Hell Hole, Bridges, Anthony's Nose....

Bet you wonner wot I woz up to today with a title like that?   We woz at Bear Mountain State Park fur hiking but not fur the museums, zoo, merry-goes-around and all that udder stuffs.  Well, fur one, I is not allowed there being a dog and all.  Nope, we went hiking up to the Popolopen Torne, then down to Hell Hole wot also be knowed as Popolopen Gorge where Popolopen Creek runs through (see there be too many Popolopens so we go with Hell Hole) then over Bear Mountain Bridge then up Anthony's Nose....  OK, I think I lost you all.  You will has to follow along.

So furst off we climbed up Popolopen Torne. Thank dogness mom's new hiking shoes commed the udder day coz she needed them fur this hike.  She got Vasque Scree shoes with STEALTH rubber soles!  They be speshull fur slickery rawk climbing.

Common Spideywoman, show us how those new shoes werk.

Holy smokes, mom climbed rite up that skeery steep rawk like she had sucshun cups on her feets, even better then my paws if'n you can beleef that!

So we get to the top and OMD, there be that cloud hanging ofur the mountain again just like in Furginia.

We could see nuttin where the seeniks be in the East.  No worries, we climbed this mountain again at the end of the hike when the cloud woz gone and I gonna show you those seeniks now cuz you has to see were we be going soon.  In a bit we is going to be walking across the Hudson River on that Bear Mountain Bridge and climbing up Anthony's Nose. (But in this pikshure we had alreddy been there.)

So now, you mite be wonnering why that mountain be called Anthony's Nose.  Well, it is supposed to look like this Cyranac dude's snooter, ya think?

This be wot Wikipedia say about it:

"Pierre Van Cortlandt, who owned this mountain, said it was named for a pre-Revolutionary War sea captain, Anthony Hogan. This captain was reputed to have a Cyrano de Bergerac type nose. One of his mates, looking at this mount, as they sailed by it, compared it to that of the captain's nose. He said that they looked similar in size. This good-natured joke soon spread, and the name Anthony's Nose stuck to this peak."

I just didn't want you all to think I woz really climbing up a nose.

The udder side, to the West, there we woz above the clouds so we could see stuffs. Sorta.

We is above the cloud.

Oh my dog, wot be this?

It do be a memorial fur soldiers. I biggify the signs fur you so you can read about it.

 Now, onward and downward to.....Hell Hole!

You has to hear the water to fully appreciate why this be called Hell Hole - it be CRAZEE LOWD and that water be CRASHING and I woz not allowed in it coz mom say I get smashed to pieces.



So after walking along the gorge to where the Popolopen Creek comes out in the Hudson River, we headed fur the Bear Mountain Bridge.  Did you efur wonner how that Appalachian Trail gets across the rivers and stuffs?  Well I found out how! It goes rite ofur the Hudson River on the Bear Mountain Bridge that we be crossing ofur on and the Appalachian Trail goes part of the way up Anthony's Nose, too!  This sign be rite at the toll booths coz cars has to stop and pay green papers to cross the bridge but us pawdestrians duss not has to pay.

When the bridge woz opened in 1924

Peeps wot builded the bridge in the olden days.

Seenik from on the bridge.

So we gotted ofur to the udder side and climbed up Anthony's Nose.  Up at the top we could see where we commed from!

Hasing some noms on Anthony's Nose

Then we headed back down to cross back ofur the Bear Mountain Bridge.

Going back the udder way...

Checking out the seeniks again.

Then after we got ofur the bridge, OMD, I runned into some kin and we had a little fambly reunion.  Hey sistahs!

They woz both adopted, the one on the left from a rescue group and the one in the middull next to me the peeples just adopted a week ago. Her doodyhed dad, wot did not even send any luggages with her, did not want her any mores and woz going to put her in the shelter.  Her new fambly taked her afore he could do that.  We had a blast visiting while our peeples did yak, yak, yak, yak...

Then we hiked around this lake on our way back to the car:

Duss you see all those geesers? They woz not happy with me being there and I biggify to show you why:

Little baby geesers!  AWWWWWW!  We had to hurry up and take the pikshure and move it along coz mom and dad was hasing a conipshun.  No worries, I not hurt the babies!

So when we got back to the car, mom snarfed down her Starbucks Frappuccino and I had some cold water from the kewler and once we woz reenergized, we climbed that Popolopen Torne again fur the seeniks wot I alreddy showed you.  I needs a big nap now.