#23 Mt Marshall-Saturday November 12, 2011

Krista, Debbie, Sharon

Sharon, Deb and I on the lookout on Marshall

Debbie and Sharon had a made plans to do Marshall for Sharon's 46, and because I too needed Marshall they invited me to tag along and so I did. Part of the deal was for me to play hooky from work for the day as Deb and Sharon both didn't have to work on Friday November 11th, aka Remembrance Day. In the U.S. they call this Veterans Day. I agreed to the plan and we were off. Arrived in Keene Valley shortly after 2 and it started snowing. We hadn't seen snow the whole way down. Sharon went off for a jog with Marie, and Deb and I made the obligatory visit to the Mountaineer.

Scoping out the new slide on Wright

Avalanche Pass

That evening we dined at the Ausable Inn, eating ourselves full of veggie pizza. We were in bed by 8:30pm and up at 4:45 and on the road an hour later to Heart Lake. As the daylight increased we started seeing the layer of snow that accumulated overnight, making it easiert to begin our walk down the trail around dawn. Left the trailhead at Heart Lake at 6:20, and marched our way to Marcy Dam and up to Avalanche Pass in 2 hours. As we ascended, the snow depth increased from an inch to a few inches. The trees and slides were beautiful! A winter wonderland was upon us and the sun was beginning to shine!

The 3 amigos are now 5 amigos

My Marshall summit shot!

Microspike failure!

We donned our shell layer through Avalanche Lake and Lake Colden. Sharon slipped at Hitch Up Matilda's and dropped a pole in the lake which I was able to recover using my two poles with baskets. After many photo opportunties (of which I wasn't able to participate after realizing my brand new camera's battery wasn't charged) we headed around Lake Colden on the Yellow trail to the dam. Met our first group of the day on Dam and then headed over to the lean-to at the base of the Herbert Brook. Having a break to snack and drink tea, two hikers came around the corner and it happened to be hiking friends of Debbie's Marc and Lucy. Both of them belong to the Alpine Club of Canada, a club Glenn and I joined in September, and have met before. They had both just stayed out overnight in a nearby lean-to. By sheer coincidence we ran into each other and decided to summit Marshall as a group of 5! We headed up the Herbert Brook herd path which in some parts was tricky due to the new fallen snow, and winded our way over the across the brook, up the brook and beside the brook. With around 500ft to go the brook disappeared and climbed the col to the summit. Just before the summit we donned our microspikes as the conditions started to become very icey and slippery. So far the snow had provided us with some extra grip but no longer this was the issue, and the wind was non-existent due to the treed summit cone. We took some summit shots and grabbed a snack and extra layer. I tried on my new light down Mountain Hardwear jacket and loved it. Walked about 10 m off the summit and took some more fantastic sunny photos with a gorgeous snow capped peak background! My GPS said that we had hiked over 13.5 km to get to the summit in 6 hours! Yikes that's a long approach!

Marc, Sharon, Deb, Lucy and I on Marshall's summit

For the first 10mins of the descent we wore the microspikes for grip and then we all took the off when the started snowballing up and the conditions improved (photo right). Tramped down our old footprints back to the marked trail and rested again at the lean-to. Said goodbye to Marc and Lucy who were pondering whether to camp out or join us in Keene Valley for the night. Headed back along Lake Colden's blue trail (opposite from the morning), then played snakes and ladders along Avalanche Lake. Took another 2 hours again to get back to Heart Lake, and we had to put on the headlamps for the last km or so.

Hike Totals: 27km, 3882 ft of ascending, 11hours!

Marc and Lucy did decide to come crash with us in Keene Valley and eat with us at the Baxter restaurant with the three of us and Marie. Had a great evening and weekend as a whole. Great company, great conditions, great hiking, great fun! Can't wait to go back! :) Half way to 46!

#22 Colden-Saturday October 22nd, 2011

Krista, Glenn, Marian, Dave

What a better way to catch up with some old friends then to hike a peak in the Adirondacks. My old friends Marian (old soccer teammate from university) and her fiance Dave drove down from Montreal to join us on this hike. My plan was to summit Colden, a straight forward up and over hike starting from Heart Lake. I had heard that the views off Colden were spectcular, and what a better time of year to be up there than in October. I also have wanted to visit Avalanche Pass as I have heard that the scenery there is spectacular. I hadn't been to Heart Lake in a number of years as I've been spending my time mainly over in Keene Valley as of late.

The sad new look of Marcy Dam

We arrived at the Heart Lake Parking area just before 8am and paid my fee to the parking attendant proudly as I hope that money is put towards the restoration of the park post Hurricane Irene. Logged in at the register and set off at 8am down the path to Marcy Dam. I didn't remember it being this mucky and muddy but nothing to worry about. Crossed the Marcy Brook below the dam which was well worn and marked. Got to Marcy Dam and was shocked to see the state of the dam and the missing bridge. The amount of water that must have been present in the flood to wash out that bridge must have been something. Remnants of the bridge were evident downstream. Mother Nature wins again!

Colden summit shot!

The trail up to Lake Arnold began a very easy grade and progressed to moderate the closer we got to the Lake. Some re-routes were evident along the way but all easily managable. We stopped to take a break at the Lake-donned our toques and raincoats and grabbed a bite to eat. I checked my watch-it was 10am. Marie at the Roostercomb Inn had said the forecast for the day had a 10% chance of precipitation. Well you could throw that forecast out the window. It started to rain lightly on us and continued through out most of the rest of the day!

Team Grey and Team Red summit shot

The trail from Lake Arnold up to the summit was a combination of steep pitches, flat traverses, and bumps. Not long after starting the trail we noticed the snow. The trees had a dusting which was very picturesque but the ground was still wet and slimy. Before long we were at the summit-or what we thought was the summit. I couldn't find an actual summit marker but we knew we were in the right place as my GPS said we had summited and the trail markers had changed colours. Other parties on the summit couldn't find the marker either. I found a very unique and distinguishing feature near the summit that I used as my background for my summit photos. It was a balancing rock!

Descending Colden

The summit shots unfortunetly lack the gorgeous fall views I was hoping on seeing. Should have known...'dack summits are almost always clouded in. The hike down was rather treacherous with all the moisture on the sloping exposed rock. The worst part was at the summit but it got better after descending the ladder and into the treed areas. We grabbed a bite to eat and removed some of our layers in the sheltered areas and before long we had made it down to Lake Colden.

Avalanche Pass

We hiked along the lake towards Avalanche pass and all of a sudden we got a view of some of the Colden slides. It was our first real view of the day as so far the hike had been in thick forest or clouded summit. We stopped to snap some shots and then before we knew it we were at Avalanche Lake. What a sight! There was unfortunetly evidence of Irene's wake with the landslide out of the Trap Dike and debris everywhere. That said, the scenery along the lake was spectacular and this area is my new favourite spot in the Adirondacks. Absolutely stunning!

Hitch Up Matilda's

The hike along the lake was fun and interesting and the boardwalks at Hitch Up Matilda's was very cool. The sheer cliff walls on either side of you are absolutely breathtaking. And to think that the landslide out of the Trap Dike caused a wave so high that it dislodged boards from the Hitch Up is just shocking. The Trap Dike was very interesting to finally lay my eyes on as well. I hope to come back one day and climb the Trap Dike and hopefully get a view off the top of Colden. We stopped to snap many photos in this area which slowed our pace but it was worth every second! The march out to the parking lot was straightforward. I would have to say the highlight of this trip was the portion through Avalanche Lake and Avalanche Pass and sharing this trip with some friends. What a great way to spend a Saturday!

Boulders below Colden's summit

We signed out at the register just before 4:30 and Glenn noticed that 120 parties had signed in after us on the same day. You forget very quickly how busy the Heart Lake-Marcy Dam corridor is after you've spent time away from it.
Hike Totals for this trip:

21.72 km, 997m ascent, 8.5 hours

On the ascent near Lake Arnold

#20 Santanoni and #21 Couchasaraga-September 24th, 2011

Krista, Debbie, Rebecca

Starting in the dark

I was very excited for this trip down to the 'dacks as it was my first opportunity to hike post-Hurricane Irene. I had planned originally a multi-day backpacking trip starting at Upper Works on Labour Day weekend but alas it was not meant to be. Following the reports of the devastation that surrounded Hurricane Irene in the adirondacks was both shocking and unbelievable. Marcy dam bridge is GONE!? And that was only the beginning. It was heartwarming to see that the volonteers have worked hard to get things up and running again so soon.

Rebecca negotiating the rope on the express

I chose the Santanoni range to do this weekend because in the trip reports it seemed to be hit less than some of the other ranges. I first was in the range on a very cold day back in February 2010 with Debbie. This was the day we summited Panther, and then went down to Couchie thinking we made it but we found out later we didn't. Since then Debbie returned to the range and finished her 46'er quest on Santanoni over a year ago. It was fitting that she wanted to get back in the range with me to finish the quest we started years ago.

Santanoni summit shot

We left Long Lake at 6am and signed in at the register at 7am. The weather reports had said it was supposed to be 24 degrees with a humidex of 30 with a 40% chance of precipitation. Shortly after heading off on the gravel road, it began to rain. And for most of the rest of the climb, the cloud, fog and rain continued. So much for 40%.

The trip up to the cairn was fairly uneventful. Conditions we wet from the rain that was falling and that had fallen the night before. Debbie, as usual, set a blistering pace so if we weren't wet from the rain we were from sweat. We passed 3 men wearing ponchos near the cairn, and found out that they took 1 hour and 44 mins to get there, whilst it took us only 1 hour and 24 mins. Headed up a new trail to me, the new/old herd path or now more commonly known as the Santanoni Express. Enjoyed this summit climb, including the rope section. Summited Santanoni in the rain at 10am .

Debbie negotiating the Couchie swamp

Couchie summit

After a quick bite to eat and some summit shots, we headed down the path to Times Square. Got to Times Square by 11:15, and immediately began the descent to Couchie. Rebecca began slowing her pace significantly during this section. This was Rebecca's second hike in the high peaks region her first being our Giant-RPR hike in April in winter conditions. Learning how to descend steep peaks is a special skill in the high peaks, one that Rebecca was just learning. Made it down to the Couchie swamp and was able to cross it using numerous logs without any problems (photo above). Heading up to Couchie afterwards I bonked my head fairly hard on a leaner and my jaw snapped as a result. Luckily I didn't get a concussion but didn't feel great for an hour or two afterwards. Made to Couchie's summit and was happy to see a yellow summit marker (photo left). I had read a forum that said that the large wooded sign was gone. I thought I might be looking for a nail on a tree! We summited at 12:45, taking us about an hour and half from Times Square. On our way back through the swamp, Debbie got smacked on the face with a stump with stick daggers and was bleeding with 2 scratches. Cleaned her up and began the ascent back up to Times Square which took another 1.5 hours. The trail was very wet, muddy and puddly the entire duration. Combined with many big steps, log stepovers and unders, and mud slides, we were very dirty returning to Times Square.

Debbie's war wounds

After a brief break, Debbie and Rebecca decided to run up to Panther without packs as Rebecca needs that peak for her 46. I didn't need it so I rested at the top of Panther Brook to assess my head situation. 20 minutes later they had returned and we began our descent. The steep slope down Panther brook I remembered from last time, but I remembered it because I was sliding down on my snowshoes. This time it was much different. Lots wet boulders and slimy mud to negotiate. Rebecca slowed her pace down again as her ITB band was flared up and made descending difficult. We finally reached Bradley Pond to find that people were camping there but no where near the lean-to. Everyone had searched for higher ground as the entire trail was oversaturated with water and mud. There were many re-routes which were helpful but it didn't really matter at that point as all our feet were already wet. My tried and true Outdoor Research Salamander gaiters which normally keep my feet dry in the narliest of conditions failed today. That said, if I wasn't wearing them I think it would have been even worse. I had just got back from a very wet backpacking trip in Newfoundland and felt like I was right back there on this ADK trail. Rebecca's pace was very slow on the way out so we limped along with her and made it out just after dark. Covered with mud, pine needles, and some funky earthy smell we celebrated reaching the parking lot with a loud Yahoo!

Muddy exit

Hike totals: 24.8km, 13 hours (it could have been 11), ascent 1385m. With my increasing techi-ness, I have included a google earth image of our track!

#16 Sawteeth, #17 Gothics, #18 Armstrong, #19 Upper Wolfjaw-May 22nd, 2011

Glenn, Krista

The alarm sounded at an early 5:30am at the Wilmington Notch campground to spring us into action for today's hike. Drove over to the AMR parking lot and hiked to the register. Signed in at 6:43am and headed off down Lake Road. Towards the lake we saw a grouping of 3 whitetailed deer who were still scared of humans (a good sign), and landed at the lake about an hour after leaving the trailhead. We stripped off any extra layers as the humidity levels already were on the rise and the sun was beginning to shine. Even by 8am I was wearing shorts, a thin wicking t-shirt and short gaiters...must be summer!

Sawteeth summit shot!

After stopping to snap some photos of the beautiful scenery around Ausable Lake and Rainbow falls we trudged up the Weld trail under a well shaded trail up to the junction. We decided to leave our packs and scurry up to the summit of Sawteeth. The trail up to the summit was very wet and muddy with some scrambling in some parts. We reached the summit 3 hours after signing in at the register to be rewarded with some fantastic views of the slide up pyramid.

View from Pyramid

We descended quickly back down to the junction ready for the 1200 foot 1 mile climb up to Gothics. Not knowing anything about this trail, we soon found out that not only being steep, but in May the large sections of exposed rock are extremely slippery and difficult to ascend. The effort was worth the reward with a nice rest at the Pyramid lookout over Basin and many other peaks along with a wonderful breeze. After a short rest, we ran up the last section to the Gothics summit. 

Gothics Summit shot!

At the Gothics summit we encountered our first groups of people all summitting and eating lunch. We joined in and snapped some shots of the 360 degree views. This was Glenn and my first look at Big Slide which we had climbed back in October 2010 in a complete snowstorm. I could have spent an hour or so up top soaking in the views but after lunch and some summit shots we made our way to Armstrong. 

Glenn and I on Armstrong

Glenn descending the ladder off Armstrong

The trip over to Armstrong was uneventful and the summit of Armstrong had a small lookout and the marker had been weathered. We took a couple shots and moved on. Things started to get a bit tricky off the back side of Armstrong with many steep wet rock slabs that bordered on rock climbing (thankfully I used to do a lot of lead climbing) where many foot and hand holds were necessary in order to make the moves needed to safely descend. Luckily the biggest pitch had a ladder!

The conditions along the ridge in general today were partly ice/snow covered (nothing you couldn't bareboot), partly muddy, partly puddled, slick wet rock, loose rock, and a few dry sections. The trail over to Upper Wolfjaw was okay but by this point we were starting to feel drained. We fueled up on the small rocky summit and headed to the col between UWJ and LWJ. We arrived at the junction around 3pm with enough daylight time to summit the final pitch to LWJ but after all the tricky ups and downs of the hike there wasn't enough gas in the tank to complete peak #5 for the day.

Me signalling the 4th summit for the day with LWJ in the background!

We headed down the Wedge brook trail with a thunderous sounds of whitewater most of the way back to the Lake Road. Upon signing out at 4:16pm at the register we were happy we made the decision not to push it up LWJ. Totals for the hike: 24kms, 1483m (4800ft) ascending, 10hours. Photo: Descending down the Wedge Brook Trail

4 more peaks summitted!!

#14 Giant and #15 Rocky Peak-April 2, 2011

Debbie, Rebecca, Krista

Deb, Rebecca and I timer shot

Debbie and I invited our friend Rebecca along for this trip as her first time hiking in the Adirondacks. Drove down Friday evening and stayed in Keene Valley again at the Rooster Comb Inn. Left the Chapel Pond Giant trailhead at 7:40am on hard packed snow. Started up the steep trail barebooting but quickly decided that traction devices were necessary. After noticing many postholes, we decided to don the snowshoes. This proved to be a good move as about half way up the mountain there was 3-4 inches of fresh powder. Underneath the powder was hard packed snow and ice.

Giant summit shot

Stripped down to our baselayers very early on as the temperature in Keene Valley was already above zero. Ascended the steep trail up to be rewarded by fantastic viewpoints along the way. Took a few photos on the way up but then focused on bagging the Giant. Finally we got to the Giant/Rocky trail junction and then pushed up to the summit of Giant...only to be disappointed by being in a cloud at the summit. The temperature was very frigid so we layered on the clothing and grabbed a quick bite to eat. It was 10:40am-a 3 hour ascent.

My Rocky Peak Summit shot!

We retreated down to the junction again and quickly realized that the trail down the col to Rocky Peak had vanished with the recent wind and snow. The steep terrain and route finding was challenging on the descent but Debbie's vast experience kept a sharp eye on the yellow DEC markers. We removed our extra layers and began ascending up Rocky Peak. Deb broke through the 3 inches of fresh powder on the trail and we climbed the moderate grade trail up to the summit. We arrived at the summit and found the rock pile. Luckily we were rewarded with some fantastic views as the skies had begun to clear. It was my first view of Lake Champlain as well as the east side of Giant.

Looking back at Giant from Rocky

We ate another snack and then descended back down the trail worrying slightly about the steep, icy ascent waiting for us back up to Giant. Rebecca had borrowed my old snowshoes-ones not made for steep icy ascents. Deb and I lifted our heel lifter bar on our Atlas Elecktra's and began up our broken trail. Luckily the sun had warmed up the snow/ice and everybody's snowshoes provided enough traction to grip on the ice. There were a few tricky sections of course, but teamwork came into play and it all worked out and we were back at the junction once again. We donned another layer and started to descend to Chapel Pond.

Debbie heading up the crux pitch of ice ascending Giant

We were just remarking how odd we felt it was that we hadn't seen one other hiker on Giant on a Saturday when, at 2pm, we saw our first couple almost at the junction. They were heading up Giant and Rocky but we saw them on Sunday and found out they didn't make it over to Rocky. After them we saw two young lads in cotton t-shirts, a fleece jacket, no water, and a wood hiking stick ascending without traction devices. After remarking how unprepared they were we ran into 2 other groups who weren't too far off wearing down jackets, jeans, etc. How come there isn't more rescues in the Adirondacks I have no idea. Accidents can happen to anyone but those who are prepared reduce their risk exponentially.

Blue skies once again and beautiful views on the descent

We had a very fun descent sliding down on our bottoms multiple times and taking many photo breaks to drink in the gorgeous views. The snow had softened significantly which made the descent tricky. We finished at Chapel Pond at 4pm. My GPS said we ascended 4800ft, 13km, and 8 hours. A great Adirondack day!

Rebecca and I almost at the summit of Giant

#12 Nippletop and #13 Dial-December 31st, 2010

Glenn tending to his blisters at Elk Pass

Glenn ,Krista

Summit of Nippletop

Set off from the Ausable parking lot at 7:00am. Signed in at the register at 7:17am-my first ever sign-in! I always am with someone else who beats me too it. Headed down the Lake road approach noticing ski tracks in the 1-2 inches of snow cover. My husband Glenn and I had chosen to do Dial and Nippletop based on the forecasted warm temperatures (high of 7 degrees Celcius or about 40 degrees F) because we didn't think we could ski in on Lake Road. Took the Yellow trail off Lake Road towards Colvin and Fish Hawk Cliffs and had already removed our toques and began venting. Barefooted the ascent as far as we could but when the terrain became steeper we donned our snowshoes and took off our jackets and gloves. I was trying out my Atlas Electra 11's with the heel lifter bar. When we got up to Elk Pass, it was 10am and Glenn was complaining about some hot spots he needed to attend to on his heels. Upon removing his boot, he realized that he forgot to put in ONE of his orthotics into his hiking boots! He had been walking for 3 hours in one very loose boot! Photo above of Glenn tending to his hot spots using some athletic tape!

Glenn on Nippletop

Heading up from Elk Pass, the steep terrain really picked up for about 1 mile or 1 hour of hiking. I tried out the new heel lift bar and absolutely loved it! The ascent was so much easier on my calves! Fantastic new technology! On the way up we started to see some views of the Great Range which was fantastic as my recent summits have all been in harsh conditions. We summited Nippletop at 11am in just our base layers with some strong gusts of winds. Took many photos of the moutains all around, including Dix, which I had summited back in November. Returned back to the junction out of the wind and ate lunch and continued on to Dial. The temperatures were really on the rise and the snow began getting really slushy.

View from the summit of Nippletop

We finally met another lone hiker on the trail between Nippletop and Dial who was heading in the opposite direction-we ended up meeting him again on Lake Road later on. We reached the summit of Dial at around 1pm. We climbed up on the the large boulder and enjoyed the great views. It was a beautiful day!

Dial summit shot!

Glenn and I on Dial-beautiful day!

Continued on with our descent and found some areas void of snow and so we had to take snowshoes on and off to hop around areas. A few times our snowshoes postholed through the slush and sunk! Had to remove the snowshoes about 200ft above Lake Road. When we reached the road we were stunned to see gravel peaking through the snow, or what was left of the snow. Was back at the car at 3:55. Totals for this trip: 22km, 8 hours 55 mins, 4733ft of ascending, 2 more summits bagged! A great way to end the year! Happy New Year!