Guinness
Active member
I originally planned on doing Skylight and Gray Peak as a night climb. The moon was bright, the sky was clear all conditions were excellent. But it has been many trips since I had clear weather in the ADKs and all the weather reports indicated that Saturday was to be a mild warm and cloudless day. I needed some views. When I arrived in Lake Placid late Friday night, I decided to wait until the morning before starting.
There was a group leaving at 6:00 a.m. from the Loj consisting of HarryK, Sir Edmund, Jean, Louis and ?? (I forgot one name). We all left the parking lot at 6:00 and cruised to Avalanch Camp 2. The trail from here to Lake Arnold was where I drifted behind the main group, which I will refer to as the Daytona Fives. I was the pack-mule of the group. There was no way I would keep up with them. On the way to Lake Arnold, I passed Arlene and Dori who were also heading to Skylight and Gray. We talked a few minutes at Lake Arnold and found out we knew each other through VfTT.
The day promised to be one of the better days the ADKs have seen in a long time. I enjoyed bringing the camera out and capturing images along the way. Near the bridge to the Feldspar Lean-to PinPin Junior passed me. We talked a few minutes, and in a flash, he was off. It appears the thread I started on Skylight and Gray had generated much interest. On the trail to Lake Tear of the Clouds, Geezer passed me and mentioned he saw the post on VfTT.
I went up Skylight first and met Peggy O and two of her friends descending. She asked if I was part of the VfTT group. There must have been many lurkers. Skylight was ice covered from tree line to the summit. Caution should be taken when traversing this area. The winds were moderate and the views were excellent. My times were slow, 5 hours exactly from the Loj to the Skylight summit but I was enjoying everything about the trip.
While descending Skylight I met up with Geezer and one of the original Daytona Fives. The remaining four went up Gray and crossed over to Marcy. When I started up Gray Peak I met Arlene and Dori who just finished Gray Peak. The trail up Gray was now traversed by many and sections of it were now polished ice. Care had to be taken in two areas. I had snowshoes on and for these sections, crampons would have been better.
There was one casualty on the trip. My pack was a GoLite Infinity and it definitely is not a cold weather pack. The fabric (SilLite HG) was stiff and felt “cheap” when cold. When I strapped on the snowshoes, it was about 0 F and the fabric on both sides blew out with little effort leaving 6-inch holes. The pack cover, which is also a zippered pocket, blew a 4-inch hole with almost no stress. I have used The North Faces packs for many years and never had a problem. I thought I would try a fast-n-light pack, but GoLite was a poor choice. The Infinity was $200 and after only three uses, it is now going back.
Since Gray Peak is a bushwhack, the branches were catching on the pack and I was afraid the pack was about to be torn to shreds so I dropped the pack just past the start up Gray Peak. When I arrived on the summit, the trail to Marcy looked very inviting and if I had my pack, I would have gone over Marcy and out the VH. But the pack was down below and so I went down. At the Feldspar junction three of the original Daytona Fives caught me. We all cruised out having met our goals for the day, of course I watched them pull away. Returning to Marcy Dam I met two friends coming off the VH trail. At the split with the Algonquin trail I met up with a friend, Gary from Tupper Lake, who was with Christine and others coming off Marcy. We hiked out together and returned to the parking lot by 5:15.
This day was exceptional for climbing. Not only for the views, but also for all the friends I met on the trails, 17 in all! Never have I had a day like this. I measured the distance at 18.2 miles in 11:15, which is good for me.
Final Note: The trail from avalanche camp 2, past Lake Arnold to Lake Tear of the Clouds is in excellent condition, the best I have seen in many years. There are no postholes, all travelers had snowshoes and I hope it stays that way. Thank you to all who honored the snowshoe regulation.
There was a group leaving at 6:00 a.m. from the Loj consisting of HarryK, Sir Edmund, Jean, Louis and ?? (I forgot one name). We all left the parking lot at 6:00 and cruised to Avalanch Camp 2. The trail from here to Lake Arnold was where I drifted behind the main group, which I will refer to as the Daytona Fives. I was the pack-mule of the group. There was no way I would keep up with them. On the way to Lake Arnold, I passed Arlene and Dori who were also heading to Skylight and Gray. We talked a few minutes at Lake Arnold and found out we knew each other through VfTT.
The day promised to be one of the better days the ADKs have seen in a long time. I enjoyed bringing the camera out and capturing images along the way. Near the bridge to the Feldspar Lean-to PinPin Junior passed me. We talked a few minutes, and in a flash, he was off. It appears the thread I started on Skylight and Gray had generated much interest. On the trail to Lake Tear of the Clouds, Geezer passed me and mentioned he saw the post on VfTT.
I went up Skylight first and met Peggy O and two of her friends descending. She asked if I was part of the VfTT group. There must have been many lurkers. Skylight was ice covered from tree line to the summit. Caution should be taken when traversing this area. The winds were moderate and the views were excellent. My times were slow, 5 hours exactly from the Loj to the Skylight summit but I was enjoying everything about the trip.
While descending Skylight I met up with Geezer and one of the original Daytona Fives. The remaining four went up Gray and crossed over to Marcy. When I started up Gray Peak I met Arlene and Dori who just finished Gray Peak. The trail up Gray was now traversed by many and sections of it were now polished ice. Care had to be taken in two areas. I had snowshoes on and for these sections, crampons would have been better.
There was one casualty on the trip. My pack was a GoLite Infinity and it definitely is not a cold weather pack. The fabric (SilLite HG) was stiff and felt “cheap” when cold. When I strapped on the snowshoes, it was about 0 F and the fabric on both sides blew out with little effort leaving 6-inch holes. The pack cover, which is also a zippered pocket, blew a 4-inch hole with almost no stress. I have used The North Faces packs for many years and never had a problem. I thought I would try a fast-n-light pack, but GoLite was a poor choice. The Infinity was $200 and after only three uses, it is now going back.
Since Gray Peak is a bushwhack, the branches were catching on the pack and I was afraid the pack was about to be torn to shreds so I dropped the pack just past the start up Gray Peak. When I arrived on the summit, the trail to Marcy looked very inviting and if I had my pack, I would have gone over Marcy and out the VH. But the pack was down below and so I went down. At the Feldspar junction three of the original Daytona Fives caught me. We all cruised out having met our goals for the day, of course I watched them pull away. Returning to Marcy Dam I met two friends coming off the VH trail. At the split with the Algonquin trail I met up with a friend, Gary from Tupper Lake, who was with Christine and others coming off Marcy. We hiked out together and returned to the parking lot by 5:15.
This day was exceptional for climbing. Not only for the views, but also for all the friends I met on the trails, 17 in all! Never have I had a day like this. I measured the distance at 18.2 miles in 11:15, which is good for me.
Final Note: The trail from avalanche camp 2, past Lake Arnold to Lake Tear of the Clouds is in excellent condition, the best I have seen in many years. There are no postholes, all travelers had snowshoes and I hope it stays that way. Thank you to all who honored the snowshoe regulation.
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