Are you a 47r?

[Puma concolor]

Yeah, like the White Mtn 48 and New England 4K, any 111er who finished the list before the last round of changes didn't have to climb Spaulding, Redington and Wildcat D. But I don't think any self-respecting 111er didn't "update" his or her credentials if still young enough to do so. I finished the 111ers in 1997 and after the changes, the patch just felt tainted every time I looked at it until I finished the additions. Redington took me three damn tries and cost me a truck (blew the head gasket on attempt #2 ... got a lower end knock after it was fixed ... curtains) before I finally topped out. Of course, that didn't beat my personal record of FOUR attempts on MacNaughton (the first three were attempted as winter day hikes and there just ain't enough daylight).

 

[Pete moss]

about lists

I've always found the lists/peakbagging a funny thing.
I see both sides of the issue, but is it blasphemous in this forum to question
why we're climbing in the first place: for a nice view, to get a workout, to escape, to accomplish a goal - complete a list. The down side is the exclusion
of otherwise worthy mountains, for instance, someone has said to me "that one doesn't count"(!). The up side is getting people on less popular mountains, a sense of community, accomplishment, etc. Personally I'm not working on a list.

 

[MarkL]

original question

Why did I climb MacNaughton? I'm not sure I remember. I knew that for a time it was believed to be exactly 4,000', but the next survey, supposedly more accurate, dropped it down a bit. I thought I'd do it just in case it was 4,000', although why bother because it's probably not, or maybe because it's traditional, or maybe because it's higher than others on the list. Or maybe don't do it because the others it's higher than aren't 4K anyway, etc. Then I took a self-conscious look at myself trying to decide whether to do it or not, making a decision, then reversing it. I realized I was getting tangled up in arbitrary criteria and traditions, and "finally" decided to not climb it on principle.
When I first heard of the 46, I thought that 46 was a meaningless, arbitrary number, based on 4,000', which though nice and round, was also arbitrary. And it's only round in feet, not in meters, leagues, or cubits. What Meaning does a unit of measure hold for me? What personal meaning does one/ten-millionth of the distance from the equator to the north pole along a meridian through Paris hold for me? For you? How about 1,650,763.73 wavelengths of orange-red light, in a vacuum, emitted from a krypton-86 lamp? Or the length of some medieval king's smelly foot? [Mommabear, now are you glad you asked? ]
So I decided to break away from the bondage of arbitrary numbers and just do the highest 50 Peaks in the Adirondacks. (Now there's a meaningful number! Fifty states in these here United States) And MacNaughton was one of them. But there was a tie for 50th; Moose and Snowy are tied at 3899 on the list I was looking at. So I did the 51 highest, except that Couchie is tied for 59th, so I'm back to exactly 50. I love it when things work out so perfectly! Except I lie awake at night worrying what to do if Puerto Rico becomes a state.
Anyway, I reversed my final decision to not climb MacNaughton and I've been up it 4x. And the views are pretty nice, especially in winter.
In the end I've developed the attitude that arbitrary lists can be good if used to motivate oneself to explore new places and get lots of fresh air and exercise. And the number 46 is no longer meaningless to me. It has changed my life, even if it is really 47, or 50,... or eventually cincuenta y uno.
Mark

 

[woodstrider]

Are you a 47er

I, too, consider MacNaughton as being one of the required peaks to complete my "46er" list. The 46 required peaks are traditional ones, even if over time some were found to be less then 4k feet. MacNaughton is shown to be 4K on one version of the topographic maps, and a smidgen less so on the other. I climbed it one spring and felt that my own list would not be complete until I also climbed it in the winter as I had the other 46 peaks. I finally did so last March as a solo project and a bushwhacke up from Indian Brook. I will post a trip report on this as it was a beautiful bushwhacke, under near perfect conditions. I only regret that I did not do this before they removed the cannisters. It is the only trailless peak that I climbed and did not sign in. Cheers

 

[mommabear]

Re: original question

In the end I've developed the attitude that arbitrary lists can be good if used to motivate oneself to explore new places and get lots of fresh air and exercise. And the number 46 is no longer meaningless to me. It has changed my life, even if it is really 47, or 50,... or eventually cincuenta y uno.
Mark

Mark, I couldn't agree with you more. When I first considered going for the 46, I thought about my motivations for doing so and wasn't really sure exactly why. But as I neared the end, I was really glad I did it. In order to complete the list, I climbed mountains that I otherwise never would have and saw such a variety of mountains that I appreciated the whole Adirondacks more - and felt more at home there.

To answer the question that you asked earlier in your post - Yes, I am glad I asked. My decision-making process is just a little different than yours.

I climbed MacNaughton on a hot summer day so we were greeted by lots of bugs at the summit. I hiked in with a group through Henderson and back out the same way. Of all the ADK bushwacks, it ranked up there pretty high in the 'you better be carrying your compass' category, but it was a great climb! I'm sure when it was found that MacNaughton was (possibly) 4K feet that there was a fair amount of discussion within the 46er ranks and I respect the decision they made. I do remember when I completed the 46, they asked if I climbed it, but there's no asterisk next to my number. That's OK. I think it's still an interesting topic of discussion today. Thanks everybody for your responses.

 

[stoopid]

I skipped the replies because my response doesn't require input or discussion...

I hope, by the end of my life, to have tackled enough peaks in the world for the thought of Mcwhatever mountain to be moot

 

[mavs00]

ADKs Growing

It's funny you say the mountains are growing because I think MacNaughton just didn't make the original 46r list because of less accurate measures. But, Barbara McMartin's book on the High Peaks says that the Adirondacks are growing and that Cliff has actually shrunk 58 feet.

There is actually a very detailed book on Adirondacks Geology called (what else) Geology of the Adirondack High Peaks by Howard & Elizabeth Jaffe. It's out of print, but many libraries carry it. I found it in the Monroe County Library system.

It explains that the High peaks (for the most part) is still rising at a fairly brisk 1-3 milimeters per year. Unlike the rest of the Eastern mountains which are older and eroding. If things remain the same (and no-one knows if they will) Marcy should surpase Mt. Washington in just shy of 300'000 years.

AS TO THE INITIAL QUESTION:
I have not climbed McNaughton yet, but I've not finished my 46 either (still 8 shy). I will someday, but not to legitimize my 46er feat. I'll probably climb it, cuz by many accounts I've been given, it is a worthy trek, and after all, that is the primary reason I hike.

 

[Mike BIRD Mammy]

i hate macnaughton!!!!

Head and I hiked that SOB, one spring and got eaten alive!!! We have a video of the ill-fated trip.. Check it out on Birdhead, but be forwarned, it contains FOWL language!
By far the worst trip I ever went on.. No wonder no one wants to be 47r's! MIKE (BIRD) MAMMY



BirdHead Studios

 

[Skyclimber]

Since the ADK 46ers was founded to bring together those who had climbed the same 46 peaks climbed by the Marshalls and Herb Clark, it has been resolved that the climbing of these same 46 peaks, (to exclude MacNaughton) (to include Couchie, Nye, Blake & Cliff) regardless of their corrected elevations shall still be considered a prerequisite for membership in the 46er organization. Also, like mentioned in other post "Grace says, most 46ers do it." She always called it "the Bonus Mountain." It's worth the climb, and I always loved the unique red canister verses the standard white ones.

 

[Papa Bear]

Re: i hate macnaughton!!!!

Head and I hiked that SOB, one spring and got eaten alive!!! We have a video of the ill-fated trip.. Check it out on Birdhead, but be forwarned, it contains FOWL language!
By far the worst trip I ever went on.. No wonder no one wants to be 47r's! MIKE (BIRD) MAMMY

Mike:

Really cool video. Sounds like a lot of fun

Pb

 

[ken]

>the ADK 46ers was founded to bring together those who had climbed the same 46 peaks climbed by the Marshalls and Herb Clark,<<

did the marshalls ever climb macnaughton (before or after the 4000 footers)?

 

[woodstrider]

I am sorry that some members of this website report having a negative experience when climbing MacNaughton.
I, too, have had close encounters of the insect kind that have made some trips less then pleasurable, and a few times I have gotten ill from allergic reactions.
I have also been on bushwhacks, and not a few trail hikes, that were very difficult. But never do I blame the mountains- they are, afterall, indifferent to our suffering, as they are to our desires to climb. But still I say...

Every mountain is a blessing, just to be out in the wild is a joy.

As a fellow bushwhacker said one more then one ocassion-"Where would you rather be, then right here and right now"