THE ICE MITES

Hiking Panther Mountain via Giant Ledge

December 18, 1999

By Larry Allen (#1277) and Kevin Wagner (#1283)

No matter how many times you walk a trail or climb a mountain in the ‘Skills, you will always be awarded with a unique and everlasting experience.

Our first hike to Panther Mountain was nearly a decade ago, in February of 1998, on a cold and cloudy day. We had already successfully attempted and bagged our first winter peak, and were looking to take our second one.

As we reached the top of Giant Ledge, we also reached the base of the clouds. That alone was a unique life experience as we then began hiking in a fog, knowing that below us and below the Ledge was clearer air and partial views of the distant cloves. Today, there were no distant views that the Ledge would typically afford a day hiker. On the very same hike, on a different day, the landscape and views can change and the adventurous hiker will be introduced to other remarkable scenes of the Catskill Mountains.

The following December, we planned an overnight, two-day hike to Panther Mountain by way of Giant Ledge. It's December eighteenth near midday as we arrive at the Giant Ledge parking area.  The temperature is in the low twenties, but we are prepared for these elements. We check our supplies as we pack up and strap in: Tent, sleeping bags, stove, food, drinks, and a cell phone. Kevin brings along a ridge rest, and Larry has a small home-made square fashioned from foam for an experimental ground pad. Our packs are expectedly heavy. Since it's Larry's birthday, Kevin acts as the “pack mule” carrying the heavier supplies.

The hike to Giant Ledge is normally a mild climb, but with the addition of snow, ice, and extraordinarily heavy backpacks, we're both feeling a little strained on the approach to the Ledge. Our crampons help ease our climb as it prevents us from slipping on the packed snow and ice.

On this day, Giant Ledge offers exceptional views. To the South lies Whittenburg, Cornell, and, Slide with Friday just visible in the background. To the East is the Devils Path with Plateau, Sugarloaf, Twin, and Indian Head. We can also see Hunter Mountain toward the Northeast and Panther to the North. Next to Huckleberry Point, this area offers some of the most breathtaking vistas in all of the Catskills.
Here we stand on Giant Ledge where the cliff drops precipitously over three hundred feet straight down to tree tops. The view almost induces vertigo, and is a memorable view as you look down into the trees that look so close, yet so small. The clean, crisp air and the clear, blue sky combine to give us views at their best. Even the ice on the ground and in the trees sparkles.

After finding a suitable camping area, we set up camp near the edge of the cliff. We fix a tasty dinner of canned beef stew with biscuits and hot coffee as we discuss the day’s journey and sights so far.
After dinner, we explore the Ledge more completely. As the sun starts to set, we make our way to the cliffs on the western edge of the Ledge and take pictures of Fir and Big Indian.

As the sun drops below the horizon, so, too, does the temperature. The ice-glazed Giant Ledge glimmers from the waxing moon as we walk back to camp with the assistance of headlamps.

It's completely dark at 05:00 PM. Our excitement of winter camping wanes as there is now little to do with ourselves. We talk some more, clean up around the campsite, hang our food from a tree limb, and then sit on the Ledge and watch lights flicker miles away. Boredom sets in and Kevin starts to pace to and fro. Larry listens to ice crunch beneath Kevin's crampons. The sound of crunching ice fades into the forest as Kevin searches for firewood. Useable downed and dead limbs are scarce in this part of the Ledge. Not only have the available firewood been picked over by previous campers, but what is available is coated with snow and ice.

The sounds of this night are of crunching ice and snapping wood. The distant lights are replaced by headlamps searching the night.

Kevin shreds paper and makes a teepee of the best and driest twigs. Well, the least damp twigs. None of the wood was exactly “dry.” Larry provides small pieces of waxed cardboard he carries and the campfire finally pours forth light and heat.

Every overnighter needs a camp fire. What is a camp without breathing smoke and watery eyes? It all comes in a single package.

For three hours, we busy ourselves dodging smoke as we try to keep a small flickering fire burning on a sheet of ice. Fun comes in funny flavors. About 09:00 PM, we burn out along with the fire and crawl into our tent. It was like leaving a freezer and entering an ice box. We try in vain to keep warm. We were lying on ice with outside temperatures in the single digits.

Larry's foam ground pad was almost useless, so it became a pillow. One ground pad was reluctantly shared. Noise filled the tent. Larry snored as he breathed both in and out. An achievement not many master.

We're awake by 04:00 AM stirring and wanting to get out of the ice box and back into the freezer. At 06:00 AM, we enjoy a breakfast of steamed sausage links and instant coffee.  From our hiking book of phrases: "If you don't like it, take it when you hike." Canned beef stew, steamed sausage, and instant coffee are almost enjoyable while camping, but most any other time, they are just barely palatable. Just after breakfast, we see the most glorious sight ever seen in the Catskills: the sun rise. The sun brings with it relative, glorious warmth. The soft morning glow of the sun rising was a welcome sight. We watched the dawn sitting on the ledge as the sun rose over Whittenburg.

We take our crampons, lunch, and drinks as we head to Panther. The ice makes traveling tricky as we drop into the saddle between the Ledge and Panther Mountain.

As we start climbing Panther, we are able to gauge our progress by looking back at Giant Ledge.
Two hours from when we left, we reach the 3500 feet sign. At 3600 feet, Panther is the "Land of Ice." The trees, each branch and every needle is covered with rime, looking like hard tack candies.
The trees bend with the weight of the ice. Our path is narrow and low. We notice that the ice clinging to the evergreen branches is cylindrical, not teardrop in shape, as we would have expected. The balsam needles are united in a rippled coat of ice. The top of Panther is a wonderland of Nature’s ice sculptures. The view from the summit of Panther Mountain is partially obstructed by new growth, but is splendid nevertheless. The air up here is crisp and cold.

On our way back to the Ledge, we stop for lunch on the South face of Panther. Just off the trail, we find another beautiful vista. Most notable is the scope of Giant Ledge rising out of the col.
We dub this spot, “Triple-A Ledge,” a shear drop of 200 feet into the beginning of Dougherty Clove.
It is here on our “Triple-A Ledge” that we see for the first time the "Ice Mites.” We stood just below the cloud cover and looked out into the valley and the world below when we saw the most amazing of creatures dancing in the air.

“Ice Mites” are those minute particles of ice and crystallized vapor that we saw floating upwards in the air. The sun-warmed air deeper in the clove rose up through the clove, bringing the ice mites swarming and dancing upward towards us. It was the most incredible sight. The Ice Mites seemed to be migrating by the millions. Alive as they swarmed all around and above us. Reflecting in the sunlight, they clustered and swarmed across Dougherty Clove in front of the cloud shadow. It seemed to us that we could reach out and touch them, but in reality, the Ice Mites disappeared and melted just before reaching our fingertips.
The Ice Mites were the frosting of our hike, the icing on the cake, so to speak.

We leave Panther, Giant Ledge and the Ice Mites to "Tomorrow's Travelers." It is our hope that the Ice Mites are just as alive for you as they were for us.

The Catskill Region offers more than trails and peaks. The Catskills offer adventure, fun, and new experiences in every hike. At the right time, there is the elusive Ice Mite dance every winter for those who are adventurous enough to look.