Northeast Mountain Adventure

[CrazyDave]

I have some ambitious plans on how to spend the Independence Day (4th of July) weekend in the Northeast Mountains, and I'm inviting people to join me. I'm not sure that anyone will want to try this complete event with me, but I expect some people might like to do at least part of it with me. Prior to this my friend Wayne Fogg, his wife and I are going to Hike Connecticuts longest continuous Blue-Blazed Trail. The 51.2 mile Metacomet Trail in 2 days. The Metacomet Hike will be done on June 18th & 19th for anyone that would like to join us. The Metacomet Hike will be a warm up for my Northeast Mountain Adventure.
My Northeast Mountain Adventure is to Summit the High Point of 3 states (NH, VT, & NY) in addition to all the White Mountains in NH that have a elevation of over 5,000 ft. to be done on Saturday, July 2nd. Then Climb VT's tallest Mountain Mt. Mansfield on Sunday and perhaps Camels Hump depending on how I'm holding up on July 3rd. And for the 4th of July to Hike up Mt. Algonquin, Mt. Haystack, Mt. Little Marcy, and Mt. Marcy.
The event will begin by me setting up camp at the Lafayette Campground on Friday, July 1st. I'll start Hiking up Mt. Lafayette in the very early hours of the morning of July 2nd to watch sunrise from the Summit, then do the Franconia Ridge. As soon as this Hike is done I'll drive to the Crawford Hostel & Visit Center on Rte 302, leave my car there and carpool to Rte 2 to begin a Presidential Traverse also know as the death March. I'll watch Sunset while on the Presidential Ridge. When this part of the event finishes I'll drive back to the Lafayette Campground and get some needed sleep.
The next morning July 3rd I'll drive to VT and Hike up Mt. Mansfield and if I'm feeling pretty good I'll do Mt Camels Hump too. Then I'll drive to NY's High Peaks Region of the Adirondacks and set up camp at the LOJ Campground. The next day July 4th. My plans are to hike to the summits of: Mt Algonquin, Mt Haystack, Mt Little Marcy, and Mt Marcy. I plan to do this Hike so that I will get to the Summit of Marcy just before Sunset, I'll watch Sunset from the Summit and stay there a little longer to watch the Lake Placid Fireworks in the Distance. After the fireworks are over I'll Hike back out to the LOJ Campground to get a good nights sleep before driving back to CT.
My intensions with this event is to push myself to my limit Physically and Mentally. I expect this to be one of those things that I can look back on later in life and say. WOW! I was able to do that at one time in my life. I'm not a trail runner, all of this is Hiking.

 

[SherpaKroto]

CrazyDave:
You might consider cutting the Presi hike a bit short by heading down the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail after summitting Monroe (a fine viewpoint for a sunset, BTW) where your car awaits. That will still satisfy your 5K requirement. If you are determined to do a Presi traverse, park at the Clinton Road lot and not at the Highland Ctr. They might tow you (although I've only been threatened )

I won't run into you this year (like I did on Marcy). I would guess, however, that this has never been attempted! Good Luck!

BTW, you are aptly named

 

[CrazyDave]

Hi Sherpakroto

I really like to listen to everything that you say. Because you have such a great deal of Knowledge about all the Trails in the Northeast Mountains. I have a great deal of respect for you. I've never Hiked down the West Side of Washington, and I've never checked out the station that the Cog leaves from. So I just might take your suggestion. That would get me to sleep at a more decent hour on Saturday Night. Hopefully I'll cross paths with you out on the Trail again one of these days.

 

[Double Bow]

Going down Ammonusuc Ravine won't bring you to the cog station but, it is a nice hike. Maybe you should ask Sherpa John if he wants to join you. This sounds right up his alley!

 

[David Metsky]

I agree, going down the Ammonoosuc Ravine trail makes more sense than hiking the rest of the ridge, but it is fairly steep and has some tricky stream crossings. That could make in interesting for a hike down after dark. The hiker parking lot is just down the road from the Cog base station and the trail bypasses the Base Station. If you park there, you can go to Appalachia (Valley Way trailhead) via the Jefferson Notch Road, which will save time.

The fastest/easiest way to start the trip is to go up Valley Way to the hut and just up/down Madison from there. Then take Airline up Adams, and follow Gulfside from there.

Are you only going with "Official" 5000'ers or will you include JQA, Sam Adams, Adams IV, and Clay?

Sounds like a fun, if somewhat crazy weekend. Have a fantastic time!

-dave-

 

[Puma concolor]

If you are able to bag all of the NH 5K footers in a single day and then follow that up 2 days later with Algonquin, Haystack, Little Marcy and Marcy, I would appreciate it if you would send me your address via private message. I will personally go to your home and kiss your feet. Have fun trying!!!!

 

[NH_Mtn_Hiker]

Are you only going with "Official" 5000'ers or will you include JQA, Sam Adams, Adams IV, and Clay?

Don't forget Mount Franklin (5001')
I'm surprised at you Dave.

If you are able to bag all of the NH 5K footers in a single day and then follow that up 2 days later with Algonquin, Haystack, Little Marcy and Marcy,...

And the day in between he could bag Baxter Peak then get some rest before driving to New York that night.

 

[SherpaKroto]

Ok, I'll jump in: Adams 5?

CrazyDave, I'm sure we'll cross paths again. Consider coming up to Spencer's for the August BBQ.

BTW, Mr Metsky makes a good point. Have you considered going in reverse? Valleyway would be an easier descent, and you would get on the trail earlier. You could likely be dropped off at the Cog Building and head up to the Ammo trail from behind the small workmens shacks. Saves another .9 miles.

BTW, thanks for your kind words. I try!

 

[CrazyDave]

Northeast Adventure

A big factor in how well my body holds up during this event will be the weather. On days when there's an overcast, and maybe occasional light rain. Is when I'm at my best. On days like that I can do 20 miles or more and feel totally fine afterwards. But on days when it's pretty hot and the sun is constantly beating down on me, it's a whole different story. The heat really slows me down. I'm not really worried about the Hiking in the dark. The LCD Headlamps really throw so serious light. I'm not trying to do only the official (7) 5,000 footers. I might try to hit a few more summits depending on how well my body is holding up, and how I'm doing for time. I expect this to be exciting, challenging, and fun. There are a lot of people with a great deal of experience in the Mountains, that post on viewsfromthetop. I'm listening to all the suggestions that I get. And I will make changes that make good sense from these suggestions. When the event gets less than a week away, I will post the exact details of the event with the changes I've made from everyones suggestions on this tread. And perhaps I'll see some of you when I'm out there.

 

[sierra]

granted Ive been out west for 4yrs but I thought the old trail was still there and you could still hike to the base station from the Ammou??

 

[NH_Mtn_Hiker]

granted Ive been out west for 4yrs but I thought the old trail was still there and you could still hike to the base station from the Ammou??

You can. I used it a couple of times this Winter. Shorter than going down to the Ammo parking lot, besides that's closed in the Winter. Parking at the Base Station is sometimes an issue though.

 

[Sherpa John]

DOWN JEWELL TRAIL off washington.

Double Bow: it is right up my alley BUT... I have a party to attend in chicopee mass on the 3rd.. and I am hiking washington via Boot Spur (if anyone wants to join) on the 4th.

Definately go down jewell trail and take boundry over to base rd.

 

[CrazyDave]

Sherpa John

Thank's, I may do that. When it gets to be time for this event. I'm going to print out this entire tread, and take all the advice; that makes sense. I purchased you NH 48 film, and loved it. You did a great job!

 

[SherpaKroto]

Heading down Jewell misses Monroe. Ammo is the choice with Dave Metsky's cautions.

 

[Sherpa John]

SK... he could always BACK-TRACK

 

[Mike P.]

In the dark, getting to base station via the old part of the ammo would be preferable to the trail, even if you walk the road to the official parking lot. if you get to gem pool before dark you've gotten off the worse of the night time terrain.

The crazy part is all the driving, after that you'll have to do Katahdin to finish all the NE 5k's. I'll save my crazy driving for getting back to CT from BSP, I've done my share already.

 

[CrazyDave]

I'm pretty sure that I'll be doing only the (7) official NH 5K's on July 2nd. Generally I only sleep 5 hours a night all year long. So, I'm thinking that I can do this event and still get my 5 hours in. With the exception of the 1st night. Where I'll be starting my Hike up the OBP at 1:00 AM to the Summit of Mt Lafayette. Watching Sunrise on Lafayette will give me a high that should help get me through the day.
For the following day July 3rd it may end up being only Mt. Mansfield. It all depends on how I'm holding up. If I'm really feeling good, who knows.
And for the 4th of July doing Algonquin, Little Marcy, Marcy, & Haystack. That I'm really looking forward to doing. Watching the Fireworks from the Summit of Marcy will be a lot of fun. Even if they are really far in the distance. Last year I watched the 4th of July Fireworks from the Summit of Killington with a group of friends, and really loved it.

 

[CrazyDave]

July 2nd in the Whites

It looks like I'm now sure how I'm going to do my White Mountain Part of this 3 day event. Getting up in the early hours of the morning on Saturday, July 2nd and starting out on the OBP in time to watch Sunrise on Lafayette, then across the Franconia Ridge and down the Falling Waters Trail.

Next I'm going to drive to Base Road and use the Trail that Sherpakroto suggested the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail. But do it the way Dave Metsky suggested; starting out on it instead of finishing. And I'm going to finish coming down the Valley Way Trail.

And Mike P., there won't be any Katahdin in this event. That drive from Katahdin to Washington was a one time thing. But, I will be doing Katahdin either the last week of July or the first week of August.

 

[Hikerdad]

Dave:

The hike for Algonquin/Marcy/Little Marcy (which has no trail)/Haystack is quite an undertaking.....Not sure of the route you intend but I came up with about 22 miles and a lot of up and down. Algonquin and Marcy are probably 7-8 miles apart alone and Haystack takes you even further from the Loj...Sounds like quite a challenge for a day hike. Have Fun!

 

[CrazyDave]

HikerDad

Here's my 4th of July plans for the Adirondack. I'll start Hiking at about 8:30 AM from LOJ Parking Lot on the Van Hoevenberg Trail for about a mile. Then I'll pick up the Algonquin Peak Trail and Hike another 3.4 miles then take a short break at Mt Wright Peak. Next Hike another mile to Mt Algonquin Peak and take a longer break to get some great pictures, and chat with a few people. After the break I'll continue on the Algonquin Peak Trail for another 2 miles which will bring me down to Lake Golden. I'll cross the Lake Golden Dam and Hike 9.5 miles along the Calamity Brook Trail to the Elk Lake - Marcy Trail. I'll be on the Trail for about 1.2 miles. Next I'll be taking the Bartlett Ridge Trail for about a mile up the very steep south side of Mt. Haystack. Once at the Summit I'll take a very long break, get some really nice pictures, enjoy the views, and talk to a few people.

From the Summit of Mt Haystack I'll take the State Range Trail for about .5 miles to the Summit of Mt. Little Haystack and take a few more pictures. Then I'll Hike another mile to the Summit of Mt Marcy and watch the Sunset followed up with the Lake Placid Fireworks. They will be in the very far distance but will be very cool to watch from the Summit of Mt. Marcy. After this I'll Hike 7.2 miles out to the LOJ in the dark with headlamps. I'll spend the following day in Lake Placid before heading back to CT. Oh and by the way, I shouldn't be saying I'll, I should be saying we'll. Yes, I might have found someone to do this entire event with me. But, I'm not going to say who it is. If that person decides to go public, he/she will post it themselves.