NORTHBOUND FROM MT. IVY TO BIG HILL SHELTER: 6.00 MILES
TOTAL MILES COMPLETED: 16.80 MILES

This section starts near the busy Palisades Interstate Parkway and Route 202 in Mt. Ivy, New York and even follows alongside the Parkway for a bit. Eventually it turns into the woods and passes through Cheesecote Park and Harriman State Park. There are a couple of abandoned classic vehicles along the way as well as reservoirs and even an old cemetery. In order to get back before sundown, I gave up looking for the site of a 1974 plane crash where you can still find pieces of the wreckage. That will be for next time when I complete the remaining three-and-a-half miles of the section.

SOUTHBOUND FROM ROUTE 23 TO WINDHAM HIGH PEAK: 3.80 MILES
TOTAL COMPLETED TO DATE: 10.80 MILES

In this section of the Catskills, the Long Path follows the Escarpment Trail. I took this trail to ascend to Windham High Peak, the first of my Catskill 3500.

SOUTHBOUND FROM STATE POINT LOOKOUT TO ALPINE LOOKOUT: 4.60 MILES
TOTAL COMPLETED TO DATE: 7.00 MILES

Longest one-day hike on the Long Path to date, actually nearly ten miles with the round trip.

NORTHBOUND FROM HAVERSTRAW ROAD TO HIGH TOR: 1.10 MILES (REPEAT)
TOTAL COMPLETED TO DATE: 2.40 MILES

This was a return visit with Spencer to the Long Path ascent to High Tor (elevation 797 feet). High Tor is the highest peak on the Palisades and offers a 360-degree view of Dunderberg Mountain, the Town of Haverstraw, the Ramapos and Harriman State Park. The Colonists used the summit as a signal point during the Revolution, and it later was the site of an airplane beacon; the remains of the tower are still visible. (Source:  Long Path Guide)

SOUTHBOUND FRO STATE POINT LOOKOUT TO SHORE TRAIL: 1.00 MILES (REPEAT)
TOTAL COMPLETED TO DATE: 2.40 MILES

Only on the Long Path for a mile. Then it was on to the Shore Trail and the strenuous, one-mile scramble over the boulders of the Giant Stairs. 

NORTHBOUND FROM STATE POINT LOOKOUT TO ROUTE 9W: 1.30 MILES
TOTAL COMPLETED TO DATE: 2.40 MILES
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1.3-mile hike northbound from the State Line Lookout in New Jersey takes you across the New Jersey/New York state line (a stone boundary monument placed in 1882 marks the spot), along the steep cliffs of the Palisades and to the end of Section 1 at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in New York. A side trail takes you to the Peanut Leap Cascade. The day I went followed heavy rains so the falls were very active. 

NORTHBOUND FROM HAVERSTRAW ROAD TO HIGH TOR: 1.10 MILES (REPEAT)
TOTAL COMPLETED TO DATE: 1.10 MILES

Second trip to the Long Path climb to High Tor, the highest mountain in the Palisades at 797 feet. Visible was the New York City skyline and a clear view of the Town of Haverstraw along the Hudson River. 

NORTHBOUND FROM HAVERSTRAW ROAD TO HIGH TOR: 1.10 MILES
TOTAL COMPLETED TO DATE: 1.10 MILES

Kicking off my pursuit of the Long Path with a trek to the top of High Tor (797 feet). Beautiful autumn day provided clear views, vibrant colors and nice hiking weather. Elevation gain is nearly 600 feet.