Vanderbilt Mansion Winter hike + mansion tour + La Cantrina Mexican Restaurant

3-5 miles \ moderately easy \ nominal hellevation gain \ tons of fun

Sunday's weather is questionable but let's plan to meet at Vanderbilt Mansion in Hyde Park for a micro-spike/snowshoe trounce around one of the most icon National historic parks in the country. An established trail circumvents the site and parallels the Hudson River above the train tracks for spectacular views of the Catskills to the west, but we'll also blaze our own rabbit trails here and there, to make the most of it.

Obviously I can't judge trail conditions now, but microspikes--or snowshoes--are HIGHLY recommended. If you choose not to wear them and slip off-trail, it's likely you'll miss lunch, and possibly New Year's.

If you have snow shoes, bring them. They could come in handy. We'll assign women to pack them, so the rest of us won't be burdened.

I'd like to tour the mansion, but apparently tickets can only be purchased on-site the day of our visit, so we'll have to see how that goes. 15 bucks per ticket if it happens.

After the trek we'll head 3 miles south on Route 9 to La Cantrina Mexican Restaurant for some really tasty authentic Mexican grub. And yeah, a margarita. Duh. I've been there a few times. Mui bueno. If you want to meet just for lunch, plan to be there around 1:00. Maybe 1:30.

This event is hinged on a forecast of 5-6 inches of snow by Sunday, so if that doesn't happen we'll convert to a standard hike. Or just meet for lunch. And a margarita. Or 2.