2021-06-10 41 -74

Thu 10 Jun 2021 in 41,-74: 41.4735022, -74.1733446 geohashing.info google osm bing/os kml crox

Location

A nearly impenetrable swamp that's part of Stewart State Forest in Rock Tavern, NY.

Participants

DMAJB

Expedition

Today's hash presented a great opportunity. Not only was it a chance for me to break into double digits with 10 successful expeditions, but it was the first time I was trying for hashes on consecutive days. On top of that, this would be my first expedition in the graticule immediately west of me, the graticule of Newburgh, New York. Because of all this, it would have been nice if today's expedition was somewhat memorable, to commemorate the occasion. Little did I know it would be more than memorable enough to meet my needs.

The drive wasn't obscenely long, and after a little time I pulled over when I saw the sign I was looking for, a sign that advertised Stewart State Forest. Unfortunately, there was a sign by the trailhead that read "No Parking", for whatever reason, so I decided to park in a gravel turnoff right up the road and walk there. This allowed me to stop by the [Cemetery] that was right on the side of the road, and you know it's always cool to check out an abandoned cemetery. I think the oldest grave I saw in there was from the 1820s, and there were plenty that were illegible enough to have been older. Really makes you think about the magnitude of change our society has gone through in the last 200 years, how quickly it's all changed compared to other times in history. Wild.

I got to the trail and starting walking down it, noticing that it was extremely overgrown for something that was marked as a road on Google Maps. I then came across an adorable little box turtle, without the distinct yellow you sometimes see on its shell but definitely a box turtle. I limited my photos of him so as to not annoy him, then a minute later I pulled out my phone to make sure I was on the right path. Turns out, I wasn't. I had turned off the road prematurely at the wrong Stewart State Forest sign. It wasn't a waste, since I got to see the graveyard and my turtle bro, but I still cursed my stupidity for not checking my location when I parked.

A couple minutes later, I found the right parking lot, where, for some reason, there was a rooster just chilling in the parking lot. No one else was in the parking lot, and it's not like there was a home right there. Had the rooster been brought there to walk with someone, or had he escaped from a yard across the street? Was there a population of feral roosters in the area? These are questions that will haunt me 'til my dying day. Anyways, this trail was much different than the first path, since it was a well-maintained gravel road that nevertheless still banned motor vehicles. Eventually I made a left onto another path, walked a bit, and made a discouraging discovery. The hash was just a little ways off the path in the woods, but the terrain was completely unconducive to walking. After a few steps, the ground turned into 75% stagnant water with a couple mossy root clumps poking up for me to jump across. Not my idea of a pleasant stroll, but I had to do what I had to do.

As hard as I tried to keep my feet dry, eventually both sneakers slipped into the muck, but I'm glad I didn't take a full-body tumble.

(to be continued)

Achievements

DMAJB earned the Consecutive geohash achievement by reaching hash points on 2 consecutive days starting on 2021-06-09.

This user earned the Land geohash achievement by reaching the (41, -74) geohash on 2021-06-10.