Start at the parking area in Platte Clove, sign the register, and hike up the old woods road. There are several junctions with other woods roads and signage is sparse, so keep an eye for the few helpful blazes and unofficial signposts.

The wetness begins immediately…

Mohawk Camp & 1987 Plane Wreck

You can read a detailed description of how to find the Mohawk Indian Camp and both plane wrecks in Kaaterskill high Peak & 2 Plane Wrecks, but the GPS track attached to this blog post will bring you to each of those locations too.

Above the Mohawk camp, you’ll pop out onto the snowmobile trail. Turn left/west and begin the slog through increasingly wet trail…

Pass the first, small plane wreck which is right on the snowmobile trail…

There weren’t many dry spots on this part of the trail so we made the most of them…

Herd Path to Hurricane Ledge

Look for this rock formation that marks the beginning of the herd path to Hurricane Ledge. It’s not much of a marker, and in winter will likely be covered in snow. A good reminder to rethink your plan to hike this route in winter.

The herd path to Hurricane Ledge is steep, then it gets steeper, and then it gets sketchy steep.

There are actually two ledges to climb.

The first ledge, at 3300’ feet, isn‘t too bad. It leads to a flat area. At the top of the first ledge, head east/right to get to the base of Hurricane Ledge proper, which looks like this…

…and this…

When I got near the top of this section, I found myself inside a small chimney and was met with a problem that took me five minutes to screw up the courage to deal with. It was like climbing into a giant’s mouth and finding yourself in a gap where a tooth has fallen out. The day was also warm enough that the snow and ice above was melting and water was pouring through the chute. Eventually, I found my footing and was able to pull myself up.

My buddy scooted up through the chute in just a few seconds, LOL…

I swear it looked worse from below!

It’s worth repeating: the rock chute, here, sits at the edge of a cliff where the margin for error is zero. This climb should only be attempted by experienced mountain hikers when it’s ice-free.

Hurricane Ledge is at 3400’…

To get the most of the view from Hurricane Ledge, arrive as early in the day as you can. In the late afternoon, the sun shines directly in your face and the view looks like this (kinda washed out)…

Earlier in the day, the light hits the valley from behind and lights up the Devils Path mountains just right…

Summit & 1983 Plane Wreck

From the ledge, we hiked up to the summit, signed in at the canister, and visited the second plane wreck…

There is a partial view of North/South Lake near the plane wreck…

Descent & Walk Out

The long descent from Kaaterskill High peak and the long walk out are both — long! (But we definitely didn’t want to climb back down Hurricane Ledge.)

The herd path leads down from the summit on the north side of the mountain. There are some peekaboo views on the way down…

The herd path here is very rugged and wet…

Eventually, you’ll make it to the junction with the snowmobile loop. Turn right and you’ll quickly arrive at a second junction.

At the second junction, you can choose to continue along the snowmobile trail, then make your way down to the Mohawk Camp and hike out the way you came, following the blue blazes of the main trail when you find them.

Or you can take the short connector trail further downhill to a third junction, then again head right along the main trail, following the blue blazes through the Pine Plains and all the way back to the trailhead.

Don’t forget to sign out.