A beautiful early Fall day lured us out for a hike in Danby State Forest at the southern end of Tompkins County. We spent four hours hiking around the Abbott Loop Trail.   At 8 miles and a lot of sometimes-steep hills to navigate, it was a nice workout for the morning. The trail was entirely under a varied tree canopy except for a couple dirt road crossings and a limited lookout on Bald Hill on the west side of the loop.

Our consensus was the woods were mostly not quite as appealing, with a few exceptions, as some other locations we’ve hiked. Our experience was enhanced by the perfect cool weather, the quiet (due to remote location), no bugs, and we encountered only one other person the entire time we were out. It was a superb day but not a hike that’s high on our must-revisit list.