The "plan" was to hike to Upper Sargent Pond starting at the Minnewaska Conference Center near Blue Mountain Lake (Castle Rock Trail). But, I didn't get far before realizing that I wasn't going to make it to Upper Sargent (4.5 miles ). A mix of rain, freezing rain, and snow had fallen throughout the morning and a blustery wind was blowing. I delayed my departure until noon, hoping that the weather might improve, but it was still raining as I walked away from the car. On top of that, trail conditions alternated between soft, deep, snow and hard ice making for slow going.
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| An unnamed peak on the Castle Rock Ridge. |
After a slow three miles it was an easy call to turn back. I didn't have enough time to make it all the way to Upper Sargent and out before dark, and going back would make a couple of short side trips possible. The first would be a quarter mile bushwhack into the narrow valley between Little Blue Mountain and the Castle Rock Ridge to visit Helms Pond. The second would be a side jaunt up and over Castle Rock. The Castle Rock loop trail coincides with the Sargent Pond trail for the first mile and by going over Castle Rock I could return to the car by a different route.
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| The Castle Rock and Upper Sargent Pond Trails |
No One Goes Here
Depending on the activity of the local Beaver population, Helms pond is a series of swampy ponds or one larger body of water. The Sargent Pond trail passes within a quarter mile of Helms Pond but it's not exactly trivial to get to the waters edge. There's a steep descent down to the shoreline and the pond protected by a band of thick underbrush. In short, Helms Pond is uninspiring, out of the way, and not easy to get to. Stepping out of the thick growth, my first thought was, "no one goes here."
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| Little Blue Mountain (2800 ft) looms above Helms Pond. |
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| Looking north across Helms Pond towards little Blue Mountain. |
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| Looking east, down the length of Helms Pond. |
The Place That Everyone Visits
Castle Rock, on the other hand, is one of the most popular hikes in the region. The 3.5 mile loop route features iconic views of Blue Mountain Lake and the scramble up the last 200 feet to the top adds a bit of excitement. It's steep and exposed and, on the day of this outing, it was coated with a sheet of hard ice.
The views from Castle Rock are exceptional and it's relatively easy to reach the top. So a lot of people make the climb. The trail is heavily eroded and the summit area has been seriously degraded. Castle Rock is more of a tourist destination then a wild environment.
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| From Castle Rock looking east over Blue Mountain Lake. |
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| An apparently unnamed peak west of Castle Rock. Pine Pond sits just on the other side of this mountain so let's call it Pine Pond Mountain. |
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| A broader view including Pine Pond Mountain with Eagle Lake and Utowana Lake on the left. |
