View Full Version : Adirondack State Park
I know this isnt AT specific but i was hoping some people from the area could help me out. This summer i am going to be able to get in a 5 day backpacking trip in the Adirondacks State Park, specifically around the High Peaks Area. Ive never been there before and from looking at the trail map im a bit overwhelmed by the size and amount of trails and i have no idea what to do! So my question is what are the "must see" points in the backcountry of the park. Like i said, specifically around the high peaks area. Two that i were looking at were Mt. Marcy and Haystack. Any advice would be awesome. Thanks!
Turtlehiker
03-30-2009, 15:33
It would be fun to spend 5 days base camped at Marcy dam and then just peak bag from there.
Darwin again
03-30-2009, 15:51
Lived and hiked up there for a decade.
The woods, trails and mountains are extremely rugged.
Get an Adirondack Mountain Club guide to the high peaks:
http://www.adk.org/new_store/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=GHP
The map that comes with it is superb, last I checked.
I'd do day hikes of specific mountains, then camp at some central place or just off a trailhead in state forest, using car-based camping methods or even get a motel room if you can afford it. There's really no need to carry all that gear up those peaks and doing so will just detract from the experience. I wouldn't go out for days at a time in the ADKs, but that's just me.
Day pack, water bottles, food, inclement weather gear, compass, firestarter, whistle, hat gloves. Often my day pack for a climb in the ADKs was nearly as heavy as my AT distance hiking pack. (Think the Whites of New Hampshire -- that's what the ADKs are like!)
If you do attempt camping in the high peaks region, be advised that bear cannisters are required now, though I don't know this for sure.
Mountains I'd highly recommend (all day hikes, some all day..):
Marcy -- about 14 miles round trip from Adirondack Loj, pay to park.
Algonquin & Wright -- also out of Adirondack Loj
Cascade -- from route 86
Giant -- also from route 86 (I've climed this one eight times, once at night; it has the best views (180 degree) in the entire Adirondacks for the least amount of work -- a good warm-up climb to see what you're dealing with...more of the same!)
There are so many others.
Take the best insect repellent you can afford. You'll be glad you did. June is kinda bad for black flies and July can be bad too.
Sign in at all trailheads in the register provided for your safety.
Be extremely suspicious of all water sources -- carry your own.
It can snow any month of the year in the high peaks and does.
If you go off trail you risk injury and death -- the woods up there are not like ordinary forests, they are thick and rugged. People do disappear up there fairly regularly and if you go off trail and get hurt, you might be on your own indefinitely. The trails are steep, rocky, rooty and tricky in places and lead to the most amazing views.
Get the guide book.
All that said, it's amazingly fantastically beautiful up there.
Be prepared, be safe and enjoy!
Oh, and take your camera!
Darwin again
03-30-2009, 15:53
Correction!
er, sorry. I climbed CASCADE eight times, once at night. Not Giant, Giant only a few times...
Snowleopard
03-30-2009, 15:53
Tea, The area around Marcy gets a lot of people. Bear canisters are absolutely required in the Eastern High Peaks region and some bears have figured out how to get into some brands of canister. Read up on the rules (check NY state web site). For a good workout look up the Great Range Trail. My favorite mountains are: Basin, Gothics and Haystack. I thought Marcy boring. Always wanted to climb Giant (the Giant of the Valley) but got snowed out.
Also, the ADK are huge. If you are going during a popular time there are lots of other places to see. The Adirondack Forest Preserve is 2.3 million acres. NY state constitution: Catskill and ADK forest preserves "shall be forever kept as wild forest lands." Check out http://adkforum.com for people that know a lot more than me.
--Walter (aka snowleopard)
PS if you're into tea check out http://uptontea.com
Darwin again
03-30-2009, 15:54
It would be fun to spend 5 days base camped at Marcy dam and then just peak bag from there.
That would be a nice way to do it!
Turtlehiker
03-30-2009, 15:58
Bear Cannisters are required in the high peaks, I am pretty sure the LOJ rents them. Also campfires are not allowed in the highpeaks, I don't like that but I understand this area gets alot of traffic.
The ADK's are rugged Darwin was definately right about that. Bushwacking can be really hard, got my fair share of scars from that.
I don't have my maps with me but the mtns that he suggested are some good ones. There are lots of car camping options up there where you can just pull off the road and camp.
Feral Bill
03-30-2009, 16:18
It's been years, but you might like to hike in to Avalanche Lake (farther than Marcy Dam) and dayhike from there. It might be a bit less crowded. Expect mud.
Darwin again
03-30-2009, 16:31
Dix Mountain is another great hike, too!
Mother Nature
03-30-2009, 16:48
I grew up in the ADKs and I am a ADK46er. I second everything that was written about the Adirondacks. They are much more rugged than one would think with the altitude.
The book to the High Peaks Region is very descriptive. There are numerous peaks up varying highs and difficulty and the maps are very good. Cascade and Porter are easily reached by road as mentioned as well as Giant of the Valley but with that in mind they have heavy foot traffic.
I particularly like Big Slide over the Brothers. There are good views on Wright Peak if you are doing Algonquin.
I would check out my ADK skills by going to the Adirondack Loj and hiking short but challenging hike up little Mt Jo. Impressive views and a good warm up hike.
Be SURE to check out the Avalanche Pass Trail along side Avalanche Lake.
Have a wonderful time. And prepare to eat a black fly sandwich if you go in June or July.
Haha thanks to everyone so far. Yeah i am going in July....so i will prepare myself for black flies. I did know about the bear canisters. How would you guys rate the 'ruggedness' of the high peaks region when compared to GSMNP, something like Mt. LeConte. I think i am in pretty good shape, lots of running and mountain biking, but others in my crew may not be in such great shape by the time we head out. Thanks again and keep the suggestions coming!
Mother Nature
03-30-2009, 17:18
Running and mountain biking might help some but the trails can kick your butt. I have never done Mt LeConte but I have done the AT in the Smokies. If your buddies should be able to take on Cascade. If the BIG guys are too much for them you can still do some great mountains like Ampersand and Baxter Mountains.
The trails are very rooty and very rocky and can be very steep in sections. Picture a river bed on end. When it is not rooty, rocky and steep then it is soupy, wet and covered with what I call dinosaur mud. This black soil is sticky, smelly and can suck your boot right off your foot. Sounds like fun huh?
I would give my right arm to be back there in a heartbeat. There's no place like home.......
Popular sites include Marcy Dam, and Flowed Lands area. Great places to base camp and peak bag.
Some less popular areas if you like a little less traffic, and maybe even some solitude:
Bald Peak/Rocky Peak Ridge/Giant from Rte 9 to Rte 9N (or reverse). You won't be alone on top of Giant, but you'll see very few people the rest of the day(s).
From St. Huberts:
Dial/Nippletop/Gill Brook loop
Round Mtn/Noonmark loop
Sawteeth/Gothics loop
From Heart Lake:
Colden/Avalanche pass loop. Plenty of people, though.
Really, jsut grab a map and a book and go.
warraghiyagey
03-30-2009, 19:11
Of course Marcy is the gem of NYS but there are the other of the 46ers as Mother Nature noted. You can't go wrong with your choice of where to spend your days in the ADKs.:sun
Toolshed
03-30-2009, 22:36
HaHa!!!
Another ADK46er signing in....
I agree with everything that has been posted to date as well except for July - Not only will there be black flies, but you will have hordes of deer flies and horse flies to deal with as well as mud. I think late August or Early September are much better and drier times to backpack through there.
Try to avoid long Canadian or US holiday weekends, the place will be crammed with people and the Dacks are not enjoyable during such periods. Mid weeks are better.
If you can get out of the high peaks area and move towards the Sewards, Sants or Ausable, you will find much emptier space and more solitude.
I encourage you to visit several other boards
Viewsfromthetop.com - Specifically climbing in the NE along with trail conditions for Whites, Greens, ME and NY.
ADKForums.com - Original ADK devoted forum
ADKhighpeaksforum.com - another Forum based out of Rochester.
The original ADKforums started to drift over to hunters and fishermen and the ADKhighpeaks was more devoted to climbing and backpacking.
Both forums now have the same owners but still have different flavors.
There is so much info it would be hard to know where to start.
I know you said you wanted something around the High Peaks area, but I wanted to remind others that the Adirondack Preserve contains much much more than just that region.
Darwin again
03-31-2009, 00:15
Haha thanks to everyone so far. Yeah i am going in July....so i will prepare myself for black flies. I did know about the bear canisters. How would you guys rate the 'ruggedness' of the high peaks region when compared to GSMNP, something like Mt. LeConte. I think i am in pretty good shape, lots of running and mountain biking, but others in my crew may not be in such great shape by the time we head out. Thanks again and keep the suggestions coming!
Here's another: Hurricane Mountain.
Any of the High Peaks trails/summits just beat the Smokies with a stick in terms of ruggedness. The ADKs are much more related to the Whites of NH than the GSMNP. IN any case, whatever shape you're in, you'll need it all!
Cascade is really an easy hike, in ADK terms. Little kids, dogs, older people do that one regularly. The summit is totally bald with great views in clear weather and it's the easiest of the over-4,000 footers. Many of the taller peaks have tiny summits that are often not wide open. Some summits are the size of a car or your living room.
This talk of bugs and mud makes me miss the place...:eek:
The ADKs are magnificient; really one of the best-kept secrets in the eastern part of the US.
I once passed a hiker coming down from Cascade who had been set upon by black flies. They had fed on him and the guy only realized there was one on his forehead after that fact and swatted it. He had a huge smear of his own blood on his forehead and it looked like he'd been gunshot!
The trail around Avalanche Lake is a great walk, too. A nice loop I once backpacked on a several-night trip was out of ADK Loj, around the north side of Heart Lake, down the trail to the SW toward Wallface, camped overnight, then up and over the trail to Lake Colden (extremely steep and rugged even carrying nothing!), then back along and past Avalanche Lake to a campsite, then up to Marcy Dam, where we camped overnight again and then hiked Wright, Algonquin, Boundary and Iroquois with day packs, then returned to Marcy Dam to camp another night. (OK, so we took it slow, but that was in my younger, dumber days of heavy hiking with leather boots, MSR stoves and fuel bottles and steel pots in which I boiled all our water!) That was in August and we saw some nice bear tracks, but at least the bugs weren't bad.
It's awesome up there. :D
Awsome, thanks for all the advice guys. How are the black flies gonna be towards the end of July? I think ill actually be out there around 20-24th. Btw any good links to some image galleries from the tops of some of these mtns. Im super psyched for this trip, gonna be my first time backpacking up in the New England area.
Darwin again
03-31-2009, 17:36
Great site here:
http://www.the-boogiemen.com/hiking/peaks.htm
Stay in the breezes and the bugs won't bug you! :D
Toolshed
03-31-2009, 21:23
..... (OK, so we took it slow, but that was in my younger, dumber days of heavy hiking with leather boots, MSR stoves and fuel bottles and steel pots in which I boiled all our water!) That was in August and we saw some nice bear tracks, but at least the bugs weren't bad.
It's awesome up there. :D
Leather boots are de rigueur up there. :D
They are also a very valuable asset to protecting your feet and ankles in the mountains. Gaiters help quite a bit too as there is a lot of boot sucking mud and frequently the unmarked/unmaintained trails (Herd Paths or unmaintained to the "untrailed" peaks) are in the vicinity of streambeds. I should be careful when I say unmarked, because I believe almost all the herd paths are now marked to disrupt excessive trampling.
Am i gonna get destroyed in some Vasque Breeze GTX boots then haha?
Also Darwin Again thanks for the link to the photo site that is EXACTLY what i was looking for. Awesome.
wilconow
06-15-2009, 13:11
I just found out that I have a week off the first week of July (including the holiday). I was thinking of going to the high peaks but with the bugs and holiday traffic I'm thinking that's not the best idea. Thoughts? Thanks.
Two Tents
06-15-2009, 13:52
Sweet! Look up a place called Oscar's smoke house when you are up that way. All their stuff is great but their Smoked pork chops are fab!
Two Tents
06-15-2009, 14:04
Oh yea, I forgot to mention oscar's smokehouse is in Warrensburg N.Y.
Ridge Rat
06-15-2009, 16:17
I really liked the gothics and haystacks myself. But whichever. I based out of JBL though. Wasnt much of a backpacking trip.
There is much more to the Adirondacks than the high peaks region. I have found the best backpacking to be outside the high peaks, not to mention canoeing/kayaking etc... There are some real remote areas which require considerable bushwhack and navigational skills to find as well.
reddenbacher
06-15-2009, 18:13
stay away from that area that time of year.you willbe standing in line to hike to the top of marcy.its like being at the mall.keen area.wolfsjaw.come in through elk lake
Treker45
07-05-2009, 10:39
If you don't want to bag some peaks and do a little hiking on a underused trail try the northville trail. It is wet, a challange but mostly a remote hiking trip. I did half of it last year and am going back to finish this aug.
Corrigan
07-05-2009, 12:37
Not a 46er but I am a 30isher=) I also have done the Northville-Placid Trail and it was something I would love to do again. Very beautiful and rugged. Go check it out!