Lake Minnewaska, Millbrook Mountain, And Gertrude’s Nose Hike

Gertrude’s Nose in Lake Minnewaska is an amazing hike that will allow you see beautiful landscapes and give you a good workout as well. Lake Minnewaska is just beautiful and you can take amazing shots with this lake. Millbrook Mountain has a lot of amazing view points. Gertrude’s nose and Gertrude Mountain are spectacular. They have lots of amazing rock formations and views. This is a great hike that will allow you to enjoy nature and allow you to get a good workout as well.

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Lake Minnewaska, Millbrook Mountain, And Gertrude’s Nose Important Information

Trail Map: Trail Map 1
Suggested Phone GPS Apps: Alltrails.com, Avenza Maps, Google Maps

Difficulty: Moderate To Strenuous
Distance: 8 Miles
Elevation Gained: 1300 ft
Portable Toilet At Parking: Yes

Trail Breakdown
Red Trail Lake – 1 miles
Millbrook Mountain Trail – 1.5 miles
Millbrook Ridge Trail – 1 miles
Gertrude’s Nose Trail To Gertrude Mountain – 1 miles
Gertrude’s Nose Trail – 1.5 miles
Millbrook Mountain Carriage Road – 2 miles

https://www.mapmyhike.com/workout/2467859822

Note: The information is just an approximation.

Parking
41.729052, -74.237042

There is a parking fee.

Note: Do not imitate nor copy some of the pictures that I have done since they are dangerous. I have been here multiple times and have taken lots of precautions. My boots had lots of traction and I always made sure I was safe.

 

Start Of The Hike

The morning sun peeked its way out of the feathery white clouds, and as the lake caught its morning light, glittering streaks of blue dashed across from the surface, with celestial green fire waving back and forth at the edges of the landscape. The stillness of the lake magnified all the sounds, from the rustle of the wind and leaves to the breathing of my lungs.

 

I sat on the cool rough stone, enjoying the solitude and peace while they lasted as I waited for my group members to arrive. A somewhat of a hidden spot at the base of the parking lot unknown to most hikers and a great place to spend the time while waiting for people.

 

Lake Minnewaska

It was a lake as cold as ice, bluer than the sky, with a multitude of green trees creating new colors as the season was changing, out of which the bright sun showering its warm rays above us, with the sound of merry footsteps of hikers could be heard passing us by. I sat upon a stable platform, a cold stone which was solid and strong, allowing me to enjoy the view in safety, and just soak in the beauty of the landscape that was in front of me.

 

A strong gust of wind passed us by, it was forceful, persistent, and daunting. With it carried the scent of adventure, a calling for exploration, a craving for the unknown, and the bond of friendship we could all share. We were all looking forward for the day, hoping for a good workout, a few laughs here and there, a couple of good selfies, and a nice stroll along the state park, away from the worries and problems we faced in the city.

 

Hidden Trail

It seemed like I was right in time for the party in this view point, with shades of orange, yellow, and green starting from where I sat upon and all the way to the unreachable horizon. The colors blanketed the land like little fireworks popping in the daylight. This place was like the half brother, or the black sheep in the family, as there were stillness, patience, order and peace in the admiration of the lake before. But in here, the landscape urged me to be wildly chaotic, beautifully untamed, free to be spontaneous and live for the moment kind of thing.

 

Note: To get here, I payed extra attention to my left while going down the road. The opening was near the Millbrook Mountain trailhead or near the south side of the lake.

 

Lake Minnewaska South

The beautiful mirror like reflections of the lake captured the essence of nature’s harmony. Sharp and clear with a few ripples here and there, and the luminous blue sky and silky clouds painting the lake as they added more charm and grace to the landscape. Dazzling green trees, and the morning light accentuating the glow and luster of the valley, captured the souls of a few hikers who were lucky enough to be fated to passed by. Every angle, corner, and color that I could see had a sense of tranquility, a unity between nature and man, such a feeling darted right through me, creating a sense of peace inside of me in such a way that everything is well in my life and everything is where they should be.

 

Millbrook Mountain Trail Head

*This was the trailhead for the Millbrook Mountain Trail

 

Millbrook Mountain Red Trail

Into the depths we went, a gentle slope to the bottom, filled with protruding rocks, mud, and dirt deterring our descent. At the bottom, a tender stream awaited us, near it were gigantic roots worming their way in and out of the ground, with enormous boulders laid all over the place like stone guardians protecting the land, allowing us to use them as bridges to get from one side to the other.

My body breathing heavily as we made our ascent after the gentle river. Blueberry shrubs, small green plants and bushes smeared all over the footpath. My team was weary and hungry, but we trudged on, hoping to take a rest at the next view point.

 

Millbrook Mountain

Millbrook Mountain was near empty, with a few hikers already leaving the place. We sat at the edge of the mountain, overlooking a vast ocean of trees below, with incredible hawks flying above us. We opened our backpacks and took out our lunches, a variety of sandwiches, snacks, fruits, and vegetables from each and everyone. The scent of delicious foods made my tummy growl. I dipped my teeth into my ham and cheese sandwich. The cheese melted in my mouth, with fresh green vegetables and tomatoes exploding more flavor on my taste buds, and the toasted bread’s texture gave more highlight to how delicious the sandwich was.

 

It was still early, maybe around noonish or midday to say at most, when we finished our foods. The landscape glowed in greenish color underneath the bright rays of the sun, with the cool Autumn wind touching our skin underneath the clear blue sky without a trace of a cloud to be seen. At such a comfortable place, I could hear everyone laughing and conversing with each other, all refresh and ready for more adventures to come.

 

Millbrook Mountain Red Trail To Gertrude Mountain

The red marker was painted on various rocks, and surfaces of the mountain. The footpath was mostly flat, with the ground mostly made out of flat stone, with a few narrow parts, and confusing turns. Nothing too difficult nor complicated for us. Just a simple path and a well marked trail.

 

Millbrook Mountain Cave

I stepped in rather closely to the opening of the cave, as it breathe out a chilly gust of wind, surprising me and perplexing me of where it came from. As I descended my body closer to the opening, the colder my surroundings became and with a peering look deep into the cave, I saw a few ice crystals clinging to the jagged rocks inside of it. Curiosity consumed everyone as we all went a little bit closer to the opening, with our breaths turning into white puffy smoke, and our chest feeling the cold bite of the frosty wind.

 

Gertrude’s Nose Trail

The trail passed by a few interesting ledges with various views similar to Millbrook Mountain. I sat on the edge of a cliff, hoping for a better view of my surrounding area, dangling my legs to the rhythm of the wind, with a big smile on my face that could compete with the radiance of the Autumn sun above me. I let my hands grab the cold hard surface of the stone I was sitting on, as my fingers traced over its lines and wrinkles while looking at the expansive view that was in front of me.

 

Gertrude Mountain

Gertrude mountain was a mountain of white stones pieced together to form a big ledge perhaps the size of a football field, with various different levels, and deep cracks along the surface that could send anyone falling to their doom. I sat upon the edge of a cliff, looking at a big piece of rock underneath me. The map said that this was Gertrude’s nose, a funny looking rock at the corner of the mountain. I was tempted to go down and take a closer look but I chickened out in the end. My gut told me not to, so I just sat there at the corner enjoying the views.

 

The mesmerizing valley of trees greeted us with welcoming arms, showcasing various shades of green, yellow, orange and red, with bubbly clouds and blue skies intermingling with each other, and as if time slowed down just for us so that our eyes could appreciate how everything in nature had beauty that fits and works well together. The invigorating wind swayed the trees back and forth, and pushed the clouds to move, in one brief of a second, all of our eyes were caught watching, hypnotized by the show that was in front of us. In that moment I knew that time stopped for us… frozen solid in time, enthralled by nature’s beauty and I have a picture to prove it.

*Is it just me or that looks like a cat petrified in that stone like one of those Star Wars movies.

 

The mountain was a big cliff, with lots of pit falls, cracks, and picture opportunities from the start till the end. It was a mountain I loved so much with a happy smile on my face from beginning to the end. I often spend this time with people who love photography as we would all be trailing behind compared to the rest of the group. We all would have this amazingly glowing smile as if we were having the time of our lives, without a care in the world, just lots of pictures to take, and a billion dollars worth of laughter to share.

 

Gertrude’s Nose

It was a cliff that erected from what appeared to be pieces of rocks slapped together, a towering giant made out of stones sculpted by mother nature, and at the top was a protruding triangular rock that extended further outward. At the bottom of the cliff was a group of large boulders, rubble from what I could tell, perhaps they used to be parts of the side of this mountain before they crumbled and made this peculiar rock formation.

 

From a distance, the triangular outcrop looked like the scythe of the grim reaper, the harvester of souls, and I was sitting on top of it. However, this place was far from some sort of imagination nor a video game that we play at home. It was real life, with real consequences. I’ve seen various people taking selfies up on this ledge, and one false move could be their last. The sign “game over” flashing as they ascend to heaven, no second chances, no extra lives, they are just done as the grim reaper takes their souls to the after life.

 

Not that this would have suggested anything remotely meaningful to me as I was an indomitable free man, without a care in the world, a traveling wanderer, and an easy going nomad with a devil may cry (game) attitude.

 

Note: A couple of hikers told me that this is Gertrude’s nose instead of the first one.

 

Gertrude’s Nose Ascent

The last ascent of the hike appeared as big boulders scattered along an incline in the landscape. There was exhaustion at the face of my group members, suggesting that they were ready to go home and end the hike. The incline proved to be their greatest adversity, as the ascent was lengthy and arduous especially for a tired body. I could feel them dragging their fatigued bodies upwards and the sound of laughter was replaced with heavy breathing, with their backs hunched over as they ascend looking like raggedy old people walking up a flight of stairs.

 

Gertrude’s Nose Trail Last Views

We took a rest at another ledge at the side of a cliff overlooking a view. I could see sweat running down my group member’s foreheads, some were so tired that they just dropped on the ground and they laid their bodies there for a while. I walked along the ledge till I found myself at the end of it, with nowhere else to go, I paused and looked at the view.

 

The scent of dying flowers, withered leaves, and the scent of change masked its way towards my soul. In here, these leaves will die, and in here, new leaves will be reborn again. Change is a part of life, or so I tell myself. I wish I could continue organizing hikes and spending time meeting new people or spending time with the ones that I have already met but I knew these days would not last long and I would go on my own separate way. There was something inside me that wanted to explore, that hated familiarity, and gets bored with certainty… I wanted adventure, to be free to roam, unshackled, to be wild, untamed, unbroken, and to allow myself to follow my heart wherever it would lead me.

 

Patterson’s Pellet

Patterson’s Pellet looked like a giant dragon’s egg hardened and turned into a rock as time passed by. Maybe Charizard or one of those pokemon would hatch here someday. It was one of those times when I was about to leave but something compelled me to look back at which I saw the setting sun perched on top of the dragon’s egg. It was a perfect place to do another one of those Karate Kid poses or so I thought to myself.

 

*From what you can tell from the picture, the rest of the story is obviously history.

 

Lake Minnewaska Dusk

Just before the last rays of the sun kissed the land goodbye, before the green, red, and yellow colors of the fall melt into gray and black under the moonlit night, and just before a star in the sky could be seen, Lake Minnewaska offered an almost perfect mirror like reflection of the land. A time where each tree had a twin brother, each rock had a clone, and each person had someone looking back at them, peering from the dark blue lake. It is a time as if magic flowed rampant, where everything felt possible with just a flick of a finger, and the fading beauty of the lake would lasts forever.

I took my last picture, headed back towards my car, and said goodbye to the people I hiked with and goodbye to the wonderful land that made it possible.

 

For More Hikes

For more hikes similar to this one, you can go to my Best NYC Hikes Or Best New Jersey Hikes.