Big Slide

On a cool and cloudy July morning, Lisa and I awoke early in Wadhams after playing at the Old Dock House in Essex on the previous night. We packed our gear, filled our new camel-backs and headed to "The Garden" in Keene Valley. It turned out to be a much smaller parking lot than we had envisioned and we snagged the last spot.

We signed in and took a right where we immediately began climbing in elevation. However, the trail over "The Brothers" started to reward us with panoramic views seemingly immediately. We stopped on the rocky outcropping known as the first brother (in a series of three) and had a snack while gawking at a view that ranged from Hurricane Mountain through the Great Range.

As if the immediate view was not enough of a reward, wild blueberries were plentiful and ripe. We snacked as we hiked, enjoying the fruits of our labor!

The trail led from rocky outcroppings with amazing views into more wooded areas where we suddenly came upon a trail intersection. We headed up, to the summit of Big Slide which offered some of the most precarious scrambles of the day. We stopped at an overlook to admire the slide which gave the mountain its name.

At the top, we ate our lunches while enjoying the most panoramic of the views of the day. Wandering to the other side of the peak, we were able to see Lake Placid through the trees. On our way back to the summit, we stumbled upon one of the original survey markers from the Colvin survey of the mountains.

Wolfjaws to Gothics

Gothics to Marcy

Cool! The original Adirondack Survey

Our descent took us on a different trail which headed north towards Johns Brook. We followed the road back to our car, making a big loop for the day. It was a 9.75 mile hike for the day and one of the best hikes that we had ever taken.

Wolfjaws

Lisa and I awoke at sunrise in Wadhams while our friends Kevin and Elizabeth slept. We fried bacon and eggs and then I played reveille on the trumpet to signal breakfast. After stuffing our faces, we packed the car and headed for the Ausable Club in Keene Valley. Our destination would be two mountains in the Great Range: Upper and Lower Wolfjaws!

The temperature was perfect as we headed on the West River Trail, climbing slowly as we followed the Ausable River. After finding the sign for "Wolfjaws" we began to climb steadily as the trail became rocky and eroded. We ascended steadily with occasional views of Noonmark Mountain through the trees.

At the trail intersection, we decided to head to Lower Wolfjaw first, where Elizabeth (of course) found friends on the summit. It was pushing noon, so we decided to scarf down our sandwiches while talking to a pair of hikers and playing with their dogs. We snapped some pictures of the view and continued down the trail.

The hike from Lower to Upper Wolfjaw disoriented Lisa and I. Kevin and Elizabeth were out of sight when we found ourselves descending after a long ascent. Did we miss it? We stopped and checked the map and as it didn't seem possible, we carried on. Catching back up to Kevin and Elizabeth at the summit revealed the view with an extra hump between the two peaks that Kevin had nicknamed "the molar."

We made our goal for the day, but decided that we would continue up the range and get one more view for the day. After some scrambles up bare rock, we were on the peak of Armstrong mountain for the best view of the day with Mount Marcy looming in the distance.

The descent was difficult for the first mile and got much easier once we felt sod beneath our boots. We enjoyed the view of Beaver Meadow Falls on the way out and found ourselves quite footsore as we walked out on the road.

On the way home we grabbed malts at the Elizabethtown Stewart's to celebrate and Kevin made a fantastic chicken dinner. We watched the final stage of the Tour de France and made our last ascent for the day...up the stairs and into bed!

Nectar of the Gods

From the air...

We awoke the next day, sore but hungry for another adventure. We headed to the orchard in Crown Point to pick up Tom and three boats. After tying the boats onto the car, we ate a picnic and headed into the Hammond Pond Wild Forest where we would carry boats into Hammond Pond.


This was the first test hiking with our Hornbeck boats (made in Olmsteadville!); they are ultralight boats that are designed to be carried over a shoulder. Getting into the pond seemed incredibly easy after our previous experiences of dragging heavy boats on dollies.

The pond was full of lily pads and weeds but we didn't mind as it added to the wild feel of the area. With mountains rising around us and no one in sight, it proved our adage that in the Adirondacks you don't have to go far to find solitude. We paddled as far as we could to each arm of the pond before packing out.

We headed back to the orchard where we watched the lake in the evening before heading home for the night. It was yet another successful Adirondack exploration!

Crown Point

After talking about it for years and never quite finding the right combination of wind and weather, Lisa, Tom and I finally decided to paddle from our home of Charlotte, Vermont to our orchard in Crown Point, New York. We left from the boat launch in Converse Bay on a sweltering afternoon and headed south, around Thomspon's Point. I kept dipping my straw hat in the water and splashing myself to keep cool. The sunburn that I would later find on my neck was a reminder that ultraviolet rays do reflect upwards off of water....oops.

We stopped at Kingsland Bay State Park for a quick tuna sandwich on the shade of the porch. We watched children jumping off of the already submerged cement dock. I couldn't help jumping into the water myself!

Shoving off, we followed the Vermont shore past the mouth of Otter Creek and paddled steadily with the wind at our backs until we arrived at Button Bay State Park. We were able to get a campsite overlooking the lake. After jumping in the pool, we wandered the paths with Amy, who had brought her baby Ben to the park for the evening. Once the mosquitoes began to viciously swarm, we hid in our tents and snoozed.

By the time I had fully awoken the next morning, my sleeping pad, air mattress and bag had all been packed and I was laying on the floor of the tent! We munched on oatmeal and bananas and packed the boats, successfully shoving off before eight. We needed an early start to beat the heat and potential storms.

We paddled steadily through calm water with short breaks before arriving at Chimney Point, a stop that Jefferson and Madison had made while touring the lake. Sitting on the dock, we ate an early lunch and admired the new Champlain Bridge sitting above us. It seemed exponentially safer than the rusty girders that we were used to seeing.

We meandered to the orchard and after some acrobatics required to get the kayaks and all of our gear up the cliff, we poured water over our heads. Jumping into our car (that we left there two days prior), we headed to Port Henry for dinner at Gene's Michigan Stand, one of our favorite eateries in the Adirondacks! The muggy weather led us to walk through Mac's Market, just to enjoy the air conditioning. Before leaving, we made a stop in the Sherman Free Library where we saw Peggy Porter - local historian and resident friendly person!

The rest of the day was spent in the shade, looking out on the lake at the orchard. We spent the night sleeping in the bug tent (a necessity because of the aforementioned mosquitoes) before leaving the next morning. The trip was a highlight indeed and we got to see many of the most beautiful parts of the lake on one voyage!

Our total trip mileage was 24.5. We covered 11.3 miles on our first day (from Converse Bay to Button Bay) and 13.2 on our second day (from Button Bay to Crown Point).