Close up
Mount Marcy After climbing the second highest peak in the Adirondacks the day before, Dinah and I set off to do the highest peak, Mount Marcy, using the Van Hoevenberg Trail. Although it's not much higher than Algonquin Peak, Mount Marcy has a longer approach although easier. It was our second day in the Adirondacks and like the first day, it was hot, a record-breaking 26°C. (We were fortunate with the weather. The previous month saw the Adirondacks hit with snow.) Hoping to avoid the crowds and the mid-day heat, we started up the trail before 8:00 am. A popular peak, the mountain sees as many as 50 people an hour. Fortunately, this being a Friday, we encountered few people. There was little elevation for the first section of the trail and everywhere the fall colours filled us with awe. When the trail began to climb, however, the colorful deciduous trees gave way to evergreens. Trees blocked the views for the most part. Near the top, however, the trail rises above the treeline and follows rock slabs to the summit. The sky was too hazy to view distant peaks. After a half hour stay on the summit, we started back down. We didn't look forward to the descent since there was little to see in the trees, but we did stop to walk to Indian Falls a short way from the trail. It was a good place to take a break, although it was full of people. We made it back to the trailhead 6:45 hours after setting off. Mount Marcy was the last peak we bagged in the Adirondacks during our short stay. When it comes to majestic peaks, the Adirondacks are no match for the Canadian Rockies, but the fall colours here beat those in the Rockies. In fact, autumn is the busiest time in the Adirondacks.MOVIE (2:00) |
Fall colours in the Adirondacks (mouse over any to enlarge)
Close up
Hiking on Van Hoevenberg Trail
Stone walkway
Stairs
Planks
Hiker with a 40-year-old wicker pack
Brilliant colours along the way
Maple leaves by a birch log
Trail narrows
Marcy Dam
View from the dam
Crossing a stream (there's also a bridge for crossing when the water is high)
First clear view of Mount Marcy from the trail
The summit ahead
Last planks before the summit
On the left, Phelps Mountain, 32nd highest peak
The only section that required scrambling
Mount Haystack, third highest peak in the Adirondacks
Cairns and yellow paint mark the trail
Plaque on the summit (mouse over for a close up)
Coleman (foreground), Algonquin and Wright Peaks
Dinah checks her GPS
Indian Falls
Woodpecker
Back into the fall colours
More fall colours
More colorful scenery
Red leaves litter the ground
Forest floor
Another view from Marcy Dam on the return
360° view from the summit
Kleene Valley and Mount Marcy
