Brace Mountain

"My second hike of the day. Hiked up from the New York side and hiked up Alander first. Saw a couple of timber rattlesnakes near the summit. After this, I dropped down and followed the South Taconic Tr for a couple of miles. I then headed over to Frissell. I touched the CT high point on the slope of Frissell and signed into the ammo canister there. There were some nice views looking south as the mountain drops off. I then reached the wooded summit of Frissell. Just off trail, there is another army canister. So I signed into that. I then doubled back and made my way over to Brace for the county high point. There are some great views looking westward here. Even though there was a solid cloud ceiling, I could still make out the Catskills. I then headed north and back to the trailhead. " — newenglandwarrior • Aug 29, 2024

"CT is one of only three US state high points that are the highest point in a state but not technically the summit of the hill or mountain. Meaning that Mt. Frissell CT is the highest point in the state, but the mountain continues up to top out at Frissell’s true summit a bit further north in Massachusetts. From there we went on to find the CT/MA/NY tri-state marker and hiked the ridge out into NY state. Not the most challenging of the state high points, but a fun one nonetheless. It’s not about the destination, or the journey even - it’s about the company! 20/50 now! " — wiweasel • Jun 25, 2024

"Out and back from Rudd Pond state park starting and finishing on different red blazed side trails. My first time on this 6 mile section of the South Taconic trail up to the Quarry Rd side trail junction. The trail resembles more of a herd path rather than a marked trail in spots. " — Nimblefoot • Sep 19, 2021

"Beautiful day for a short romp on the South Taconic and Mt. Frissell trails. An easy whack off of Mt Frissell to visit Mt Ashley. The mountain laurel was a bit scratchy on bare legs and surprisingly found numerous piles of moose droppings. To finish my day I headed over to the mighty Old Croken in the Drowned Land Swamp Conservation Area. The summit trail is basically an old road that provides a nice punchy climb to a bench for your viewing pleasure of the Harlem Valley and Taconic ridge. A short walk in the woods brings you to the summit pole. Spotted my first wild columbine of the season in full bloom." — Nimblefoot • May 11, 2021

"Out on another spring day in the middle of winter. Cloudy blue sky and sunshine with temperature rising through the 60’s to 70 in the afternoon. From South Brace it was only a hop, skip and giggle over to the larger cairn on the slightly higher summit of Brace. The American flag needs to be replaced as its mostly stars with a few strips. A breeze picks up so I continue on after taking in the views." — Nimblefoot • Feb 21, 2018

"Six of us hiked the South Taconic trail from Quarry Hill road side trail to the Alander Brook trail on a rather dreary day. Low clouds all day with on and off sprinkles in the morning. The rocks were wet and slippery and the bushes, needing a lot of trimming, were also wet so we were damp most of the day. On the upside the blueberries were plentiful and sweet." — Nimblefoot • Jul 25, 2017

"Hiked Brace Mountain on a frosty Sunday morning. Due to the many leaves on the ground the trail was extremely slippery and there was ice on the rocky parts but the hike was just beautiful." — jag • Nov 29, 2015

"Hiked with Tommy. In conjunction with Alander & Frissell. Hail, a fierce and persistent downpour, and a drowned cellphone in addition to a crappy map made for an interesting day." — kellieirene • Oct 18, 2014

"After spending the night on top of Alander mtn. we continued along the South Taconic trail over Brace and S. Brace. Enjoyed the views and the aerial maneuvers of three paragliders from the summit. Went down for a swim in Riga Lake before ending our backpack at Quarry Hill road." — Nimblefoot • Jun 26, 1994