Zer0-G
New member
Part One of Three:
Now some people think I’m crazy – some are indifferent and some are impressed for various reasons when I tell them what I am up to in those mountains. With some extra free time on my hands due to my wife and son being on an extended (she) work/ (he) play vacation in Maine and rather than sit at home to create more things to clean up after myself, I decided to take my show on the road again.
5 out of the last 6 weekends I have been treading these mountains and all of a sudden I find myself on the crest of the home stretch for completing the 46r list.
This weekend puts me on a three day backpack with hopes of clear weather unlike the past weekend when I was thoroughly pelted by the elements.
Good luck has found me on the trail with my old time backpacking buddy “Iron Horse” (appropriately named I daresay) with sunshine and fair temps.
So we leave the trailhead at the ADK LOJ- 7 AM – sun abounding, full packs and full of expectations with bear cans in tow like Jacob Marley’s money boxes. Oh, the burdens we bear in life.
The first crossroads we come to is to Wright. Having never been on this or any of the peaks in this report I am eager to see what awaits us on the top. We drop our packs and with snacks and water in our super-ultralight-day-packs we CLIMB up the trail. I was happily surprised to find it wide open and barren and full of panoramic beauty. Now, I still can’t identify many of the peaks in the panorama but I have no trouble proclaiming – “There’s Algonquin!” – After a snack and a long drink, down we go….up we go…the only peak we climbed with full packs so we had to work at this one. Finally at the summit of Algonquin and being bombarded with outstanding views. After a brief visit with the peak warden and a few other anonymous view-seekers, getting some advice for the rest of the day, unsolicited regarding vegetation and what-not off we go to Iroquois. (I must say, I don’t think I would be a good Ranger, I don’t like beards – I’m a compulsive shaver! I know, not all Rangers have beards, just the ones I remember do. Especially the Ranger named Shirley, she had a top quality beard).
We managed to walk right by the obscured junction to Iroquois. After about 2 minutes, Iron Horse proclaimed “Hey! Why are we going down?” Back up we went and at that marvelous rock protuberance marking the junction, we picked up the “Trail to Iroquois” sign and off we went, daypacks flailing. It was great fun looking back at where we had just been and getting all of the different perspectives from the many varied viewpoints. As usual I was trying to name every peak I saw. Realizing that I do not have a great talent for doing that, I started naming them after my favorite dead musicians. There’s the Jimi Peak and, Duane Allman Peak, and the Janis peak etc….It made sense to me! I always wondered what a mountain would sound like if you traced it’s profile on a musical scale.
Anyway, we proceed onward to our next conquest for the day being Mt Marshall.
As we approached the turn off to Mt Marshall, we noticed a few small herd paths dotting the trail. The fact not sinking into my head yet that I have yet to have a problem locating the start of a herd path in the Adirondacks, I spun off onto one of the more well defined herd paths to see “if” this was the one. Well, after a few yards we determined it wasn’t but not before we found what appeared to be a backpack or some bag, possibly a bear bag, with some food related items strewn about. This was obviously the remains of a looting by one of our Bruin buddies.
We proceeded down the trail a few more yards to Herbert Brook where we had absolutely no problem identifying the start of the herd path or the way to the summit of Mt Marshall.
As the day was wearing on, we dawdled little at the summit as we knew our camping destination for the evening was still a few miles away.
The day was still a beauty and we enjoyed crossing Colden Dam. We relaxed for a few minutes here staring up at Colden, grabbing a bite, studying the map and confirming our plans for the evening and the next day. Hustling up the trail alongside the Opalescent, we passed a number of backpackers and finally after a considerable end-of-day uphill march found the uphill lean-to and set up camp near the herd path for Redfield. In the shelter we met a few of our fellow backpackers and peak baggers, exchanged useful information and small talk. Now, recently, on my peak bagging adventures, I have been asking some people if they are VFFT people. Most people look puzzled and say no. But tonight one of the people at the campsite identified himself as KnukedRocket! We had a good laugh over that. Being exhausted with a full belly and tired feet I climbed into my hammock and with the gentle sound of the Uphill Brook tickling the tops of the rocks in the near distance – sleep easily overcame me.
End of day one.
Zer0-G
Now some people think I’m crazy – some are indifferent and some are impressed for various reasons when I tell them what I am up to in those mountains. With some extra free time on my hands due to my wife and son being on an extended (she) work/ (he) play vacation in Maine and rather than sit at home to create more things to clean up after myself, I decided to take my show on the road again.
5 out of the last 6 weekends I have been treading these mountains and all of a sudden I find myself on the crest of the home stretch for completing the 46r list.
This weekend puts me on a three day backpack with hopes of clear weather unlike the past weekend when I was thoroughly pelted by the elements.
Good luck has found me on the trail with my old time backpacking buddy “Iron Horse” (appropriately named I daresay) with sunshine and fair temps.
So we leave the trailhead at the ADK LOJ- 7 AM – sun abounding, full packs and full of expectations with bear cans in tow like Jacob Marley’s money boxes. Oh, the burdens we bear in life.
The first crossroads we come to is to Wright. Having never been on this or any of the peaks in this report I am eager to see what awaits us on the top. We drop our packs and with snacks and water in our super-ultralight-day-packs we CLIMB up the trail. I was happily surprised to find it wide open and barren and full of panoramic beauty. Now, I still can’t identify many of the peaks in the panorama but I have no trouble proclaiming – “There’s Algonquin!” – After a snack and a long drink, down we go….up we go…the only peak we climbed with full packs so we had to work at this one. Finally at the summit of Algonquin and being bombarded with outstanding views. After a brief visit with the peak warden and a few other anonymous view-seekers, getting some advice for the rest of the day, unsolicited regarding vegetation and what-not off we go to Iroquois. (I must say, I don’t think I would be a good Ranger, I don’t like beards – I’m a compulsive shaver! I know, not all Rangers have beards, just the ones I remember do. Especially the Ranger named Shirley, she had a top quality beard).
We managed to walk right by the obscured junction to Iroquois. After about 2 minutes, Iron Horse proclaimed “Hey! Why are we going down?” Back up we went and at that marvelous rock protuberance marking the junction, we picked up the “Trail to Iroquois” sign and off we went, daypacks flailing. It was great fun looking back at where we had just been and getting all of the different perspectives from the many varied viewpoints. As usual I was trying to name every peak I saw. Realizing that I do not have a great talent for doing that, I started naming them after my favorite dead musicians. There’s the Jimi Peak and, Duane Allman Peak, and the Janis peak etc….It made sense to me! I always wondered what a mountain would sound like if you traced it’s profile on a musical scale.
Anyway, we proceed onward to our next conquest for the day being Mt Marshall.
As we approached the turn off to Mt Marshall, we noticed a few small herd paths dotting the trail. The fact not sinking into my head yet that I have yet to have a problem locating the start of a herd path in the Adirondacks, I spun off onto one of the more well defined herd paths to see “if” this was the one. Well, after a few yards we determined it wasn’t but not before we found what appeared to be a backpack or some bag, possibly a bear bag, with some food related items strewn about. This was obviously the remains of a looting by one of our Bruin buddies.
We proceeded down the trail a few more yards to Herbert Brook where we had absolutely no problem identifying the start of the herd path or the way to the summit of Mt Marshall.
As the day was wearing on, we dawdled little at the summit as we knew our camping destination for the evening was still a few miles away.
The day was still a beauty and we enjoyed crossing Colden Dam. We relaxed for a few minutes here staring up at Colden, grabbing a bite, studying the map and confirming our plans for the evening and the next day. Hustling up the trail alongside the Opalescent, we passed a number of backpackers and finally after a considerable end-of-day uphill march found the uphill lean-to and set up camp near the herd path for Redfield. In the shelter we met a few of our fellow backpackers and peak baggers, exchanged useful information and small talk. Now, recently, on my peak bagging adventures, I have been asking some people if they are VFFT people. Most people look puzzled and say no. But tonight one of the people at the campsite identified himself as KnukedRocket! We had a good laugh over that. Being exhausted with a full belly and tired feet I climbed into my hammock and with the gentle sound of the Uphill Brook tickling the tops of the rocks in the near distance – sleep easily overcame me.
End of day one.
Zer0-G
