Our hike on Sunday will explore the Cohocton River and the Dutch Hill Wind Farms. Bring your binoculars.
We will start out at the corner of Beecher Street and Route 36 in the hamlet of Atlanta. Parking will be at the building with the red/white and blue roof on the corner. (Next door to the Mt. View Inn parking lot.) We will leave promptly at 2pm.
The hike will start on a flat 1.4 mile trail owned by the Atlanta North Cohocton Club (ANC) from Beecher Street to Parks Rd and runs between the B&H Railroad, an active rail system that runs from Painted Post to Avon, and the Cohocton River. Since the river has overflown its banks there is one 4’ section that may require you to have mid-high hiking boots.
About quarter of the way the Naturalist will detour off the trail to investigate an area owned by Gratten and Joan Wallace who have made a wildlife lookout around the Cohocton River bank. Bring your binoculars so when you climb to the birdhouse you will be able to see from bank to bank.
The Cohocton River changes from East flowing to South flowing in Atlanta. The Naturalist will reenter the ANC trail and continue on to Parks Road or further as far as time permits. Once you leave Parks Road we will be on a 4 mile trail to Wayland owned by the Dept. Environmental Conservation with fishing rights access at various points. A portion of the Wallace land has been given to the Federal Government for a Federal preserve as you will see signage for this along the way. Naturalist will then turn around and head back to the parking area.
The Tourist and Climbers complete the trail to Parks Road and then cross Route 36 for 4 tenths of a mile and begin the 400 foot climb up the seasonal Dutch Hill Road for another mile arriving at close to 1800 feet. I think it has been too cold yet for the protected trillium flower but you never know. I have even seen the rare red ones on these hills many years ago. We have been given permission by land owners to wander off the road if we see something that needs to be investigated more thoroughly.
When the climbers and Tourist reach the top of Dutch Hill Road they will continue hiking 1.5 miles through the fifteen wind turbines that make up the Dutch Hill Wind Farm, a portion of the fifty wind turbines of the Cohocton Wind Farm located in Steuben County. We will follow Fleischman Rd, an abandon dirt road, which is used by area farmers to reach their fields. So this may be muddy if we have had rain. The turbines are the Liberty Wind Turbine, the largest found in the United States and rise 420 feet above ground, 125 Megawatts that use 2.5 MW Clipper Windpower. The Cohocton Wind Farm provides power for about 50,000 Northeast homes. Installation was in 2008 and was developed and operated by First Wind. A turbine produces the equivalent of 650,000 barrels of oil or 160,000 ton of coal a year.
When we leave the windmills the climbers will continue down seasonal Shults Hill Road which is flank on both sides by woodlands. The tourist will take a slower pace and come down Davis Hollow Road. Cars for the return trip to the parking area will be stationed at the end of these two roads to bring you back to Atlanta.
The after hike social will be at Cheryl’s. Food can be dropped off before the hike if need be.
Click here for directions to Atlanta. (that is NY, not GA)