague had suggested a visit to the Cornell Ornithology Lab for a walk. It was my first stop. When I arrived, I was happy to see there was also a cache at the facility. Depsite the cars in the parking lots, the trails were empty.

Ali says this in a boreal chickadee. It was one of the many sites on my walk at the Cornell Lab.

This work is called Sapsucker Cairn. I liked the use of native materials. The cache was near the piece.

This was a peaceful spot near the ponds. There are a few nesting platforms on the water. At least a few have web cams with links on the Cornell site. I thought I spotted osprey hatchlings in one of the nests, but it was too far away for a good photo.

Stop two was a visit to Buttermilk Falls State Park in Ithaca. I have been hoping to stop here and walk the trails for a while, but Ithaca traffic usually kills my enthusiasm. Today the traffic was manageable, and I was ready for a long walk and a trail climb.

Unfortunately, I forgot the trails aren't fully open until mid-May in this part of New York. In a normal year, there is always a real chance of spring snows which could make the trails deadly. This was my first of two gates. I left the hike along side the falls for another visit and opted for the open trails away from the falls. It was a nice walk and a good climb.

My third stop was a trail that ran behind Buttermilk Falls. There was a high terrain cache there, and I was able to spot the parking area. The trail was worth the walk. The small falls on the back side of the state park was a true bonus.

The fourth and final stop before my journey home was in Sullivanville in Chemung County. There are three caches in the park. Two are higher terrain. I stopped for the high-terrain caches, but enjoyed my walk along the water.