Some ADK High Peak Questions

[Mike P.]

Looking at hittting High Peaks in Mid July & trying to plan some trips. Looks like something like Pitch-off or Mt. Van Friday afternoon. Likely staying at Loj Friday & Saturday Nights if I can get in.

Saturday was thinking Skylight, Gray & Marcy as a long day. (Have been doing 16-18 mile trips in NH & have two 15-18 mile trips planned in early July in TN

to get back to 4 corners, do people recommend going past Lake Arnold with the apparent shorter distance but more elevation gain or past Lakes Avy & Colden? Figure on coming back over Marcy.

Is there any new info on Nye & Street from the circe 1992 High Peaks Guide mentioning leaving the main trail (brain fart can'tthink of the Pass that thrail goes to, under Wallface). I suspect that the herd path like others is easier to follow than it was 13 years ago.

How hard do you think Street & Nye are? Distance if no wrong paths are taken? (I need to find & read my Explore the High Peaks which has some of this but I don't have the book with better trail-less peak descriptions.)
Can a non-Cave Dog Hiker - I get up early for my long days - do Street & Nye in six hours or less? I Averaged 1.9 MPH on Mansfield Friday & about the Same on Presidentials, 2.4 on Waumbek. Would love to be home (5 hours) in time to mow lawn Sunday.

I figure if Street & Nye are too long, can do Cascade or the Friday Hike I did'nt choose & use Street & Nye as the Saturday less than fair weather trip option.

Thoughts, feedback????

 

[maineguy]

Street and Nye are a snap. The 46ers did much work on them a few years ago. I did them in 2000 and there was one clear distinct path to the junction and then clear paths to both summits. I understand that there was some blowdown this winter, but that it has mostly been cleared.

Check Adirondackjourney.com. They have a section devoted to Street and Nye.

 

[WalksWithBlackflies]

The "Lake Arnold" trail is wet and not much to talk about. On the other end of the spectrum is Avalanche Lake... definitely not an area to miss. First, you'll walking over the rubble and debris beneath the slide before you get to the lake, then the views at Avalanche Lake, then hiking the "hitch-up Matildas", Lake Colden has some nice views, and then more views of the Opalescent flumes ascending to the Uphill lean-to.

Edited: changed "Lake Colden trail" to "Lake Arnold trail"

 

[Gandalf]

Can a non-Cave Dog Hiker - I get up early for my long days - do Street & Nye in six hours or less?

I hike at a fairly average speed, and climbed Street and Nye in about 5 hours last year, taking maybe 20 minutes to enjoy the views on Street.

The Avalanche Pass trail is spectacular, but the Lake Arnold trail is a pain in the butt (IMO).

 

[percious]

I second what rico and maineguy stated.

I would say that Av. Pass is well worth the visit, and the close side of Lake Colden is not heavily traveled, and therefore is great with little erosion. Also, the views of Algonquin are great. The great thing about the hike you have chosen is that if you are running late, it is easy to eliminate peaks, hence saving time. I would not skip Skylight if you can avoid it.

Last winter I did Street/Nye in 7 hours, with some difficult bushwhacking and route finding. If the path was good, it would take < 4 hours probably, but I am a fast hiker. I think a reasonably paced person could do it in 6. Nye is the closer of the two, and is easy to knock off first. I believe the views of Write and Algonquin would be impressive from Street, but it was fogged in when I was there. It would be cool to have pictures of that mountain from both sides on the same trip.

-percious

 

[placidnay]

Just to give you an idea, we just did Skylight & Gray from the loj last Saturday and it was a LONG day - combination heat and the distance of 18.5 miles. It took us 12.5 hours with a lot of time on Skylight's summit and a lot of time resting because of the heat. Judging by other posts, our speed is usually moderate to slightly better than moderate. I really thought it would be a 10 hour day and with cooler weather it may have been. Adding Marcy would make for a tough day, but it is doable.

From the loj, we took the trail past Lake Arnold to junction w/ Feldspar Trail on the way up, then on to Skylight & then Gray. From 4 corners, I believe it is .9 to Marcy. (Another option would be to go up the Van Hovenberg Trail and descend Marcy which would cut out a little distance). We decided to come back via Avalanche Pass past Lake Colden because the trail offers an amazing landscape. We hadn't been through there since a few weeks before Hurricane Floyd and though it added an additional 2 miles to our day, it was worth it.

I haven't done Street & Nye in a few years, but my notes say it took us about 7.5 hours in really muddy conditions. Adirondackjourney.com has a lot more info on these peaks and that site has always served us well. I highly recommend it. Happy travels!

 

[Mike P.]

Keep them coming folks, BTW I'v been up to Lake Arnold for my trip up Colden & I was thru Avalanche Pass last year. If trying to make time because the peaks & trails near Skylight are what I'm trying to get too.

Is he climbing to Lake Arnold more of a pain in the butt (with no real views) or is the uneven trailbead under the cliff more time consuming (but with a great view) Avalanche Lake, Marcy Pond & Ethan Pond are probably the lowest bodies of Water that made my screen saver, except for the family at the beach. (the rest is LOC & hopefully Lake Tear - soon)

Sounds like Nye & Street are a possibility if I'm not too sore.....

 

[Rik]

Street and Nye are pretty straight forward. I love the view from Street. Mt. Van on Friday will show you all that you will be tackling over the weekend except probably Skylight. It is a nice perspective. Lake Arnold route is probably faster but not as beautiful. It can be pretty wet at times as well. I would do Skylight first then Gray then straight to Marcy and down. It is a little scrubby between Gray and Marcy but should be easy to navigate as it is a straight line and you pretty much just walk towards the summit cone on Marcy. Have a great trip.

 

[ALGonquin Bob]

Regarding Nye & Street (I'd do them in that order): The trail guides were written when there was a confusing maze of herd paths up there. That's been fixed and it's now an easy path to follow. If starting from Heart Lake (the ADK Loj), follow the interpretive trail that heads right (counter-clockwise) around the lake, then turn right at the sign that indicates the (Nye?) ski trail - that's the herd path.

 

[Pete_Hickey]

Street and Nye are a snap. I understand that there was some blowdown this winter, but that it has mostly been cleared.

Yep. I'm the guy who 'maintains' that path. A few weeks ago, I cleared everything that could be confusing. There are some head-thumpers and stepovers that remain, but the path is easy to follow. I'll be down there in a few days to take out a few more, and after Saturday, it'll be even easier.

 

[Raymond]

Pete, Adirondack Journey quotes somebody as saying there is now a view from Nye. Can you confirm this?

Mike, Lake Arnold route is probably quicker than Avalanche Pass. That's just my hunch, or feeling; I haven't timed them or anything.

Susan and I did Gray and Skylight in 12 hours October 3, 2001, passing by Lake Arnold both ways. In August 2002, my son, Cam, and I went over Marcy on his 11th birthday and hit Skylight, but we didn't have time to tackle Gray, too. I think we spent about 11 hours on that hike.

When the three of us did Street and Nye back in 1999, it took us eight or nine hours, I think, but it was pretty hot that day and Cam was not yet eight years old. I was the suffering one, though.

We saw several dozen toads and/or frogs on that hike, too.

 

[Pete_Hickey]

Pete, Adirondack Journey quotes somebody as saying there is now a view from Nye. Can you confirm this?

I don't know if I'd exactly cdall it a view. a hundred feet or so before the summit, there are a lot of trees down. There is a bit of a view. Compared to peaks with a view, it's nothing. Compared to what it used to be, it's a view.

In addition, when coming down from Street, there is a section where you have a bit of a view of Nye. That didn't used to exist.

 

[TDA]

To expand upon Mike Ps question[and to help myself out since I plan on doing this hike this weekend-[Skylight and Gray]-

What is the best[MOST PREFERRED] route?-over Marcy-to Skylight ,then Gray-back over Marcy and back to the LOG[ thats what I was planning]

or-via Lake Arnold-4 corners-go back over Marcy-or- skip Marcy all together and go back via Lake Arnold?

Pros and cons?

Sorry if this is considered "stealing the thread"-Ill claim being a rookie if it is[ha ha]

 

[Butch79]

My dog & I did Nye & Street last October. Piece of cake (well, two pieces), as the herd paths were as easy to follow as (officially) maintained trails. We took about nine hours, but I hike like a snail, and as we were in no rush and had fine weather, that included about four half-hour breaks for a breather, a snack, and snapshots. Pete, if you were maintaining those paths last year as well as this, kudos. Only potential problem for Mike (or anyone else) is the Indian Pass Brook crossing very early on -- only about six inches deep and an easy rock-hop for us in October when the weather was dry and crispy, but an impassable five- or-six-foot-deep river when we tried it after several days of rain in 2002. Incidentally, what if anything marks the Street summit? I know we had it, as I'd been up there before, but I couldn't locate a sign or a USGS marker this time.

Been thirteen years since I did Marcy / Skylight / Grey with my daughter. Started from camp at Indian Falls, went up Marcy and over, up Skylight and back down, over to Grey and up and back down, back up Marcy and over. I'd call it... "taxing," and I wasn't the feeble old geezer then that I am now. Absolutely spectacular, though, and one of my favorite ADK memories. And easily doable as a not-quite all-day hike assuming you're in better shape than me, which is always a safe assumption. And don't forget to carry a stone up to add to the cairns atop Skylight. Gotta appease the Mountain Gods.

Happy trails --
Uncle Butch

 

[Sparky]

I would say if you're looking at Skylight and Gray - head out from the Loj and over Marcy first. Last year I did a loop over Marcy, up Skylight, then out through via the Lake Arnold area. You could easily add Gray in, which would be about another 3/4 hour at most round trip. It's a long daytrip, but is possible. I would rather head DOWN the trail along Feldspar Brook trail, than up.

 

[Butch79]

An afterthought: another rewarding approach is from Lake Colden / Flowed Lands. The flume along the Opalescent is worth seeing, and at least in my often unreliable memory, that whole route to Grey and Skylight is a nice easy grade. Only potential obstacle is the crossing of Feldspar Brook to start your way up Grey if the weather's been wet.

Happy trails --
Uncle Butch

 

[Raymond]

You'd need to cross that brook wherever you start the hike from, though.

I like Sparky's advice. Go up Marcy, then see how ambitious you are. You can turn around from there or head for either Gray or Skylight or both if you have the daylight and energy.

Gray may be tougher than you expect. There's a steep drop down a boulder almost immediately, then a steep, eroding climb later on. I think it took Susan and me close to 45 minutes just to get up there, never mind the hike back down.

 

[rhihn]

Gray may be tougher than you expect. There's a steep drop down a boulder almost immediately, then a steep, eroding climb later on. I think it took Susan and me close to 45 minutes just to get up there, never mind the hike back down.

I found it MUCH easier in winter!

 

[Pete Hogan]

Marcy, Gray, Skylight Option

Mike P. (and TDA)............

There is another option that has yet to be discussed. That is bushwhacking directly from Mount Marcy to Gray Peak. It may seem like a difficult challenge, but it is far from difficult and will save you time, distance, elevation, and backtracking ascent routes.

Because Marcy is first in the day, get a very early start. The 7.5 miles to Marcy is not difficult, just time consuming. The bushwhack to Gray is less daunting if you are patient enough to locate the herd path. A compass bearing from the final rock slabs of Marcy (just before the herd path) to the unmistakable rock headwall of Gray is advisable. You may want to write it down also in case your compass accidentally shifts.

Finding the herd path is key and it can be located by paying close attention to the small but discernable cairns on the southern face of Marcy as you descend from that summit and angle toward Gray. Here is an excerpt from a trip log (8/2000) regarding the Gray bushwhack on a circuit from Panther Gorge in which we climbed Haystack, Marcy, Gray and Skylight in the same day. According to my detailed logs, it took 1:20 from Marcy to Gray.

Rather than descend to Four Corners and then ascend Gray via the Lake Tear outlet herd path, we opted to bushwhack across the ridge from Marcy to Gray. As we descended towards Gray, we began to discover small cairns headed in the same general direction. When we arrived at the edge of timberline, a cairn and an "arrow" constructed of hand-placed stones was placed on a flat section of rock. It pointed to the start of the herd path. A compass bearing towards a prominent rock wall on Gray was taken in case the herd path or our route "reading" skills faltered. Although there were several moments of uncertainty, we kept making progress toward Gray. At one point, as we were fighting through a very thick stand of balsam, we glanced up to discover two bushwhackers coming towards us headed for Marcy! It was so surprising (and reassuring) to see someone else in this mess headed on the same path. We exchanged hellos and encouraging messages that we had chosen the correct path. As quickly as we appeared to each other, we vanished from sight, engulfed by the dense, spruce sea. The trees seemed almost united as they prodded, poked and hindered forward progress.

We then descended the usual ascent route to the Lake Tear outlet where water can be replenished and proceeded to climb Skylight from Four Corners. From the time we left Gray to the summit of Skylight was 1:30 with a water pump at the outlet.

I would then suggest returning via the Feldspar Trail (#121)/Lake Arnold Trail (#73)/VanHoevenburg Trail (#61) to the HPIC. The return is very long, but it will be on familiar turf in case you run out of daylight (which you probably will).

Whatever you decide, plan for a long and unforgettable day! Good luck with your trip.

 

[Rik]

Incidentally, what if anything marks the Street summit?

The marker is very high up on a tree.