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New York
Adirondacks - High Peaks Region
Year III of our annual backpacking trip for Steve and I. Tony joined us
this year for the Adirondacks adventure. In short, we got our behinds kicked,
even after our plans changed a few times. We weren't quite prepared for the
conditions that we faced, mainly the condition of the trails. For the long of it,
read below:
Day 1: We started under sunny skies and mild temperatures from the Adirondack Loj. We hiked along the Van Hoevenberg Trail to Marcy Dam, then continued through Avalanche Pass to and around Avalanche Lake. The trail around the lake greeted us with spectacular views from beginning to end. Amazing scenery, like nothing I've ever seen, with steep mountains surrounding the lake. The trail itself was difficult with several ladders used to get up and down over the rocks along the trail. We continued on to Lake Colden, and the Interior Outpost. We finished by climbing the Calamity Brook Trail up to the Feldspar Lean-to. This trail was steep and covered with several feet of packed snow which was extremely difficult to navigate. The snow was packed only in a very narrow path down the middle. A step a little off to the side and the occasional soft spot in the middle put us up to our hips in snow. A few spots were sketchy and this section proved to be mentally taxing. I started to question whether or not the scheduled trek up Marcy the next day would become reality. Day 2: After spending a cold night at the Feldspar Lean-to (with a near visit from a bear), we ventured up the Calamity Brook Trail to Four Corners. This was more of the same from the day before, and was slow going due to the steepness of the trail. I thought the hiking to be a little better than the day before since the snow at the higher elevation was more consistent. Shortly after passing Lake Tear of the Clouds, the trail took a left turn and became steeper and tougher going, with a combination of the deep snow and wet rocks to navigate. We could tell we were getting close as we ascended because the peaks in the distance became easy to see from the trail. Above the tree line, the route was dry and solid rock, although extremely steep. We needed to stop and catch our breath several times before reaching the top. Unfortunately, the weather turned as we approached the summit, and by the time we reached it, we could not see much and had to deal with a stiff wind (maybe 30-40mph?). Even on this increasingly ugly and overcast day, the view from the summit was tremendous. Because of the weather, we were unable to spend time at the top and enjoy ourselves as we had planned. We snacked quickly and decided to get down off the mountain before things got worse. We eventually made our way to the Slant Rock Lean-to, extremely tired, but pleased with the fact that we had made the trek up to Marcy (and returned!). We settled in for what would become a stormy night. Day 3: The rain continued as we left and descended the Phelps Trail, making short time to Bushnell Falls. We managed to cross Johns Brook via the "closed" suspension bridge. A tree had fallen into the brige and damaged the "railing" and bent some of the frame, but it was sound enough (in the estimation of all 3 structural engineers involved!) to cross, even though I was the most skeptical (mostly due to my lack of sure footing). But we had plans to get home, and this was the easiest way. We finished the trek to Johns Brook Lodge, then turned on the Klondike Notch Trail on the final leg toward the Adirondack Loj. I was thanful that this day included no hiking through the snow that had "haunted" us and wore us down the two previous days. The hiking on this day was therefore relatively easy, although wet and rocky. The last snag came when we were unable to continue on a cross country ski trail about a mile away from the Loj. The trail disintegrated into a swampy area littered with fall downs and several beaver dams. We were forced to go around on a few roads and got back to our cars spent after three days in the High Peaks Region. We decided to spend the night in Lake Placid at the Econo Lodge and enjoy some pizza and beer! Overall, this trip found us unprepared for the trail conditions that we encountered. Warning was given to us before we embarked that there was a "voluntary" trail closure on all trails above 3000 ft. because of "muddy" conditions. We were told that if we choose to hike there, we should stay on the trail and hike throught the mud to avoid widening the trail, to which we said, "No problem." But there was no mud on the trails that we hiked above 3000 ft. Just snow. My only gripe is that I wish these conditions were more accurately conveyed to us before we left. It probably would have affected our decision on the final route. Instead, we found out the hard way. And we ended the trip beat up, wet (I had not one article of dry clothing, save for one pair of socks) and sore. I was exhausted mentally and physically, but at least we can say that we made the trip and we mounted Marcy. I hope to some day (when the snow's all gone!) make it back to the High Peaks Region of the Adirondacks, for it is rugged and the scenery is spectacular. But I do stop short in calling this particular trip fun. By the end of the second day, we just wanted to get the hell out of there. Please, check out some photos of this epic...
Elevation change: 1236 + 2025 + 782 = 4,043 feet
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