We had 8 enthusiastic hikers for this morning's foray into the Esten Lake area off the main ATV trail loop. After a few large puddles were navigated, we walked down another side trail to the swamp, which had been marked and cleared (to a point) by the hike leader in the last few weeks. Three narrow streams were crossed before we made it to a mature, deciduous section where the leader had to take an audible comfort break. After a short, steep climb we had a lengthy lunch break in an open licheny area with a nice view of Esten Lake, Long Island and smaller islands. We returned by the same route and agreed that today was a nice way to spend 4 hours in the woods.
