ADKdremn
New member
A little Adirondack flavor....or should I say flava' for all you New Englanders!
It's been a long time coming, but I finally had the chance to get back to the woods and climb a few mountains. After a few hours work Thursday morning I made the drive up to Albany where I met up with 1ADAM12 and Seth. We then rode up together to Upper Works, each of us with our own plans as well as some plans together. We wanted to hike into Lake Colden and grab a lean-to, but upon viewing the register decided it might be better to stay at Flowed Lands. We were able to grab the furthest away lean-to and had it and the area to ourselves all weekend. It was a beautiful spot with great views into Avalanche Lake as well as the Macs and Colden.
Friday morning rolled around pretty early, alarms at 5. I had hoped to climb Redfield and Marshall...yes I got some weird looks from people on the trail when I told them what I was climbing. I had already been on Cliff this past winter and these two peaks are the only two, besides Colden, that I had left to climb in the area. Adam and Seth were head to Cliff so we hiked together and then parted ways at the split in the herd path. After my winter incident it's safe to say I had some fears to conquer. Maybe not fears, but just needed to regain some confidence. What better way to do that than two unmarked paths. The path to Redfield was easy to follow and in pretty good condition. I enjoyed the climb as well as the time alone. There is something to say about being alone in the mountains....a very peaceful feeling. I reached the summit right around 9, after leaving the lean-to at 6:30. I had the summit all to myself and enjoyed the views, watching clouds move in and hide the distant peaks and then blow away to reveal some great views. I didn't really know what to expect with climbing these two peaks as far as how much time to leave myself. I enjoyed the summit for aobut a half hour and then headed down. I passed 5 people headed up Redfield as I headed down. Back down the Opalescent, which was stunning and to the dam at Colden where I parked myself for lunch just a little after 11. Put my PB&J together and wouldn't you know it, here comes the rain. So much for a relaxing lunch! Wolfed it down, grabbed a Powerbar and headed down the trail towards Marshall. It was now turning into a not so nice day. At least the rain wasn't heavy, but it certainly made for a wet go up Marshall. I found Marshall to be a little more difficult than Redfield, maybe because I was a little tired. The trail was a little harder to follow, zigzagging across the brook and back and it was a lot more muddy. Not that I have a problem with mud, just compared to Redfield. Just before the summit I met a couple from the Clifton Park area, the only people I'd see while on Marshall. They left me to have the summit to myself which was nice...although not too enjoyable with no views and the falling rain. I hung out for a little and headed down.
I enjoyed both of these peaks and was extremely happy to be where I was doing what I love. It felt great! Headed back to the lean-to, arriving at 3 and promptly took a dip at the dam at the far end of Flowed Lands. A little chilly in the rain and breeze, but it felt good to be clean! I was suprised at how quickly I made it back, but enjoyed the down time lounging in the lean-to keeping radio contact with Adam and Seth on their hike, I'll let them fill you in the details of their day.
Saturday we had tossed around the idea of doing the Trap Dike, but with the rain the day before we weren't sure if it was a good idea. Seth and I decided we would climb if from Lake Colden on the trail. Adam decided he would have a down day at the lean-to after a tough day on Friday. Off we headed at about 8:30. The trail was certainly steep, but aren't they all? I really enjoyed scrambling up the slabs and figuring out how to get up ladders with missing rungs, etc. It was fun and on this perfect day absolutely worth it! I think we got to the top right around 11 and it was just beautiful up there! Endless views, warm sun and a cool breeze. We lounged for an hour or so taking it all in. Not a real busy day on the summit, but we did pass quite a few people headed up on our way down. Including some with full packs...didn't look like much fun! I also saw a fisher while headed down. Very cool, unfortunately I wasn't quick enough with the camera. He was headed right down the trail, turned around and saw me and ducked into the woods. I thought this was it, but then he came back out onto the trail and headed right towards me before running off into the woods about ten feet in front of me. We made it back to the lean-to quite early again and made good use of our time swimming at the dam. Today was the pefect day for it!
Just a word of warning, while the falls look like a very enticing spot to sit under...and they are, I have dubbed them Leech Falls. So be forwarned. We spent the rest of the evening just enjoying our surroundings and making the best of our time in such a perfect spot.
Early hike out to the car this morning. I was lucky enough to make it out and get changed just before the pouring rain arrived. Adam and Seth not so lucky!
Great weekend and it was wonderful to finally be back. In a weird twist of irony the dam we went swimming at was where I should have turned around over the winter and avoided that situation all together.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AbtmzZszbuGFZ¬ag=1
It's been a long time coming, but I finally had the chance to get back to the woods and climb a few mountains. After a few hours work Thursday morning I made the drive up to Albany where I met up with 1ADAM12 and Seth. We then rode up together to Upper Works, each of us with our own plans as well as some plans together. We wanted to hike into Lake Colden and grab a lean-to, but upon viewing the register decided it might be better to stay at Flowed Lands. We were able to grab the furthest away lean-to and had it and the area to ourselves all weekend. It was a beautiful spot with great views into Avalanche Lake as well as the Macs and Colden.
Friday morning rolled around pretty early, alarms at 5. I had hoped to climb Redfield and Marshall...yes I got some weird looks from people on the trail when I told them what I was climbing. I had already been on Cliff this past winter and these two peaks are the only two, besides Colden, that I had left to climb in the area. Adam and Seth were head to Cliff so we hiked together and then parted ways at the split in the herd path. After my winter incident it's safe to say I had some fears to conquer. Maybe not fears, but just needed to regain some confidence. What better way to do that than two unmarked paths. The path to Redfield was easy to follow and in pretty good condition. I enjoyed the climb as well as the time alone. There is something to say about being alone in the mountains....a very peaceful feeling. I reached the summit right around 9, after leaving the lean-to at 6:30. I had the summit all to myself and enjoyed the views, watching clouds move in and hide the distant peaks and then blow away to reveal some great views. I didn't really know what to expect with climbing these two peaks as far as how much time to leave myself. I enjoyed the summit for aobut a half hour and then headed down. I passed 5 people headed up Redfield as I headed down. Back down the Opalescent, which was stunning and to the dam at Colden where I parked myself for lunch just a little after 11. Put my PB&J together and wouldn't you know it, here comes the rain. So much for a relaxing lunch! Wolfed it down, grabbed a Powerbar and headed down the trail towards Marshall. It was now turning into a not so nice day. At least the rain wasn't heavy, but it certainly made for a wet go up Marshall. I found Marshall to be a little more difficult than Redfield, maybe because I was a little tired. The trail was a little harder to follow, zigzagging across the brook and back and it was a lot more muddy. Not that I have a problem with mud, just compared to Redfield. Just before the summit I met a couple from the Clifton Park area, the only people I'd see while on Marshall. They left me to have the summit to myself which was nice...although not too enjoyable with no views and the falling rain. I hung out for a little and headed down.
I enjoyed both of these peaks and was extremely happy to be where I was doing what I love. It felt great! Headed back to the lean-to, arriving at 3 and promptly took a dip at the dam at the far end of Flowed Lands. A little chilly in the rain and breeze, but it felt good to be clean! I was suprised at how quickly I made it back, but enjoyed the down time lounging in the lean-to keeping radio contact with Adam and Seth on their hike, I'll let them fill you in the details of their day.
Saturday we had tossed around the idea of doing the Trap Dike, but with the rain the day before we weren't sure if it was a good idea. Seth and I decided we would climb if from Lake Colden on the trail. Adam decided he would have a down day at the lean-to after a tough day on Friday. Off we headed at about 8:30. The trail was certainly steep, but aren't they all? I really enjoyed scrambling up the slabs and figuring out how to get up ladders with missing rungs, etc. It was fun and on this perfect day absolutely worth it! I think we got to the top right around 11 and it was just beautiful up there! Endless views, warm sun and a cool breeze. We lounged for an hour or so taking it all in. Not a real busy day on the summit, but we did pass quite a few people headed up on our way down. Including some with full packs...didn't look like much fun! I also saw a fisher while headed down. Very cool, unfortunately I wasn't quick enough with the camera. He was headed right down the trail, turned around and saw me and ducked into the woods. I thought this was it, but then he came back out onto the trail and headed right towards me before running off into the woods about ten feet in front of me. We made it back to the lean-to quite early again and made good use of our time swimming at the dam. Today was the pefect day for it!
Just a word of warning, while the falls look like a very enticing spot to sit under...and they are, I have dubbed them Leech Falls. So be forwarned. We spent the rest of the evening just enjoying our surroundings and making the best of our time in such a perfect spot.
Early hike out to the car this morning. I was lucky enough to make it out and get changed just before the pouring rain arrived. Adam and Seth not so lucky!
Great weekend and it was wonderful to finally be back. In a weird twist of irony the dam we went swimming at was where I should have turned around over the winter and avoided that situation all together.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AbtmzZszbuGFZ¬ag=1
