~ Current Schedule ~
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Practices: Advance signup is not required. However, prior to attending your first outing, read the information on our Practices and Acknowledgement of Risk pages. Download and sign the Acknowledgement of Risk Agreement form and submit it to the leader of your first Canes outing.
Meeting times & places: 9.15 at "CTL" unless specified otherwise in the outing description. More info on CTL and meeting places.
Outing types: Outing types are listed as Regular, Alternate (ALT) or Bonus. More info on outing types.
Difficulty: Outing difficulty ratings are shown as "Easy," "Moderate," "Difficult", or a hybrid. These are subjective ratings, and even an "Easy" outing will require attendees to be fit and aware of their physical limitations. More details about difficulty are typically shown in the outing description. Distance and elevation gain shown are generally derived from GPS readings, which are approximate. More info about ratings.
Lead an outing: If you would like to volunteer to lead an outing, please contact the Outings Co-Coordinator. Here's a more detailed information guide. The earlier you respond, the more time your fellow Canes will have to plan to attend your outing.
Air quality: Wild fires in Canada and the western US can cause hazy skies and may also affect ground-level air quality. Check regional air quality for today. More info on haze and air quality and other useful info.
Seeking a Co-Coordinator: We are grateful that Leo Demers has volunteered to become our Outings Co-Coordinator. Peter and Leo are seeking a Co-Coordinator-partner to train and share the responsibilities. This is an opportunity for a member to give something back to the Canes and assure we continue to thrive. Contact Peter to volunteer and/or ask questions. As Outings Coordinator Emeritus, Peter will provide the co-coordinators with oversight and support.
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Scheduled outings:
Nov 5, 2025 Bonus Halloween-Theme Hike and No. 8 Hill (Brant Lake/Adirondack area) Rating: Moderate/Difficult Tim Ward 518 415-9172 Email leader WX
This hike is a repeat of one done about 7 years ago. The first part of the hike will be a Halloween themed hike starting in a cemetery near the east end of Brant Lake. We will then drive to the Sucker Brook trailhead on Blair Road (as in Blair Witch Project) and proceed on the Sucker Brook Trail in the western Pharoah Wilderness. Along this trail we'll visit a ghost town with similarities to the cemetery memorial. About 3.5 miles in, we'll leave the trail to ascend No. 8 Hill, which is a short, steep bushwhack. No. 8 Hill is not a tall mountain by High Peak standards; however, what it doesn't have in its 1900’ height, it makes up with expansive views from its partially treed, rocky summit or from overlooks just below its top. We'll then return to the Sucker Brook trailhead. This is a long hike, but we'll try to avoid getting out after dark (though being a Halloween hike it would make sense). Just in case, bring your headlamps! This is a spiritual journey into a little known area of the Adirondacks and one of the most remarkable hikes one can imagine. The total distance is about 9 miles RT with a total vertical ascent of about 1000'.
Meet at CTL at 8:15 for an 8:30 departure or at the cemetery trailhead at 9:15. Directions: Northway Exit 25, turn right onto Route 8 East for 7.6 miles to Palisades Rd CR 26 on L. Then 1.4 miles to Beaver Pond Rd (after a stone barn) on R. Then 0.3 miles to cemetery on R where Tim Ward will meet us. Note: At 1.7 miles from Northway exit 25 on Rt 8 on R, the Horicon Community Center has a convenient port-a-potty in back. Contact me with any questions.
Nov 6, 2025 Regular Daniels Road State Forest Hike Rating: Easy/Moderate Lenore and Jack Reber 518 859-8555 Email leaders WX
The 523-acre Daniels Road State Forest is located just to the north of Saratoga Springs in the Town of Greenfield. The Saratoga Mountain Bike Association (SMBA) maintains the trails in the State Forest per agreement with DEC. The lands are mostly mixed forest and feature mountain bike trails throughout the property. The trails range from easy to difficult and provide hiking opportunities as well. This hike is a 5+ mile hike of short ups and downs with rocks, roots, runoff, and fingers of bedrock on the mountain bike trails. This is the southern tip of the Adirondack Mountains and has great rock formations and lovely little streams and ponds. The mountain bikers have added a few interesting surprises also. There may be wet sections of the trail from recent rain so your hiking boots should be waterproof.
Meet at the official trailhead/kiosk at the end of a dirt/gravel access road just east of the Skidmore riding center on the north side of Daniels Road at 9:30 for a 9:45 start of the hike. (Note – NOT at the small parking area opposite where Clinton St. intersects Daniels Rd.) Directions to the trailhead access road (one of several ways). Daniels Rd runs between Rt 9N on the west and Rt 9 (aka Maple Ave) on the east, just north of the City of Saratoga Springs. From Rt 9N take Daniels Rd E for 2.5 miles to the large DEC State Forest sign on the left. From Rt 9 take Daniels Rd W for 1.2 miles to the same sign on the right. On the east side of the DEC sign proceed N on the dirt/gravel access road 0.5 miles to the trailhead parking lot. Note that this access road contains a few speed bumps so drive slowly. Please contact us with any questions.
Nov 13, 2025 Regular Pilot Knob Ridge Hike Rating: Moderate Cathy Gilchrist 518-248-1150 Email leader WX
This moderate hike has an approximate RT distance of 4 miles with an accumulated vertical gain of 1,338 feet. It starts on the marked state trail to Buck Mtn and Inman Pond and veers SE onto an unmarked herd path. It’s pretty much up all the way to the top, where there are several overlooks. The false summit will be our lunch spot while we enjoy spectacular views of Lake George! We will make this a loop hike and descend along an unmarked trail with a more gentle slope which connects back to the Inman Pond Trail. Note: Beware of lots of slippery dry leaves over rocks in some places.
Meet at CTL at 9:00 for departure at 9:15, or the trailhead at 9:45. Trailhead directions: From exit 20, I-87, follow Rt 9 north for 0.3mi to NY 149. Turn right and continue on NY149 for 4.3mi and turn left onto NY9L (Ridge Rd) by Stewart's for an additional 4.6mi, then right onto CR32/Pilot Knob Rd. Continue for 3.3mi to the DEC parking lot/trailhead on the right. Please note this is NOT the Schumann Preserve for the Pilot Knob Preserve/Gazebo. Please contact me with any questions.
Nov 20, 2025 Regular Fifth Peak Hike Rating: Moderate Gail Stauble 518-932-1251 Email leader WX
We will begin our hike from the popular Clay Meadows parking lot/trailhead on a relatively flat trail for the first 0.5 mile before beginning a somewhat steep and continuous climb for the next mile, gaining approximately 1000 feet. At this point the trail becomes less steep but still climbs in the final 1.1 mile, gaining another 500 feet to the top of Fifth Peak and a lean-to. From the overlook near the lean-to, we should have excellent views of the Lake George Narrows, portions of Northwest Bay, the southern end of the Tongue Mountain Range, and the mountains that surround the southern end of Lake George. This will be our lunch spot. After our lunch, we will return to the parking lot on the same trail. We are unlikely to see the local rattlesnakes in November. Total RT distance is about 5.2 miles with a total elevation gain of about 1500 ft.
Meet at CTL at 8:45 for departure at 9:00, or the Clay Meadows parking lot at 9:30. The Clay Meadows parking lot is located approximately 6 miles north of the hamlet of Bolton Landing on the east side of NY 9N. For those of you aspiring to obtain the Lake George 12ster patch, this is your chance to reach the top of one of the required mountains. Please contact me with any questions.
Nov 27, 2025 Happy Thanksgiving!
Dec 4, 2025 Regular Silver Bay Trails Hike (and Cookies) Rating: Moderate Sandy Powell 518-538-8758 Email leader WX
We have offered this hike only once, back in December 2018. Silver Bay YMCA has graciously given Sandy Powell permission to lead this hike on YMCA private trails located about 5 miles south of Hague on Lake George. We will do a 4.5 mile loop that meanders up and down outcroppings and ledges that overlook Lake George with views towards Gull Bay to the north and Huletts Landing to the south; and to Uncas Falls on Lake George Land Conservancy property (Terzian Woodlot). Although our highest point is only 700 feet above our starting point, we will be ascending a total of about 1,300 feet. The months of November and December can bring wintery weather, so bring micro spikes just in case. If we get a snowstorm before the hike, bring snowshoes as well. After the hike we will venture to the Powell home in Hague for cookies and cheer (bring cookies and cheer!) where Bob will be convalescing from a total shoulder replacement done a few weeks earlier.
Meet at CTL at 8:30 for an 8:45 departure. Joanne Armstrong will lead us to the Silver Bay Trails trailhead where we will meet Sandy Powell, our hike leader.