Autumn Color and a New Trail - Part 1

I went for a couple of short hikes on Wednesday to see the autumn color in the Adirondacks and generally enjoy the woods. There is a distinct autumn scent to the woods at this time of year. I missed the peak color but it was still nice to get out. I went to the waterfall at Cascade Lakes first. It is above the public picnic area between the two lakes. There is a herd path that goes to the brook bed and then you have to follow that to the base of the falls.

Looking up the brook toward the waterfall.

Back in the 1800s there was a hotel on the narrow bit of land between Upper and Lower Cascade lakes. http://www.lakeplacidnews.com/page/content.detail/id/500096.html At the base of this waterfall part way up the mountainside they had a dam which was the water supply for the hotel. When I first visited the falls in June of 2011 prior to Hurricane Irene the trail was very different. Remnants of the dam and the pipe used to channel the water to the hotel were very evident. The heavy rains from Irene caused a landslide that opened up the falls on both sides and wiped out most of the remains of the dam as well as the upper part of the herd path.

Looking down the brook toward Upper Cascade Lake

Detail of the base of the falls - Shot using my variable ND filter

Below - Mushrooms and ferns in the brook bed

The uppermost part of the falls as seen from the shore of Lower Cascade Lake

 To be continued...