Abbott Loop Ramble
When
What
Where
Who
Link for More Info
Description
Join Torben Russo, aspiring rambler, on a 3 mile section of the Abbott Loop Trail in the Danby State Forest. We will meet at 10 O'clock at CCE or at the trail head on Michigan Hollow Road at 10:30am. The trail head is roughly 2.5 miles in on the right hand side of Michigan Hollow Road (on the right, coming from Ithaca) from Danby Road (96b). There is an obvious pull-off for it. The road turns to dirt and is dirt at that point.If you're a bit of an explorer but would like less of a walk, you can drive to the trail head a little farther up on Hill Rd. (about 3 miles from 96B) and meet there around 10:45 or so.Take Danby Roady (96B) to Bald Hill Road (it's just before Michigan Hollow Road on the right coming from Ithaca). Bald Hill Road becomes "Hill Road" on some maps, on others, continues to be Bald Hill Road. (There's a spot where there's a sharp right hand turn (this then becomes Station Road) and heads hard down hill towards Rte. 34. You don't want to go that way!) Continue straight (you'll still be on Bald Hill Road) onto what looks like a tertiary dirt road...but it will continue going up hill. There is limited parking on the left at the trail-head underneath Hemlocks. Please bring a lunch/snack/water and we'll rest and botanize at Thacher's Pinnacles where a picnic table and beautiful view await us along with a unique ecosystem. At the most, this could be a 4.5 mile ramble. You can cut it down considerably depending on where you'd like to start, and the trail is well marked with roads nearby. Please refer to the wonderful website for more information about the area.
Report
We definitely had some wonderful feedback from the folks that went along for the ramble! It was fun and, while it was a bit longer than many of our walks, the group was full of energy and excitement as we surrounded each-other with questions and answers about plants along the way. The weather was great. We certainly found some interesting habitats along the way - seeps, riparian zones, hemlock groves, mixed hardwood forest and of course the unique habitat upon Thatchers Pinnacle. There's also the CCC era pine plantings on the way down from the Pinnacle. See the link here for the route (and elevation). The list of plants seen is below.
Plants Seen on Abbot Loop 9-24-2016
|
Scientific Name |
Common Name |
Comments |
|
Acer pensylvanicum |
striped maple, moosewood |
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Acer rubrum |
red maple |
|
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Acer saccharum |
sugar maple |
|
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Actaea pachypoda |
white baneberry, doll’s eyes |
|
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Adiantum pedatum |
maidenhair fern |
|
|
Ageratina altissima |
white snakeroot |
|
|
Agrimonia gryposepala |
tall hairy agrimony |
|
|
Alliaria petiolata |
garlic mustard |
invasive NN |
|
Amelanchier sanguinea |
round-leaved shadbush |
summit |
|
Amelanchier sp. |
shadbush, serviceberry |
|
|
Amphicarpaea bracteata |
hog peanut |
|
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Anaphalis margaritacea |
pearly everlasting |
|
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Antennaria plantaginifolia |
plantain-leaved pussytoes |
|
|
Aralia nudicaulis |
wild sarsaparilla |
|
|
Arctium lappa |
greater burdock |
NN |
|
Arisaema triphyllum ssp. triphyllum |
common jack-in-the-pulpit |
|
|
Athyrium filix-femina |
lady fern |
|
|
Betula alleghaniensis |
yellow birch |
|
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Betula lenta |
black birch, sweet birch |
|
|
Bidens cernua |
nodding beggar's ticks |
bridge |
|
Carya ovata |
shagbark hickory |
|
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Castanea dentata |
American chestnut |
|
|
Cichorium intybus |
chickory |
at base, NN |
|
Clematis virginiana |
Virgin’s bower |
|
|
Clinopodium vulgare |
wild basil |
|
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Clintonia borealis |
bluebead lily |
|
|
Collinsonia canadensis |
richweed |
|
|
Comandra umbellata ssp. umbellata |
star toadflax |
dried up |
|
Comptonia peregrina |
sweetfern |
|
|
Conopholis americana |
squawroot |
|
|
Convallaria majalis |
lily-of-the-valley |
NN, naturalized |
|
Cornus alternifolia |
alternate-leaved dogwood |
|
|
Corylus cornuta |
beaked hazelnut |
|
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Crataegus sp. |
hawthorn |
|
|
Dendrolycopodium obscurum |
flat-branched tree clubmoss |
|
|
Dennstaedtia punctilobula |
hay-scented fern |
|
|
Diervilla lonicera |
northern bush honeysuckle |
|
|
Diphasiastrum digitatum |
running pine |
|
|
Epipactus helleborine |
helleborine |
NN |
|
Erectites hieracifolia |
pilewort |
Bald Hill Rd |
|
Erigeron annuus |
daisy fleabane |
|
|
Eupatorium perfoliatum |
boneset |
|
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Eurybia divaricata |
white wood aster |
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Euthamia graminifolia |
grass-leaved goldenrod |
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Fagus grandifolia |
American beech |
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Fragaria virginiana |
wild strawberry |
|
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Fraxinus americana |
white ash |
|
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Galeopsis tetrahit |
hemp nettle |
|
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Galium circaezans |
wild licorice |
|
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Gaultheria procumbens |
wintergreen |
|
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Gaylussacia baccata |
black huckleberry |
|
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Geranium robertianum |
herb robert |
|
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Geum canadense |
white avens |
|
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Hamamelis virginiana |
witch-hazel |
|
|
Helianthus divaricatus |
woodland sunflower |
|
|
Hemerocallis fulva |
orange daylily |
NN, Bald Hill Rd |
|
Hepatica nobilis var. acuta |
sharp-lobed hepatica |
|
|
Hesperis matronalis |
dame's rocket |
NN, Bald Hill Rd |
|
Huperzia lucidula |
shining clubmoss |
|
|
Impatiens capensis |
jewelweed, touch-me-not |
|
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Juniperus communis |
common juniper |
|
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Leersia virginica |
white grass |
|
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Leucobryum glaucum |
white pincushion moss |
|
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Lindera benzoin |
spicebush |
|
|
Liriodendron tulipifera |
tuliptree |
seedlings |
|
Lonicera canadensis |
American fly honeysuckle |
|
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Magnolia acuminata |
cucumber tree |
|
|
Maianthemum canadense |
Canada mayflower |
|
|
Maianthemum racemosum |
false Solomon’s seal |
|
|
Malus pumila |
wild apple |
naturalized |
|
Medeola virginiana |
Indian cucumber root |
|
|
Melilotus albus |
white sweet clover |
NN |
|
Mitchella repens |
partridgeberry |
|
|
Oclemena acuminata |
whorled wood aster |
|
|
Onoclea sensibilis |
sensitive fern |
|
|
Osmunda claytoniana |
interrupted fern |
|
|
Ostrya virginiana |
hop hornbeam |
|
|
Picea abies |
Norway spruce |
NN |
|
Pilea pumila |
clearweed |
|
|
Pinus resinosa |
red pine |
|
|
Pinus strobus |
eastern white pine |
|
|
Polygonatum pubescens |
downy Solomon's-seal |
|
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Polygonum virginianum |
jump-seed, Virginia knotweed |
|
|
Polypodium virginianum |
rock polypody |
on tree |
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Polystichum acrostichoides |
Christmas fern |
|
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Populus grandidentata |
big-tooth aspen |
|
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Potentilla simplex |
old-field cinquefoil |
|
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Prunella vulgaris |
heal-all |
|
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Prunus serotina |
black cherry |
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Prunus virginiana |
choke cherry |
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Pteridium aquilinum |
bracken |
|
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Pyrola cf. elliptica |
shinleaf |
|
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Quercus alba |
white oak |
|
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Quercus montana |
chestnut oak |
|
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Quercus muhlenbergii |
chinquapin oak |
summit |
|
Quercus rubra |
northern red oak |
|
|
Rhus aromatica |
fragrant sumac |
summit |
|
Rhus typhina |
staghorn sumac |
|
|
Rosa multiflora |
multiflora rose |
invasive NN |
|
Sambucus canadensis |
common elderberry |
|
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Sassafras albidum |
sassafras |
|
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Solidago bicolor |
silverrod |
|
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Solidago caesia |
blue-stemmed goldenrod |
|
|
Solidago flexicaulis |
zig-zag goldenrod |
|
|
Solidago rugosa |
rough-stemmed goldenrod |
|
|
Sparganium sp. |
bur-reed |
bridge |
|
Symphyotrichum laeve var. concinnum |
narrow-leaved smooth aster |
|
|
Symphyotrichum lanceolatum |
tall white aster |
|
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Symphyotrichum lateriflorum |
calico aster |
|
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Symphyotrichum novae-angliae |
New England aster |
|
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Symphyotrichum prenanthoides |
crooked-stemmed aster |
|
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Symphyotrichum puniceum |
swamp aster |
|
|
Thelypteris noveboracensis |
New York fern |
|
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Tiarella cordifolia |
foamflower |
|
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Tilia americana |
basswood |
|
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Tsuga canadensis |
eastern hemlock |
|
|
Uvularia cf. grandiflora |
large-flowered bellwort |
|
|
Uvularia sessilifolia |
sessile-leaved bellwort |
|
|
Vaccinium angustifolium |
lowbush blueberry |
|
|
Vaccinium pallidum |
early lowbush blueberry |
|
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Vaccinium stamineum |
deerberry |
|
|
Veronica officinalis |
common speedwell |
|
|
Viburnum acerifolium |
maple-leaf viburnum |
|
|
Viburnum lantanoides |
hobblebush |
|
|
Viburnum lentago |
nannyberry |
|
|
Vinca minor |
periwinkle |
invasive NN |
|
Vitis aestivalis |
summer grape |
bridge |
|
Vitis riparia |
riverbank grape, frost grape |
NN= Non-native/naturalized
