Springbreaking, ADK style

I "had to" use up some vacation days at work so a couple of long weekends in March hiking the ADKs seemed like a great plan. A long cold winter and steady snowfall since mid-January made for great snow conditions. I managed to get out on some cold but bluebird sunny days as well as  a couple of somewhat cloudy days for some great hikes and views. The quick trip up Mt Jo found the clearest views I have yet had up there. The hike up Round mountain was highlighted by the animal tracks evident in the thin layer of fresh snow. The most enjoyed of the hikes was to Mt Colden via the trail from Lake Arnold which brought my number of winter 46ers (all done in March) to 10. Although a mostly cloudy day, the winter views from Mt. Colden, of Mt. Marcy in one direction and the McIntyre range in the other, are spectacular!

Pics:

• Random St Huberts peak
• Round Mountain
• Mt Jo
• Mt Colden

ADK Leaf Peeping

I spent Wednesday to Friday of last week leaf peeping in the Adirondacks. The beginning of the week had some light rain so the leaves were starting to come down but there was still plenty of color and views were as usual fairly awesome.

In no particular order, I visited the following "shorties":

• Owl's Head: The short trip up was worth it for the vibrant colors although the low cloud cover hid all the high peaks.
• Round mountain: Another great short hike with fine views, easier than it's nearest neighbor (Noonmark) with slightly better (just my opinion) views. Again, the low cloud cover messed with my view of the Dix range but no complaining here. I'll be back here soon, perhaps next winter.
• Big Crow: This one is a hidden gem that rivals Owl's Head for lowest effort vs excellant view. The effort is slightly more but the view is much wider in scope. Low clouds again on the higher peaks but the nearest ones (Big Slide, Porter, Cascade and Pitchoff) were clear under bright blue skies.
• Mt Jo: Jo was packed at the summit including two groups of school kids from Saranac Lake (I think). Colors were brilliant and skies were clear blue. The hikers ranged in age from 4 to close to 80 (if I am an accurate judge of age!). Have to wonder if the 4 year old will hike it when aged 80?
• Mt Gilligan: Yep, I had a familiar tune in my head as I began this hike. This one is also hidden (off route 9 just west of the New Russia trailhead to RPR and Giant) though I am not ready to label it a gem.

A nice way to spend a few fall days and a great place to do it!

Exploring "shorties" in Keene Valley



 

 

After the long weekend I returned to the adirondacks for more leaf peeping. There was a cold snap that caused a lot of the leaves around Lake Placid to drop but it was still fall in all it's glory as you headed down route 73 past Cascade to Keene valley. The Keene valley has several peaks that are not on the 46er list that have exceptional views for minimal effort. Often the best views are from lower peaks that are in amongst or looking up at bigger mountains. It snowed overnight while I was there which added to the leaf peeping experience by providing the contrast between the snow covered peak and the fall colors on the lower slopes.

Enjoy the leafy goodness!

• Owl's head (before snow)
• Mt Jo (sadly I missed the leaves on this one)
• Baxter mountain (this one is a new favorite)
• The Crows
• Owl's head (after snow)

Hey Jo

Saturday was a beautiful day more suited to early fall than mid November. Temps were around 10C with clear sunny skies. There was just enough daylight to get a reasonable night's sleep, drive down to Lake Placid, hike Mt Jo and head back home. It turned out I was also able to take some roadside pics as well to take advantage of the clear weather and I made it back to the border before it started to get dark.

I took the "Short" trail up Mt Jo and descended via the "Long" trail. Since the longer of the two is about a mile and a half, neither of the names are really appropriate. Having said that, the Short trail was ice free while the Long trail was icy in spots and also wetter. It was quite windy up top but not too cold. The views from Mt Jo are great from Street in the west around to Cascade and Porter in the east. The main event of the view is of the MacIntyres, Colden and back to Mt Marcy. The best time of day to do this hike would be early morning or late afternoon to avoid looking into the su. I made it up for noon but enjoyed the half hour stay nonetheless.

On the way out I purchased the ADK calendar for 2012 (two thumbs up for this year's version) and stopped at a few spots off the road (Connery Pond) to take some photos in the clear conditions.

This is a great hike to take photos of the fall colors as it takes about a half hour to hike up and has an awesome view. OK, c'mon snow!!

More photos