View Full Version : Trans Adirondack route
I would like to know if anyone is familiar with this route and what trails and roads it uses to travel from end to end?I would also like to know if there is anywhere to resupply along the way?What was your opinion of the route?Thank You.
Sounds like you're considering planning a hike of the route. Check out the TAR website for more detailed info. Yes there are places to resupply. http://www.transadk.com/
Mag, here on WB, involved in the TrailShow podcasts, interviewed on the show Eric Shlimmer the designer of the route not too long ago. Your questions were answered in that episode. http://thetrailshow.com/
Sounds like you're considering planning a hike of the route. Check out the TAR website for more detailed info. Yes there are places to resupply. http://www.transadk.com/
Mag, here on WB, involved in the TrailShow podcasts, interviewed on the show Eric Shlimmer the designer of the route not too long ago. Your questions were answered in that episode. http://thetrailshow.com/
Thank You so much,will check it out,,
I intended to do the whole route and ended up doing a huge chunk of it. I DO NOT RECOMMEND IT. IMHO the very premise of the hike really took away from what is an incredible area. in the quest to do the "blue line to blue line" a bunch of substandard miles" were added and the best part of the Park is bypassed. The first forty miles or so is pure road walking and believe me, there is nothing special about the roads other than the wild apple trees growing everywhere. I also found the book and map set very lacking. We ended up using my Nat Geo maps more than the guidebook maps.
Prior or to Lake Placid the route goes off road for a while. the highlight prior to Placid was likely Whitface Mountain. A bit after Placid you skirt the High peaks area as you meander your way over to the Northville Placid Trail. I really liked the NPT and we are the decision to stay on it to the end rather than exit back onto or beside road for the southern section of the TAR.
I do believe there is a very cool route in that area. if I were to do it again I would truhike the entire NPT north into Placid, Resupply and add a canister.then loop through the Eastern High Peaks area. this IMHO would make a much better route and there are several Resupply options readily on or just off trail.
i could probably give you the roads that the route takes if you are interested. Pm me
I intended to do the whole route and ended up doing a huge chunk of it. I DO NOT RECOMMEND IT. IMHO the very premise of the hike really took away from what is an incredible area. in the quest to do the "blue line to blue line" a bunch of substandard miles" were added and the best part of the Park is bypassed. The first forty miles or so is pure road walking and believe me, there is nothing special about the roads other than the wild apple trees growing everywhere. I also found the book and map set very lacking. We ended up using my Nat Geo maps more than the guidebook maps.
Prior or to Lake Placid the route goes off road for a while. the highlight prior to Placid was likely Whitface Mountain. A bit after Placid you skirt the High peaks area as you meander your way over to the Northville Placid Trail. I really liked the NPT and we are the decision to stay on it to the end rather than exit back onto or beside road for the southern section of the TAR.
I do believe there is a very cool route in that area. if I were to do it again I would truhike the entire NPT north into Placid, Resupply and add a canister.then loop through the Eastern High Peaks area. this IMHO would make a much better route and there are several Resupply options readily on or just off trail.
i could probably give you the roads that the route takes if you are interested. Pm me
Thank you,It sounds to me like I would be much more interested in the NPT,I am not to cool with the road walking,I can do that here in Austin,LOL...pm on the way
Treker45
12-06-2015, 16:59
Having hiked the NPT trail, I would prefer this vs road walking. Its a somewhat demanding trail, wet in spots, but a great trail. You can set up for resupply along the trail with little problems. You will contend with blow downs, and beavers flooding the trail in spots. its a great feeling being in the middle of the ADK and the unbelievable stars shows at night.
There are threads here on WB discussing in some detail the NPT. I received lots of solid advise on the NPT and High Peaks Region here on WB from several "in the know" Dak's regulars.
I thrued the NPT a couple yrs during a fall hike. It was a NPT thru with a three day excursion into the High Peaks Region where each night I was able to avoid the bear canister requirement by camping just on the outside perimeter of the mandatory can areas or night hiking through the HP region with some scenically awesome and challenging but dicey Harvest Full Moon summits thrown in for variety. Saw no one hiking on four night summits! I mixed in some fishing with a out of state NY License and canoeing on the Northern Forest Canoe Tr. Additionally, found canoes on some of the lakes/ponds along the NPT that I respectfully used in LNT canoe fashion. Nice that lean-tos were always nearby and I only shared one with one other hiker all of one night although the hike was of much shorter duration and distance than customary for me. Good fall hike timing the forays into the High Peaks Region for lower usage days.
There are threads here on WB discussing in some detail the NPT. I received lots of solid advise on the NPT and High Peaks Region here on WB from several "in the know" Dak's regulars.
I thrued the NPT a couple yrs during a fall hike. It was a NPT thru with a three day excursion into the High Peaks Region where each night I was able to avoid the bear canister requirement by camping just on the outside perimeter of the mandatory can areas or night hiking through the HP region with some scenically awesome and challenging but dicey Harvest Full Moon summits thrown in for variety. Saw no one hiking on four night summits! I mixed in some fishing with a out of state NY License and canoeing on the Northern Forest Canoe Tr. Additionally, found canoes on some of the lakes/ponds along the NPT that I respectfully used in LNT canoe fashion. Nice that lean-tos were always nearby and I only shared one with one other hiker all of one night although the hike was of much shorter duration and distance than customary for me. Good fall hike timing the forays into the High Peaks Region for lower usage days.
This is actually my reco!
if I were heading park to the Park for a long hike this would be my starting plan.
1) I would hike it the second week of October. We did the first week and while spectacular was likely a week early, at least this year.
2) start to end point logics would be the second consideration. The park is huge and the distance between the start and endpoint is 91 miles. It took us 21 hours to hitch from the mid point of the TAR to the northern terminus but were able to go the 60-70 miles at the end in about three hours, very lucky hitches. I have not looked into public transport but for us, the logistics drove the itinerary. I would start at Northville and End at either the Keene Valley area or Placid
3) The Northville Placid Trail (NPT) is very easy hiking, has some great shelters and is very well blazed and easy to follow.
4) As I indicated in first post I would thru the NPT, walk into Placid and see the Olympic venues. I would road walk out of Placid and walk to the Adirondack Loj on Adirondack Lodge Road, that is one of the finest road walk I have done. from there I would head to Marcy Dam then over Avalanche Pass to Lake Colden. Avalanche and Colden lakes are drop dead gorgeous. I would then head up and over Mt Marcy, the highest point in NY. Then you have a choice, high or low. You could stay high and hit Haystack, Basin, Gothic, Armstrong, Wolfjaw and Roster Comb Mountains. Or go low past Bushnell Falls and Johns Brook. Both have their own merits, low will be a lot easier. there are countless option to do some of both.
5) Bear Canisters are need in the East High Peak Region. There are workarounds but this will have to be factored into the choice of routes and resupplies.
6) Get a recent update on new trail going into Northville. new section just opened and added several miles to the route. You will want to understand the current southern terminus.
7) Maps. To do this route I recommend Nat Geo Maps 742 and 744. They are double sided maps.
8) One caution around Duck Hole, the trail is underwater due to beavers if you cut into the East High Peaks region from there. No issue on the NPT. We had 6" of rain over a day and a half so we had washed out bridges, fast stream and some slow and deep crossings. No clue what normal looks like.
9) Resupply. Placid is a major Resupply option. I don't remember a lot at the Adirondack Loj but you can check. if they have some options AND you don't want to go to Olaxid then you can cut off the NPT at Duck hole and head over to Henderson Lake and go north over Indian Pass. that is some cool scrambling. if you are scared of heights this is not a good option. Other resupplies. near Pisexo Lake you walk right by a deli/ convenience store. you can order a sandwich or two and Resupply. I would also carry a sandwich out. you also walk close to Long Lake. It is maybe a mile off trail.
10) There are some killer shelters on the trail in great locations, especially at Long Lake, Stevens pond and along Cold River. As Dogwood said there are canoes at some so if you are at a leisurely pace you can take advantage.
11) Want to get maximum bang for buck. Start at Long Lake. Much shorter but the route north is pond for pound outstanding with few filler miles. the southern part is nice but not quite as cool.
Some Pictures
if I were heading park to the Park for a long hike this would be my starting plan.
1) I would hike it the second week of October. We did the first week and while spectacular was likely a week early, at least this year.
2) start to end point logics would be the second consideration. The park is huge and the distance between the start and endpoint is 91 miles. It took us 21 hours to hitch from the mid point of the TAR to the northern terminus but were able to go the 60-70 miles at the end in about three hours, very lucky hitches. I have not looked into public transport but for us, the logistics drove the itinerary. I would start at Northville and End at either the Keene Valley area or Placid
3) The Northville Placid Trail (NPT) is very easy hiking, has some great shelters and is very well blazed and easy to follow.
4) As I indicated in first post I would thru the NPT, walk into Placid and see the Olympic venues. I would road walk out of Placid and walk to the Adirondack Loj on Adirondack Lodge Road, that is one of the finest road walk I have done. from there I would head to Marcy Dam then over Avalanche Pass to Lake Colden. Avalanche and Colden lakes are drop dead gorgeous. I would then head up and over Mt Marcy, the highest point in NY. Then you have a choice, high or low. You could stay high and hit Haystack, Basin, Gothic, Armstrong, Wolfjaw and Roster Comb Mountains. Or go low past Bushnell Falls and Johns Brook. Both have their own merits, low will be a lot easier. there are countless option to do some of both.
5) Bear Canisters are need in the East High Peak Region. There are workarounds but this will have to be factored into the choice of routes and resupplies.
6) Get a recent update on new trail going into Northville. new section just opened and added several miles to the route. You will want to understand the current southern terminus.
7) Maps. To do this route I recommend Nat Geo Maps 742 and 744. They are double sided maps.
8) One caution around Duck Hole, the trail is underwater due to beavers if you cut into the East High Peaks region from there. No issue on the NPT. We had 6" of rain over a day and a half so we had washed out bridges, fast stream and some slow and deep crossings. No clue what normal looks like.
9) Resupply. Placid is a major Resupply option. I don't remember a lot at the Adirondack Loj but you can check. if they have some options AND you don't want to go to Olaxid then you can cut off the NPT at Duck hole and head over to Henderson Lake and go north over Indian Pass. that is some cool scrambling. if you are scared of heights this is not a good option. Other resupplies. near Pisexo Lake you walk right by a deli/ convenience store. you can order a sandwich or two and Resupply. I would also carry a sandwich out. you also walk close to Long Lake. It is maybe a mile off trail.
10) There are some killer shelters on the trail in great locations, especially at Long Lake, Stevens pond and along Cold River. As Dogwood said there are canoes at some so if you are at a leisurely pace you can take advantage.
11) Want to get maximum bang for buck. Start at Long Lake. Much shorter but the route north is pond for pound outstanding with few filler miles. the southern part is nice but not quite as cool.
Some Pictures
WOW,thank you so much for taking the time to write that up,it is very much appreciated.I will check out the maps and see about this.I heard you can park at the southern terminus for a thru hike.I was thinking of parking there and trying to hich to the northern terminus.Thank you again.
iAmKrzys
12-06-2015, 21:06
Thank you,It sounds to me like I would be much more interested in the NPT,I am not to cool with the road walking,I can do that here in Austin,LOL...pm on the way
Another user on this site did quite a bit of work to ensure that the entire length of NPT is marked on OpenStreetMap.org. You can download the gpx and look at elevetion profile on Waymarked Trails site that uses OSM data: http://waymarkedtrails.org/en/relation/4286650?zoom=9&lat=43.74269&lon=-74.30633&hill=0.4
Another user on this site did quite a bit of work to ensure that the entire length of NPT is marked on OpenStreetMap.org. You can download the gpx and look at elevetion profile on Waymarked Trails site that uses OSM data: http://waymarkedtrails.org/en/relation/4286650?zoom=9&lat=43.74269&lon=-74.30633&hill=0.4
Very cool,,,thanks.
Very cool,,,thanks.
That map linked has the new section, between Northville and Benson Rd. The trail used to end at the side trail shown just above Shaker Mountain Wild Forest.
Good thing the trail extends into northville now. That is one tough hitchhike from benson road.
Thanks for the link for the gps. That will come in handy