Yesterday we drove from Manhattan through the lower Hudson Valley to Highland Mills which is a short and beautiful one hour drive. This ride takes you over the George Washington Bridge, with it’s wonderful view of the city and of the Jersey shore, up the Palisades Parkway and through Harriman State Park.

As we drove north, there was snow on the ground and frozen waterfalls dripping from stone cliffs, Canada Geese in flight, Crows and a Red-Tail Hawk. 

There are many aspects of “nature” within the city but to suddenly be surrounded by nature just steps outside of the city is always wonderful.

If you drive up Perkins Memorial Drive, to the top of Bear Mountain, and look towards NYC, you can see across the rolling mountains of the park and the city appears like the city of Oz in the distance. It gives the crazy illusion that there is nothing between you and NYC when in reality a zillion and half people live in the areas in between.

Bear Mountain earned it’s name from the shape of the mountain not from bear residents. Across the Hudson River is a mountain called Anthony’s Nose.

At our destination, we saw three Wild Turkeys, high-stepping through the woods and over quiet lawns looking for food. There were White-Tail Deer running in fright at our presence. These deer run from humans perhaps because they are still wild animals and not tamed, and there are hunters in the area.

This is completely unlike the Deer on Fire Island who walk up to see who you are, ask who you are visiting , where you are staying and to discuss the Deer Tick situation, which they seem to consider a slur.

 Strangest of all, there were very large tracks in the snow behind the house which were enlarged by melted snow. They were a bit too far apart for even a tall human to have made. They trekked around the house, across the snowy lawn,  and went straight into the woods. A Black Bear was sighted at this exact location in October, but one would expect a bear to be hibernating at this time. Since it’s not a Yeti, not the Loch Ness Monster etc, I guess it might have been a Bear afterall.

A few miles away are huge shopping centers and highways, but here nature still rules.