Dory
New member
We made the trip up from PA with the promise of exceptional conditions. (Exceptionally bad, that is!) 
My sister Amy, our friend Colby and I had a departure time of 6AM which placed us at the high peaks around 1:30. After a quick stop at the Mountaineer for last minute weather and trail updates we hit the Garden around 2. Ran into a fellow who grew up in the area and had just returned from living in Utah for 3 years. He had stopped in the area for an overnight trip on his way to a job in Vermont. He had done the Jaws and his trip advice was what we had been hearing; 2-3 foot drifts near the summits; all slush; no crampons or snowshoes necessary. We were hoping for a spot at the Howard Lean-to, and as we set out, the 3 of us agreed that the trail into JBL was not nearly as bad as we had imagined. It was more like springtime conditions, a lot of mud, some fine puddles, only a few trees down. We passed 2 couples and a father-son team on their way out. We found the Howard occupied and opted for the designated camping area nearby; although there was a 30% chance of rain we enjoyed a dinner of soft tacos and some amazing star gazing. Slide Mtn Brook was running very high and we gave a shout out to two groups coming in the dark; directing them to the high water bridge crossing. A solo hiker passed through first but the first group were a father and 2 son team headed for the Bushnell falls lean-to. Later a group of 5 passed through on their way to Camp Peggy. The morning dawned cool with the promise of blue skies. There was a haze that continued throughout the day. We broke camp and set out for Big Slide around 9AM. Since the last forecast we heard called for a chance of rain we wanted to leave our packs in the Lean-to and in the process woke the couple sleeping there. Sorry!
The biggest challenge on the 2.3 miles were the stream crossings. We should have probably considered a bushwack on one side of the stream rather than following the trail as my sister did not have Gore-tex boots and we were rather reluctant to see her feet get wet so early in the day. However, we spent the time at each stream crossing finding a 'good' place to cross; it made the adventure much more exciting. There was minimal blowdown after the stream crossings and after a snack stop and picture-mania at one of the overlooks we summited around 11:45 AM. We experienced between 4" and 1' of snow above 3500 feet. The guide book was accurate that the views were spectacular, even with the haze. We spent about an hour at the summit, enjoying lunch and the warm sunshine...it was nearly impossible to imagine that it was November. We shared the summit with a solo-hiker carrying a load of camera equipment; a couple (Shane and Suzy) and another solo hiker (Sean Ryan). The latter 3 had come in over the Brothers and said the blowdown was significant. They all opted for a return to the Garden via the Slide Mtn brook trail and out from JBL. We took off for Yard hitting a bit more snow than mud and snapped a few more pictures at a small overlook (big boulder) just after the summit. The descent from Yard returned us to the "mud bog shuffle" as we hopped from log to rock to avoid mud pools. We encountered the most significant blowdown as we descended into Klondike Notch on our return to JBL. We had to skirt several 30 yard sections of trail that were impassable and arrived back at the Howard Lean-to around 4PM. The couple we woke in the morning had left and in packing needed to move our equipment around a bit. And left us...3...count them....3 snickers bars. Men, for us women this is the equivalent of a power tool or a free case of beer. Chocolate! There couldn't be a more thoughtful gift! We relaxed for a while and cooked up a fine dinner of pasta, salmon, and shrimp; then crashed in the lean-to telling stories and listening to the roar of John's Brook. We were up early for a quick breakfast and broke camp at 8AM. By 9:30 we were back at the car and once again ran into the father and 2 son team that had passed through in the darkness Friday night. They had attempted Haystack but had to turn back from too much snow and blowdown. We were glad to hear they made it out safe. The tale doesn't end here though, as we decided to make the drive to the ADK Loj for a shower, only to find the showers torn apart for an upgrade! Oh well, we headed south for a fine lunch and several beers at a restaurant in Lake George and then it was the drive back to PA. Our first 'winter' trip really turned out to be a spring weather event, but we'll be back in January! Thanks again to all of you out there that post your trip reports and trail conditions...they were invaluable!
Dory
p.s. I'll try to get up a link to pictures!
My sister Amy, our friend Colby and I had a departure time of 6AM which placed us at the high peaks around 1:30. After a quick stop at the Mountaineer for last minute weather and trail updates we hit the Garden around 2. Ran into a fellow who grew up in the area and had just returned from living in Utah for 3 years. He had stopped in the area for an overnight trip on his way to a job in Vermont. He had done the Jaws and his trip advice was what we had been hearing; 2-3 foot drifts near the summits; all slush; no crampons or snowshoes necessary. We were hoping for a spot at the Howard Lean-to, and as we set out, the 3 of us agreed that the trail into JBL was not nearly as bad as we had imagined. It was more like springtime conditions, a lot of mud, some fine puddles, only a few trees down. We passed 2 couples and a father-son team on their way out. We found the Howard occupied and opted for the designated camping area nearby; although there was a 30% chance of rain we enjoyed a dinner of soft tacos and some amazing star gazing. Slide Mtn Brook was running very high and we gave a shout out to two groups coming in the dark; directing them to the high water bridge crossing. A solo hiker passed through first but the first group were a father and 2 son team headed for the Bushnell falls lean-to. Later a group of 5 passed through on their way to Camp Peggy. The morning dawned cool with the promise of blue skies. There was a haze that continued throughout the day. We broke camp and set out for Big Slide around 9AM. Since the last forecast we heard called for a chance of rain we wanted to leave our packs in the Lean-to and in the process woke the couple sleeping there. Sorry! The biggest challenge on the 2.3 miles were the stream crossings. We should have probably considered a bushwack on one side of the stream rather than following the trail as my sister did not have Gore-tex boots and we were rather reluctant to see her feet get wet so early in the day. However, we spent the time at each stream crossing finding a 'good' place to cross; it made the adventure much more exciting. There was minimal blowdown after the stream crossings and after a snack stop and picture-mania at one of the overlooks we summited around 11:45 AM. We experienced between 4" and 1' of snow above 3500 feet. The guide book was accurate that the views were spectacular, even with the haze. We spent about an hour at the summit, enjoying lunch and the warm sunshine...it was nearly impossible to imagine that it was November. We shared the summit with a solo-hiker carrying a load of camera equipment; a couple (Shane and Suzy) and another solo hiker (Sean Ryan). The latter 3 had come in over the Brothers and said the blowdown was significant. They all opted for a return to the Garden via the Slide Mtn brook trail and out from JBL. We took off for Yard hitting a bit more snow than mud and snapped a few more pictures at a small overlook (big boulder) just after the summit. The descent from Yard returned us to the "mud bog shuffle" as we hopped from log to rock to avoid mud pools. We encountered the most significant blowdown as we descended into Klondike Notch on our return to JBL. We had to skirt several 30 yard sections of trail that were impassable and arrived back at the Howard Lean-to around 4PM. The couple we woke in the morning had left and in packing needed to move our equipment around a bit. And left us...3...count them....3 snickers bars. Men, for us women this is the equivalent of a power tool or a free case of beer. Chocolate! There couldn't be a more thoughtful gift!
We relaxed for a while and cooked up a fine dinner of pasta, salmon, and shrimp; then crashed in the lean-to telling stories and listening to the roar of John's Brook. We were up early for a quick breakfast and broke camp at 8AM. By 9:30 we were back at the car and once again ran into the father and 2 son team that had passed through in the darkness Friday night. They had attempted Haystack but had to turn back from too much snow and blowdown. We were glad to hear they made it out safe. The tale doesn't end here though, as we decided to make the drive to the ADK Loj for a shower, only to find the showers torn apart for an upgrade! Oh well, we headed south for a fine lunch and several beers at a restaurant in Lake George and then it was the drive back to PA. Our first 'winter' trip really turned out to be a spring weather event, but we'll be back in January! Thanks again to all of you out there that post your trip reports and trail conditions...they were invaluable!Dory
p.s. I'll try to get up a link to pictures!
