Three and a half years ago I scaled my first peak in the Catskills and was hooked to get into the exclusive Catskill 3500 club. The 3500 club is someone who has climbed all 35 peaks of 3500 feet elevation in the Catskills, including 4 of them twice in the winter. You may say, that is easy, but considering that 18 or so of them are trail less and the Catskills can have a foot of snow as early as October 1 and as late as May 1.

Well I did it! It did take me long enough since I got diverted by the mountains in Bhutan, Machu Picchu, Everest, Denali, Mt. Rainer (twice), Kilimanjaro and a marathon in some strange land of Antarctica.

So in all of those crazy treks, Nepal is my favorite country (people, scenery, Buddhist culture), Rainer is my favorite, and Kilimanjaro is the one most likely to do more than once.

In the Catskills, I would do almost any of the mountains over again (and will do a bunch this winter) and most likely will start climbing some peaks in the White Mountain Range in NH.

So here are the peaks:

2002:

Slide (2/9)

Balsam (2/24)

Hunter (6/2)

Southwest Hunter (6/2)

Black Dome (9/8)

Thomas Cole (9/8)

Blackhead (9/8)

Whindham High Peak (9/28)

Graham (9/29)

Balsam Lake (9/29)

Panther (11/10)

Panther (12/29)

2003:

Blackhead (1/12)

Big Indian (3/13)

Eagle (3/13)

Westkill (3/23)

Table (4/19)

Peekamoose (4/19)

Indian Head (10/4)

Twin (10/4)

Sugarloaf (10/4)

Pleatu (10/4)

Katterskill High Peak (10/25)

Bearpen (10/26)

Vly (10/26)

Slide (11/16)

Wittenberg (11/16)

Cornell (11/16)

North Dome (12/28)

Sherill (12/28)

2004:

Balasm (1/4)

Lone (9/22)

Rocky (9/22)

Doubletop (9/25)

Fir (11/27)

2005:

Balsam Cap (5/15/05)

Friday (5/15/05)

Rusk (7/16/05)

Halcott (09/17/05)