Travel: August 2006 Archives

Last time we went hiking, we went to Bear Mountain and climbed the rather uninspiring paved trail to the top. This time, we got a wee bit smarter and looked at a hiking book, which recommended a trail at Harriman State Park (a close cousin of Bear Mountain). Because of our late arrival, we could only do a three-hour hike, but that hike was everything we wanted our Bear Mountain hike to be, and more. We got to see abandoned iron mines, watch chipmunks hide in hollow logs and see deer munching on grass knolls. We were also notably far enough from civilization to not be reminded of it. The above photo is our the money shot.

After the hike, we drove another half hour to Beacon, where we dined at the town's only Southern barbecue joint, the Piggy Bank. This was our second time at the restaurant located in an old bank, and though the ribs weren't quite as good as we remembered, it's still a pretty great place to go if you're in the area. This time, the fried okra spears and the Carolina pulled pork were the winners, as is the very cheap draft beer ($4). The photo at left is from the Piggy Bank's website. My outdoor photo didn't turn out very well, so I'm deferring to the official shot.