All I see is green and waterfalls... [Platte Cove, Catskills]

One week before our trip to Iceland, we decided to make one last hiking trip upstate. It's also a good excuse to explore more of the Hudson Valley, break into our new backpacks even more, and make sure our legs and thighs are ready for all the hiking/exploring we have planned for the land of ice. 

We drove to Upper Platte Cove in the Catskills to do one of the many trails available there. We had planned to do a long 4-5 hour hike but we got distracted in the town of Hudson (Hudson's farmer's market, brunching and shopping) and decided to do a shorter trail instead.  

When we arrived at the trail, we followed one trail marker which brought us to a beautiful waterfall- Plattekill Falls. After that, we had trouble following the trail markers and started going off-trail to explore. This led us to the top of another waterfall and then seeing it once more from afar. When we realized that we were going astray for too long (or just didn't feel like falling to our death), we returned to our car and decided to see what the other fork at the beginning of the trail offered. This led to the Overlook Bridge. Turns out, we were not on the trail we had initially planned the whole time but by that time, we had already wandered for two hours and it was too late to start a new trail. We did hike it a little just to see what we we missed out on but it got a bit boring and the first overlook was over maybe 2 miles away. Also, a bear sighting warning sign posted at the beginning of the trail made us a bit wary about continuing (We got to use our clip-integrated whistles on our backpack to scare off bears just for fun!) 

It was a really beautiful day for hiking. Knowing that there are other beautiful waterfalls out there in the Catskills makes me want to return over and over again. Summer is almost over and I wonder why we did not do this sooner. That waterfall looked perfect for a dip! Hiking during the Fall time will actually be just as beautiful especially with the leaf changing season. Can't wait!

Up in the Hudson Valley in Kingston

Picture taken by Café East after our meal 

Before our mini hiking trip up at North-Point in the Catskills, we had the chance to fuel up (carb-wise) in the little town of Kingston in the Hudson Valley. We checked out a green market and although there was a great variety of fresh, locally-made pastries and delectables we didn't get to try everything. I was tempted to buy jars of homemade spreads, pickles and unprocessed raw honey but resisted. Dave had a gluten-free cheese and spinach bread while I tried a cup of black currant juice. Our main meal was a seafood paella from the market (yes, very Hudson Valley-like I know) and a plate of pad-thai from a local restaurant nearby; Café East. It was all very interesting which makes us want to check out more little towns in upstate NY and see what each one has to offer.

I survived camping...and got some great pictures too!

It is always nice to take a little getaway from the city.

Find inner peace

13 young adults leave their homes to set out in the wilderness for one night at Little Pond in Catskills NY.

After overcoming all the crappy things that come with camping such as: bugs, mud, cold, dirt, no hot showers, bear threats,  I went camping with an open mind and had a really good time although I could not wait to come home to take a shower. I prepped myself with 3 things I found important: 1. Bug repellent 2. Wet wipes (for face and body) 3 Marshmallows.  The highlight of the trip was to see a real live bald eagle over the pond. An adult and a juvenile one on different days. I felt blessed to see a rare bird like that. We also saw chipmunks, frogs, snakes, woodpeckers and fortunately no bears.

Tent for 4

We went hiking for a couple of hours

There's a juvenile bald eagle in this picture at Little Pond. Spot him?

We thought he looked like a gummy

Totoro is home