The differences of the Whites verses ADKS

[ColdRiverRun]

I never give a thought to having my car broken into in the Daks, where it seems to never leave my mind when in NH. Of course in the Daks I'm never that far from a friends house where I have to bring more gear and usually stay overnight in the Whites.

Also : Pin Pin 3th vs Ed

Inge vs MEB two hiker chicks both closing in on the grids that would make for a hell of a group hike Both really mean!

Jan W. vs T. Seaver Young buck vs battle field warhorse

 

[SteveHiker]

It's funny that it seems to be mostly ADK people replying. That must mean something, but I have no idea what.

 

[blacklab2020]

well you have to have knowledge of both places before you can respond to this question

 

[ColdRiverRun]

It's funny that it seems to be mostly ADK people replying. That must mean something, but I have no idea what.

It seems pretty even when I looked at it. Although the more elaborate breakdowns were given by people who seemed to lean towards liking the ADK more. Although which way does a comment like more road access lean? I don't no, the mountains themselves are both so outstanding that I'd be in love with either one for the rest of my life if it was the only one I knew. And I think if people voted for there favorite North East mountain Katahdin would win.

Ohh.. and

Great Range traverse vs Presi!

 

[Oldsmores]

Still don't understand the culture comment. Is one perceived as better or worse, or are they just different? If so, how?

I wouldn't say one is better or worse. I think one big difference is due to the relative remoteness of the Adirondacks and the presence of the hut system in the Whites. I'm not sure how to characterize the difference without insulting someone, but you don't get so many... umm... yuppy(?)... ummm...gentry(?)... oh I give up. It's harder to hike in and stay in the Adirondacks, so I sense a more rugged individualism in the Adirondacks than I do in the Whites.
OK, flame away...

 

[blacklab2020]

I did not say culture to indicate differences in the people who hike there, rather than the differences in lifestyles of the two regions...

There is a different hiking culture as well.. I think the Hut system and the road to the top of washington and that the peaks in the daks require longer approaches has a huge influence on this... You cant forget though that the daks has the AMR, Johns Brook Lodge and ADK Loj. The whites are much closer to Boston, CT, NY is almost Equi-distant

I still go to both the daks and whites for two different reasons. It just depends on what I feel like climbing that weekend.

One last point...hiking in the whites is just as hard as the daks... The daks are more technical, the whites have more elevation... and both places have really poor footing

 

[cbcbd]

ADKs are more wild, remote, rugged... Survivorman would probably shoot his show there.

Whites are like a mountain playground, easily accessible but big and unrelenting with a bite... Bear Grylls would shoot his show there


I love the Whites and love playing there and was always 5hrs from N. Conway and 5hrs from Lake Placid... both are lots of fun but I think forays to the ADKs take a little more commitment and thirst for the untrodden.

 

[timmus]

My first true love are the ADK's, while my BF is totally pro Whites Mountains, so we have this discussion ALL THE TIME !

And you know what ? We still visit both, because they're all mountains after all.

IMO the differences, like cost, approaches and services are details.

The real question is : How long are you ready to drive to hike different peaks ?

 

[giggy]

no meb in the adks!!!

or giggy!

hahahaha

2 words:

ALPINE ZONE

 

[Tom Rankin]

ALPINE ZONE

I'll grant the Alpine Zone is bigger in the Whites, but there are several peaks where we have signs announcing that you are entering the Alpine Zone in the Dax.

And I go both ways!

 

[Peakbagr]

Northeast mountain hiking as a sport began in New England long before and by many more people than in the ADKs. The White Mtns were closer to huge population centers and still are. Thats a major difference. Because of that, the Whites are far more 'settled' and the trails more established. When I was doing a lot of hiking in New England a few years back, it always felt more civilized and organized. From the more elaborate trail signs, the switchbacking trails, general lack of mud from the well designed trail layouts, it just seemed...easier. And the administration by the Nat'l Forest might have a lot to do with it as well.
I love both the Whites and the ADKs so this is not a knock on either. I think the Adirondacks will resemble large areas of the White Mtns given more time.
Its with a lot of anticipation that I'm looking forward to getting back to NH, VT and ME for more hiking in the next few years.

 

[dr_wu002]

It's funny that it seems to be mostly ADK people replying. That must mean something, but I have no idea what.

Probably just that there is a majority of hikers from the Whites on this site and this question has come up every so often and people aren't willing to "go there" anymore. It turns into fighting over which is better and which is more difficult.

Having hiked out of the Boston area for years the Whites were naturally the closest to me. It's familiar and I like it. I've hiked plenty in the ADK's, Catskills, Greens etc as well but despite being equidistant from the Whites and ADK's these days I go to The Whites because of the familiarity. It's like home. I suspect that's how people feel when the ADK's are near them, or Baxter is near them or the Greens are near them... and they'll find reasons to rationalize why one is better than the other.

You can argue what the differences are but it'll quickly degrade into a pointless and usually emotional discussion about difficulty, accessibility, amount of treeline etc. For what it's worth, I enjoy hiking in the entire Northeast and one of the nice features is how different things are in such a relatively small (and accessible) area. When you get done with the 4k's and then 3k's there's slides and ponds and different routes to your favorite peaks and probably a lifetime of things to visit if you want to.

-Dr. Wu

 

[blacklab2020]

Probably just that there is a majority of hikers from the Whites on this site and this question has come up every so often and people aren't willing to "go there" anymore. It turns into fighting over which is better and which is more difficult.

No offense, but it takes two sides to fight over something, does that mean that there are more people who hike in the daks and post on VFTT, or just that the people from the whites get fed up with these types of discussions more easily I dont know kmac and their intentions for posting this, but i hope this forumn is somewhat informative and not so instigating for others

I will be up in the whites second weekend of Dec. Then daks over new years, then whites again, and then the daks, and then katahdin... Man I love New England (inlcuding NY)!

 

[Peakbagr]

I don't see this as a whats harder or whats better. They are different and try as I might have, wanted to stay away from judgements.
I think partisans of either mountain range would be I.D'd as partisans, and there are some real differences.
My belief is that if Boston had been located where Albany is, the ADKs would resemble the Whites(other than the physical makeup) and the Whites would look like the ADKs do now. Just my opinion. I think its a good discussion for someone looking to hike in the Adirondacks who is generally unfamiliar with them.

 

[dr_wu002]

No offense, but it takes two sides to fight over something, does that mean that there are more people who hike in the daks and post on VFTT, or just that the people from the whites get fed up with these types of discussions more easily I dont know kmac and their intentions for posting this, but i hope this forumn is somewhat informative and not so instigating for others

I will be up in the whites second weekend of Dec. Then daks over new years, then whites again, and then the daks, and then katahdin... Man I love New England (inlcuding NY)!

No, I think that for a while VFTT kinda became a very New England-oriented site. This discussion has come up a few times, and oftentimes it ends badly. Many of the New England VFTT'ers who have seen this topic before might be sitting there saying, I'm not going to get involved...

-Dr. Wu

 

[dr_wu002]

I think partisans of either mountain range would be I.D'd as partisans, and there are some real differences.

Of course they're different! That's what makes them nice. And these differences are describable. But oftentimes these kind of threads spiral more into "what's better", "what's more difficult" etc. Not everyone, and I doubt it was Kmac's intention, but these threads that often starts with peaks of excellence quickly crumble into mounds of mediocrity.

My brother accuses me of having nihilistic tendencies when I start talking like this.

-Dr. Wu

 

[Peakbagr]

Wu

I'm trying to throw light not heat on what I think is an interesting discussion. So far, didn't hear anyone turn it into a whats better discussion. I love the ADKs but there are many things about the Whites I like better. I think there are enough intelligent people who can contribute to this without it being a hunting or dogs thread. So that this doesn't turn into a debate about why folks are or aren't participating, I'm going to step away from more talk that doesn't answer the original poster's inquiry.

 

[TrishandAlex]

I'm grateful for this thread, since I've never hiked in the ADKS and am curious as to what they're like compared to the Whites. It's interesting.

 

[dr_wu002]

Wu

I'm trying to throw light not heat on what I think is an interesting discussion. So far, didn't hear anyone turn it into a whats better discussion. I love the ADKs but there are many things about the Whites I like better. I think there are enough intelligent people who can contribute to this without it being a hunting or dogs thread. So that this doesn't turn into a debate about why folks are or aren't participating, I'm going to step away from more talk that doesn't answer the original poster's inquiry.

Agreed. One thing I've noticed about Whites vs. ADK's is the views. The high peaks in the ADK's always strike me as being more jumbled and clustered together than the they do in the Whites. So when you look out from say Gothics or Haystack, everything seems to be RIGHT THERE. This could be biased since I've only done 15+ of the ADK 46 but most of the NH 48. Everything seems spread out more in the Whites.

Part of the difference in the "feel" of each area could lie somewhat in differences in their past... logging, trapping etc. and also geologic past as well

In terms of difficulty, well, you got me there. I haven't found anything in any area that's so completely difficult. Most of the difficulty lies in what you bring to the table... I can go do a Presidential Traverse, and that's somewhat difficult but only because I chose to do that Hike. You can hike all the Presidentials without having to do a Traverse. Anyone that thinks the trails are necessarily easier in the Whites should come over and do anything in The Great Gulf or Mahoosuc Notch. Again, you can get to any of those places the "easy" way... get to Adams and Madison by Valley Way (wicked easy) or by Madison Gulf (more challenging). Hell, you can go to Tecumseh (one of the easiest 4K's) via Welch-Dickey over a knife-edge ridge with a bootleg trail if you want to make things interesting.

Both areas are really great. I hope to really push myself out of my comfort zone a little more to get to the ADK's more often before I return to Boston in a few years... so far, I've hiked in the ADK's exactly once since I moved to Western MA.

-Dr. Wu

 

[Bob]

Daks are much muddier. And although the approaches are longer, they are usually artificially created with gates and private roads.