Saturday, October 28, 2017

Harriman State Park, NJ - Lake Sebago to Lake Wanoksink


ABOUT THE PARK:  New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

DIRECTIONS:
GPS Coordinates:  41.19865 -74.12956
Lake Sebago Boat Launch Parking - I was the second car there at 7:30 AM, the lot was almost full at noon.

TRAIL MAP:
Southern Harriman Bear Mountain Trails Map 118 - New York New Jersey Trail Conference
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HIKE DISTANCE:  7.4 miles

THE HIKE:
Lake Sebago at the crack of dawn.
Walking back out of the boat launch parking towards Seven Lakes Drive.
Directly across Seven Lakes Drive, the blue-blazed Seven Hills Trail.
Shortly before turning left on the yellow-blazed Buck Trail, a buck!
Left on the yellow-blazed Buck Trail.
At the wide woods road which is Pine Meadow Road West, left for just a few steps...
... then right on a more narrow woods road which is Pine Meadow Road East.
Watch for the red-blazed T-MI trail to cross over - it's more obvious on the left but here we needed to...
... turn right.
Brodie can't pass a boulder without posing on it.
Crossing over Pine Meadow Road West.
A geriatric dragonfly still hanging on at the end of October.
We overlapped a couple of spots where Shawnee and I hiked before but she is always still with us.
We went left on the blue-blazed Seven Hills Trail to the overlook since we were so close.
That is Lake Wanoksink barely visible through the trees where we would be heading next.
Lake Sebago comes into view on the right.
There were lots of hikers at the overlook and we took turns taking each others' pictures.
Lake Sebago
Heading back on blue, coming up on these boulders, an unmarked trail to the right.
At times it is woods roadish...
... at other times a little overgrown.
It's not a maintained trail but it's still easy enough to follow.
There are even old gate posts just before ...
... Pine Meadow Road West where we turned right (this view is left).
Coming up on Lake Wanoksink.
Continue beyond the outlet at the dam ...
... then left at the fork which leads to ...
... the top of the dam.
On the dam at Lake Wanoksink.
We would have gone to the far end but there were people with a dog there so we just went half way.
Heading back across the dam.
Back at this sign, turn left ...
... then right.  We had come in on the left on that unmarked trail.  Right will be unmarked for a while also.
At Monitor Rock on the right...
... the unmarked trail becomes the blue-blazed Seven Hills Trail.
Now retracing back downhill to Lake Sebago.
Lake Sebago
No matter how far we hike, Brodie keeps up his pace but he sleeps all the way home.