After months of goofing around I finally made it back to the Adirondacks for three days of hiking. I will now be focusing on chasing the ADK Hundred Highest list. In addition to the standard 46 high peaks, there are 54 more peaks to climb. Many of the “Lower 54″ are truly trailless – and climbing them brings a whole new meaning to the word “bushwack”. Some signs you might be on an Adirondack bushwack:
a.) You can’t see the guy six feet in front of you
b.) Downclimbing a section of cliffs is the “best” path forward
c.) You happily climb back uphill to avoid blowdown
d.) You hear the lead guy say “This way is stupid.”
e.) Two days later you are pulling pine needles out of your hair
f.) You have so many scratches people ask you if you got in a fight with a bobcat
Fortunately I have found a few other idiots who are starting the ADK100 list:
L-R - Me, Jay, Jason
Friday we did a nice traverse of Jay and Saddleback. A nice trail with open views took us to the top of Jay Mt. Then a bit of gentle bushwacking took us over to Saddleback where we then descended to a spotted car. Along the way we went over many open rock areas that kept the hike fun and interesting.
Saturday our original plan had to be changed due to rain. Several people in our group were working on the 46er list so we ended up hiking Street and Nye – Nye is arguably the ugliest high peak there is. With those two in the bag I only need to hike to more mountains to complete my second round of the 46 (but who’s counting?). Then most of the group headed back down while Jay, Jason, and I (being the idiots of the group) decided to bushwack over to Lost Pond Peak (an ADK100) which was only 1.25 miles away. From the summit it was only another mile or so back to a trail. Now the three of us would usually hike at a 3+ mph pace on most trails, but this bushwack took four hours. Much of the bushwack was actually very nice despite the cooler temperatures, occasional rain, and completely soaked clothing. Perhaps the most impressive part was the moss along the route – in some places it was a couple inches thick! At one point I fell sideways into a rock face only to laugh because the moss on it was softer than my pillow. We got to the summit amidst the heaviest downpour (see picture above) and rapidly proceeded with the descent. The whole mountain was socked in heavy – it is incredible how disorienting thick pines and fog is! I took a compass bearing at the top and starting walking. Two minutes later I checked the compass and found we were starting to descend the opposite side of the mountain. We adjusted accordingly and kept a close eye on the instruments. Then a steep bushwack down to a trail and a brisk jog out the last 2 or 3 miles to the car.
Sunday was a climb of Colden via the Trap Dyke – a route that I have done before but is well worth doing again. The route ascends 1800′ in 0.65 miles. For the first half you are scrambling up rock ledges with a few class 3-4 moves along the way. Then you cut out to a delightful Adirondack slide that ascends directly to the summit rock. We had an absolutely beautiful day that reminded me how much I love those mountains.
