ALGonquin Bob
Well-known member
“It was a dark and stormy night...”
That’s how this trip began Wednesday - with a tornado “watch”. Fortunately, the storm didn’t produce any severe weather that I know of... just some wind and rain for a brief period. It did, however, make the drive up Coreys Road more interesting than usual Thursday morning, on our way to the trailhead for the Blueberry Foot Trail and the Sewards.
The man who dragged me up my first mountain four years ago, Lee Frost, accompanied me, along with his son, Dave. This time, I was “dragging” him along on a hike to climb my 45th and 46th Adirondack High Peaks. As we made our way down the road, we came upon a large log with just enough room on the side to drive around. A short distance beyond, we saw 2 cars stopped before another fallen tree. It was there that we first met “alistair” and “harryk”; two VFTT members who made the trip to help me celebrate this occasion. Together, we cut and dragged the limbs to make room for our cars. Just a minute farther, we repeated the process with yet another downed tree. It’s a good thing that we had two saws among the various hiking gear in our vehicles. “AdackR” had come across the blowdown the night before, and decided to turn back. He hiked two other peaks. I think I would have done the same.
I had also hoped to see Doug “Hillman1” waiting for us, as he had expected to show up that morning needing just Emmons to reach his “46”. As you may read on another thread about Donaldson and Emmons, my VFTT friend Doug hiked up (or is it “down”) to Couchsachraga the day before, and hurt his knee. We certainly missed him... but more beer for us!
So much for the approach, although if we had turned back, it wouldn’t be the first time that I failed to reach the summer trailhead there (don’t ask). The five of us set out on the path, and after a mile, turned onto the truck trail (horse path) toward Calkins Brook. The horse path was muddy in spots, but after all, this IS the Adirondacks! This approach to the Sewards is an easy 3-mile approach to a herd path. We turned uphill at the cairn, and began our ascent. The trail leads through the forest, and follows the brook up toward the high ridge. Close to the top, there is a section of blowdown to deal with, but we’re all used to that, aren’t we? We reached the summit of Donaldson to find harryk and alistair (patiently?) waiting for us. Did I mention that I’m slow? I am slow, but I can hike all day and sometimes all night, but that’s a different trip report. After greeting my 45th summit, we set out toward Emmons.
The col between the two peaks involves tramping through or around lots of black muck, but after all... well, you know. Once again, Lee, Dave and I found our new friends awaiting us on the top. I climbed up the final rock, and joined so many others as I summited this peak and became, at last, an ADK 46-R!
After some celebratory whoops and a short speech by yours truly, we cracked open the Heineken that Harry had so generously supplied and carried to the summit. Harry had also finished his 46 on Emmons a few years before. And let us remember that 79 years ago this day, the three original 46-Rs stood on that same rock to complete their historic round. Herbert Clark, George Marshall, and Bob Marshall started something that we can now all enjoy. I imagine that maybe they, too, had a spectacular day like this when they reached the top of Emmons. I also think of other 46-Rs who have climbed these peaks, and think how hard it was for the some of them, with no herd paths or guide books to lead them to the summits.
I didn’t know how I would feel when I finally reached my goal on Emmons, but I realize now that when you become a 46-R on that last peak, you’re not really ending anything. I look forward to more climbs on some of my favorite peaks, and to hiking along with others who are on their own quest. In the 4 years that I have been working toward this goal, I’ve learned a tremendous amount about the mountains, and about myself. I have gone from a man who used to go on solo wilderness canoe trips, to a climber who still hiked solo much of the time, and finally to a mountaineer of sorts, who now prefers to climb with his friends. Other than Lee, who “made” me hike up Cascade (peak #1), I’ve met all my climbing friends through “Views From The Top”. And when I meet a VFTT-r, I feel like we’ve known each other for a long time. The mountains do that. We all love the Adirondacks, the Whites, or whatever your favorite peaks are. I want to thank my wife, Jane, for her tremendous tolerance, patience, and support (well... most of the time). It’s great to be a 46-R, and I owe much of my acquired knowledge and success on the peaks to VFTT, Darren, and the great people of Views From The Top.
Thank you, everybody. –Bob Van Hise (ALG)
That’s how this trip began Wednesday - with a tornado “watch”. Fortunately, the storm didn’t produce any severe weather that I know of... just some wind and rain for a brief period. It did, however, make the drive up Coreys Road more interesting than usual Thursday morning, on our way to the trailhead for the Blueberry Foot Trail and the Sewards.
The man who dragged me up my first mountain four years ago, Lee Frost, accompanied me, along with his son, Dave. This time, I was “dragging” him along on a hike to climb my 45th and 46th Adirondack High Peaks. As we made our way down the road, we came upon a large log with just enough room on the side to drive around. A short distance beyond, we saw 2 cars stopped before another fallen tree. It was there that we first met “alistair” and “harryk”; two VFTT members who made the trip to help me celebrate this occasion. Together, we cut and dragged the limbs to make room for our cars. Just a minute farther, we repeated the process with yet another downed tree. It’s a good thing that we had two saws among the various hiking gear in our vehicles. “AdackR” had come across the blowdown the night before, and decided to turn back. He hiked two other peaks. I think I would have done the same.
I had also hoped to see Doug “Hillman1” waiting for us, as he had expected to show up that morning needing just Emmons to reach his “46”. As you may read on another thread about Donaldson and Emmons, my VFTT friend Doug hiked up (or is it “down”) to Couchsachraga the day before, and hurt his knee. We certainly missed him... but more beer for us!
So much for the approach, although if we had turned back, it wouldn’t be the first time that I failed to reach the summer trailhead there (don’t ask). The five of us set out on the path, and after a mile, turned onto the truck trail (horse path) toward Calkins Brook. The horse path was muddy in spots, but after all, this IS the Adirondacks! This approach to the Sewards is an easy 3-mile approach to a herd path. We turned uphill at the cairn, and began our ascent. The trail leads through the forest, and follows the brook up toward the high ridge. Close to the top, there is a section of blowdown to deal with, but we’re all used to that, aren’t we? We reached the summit of Donaldson to find harryk and alistair (patiently?) waiting for us. Did I mention that I’m slow? I am slow, but I can hike all day and sometimes all night, but that’s a different trip report. After greeting my 45th summit, we set out toward Emmons.
The col between the two peaks involves tramping through or around lots of black muck, but after all... well, you know. Once again, Lee, Dave and I found our new friends awaiting us on the top. I climbed up the final rock, and joined so many others as I summited this peak and became, at last, an ADK 46-R!
After some celebratory whoops and a short speech by yours truly, we cracked open the Heineken that Harry had so generously supplied and carried to the summit. Harry had also finished his 46 on Emmons a few years before. And let us remember that 79 years ago this day, the three original 46-Rs stood on that same rock to complete their historic round. Herbert Clark, George Marshall, and Bob Marshall started something that we can now all enjoy. I imagine that maybe they, too, had a spectacular day like this when they reached the top of Emmons. I also think of other 46-Rs who have climbed these peaks, and think how hard it was for the some of them, with no herd paths or guide books to lead them to the summits.
I didn’t know how I would feel when I finally reached my goal on Emmons, but I realize now that when you become a 46-R on that last peak, you’re not really ending anything. I look forward to more climbs on some of my favorite peaks, and to hiking along with others who are on their own quest. In the 4 years that I have been working toward this goal, I’ve learned a tremendous amount about the mountains, and about myself. I have gone from a man who used to go on solo wilderness canoe trips, to a climber who still hiked solo much of the time, and finally to a mountaineer of sorts, who now prefers to climb with his friends. Other than Lee, who “made” me hike up Cascade (peak #1), I’ve met all my climbing friends through “Views From The Top”. And when I meet a VFTT-r, I feel like we’ve known each other for a long time. The mountains do that. We all love the Adirondacks, the Whites, or whatever your favorite peaks are. I want to thank my wife, Jane, for her tremendous tolerance, patience, and support (well... most of the time). It’s great to be a 46-R, and I owe much of my acquired knowledge and success on the peaks to VFTT, Darren, and the great people of Views From The Top.
Thank you, everybody. –Bob Van Hise (ALG)
Last edited:
