IMPORTANT UPDATE (posted Monday 7/17 ~12:40PM)!!!     PLEASE NOTE RESCHEDULING OF THIS HIKE!!! – THE HIKE (ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED FOR MONDAY 7/17) HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED TO TUESDAY JULY 18TH (SAME TIME & PLACE).  RESCHEDULING IS DUE TO WEATHER CONCERNS FOR MONDAY EVENING.   ALL OTHER INFO REMAINS THE SAME.

FOR ANY POSSIBLE ADDITIONAL UPDATES – PLEASE CHECK THE FOGVG FACEBOOK PAGE.

**It should also be noted, subsequent to the hike, usually within a few days, often photos of the hike are posted on the FOGVG Facebook page.

An opportunity for a 7/17/2017 Monday hike, at Letchworth State Park, exists for ST hikers to join the members of Southern Tier Greenway Hiking group (STGH).  STGH is made up of hikers who hike the southern section of the Genesee Valley Greenway State Park (GVGSP aka GVG) and many more locations.  ST has hiked with some of these hikers during the Friends of Genesee Valley Greenway (FOGVG) annual event held in early November.  And some STGH hikers have joined-in on some ST hikes. The information about this Letchworth hike is as follows.  

Little Rock City (a rather unique hike destination) is located in Rock City State Forest, and as cities go, well, it is not a city in the traditional sense, as occupied by humans, … it is a city of rocks.   “Little Rock City” is one of three “Rock Cities” in Cattaraugus County, NY.   [For the curious … The other two are: Rock City Park (a privately owned tourist attraction of huge rock formations and more), and Thunder Rocks in Allegany State Park may be considered by some to be a rock city.]    Please don’t let “Little” in Little Rock City mislead you, the rocks are actually huge here, the diminutive is likely a mere delineation from the larger “Rock City Park”.

For Sunday, July 2nd 2017, ST has not planned a ST hike (that was announced at the 6/25 ST hike) .  BUT WAIT- do not be dismayed, here is a hike opportunity at Little Rock City that some ST hikers may be willing to travel to and find the hike well worth the distance of travel.  (This hike opportunity came to ST on Monday morning 6/26, and by Monday afternoon this hike got posted for ST and other hikers too.)

The Finger Lakes Trail (FLT) runs thru Rock City State Forest, as do some other trails.   Here is an opportunity to avail yourself of these trails with some like minded hikers.

This is a hike provided by the group Chautauqua Hikes, and likely you’ll be joined by some hikers from Olean Area Hiking Group (yes, the same group that ST did a joint hike with at Hanging Bog three or so years ago).  Hikes are open to other hikers.

The two paragraphs below in italics are the hike particulars as provided by “Chautauqua Hikes”.

Come out and join us for a hike at Little Rock City on Sunday July 2nd. Various skill levels are welcome.  We will meet at the park and ride on Rt 60 at 9:30am to carpool to the trail. This is a trail that we did a few times years ago but not recently. Bring
a lunch and water. Dress for the weather. The trial is hilly and rocky.
I’m not sure of the distance but we will be out all day, including travel
time. 

This state forest received its name due to the massive boulders the size of
houses which are naturally arranged so that they resemble a city with
“streets” running between them. This unique “city” is formed by many
factors including a massive resistant conglomerate bed, erosion of the weak
shale base and soil creep. The conglomerate bed actually has its own
geological designation known as Devonian Salamanca conglomerate. A
conglomerate is a rock consisting of individual stones that have become
cemented together.

 – – Please note, the carpool point (park & ride on Rt 60 at 9:30am)  listed in the two italics paragraphs above is not one that ST hikers would use, as it is in Jamestown area well west of Little Rock City.  ST hikers would be coming from the east.

Basics of this hike – for ST hikers:

Hike start time for this “Little Rock City” hike is targeted as 10:30AM.  Hike Leader is Eileen of Chautauqua Hikes.  Bring a lunch and water.  Dress for the weather. The trial is hilly and rocky. Various skill levels of hikers are welcome.

Parking for this hike and Hike start locale are both at the former CCC Camp Seneca on the west side of Hungry Hollow Rd.      Map or GPS coordinates ~  42.224246, -78.699124  

Carpool for ST hikers   Carpool (unsupervised) is at Springwater Town Hall with gathering time at 8:05AM and depart time of 8:15AM.  (A potential carpool point in Wayland is under consideration at present.)  

Driving Directions (from Springwater Town Hall):  Drive time to the hike from Springwater is ~ 2 hours.    Rt 15 south; to Rt 21 south; to Rt 36 north (very briefly) ; to Rt 17 Southern Tier Expressway (aka I-86) west.  From Southern Tier expressway take Exit 23 to Rt 219 north (Business) / Rt 417.  From 219 north / Rt 417 turn right onto Killbuck Rd (aka Co Rd 49), which will eventually merge back into Rt 219 north.  Continue briefly on Rt 219 north (aka Buffalo-Pittsburgh Hwy, likely named for the routing of the railroad of same name) crossing over Great Valley Creek, then just past Great Valley Creek and the large antique place on the left turn left onto Hungry Hollow Rd.  The CCC Camp Seneca parking area is a couple miles down Hungry Hollow Rd on the left/west.     – – –  Hint:The parking area is a short distance after passing Perrault Rd which intersects Hungry Hollow Rd (on the right/east).  If you reach the intersect of McCarthy Hill Rd (on the right/north) while on Hungry Hollow Rd you’ve gone to far. 

Map or GPS coordinates (approximate) for CCC Camp Seneca parking area (trailhead access to Little Rock City) ~  42.224246, -78.699124  ( A reminder: Bear in mind in some areas, especially more remote areas, GPS units may not give accurate routing directions.   Oooo, err, uhmm, RECALCULATING.  ;~)

 – – – (optional, not required) – – –   Interested hikers should feel free to “log-in” to the ST website (as an authorized user) and post “comments” to this post (perhaps confirm who is going and advance carpool arrangements, etc).    (Alternatively, you may also send an e-mail to: damhikes [at] springwatertrails.org ; and communications efforts can be coordinated via e-mail.)

As a primer, here at two links about Rock City State Forest (and more), both are on CNYhiking website.  You’ll find some photos of Little Rock City in the links.  – – A shout out of “THANKS” to Ed of CNYhiking for the plethora of fantastic info he has cataloged  for use by hikers and other outdoor enthusiasts … all listed in the CNYhiking.com website!

http://www.cnyhiking.com/RockCityStateForest.htm

http://www.cnyhiking.com/NCT-RockCityStateForest.htm

>>> most recent update to this hike event post by author – Friday 6/30/2017 ~ 12:25PM <<<

Please check this post for any additional info or changes as we approach hike day.

Just Sayin’ … after the hike, when returning to the Finger Lakes area, hikers may wish to consider taking in the free concert performed by Bluegrass group “South 79” at Vitale Park located at the head of Conesus Lake in Lakeville.  Concert time is 6-8PM.  Parking may be a bit of a challenge, … none-the-less an additional chance to kick-back and get in some recreatin’ on a Sunday of Independence Day weekend.

Lastly, a suggestion, toward a future ST hike. …  If you go to this Little Rock City hike, perhaps keep a perspective eye toward possibility of planning a future ST hike at Little Rock City, which for sure would be a rare distance travel exception hike for ST if our  group decides there is willingness to make the travel.

For the last two years the happy kayakers have ventured out into the center of the Annual Conesus Lake Ring of Fire, while others less willing or non-kayakers enjoyed watching the fireworks from the shore. This year Springwater Trails is invited to join the happy kayakers for a picnic at 6:00 at Long Point Park in Geneseo to celebrate the 4th of July. The kayaking will launch at 8:00 and return at 10:00.

Because Conesus Lake can be rough at times and because of the return in darkness, only experienced kayakers will participate.  Also, we’ll only kayak if the weather is favorable.

Thanks to Jim Clark, Marine Patrol on Conesus Lake, we have the privilege of grouping at the Sheriff’s Substation on the lake.  The park is expected to be crowded to we will need to limit the number of hikers to 20. Please RSVP if you are planning to join us.

Fireworks are loud and close by. Dogs on leashes are allowed, but not encouraged for the comfort of both the dog and other spectators.

Traffic will be heavy, so plan ahead.  Please arrive at 6:00 to drop off your kayaks and park on the grounds. Bring a dish to pass, a beverage, a lawn chair or blanket, flashlight,  and mosquito repellent.  We will picnic at 7:00.  The excitement begins around dusk. 

Kayakers will need to have not only life preservers, but headlamps and bright lights on their boats as we will be on the lake amidst motorboats. Staying close to the shoreline, we will experience seeing the Ring of Fire from the lake.  We must stick close together and have a buddy system since it is easy to get disorientated in the dark.  Caution should be taken to avoid other boats and to be as bright as possible.  In addition, powerful fireworks will explode directly overhead and some sparkles may be hitting the water around us.  Communication is important. We will return to Long Point, planning additional  time to secure your kayak on your car in the dark.

The Conesus Lake of Fire is an incredible local event in our area. If you have not experienced it, come join us for a fun, memorable time!