Earlier this week, I squeezed in an unexpected day in the Adirondacks after seeing everything that I wanted to see in the Catskills a day ahead of schedule. My destinations, Snowy Mountain and OK Slip Falls, provided a very rewarding conclusion to my five-day mini-vacation in Southern New England & Upstate New York.
I will post my Snowy Mountain trip report today and my OK Slip Falls report tomorrow.
SNOWY MOUNTAIN
Snowy Mountain is perhaps the most impressive peak in the Adirondacks outside of the High Peaks region. It's the highest peak in the ADKs outside of the High Peaks. It's higher than two of the 46ers, Nye and Couchsachraga. It's the seventh-most prominent peak in the ADKs and the second-most isolated. It's the highest fire tower in the ADKs and second-highest in the state. It's the Hamilton county high point. And it's on a few hiking and peakbagging challenges including the Fire Tower Challenge, the Adirondack 29er Challenge, and the Indian Lake 4-3-2-1 Challenge.
The trail begins on route 30, a half-mile away from Indian Lake's western shore. The parking area is on the opposite side of the highway from the trailhead. The initial two-thirds of the 3.4-mile trail is relatively tame, with the only real area of concern being a wide brook crossing shortly beyond the one-mile mark. The final 1,500 feet of the ascent is where the approach hiking fades into the rearview mirror and the real climbing begins. The steep rock slabs in this section wouldn't be out-of-place in the High Peaks dozens of miles away.
I am happy to report that my new La Sportiva trail runners handled this challenging terrain a lot better than my Ozark Trail boots did in the past. The noticeably superior traction gave me a lot more confidence going up and down the rocks, though I still wanted to exercise caution as it was a bit slick from recent rains. The tradeoff was having noticeably less ankle support in the flatter sections where fallen leaves covered a lot of the roots and rocks. Near the end of my hike, a hidden rock caused me to stumble and twist my ankle. I let out a bunch of obscenities. Naturally, another hiker was right around the corner and presumably heard me loud-and-clear. It's similar to when you're driving and make a sharp turn on a winding highway; there's almost guaranteed to be another car swerving around the corner at that exact moment!
To my pleasant surprise, there was a bit of snow in the open summit area above 3,800 feet, coating the coniferous trees and dusting the fire tower's steps. The tower's cab provided a remarkably beautiful view of two distinct seasons: winter in the foreground and leaf-turning autumn in the background. It made for some excellent photo opportunities.
Stay tuned for my trip report and photos of OK Slip Falls that will be posted tomorrow...
I will post my Snowy Mountain trip report today and my OK Slip Falls report tomorrow.
SNOWY MOUNTAIN
Snowy Mountain is perhaps the most impressive peak in the Adirondacks outside of the High Peaks region. It's the highest peak in the ADKs outside of the High Peaks. It's higher than two of the 46ers, Nye and Couchsachraga. It's the seventh-most prominent peak in the ADKs and the second-most isolated. It's the highest fire tower in the ADKs and second-highest in the state. It's the Hamilton county high point. And it's on a few hiking and peakbagging challenges including the Fire Tower Challenge, the Adirondack 29er Challenge, and the Indian Lake 4-3-2-1 Challenge.
The trail begins on route 30, a half-mile away from Indian Lake's western shore. The parking area is on the opposite side of the highway from the trailhead. The initial two-thirds of the 3.4-mile trail is relatively tame, with the only real area of concern being a wide brook crossing shortly beyond the one-mile mark. The final 1,500 feet of the ascent is where the approach hiking fades into the rearview mirror and the real climbing begins. The steep rock slabs in this section wouldn't be out-of-place in the High Peaks dozens of miles away.
I am happy to report that my new La Sportiva trail runners handled this challenging terrain a lot better than my Ozark Trail boots did in the past. The noticeably superior traction gave me a lot more confidence going up and down the rocks, though I still wanted to exercise caution as it was a bit slick from recent rains. The tradeoff was having noticeably less ankle support in the flatter sections where fallen leaves covered a lot of the roots and rocks. Near the end of my hike, a hidden rock caused me to stumble and twist my ankle. I let out a bunch of obscenities. Naturally, another hiker was right around the corner and presumably heard me loud-and-clear. It's similar to when you're driving and make a sharp turn on a winding highway; there's almost guaranteed to be another car swerving around the corner at that exact moment!
To my pleasant surprise, there was a bit of snow in the open summit area above 3,800 feet, coating the coniferous trees and dusting the fire tower's steps. The tower's cab provided a remarkably beautiful view of two distinct seasons: winter in the foreground and leaf-turning autumn in the background. It made for some excellent photo opportunities.
Stay tuned for my trip report and photos of OK Slip Falls that will be posted tomorrow...
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