"Took the Beck Hollow Trail. Intermittent snow when nearing the top and on the way down. The wind was strong for the last 1 mile. Tower was closed and view was cloudy. The sky cleared up on the decent. Definitely recommend microspikes and poles. Snow was 12-16 inches deep in some spots, so be careful to stay on the trail. Trail area was somewhat packed down at the beginning and progressively got softer towards the top. You can definitely tell where people stopped and turned around." — kevinchazhikattu • Dec 13, 2025

"Skies were clear after the week of rain. Some of the trail still had some ponding and mud, but all in areas where you could walk around it. Saw a snake friend along the way too." — kevinchazhikattu • Sep 28, 2025

"Did a mixed bag of peaks with friends Tom R, Tom M, Tony and Danielle. Started off with BP and Vly out of Johnson Hollow(Rt 3). Tom M brought his magic car( Subie Solterra) and drove the five of us up to the col with the hunters cabin. This saved us the monotonous walk up and down the gravel road. Next up Halcott on our way out of the hollow. Doing Halcott from the “backside”( a small PA off Elk Creek road) is a nice change from the usual PA in deep notch on Rt 42. An easy whack especially once most of the climbing is done. A good herd path has been established right to the canister. Finally we head over to Mill Brook road PA for a stroll up to the fire tower atop BLM. A leisurely sit-down at the picnic table ensued with snacks and bevs." — Nimblefoot • Aug 19, 2025

"I was doing this hike for a NY View and Brew gain. I was also checking out the newer trail that came up from Denning Rd. I started early and headed up. There were stone steps along this trail, which was nice. I reached the junction with the Dinch Rd Connector Tr and continued my ascent. I then reached Red Hill. Nice views from the fire tower. The cab was closed. I headed down the same way I came up. " — newenglandwarrior • Aug 9, 2025

"Met Mimi at the end of CR 3, which was recently resurfaced, to stroll up to the canister on Vly then over to Bearpen before heading back. The recent heat wave has dried up the usual wet spots fairly well on the final road section to BP. Heavy haze blocked the usual views. To finish our day we headed over to Mill Brook road TH to take a stroll up to the canister on BLM. Surprisingly for a Monday the PA was almost full, I got one the last spots. With our late start and casual pace everyone else was heading out so we basically had the summit to ourselves. Second day in a row where I’m heading home after 6 pm and getting home close to 9pm. " — Nimblefoot • Aug 4, 2025