2015-03-01 40 -73

Location

A steep hillside in Hastings-on-Hudson, in deep snow.

Participants

Plans

User:OtherJack will arrive in Hastings-on-Hudson station at 3:28pm on the Metro-North train, and then walk to the hash. Whether it is on public or private property is unclear. He could also do the expedition a little bit earlier (or later), if asked.

Expedition

I made it! More details and photos in a few days I hope. Need to finish a work thing first. -- OtherJack (talk) 22:55, 1 March 2015 (EST)

OK, here are the details. The forecast had been for a few inches of snow, but starting considerably later than hash o'clock. In the morning I was helping out at a large high school science fair in my neighborhood, as a volunteer judge. But when I walked there the sky was already gray and threatening, and by the time we went outside to the next building to judge the projects the snow had already started. Had a long lunch afterward with the other volunteers, so by the time I headed outside to get the bus through Harlem to Metro-North the streets were already slushy and very slow going. I wasn't sure if I was going to make the announced train, but had plenty of time in the end. Nothing stops a determined geohasher.

With the falling snow and heavy fog the ride up to Hastings-on-Hudson was ghostly beautiful. First the train went along the Bronx side of the Harlem river, with upper Manhattan (crowded with apartment buildings) vaguely looming through the grayness high above the riverbank. Bridges took on massive, industrial weight. Once the Harlem joined the much wider Hudson river, the far bank was no longer visible and the half-frozen, chaotic, foggy Hudson could have been some remote polar sea. The view stayed exactly the same all the way to Hastings.

On getting off I opened up geohashdroid and tried to follow the google map through the snowy village, but my first choice road decided to go some 25m under the next road (which was high above on a viaduct joining two parts of a hill) instead of conveniently intersecting it. Walked all the way back to the station but then found another way, up some pedestrian stairs that weren't on the map, and soon I was on my intended route. The town was very pleasant and timeless looking, I was back in the U.S. after weeks in the independent nation of New York City. I used the facilities at a local bar (patrons were all well over 50) and continued east through the snow-calmed streets, gently uphill now.

I saw the road ahead of me ended at a T intersection with a steep, wooded, white slope rising behind it. I wondered if I had to make a couple more turns... but no, these were the hash woods! Yet again I'd neglected to check the terrain on a hash - I'd been imagining these woods as flat and easy. Did I want to go all the way around the block and approach from the side? But then I noticed a signed, official trail straight up the hill! How convenient.

Indeed the snow on the trail was nicely packed down from previous users, and I quickly progressed upward. But it became clear that the trail was going to miss the hashpoint by about 40m to the right. It was time to venture off-trail across/up the slope. I crossed my fingers, but very quickly began to sink into 60cm wet snow which worked its way into my boots. After what must have been seven or eight cycles of take a few wet steep steps, avoid rotting logs under snow, unzip coat pocket, take out gps, find I am still not there, put gps back in pocket and zip up to protect it from the falling flakes, ... I finally arrived. Quite close to the back of the neighbors house, but no signs or fences or anything. It was quite a scenic spot with a nice view back over the road I came on.

To head back my first thought was just to get around the house and make it to the nearby upper street, going the long way back to the station... I didn't want to get my feet any wetter or colder. But then I saw I was on sort of a makeshift packed-down trail again... could I get back down the hill to the road along this? I went for it, but no, the snow quickly became deep and soft again. By the time I haphazardly made it to the road, my lower legs and feet were nice and refrigerated. Found a cool "poetry bus" on the walk back to the station though, I must have missed it on the way up out of hash-anticipation.

To get home from Metro-North I got out at Marble Hill and took the "1" subway back to my neighborhood... and then it occurred to me... why didn't I do this coming up? I could have saved a ton of time! I guess it is only possible with this particular metro-north line, and I'd always taken the other lines before this trip. Never crossed my mind. So this hash taught me something useful. (well, maybe...)

-- OtherJack (talk) 16:22, 7 March 2015 (EST)