Iroquois

Two years ago we hiked Wright and Algonquin, but decided not to venture over the ridge line to Iroquois Peak. We didn't have great visibility that day and knew that we would want to come back someday. Then we saw a perfect September Sunday in the forecast and found ourselves heading back to Algonquin and continuing onto Iroquois for the first time.

With thunderstorms on Saturday, we headed to Lake Placid for dinner. We walked around town donning our raincoats and found barbeque at Smoke Signals. It was certainly gourmet and we enjoyed our meal overlooking Mirror Lake.

For the evening we headed to the campground at Heart Lake, where we played pinochle until we couldn't see the cards. Being early September, that was about 7:45; we washed up and headed to bed.

The next morning, we awoke to chilly temperatures and clear skies. Moving the car to the hiker lot, we put on our backpacks and headed up the trail to Algonquin. The trail is short and steep. Lisa looked forward to the famous "slide" on the trail because since our last visit, she has new boots. She certainly benefited from the extra traction.

Arriving on the summit, we talked to the Summit Steward and ate a snack while admiring the slides on the western side of Mount Colden. Despite some wind, the weather was much improved over our last visit!

We headed down the trail towards Iroquois Peak, but found ourselves losing too much elevation. After talking to some hikers from Clarkson, we realized that we had just missed the turn. When we got back to the intersection, we realized that the sign was blocked by a lady with a dog...oops.

Back on track, we made the ascent and descent over Boundary Peak and then ascended Iroquois. The path had mountain views except for a few sections, and Iroquois offered a panoramic view much like a miniature (still a pretty big mountain though....) Algonquin. We ate our lunch on top huddled behind a rock to block the wind while naming the peaks. The view of Wallface was particularly stunning!

The return trip brought us over Algonquin again where we stopped for another view of the mountains to the east before making the slow descent to the Loj. It was a perfect fall day in the Adirondacks.