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By Kellan Davidson
ITHACA, NY— Avid hiker Paul Warrender tussles the hair of his brittany spaniel, Roxy, as he prepares to embark on his weekly 10-mile hike.
Warrender is a seasoned hiker; he spent many years hiking the trails in Northern New England and Western Massachusetts before moving to Ithaca in August 2009. Since moving to Ithaca he has become a member of one of the most popular hiking groups in the Ithaca area, the Cayuga Trails Club.
Bare branches weave intricate patterns overhead, dappling the Rim Trail of Robert H. Treman Park with sunlight. It is unseasonably warm for April, but Warrender sticks to the trails he knows are open.
“Trail closures are for very good reason. Here in the Finger Lakes, winter and early spring trail closures can make more sense than one might think,” Warrender says.
Many of the trails that run along the Ithaca gorges are fenced off at the moment and boldly posted as being closed. Any paths that are bordered by steep cliff faces can represent particular danger to hikers.
John Guilford, the 5th year manager of Buttermilk Falls State Park, says, “Colder temperatures in the evening will freeze water along a cliff face, when it melts there could be as much as a half-pound to a pound worth of icicles that can fall from as high as 150 feet, that can pose a serious hazard to hikers.”
Some trails are closed in November and cannot reopen till June, as the ice can cause safety hazards well after it has melted. The expanded ice may wedge its way between rocks and the soil or layers of rock in sedimentary cliff faces. When the ice thaws the rock may be jarred loose and could fall on hikers or cause the trails to give out.
“Depending on the area, some of these broken pieces fall a hundred feet or more and we’re not talking about small stones. Often, stones weighing hundreds of pounds come crashing down without notice, certainly not an ideal place to be hiking at the time,” says Warrender.
Maintenance staff at Buttermilk Falls State Park must travel on each trail, carrying poles to safely knock down rocks and icicles every 25 feet. The trails must then be manicured to ensure their structural stability.
To make sure that hikers know which trails are suitable for hiking, Buttermilk Falls fields calls through their regional office to tell which trails are open or closed at any given point in time.
The State Parks that house the trails are not the only ones spreading the message about the dangers of hiking on closed trails. The Ithaca Office of Fire Prevention (a branch of the Ithaca Fire Department) also posted a warning on the City of Ithaca website.
The Ithaca Fire Department is part of the first-response team when things go awry on the hiking trails in the Ithaca Area. “All firefighters are trained to some level in water and rope rescue, though some are more proficient than others,” says Fire Chief, J. Thomas Dorman.
Dorman says that they are called in on 5 to 10 rescue situations in the area surrounding the gorges every year. He says most of them are broken legs or ankles, injuries he describes as minor.
Correct water rescue procedure can be one of the most important things to know in the Ithaca area as a rescue worker. The water in the gorges below most hiking trails are in the 40-degree range well into the spring. An individual can suffer from hypothermia within minutes of hitting water of this temperature and be physically unable to save him or herself.
For this reason, the Ithaca Fire Department is well outfitted to deal with these emergencies. The fire department has two motorboats, (one that is inflatable and can fit into the back of a rig), personal flotation devices (PFDs), helmets, yards and yards of rope, dry suits and throw bags amongst others. “I couldn’t even name all of the equipment we have off-hand,” says Thomas
Safety on the trails starts with the hikers, however. It is imperative that hikers abide by the postings on trails and only walk on trails that are open. “Hikers should always come prepared with good footgear and water,” says Guilford.
“Instead of hiking on a closed trail, find a trail that isn’t closed; I can tell you from first-hand experience never to take Mother Nature for granted,” says Warrender as he begins another endeavor into Ithaca’s beautiful scenery.
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