This feels more like Fall
This past weekend was exactly what one expects from fall – cool nights that gently warm up during the day – just a reminder that winter is on the way but still time to get your fall tasks done. Unfortunately the weekend for me was bottled up with some race organization duties. First Saturday had the TransCanada 10k championships and then Sunday was the Jim Howe cross country. Both races had about 300 runners entered so not a big deal logistically but the feel of the two days was completely different. Saturdays National Championships was a formal road race while Sundays cross country was much more of a local community event – both fun, just different. With Sunday’s race over (and all the gear packed away) by noon I loaded up the car and headed south to Lake Placid to get in some great fall hiking. By 4:30 I was parked at South Meadow and hiking up the trail to Mount Van Hovenburg to catch the sunset from the upper ledges. Just a short walk and mostly flat with just a little climbing at the end. In short order I was enjoying the evening sunset over the high peaks with the alpenglow that lingers once the sun dips below the western ridges. Made it back to the car by headlamp and decided to scope out a spot to camp…. And found I had my choice! There was no one there on a Sunday night late in the season so I took one of the prime spots and curled up in my sleeping bag with this month’s
Powder magazine (I read it for the pictures) and soon enough had drifted off to sleep.
The bobsled track on Van Hovenburg - lighting up the sky
In the morning I awoke to -5C weather but the sun was shining. Unfortunately to the west I could see a heavy band of clouds coming my way. With that in mind I drove over to the Owl’s Head trail just off the Cascade pass and sprinted up the trail to its upper reaches ( a short distance) to get a few nice sunny photos before the gray clouds rolled over. That out of the way I continued on down the Keene valley to the AMR lot and booted up to hike Noonmark and Round. These are two peaks that have been on my “to do” list for some time – time to check them off. The peaks are 3500 and 3000ft respectively and there is some steep climbing to the summits but the trail is short and soon enough the views open up. By the time I crested Noonmark the clouds had rolled over my head and the sky was a steel gray colour. Not much of a breeze though so I sat and snacked at the summit while drinking in the views of the Ausable and Keene valleys and the Dix wilderness.
This is definitely a hike I will do again (and again and again…). Too soon I started to cool off so I headed down the north side of the peak and then up neighbouring Round Mountain. On the summit I met the first and only hikers I saw all day – a family just packing up on the summit. Round is an equally nice peak with a much broader summit ridge and lots of open rock. I took some time here as well but the skies were getting darker so I decided to head down and sure enough, just after I made the tree line, it began to lightly rain – a cold rain – a “precursor to snow” type of rain… Signs of things to come.
The hike down Round is “knee explodingly” steep. It drops 1800ft in a couple of miles, the first part all down steep rocky slabs. By the time I was back at the car the fluid in my knees was bubbling away so I was glad I didn’t have a long hike out after the descent. Certainly glad to get these two peaks in while there was still some fall colour and equally pleased to principally have them both to myself. On the way home I checked out a few other trailheads I want to explore in the future. Lots of options down there, just need to find the time to get them all in. On the way home I picked up a sandwich at my favourite deli in Saranac Lake and then drove up to Osgood pond to have a late lunch. Thought maybe I could get in to see
White Pine Camp but turns out they only run tours on weekends and even then (the tours) have closed for the season so I had to make do with enjoying my lunch at the local boat launch (still a nice spot). Snow fell that night on the high peaks and again the next day. Time for traction control when hiking? Or will the fall suns melt the snow again? Who knows. Either way it was a nice day to get out.
Osgood Pond - a tranquil lunch spot
This past weekend was exactly what one expects from fall – cool nights that gently warm up during the day – just a reminder that winter is on the way but still time to get your fall tasks done. Unfortunately the weekend for me was bottled up with some race organization duties. First Saturday had the TransCanada 10k championships and then Sunday was the Jim Howe cross country. Both races had about 300 runners entered so not a big deal logistically but the feel of the two days was completely different. Saturdays National Championships was a formal road race while Sundays cross country was much more of a local community event – both fun, just different. With Sunday’s race over (and all the gear packed away) by noon I loaded up the car and headed south to Lake Placid to get in some great fall hiking. By 4:30 I was parked at South Meadow and hiking up the trail to Mount Van Hovenburg to catch the sunset from the upper ledges. Just a short walk and mostly flat with just a little climbing at the end. In short order I was enjoying the evening sunset over the high peaks with the alpenglow that lingers once the sun dips below the western ridges. Made it back to the car by headlamp and decided to scope out a spot to camp…. And found I had my choice! There was no one there on a Sunday night late in the season so I took one of the prime spots and curled up in my sleeping bag with this month’s Powder magazine (I read it for the pictures) and soon enough had drifted off to sleep. 
In the morning I awoke to -5C weather but the sun was shining. Unfortunately to the west I could see a heavy band of clouds coming my way. With that in mind I drove over to the Owl’s Head trail just off the Cascade pass and sprinted up the trail to its upper reaches ( a short distance) to get a few nice sunny photos before the gray clouds rolled over. That out of the way I continued on down the Keene valley to the AMR lot and booted up to hike Noonmark and Round. These are two peaks that have been on my “to do” list for some time – time to check them off. The peaks are 3500 and 3000ft respectively and there is some steep climbing to the summits but the trail is short and soon enough the views open up. By the time I crested Noonmark the clouds had rolled over my head and the sky was a steel gray colour. Not much of a breeze though so I sat and snacked at the summit while drinking in the views of the Ausable and Keene valleys and the Dix wilderness.
This is definitely a hike I will do again (and again and again…). Too soon I started to cool off so I headed down the north side of the peak and then up neighbouring Round Mountain. On the summit I met the first and only hikers I saw all day – a family just packing up on the summit. Round is an equally nice peak with a much broader summit ridge and lots of open rock. I took some time here as well but the skies were getting darker so I decided to head down and sure enough, just after I made the tree line, it began to lightly rain – a cold rain – a “precursor to snow” type of rain… Signs of things to come.
The hike down Round is “knee explodingly” steep. It drops 1800ft in a couple of miles, the first part all down steep rocky slabs. By the time I was back at the car the fluid in my knees was bubbling away so I was glad I didn’t have a long hike out after the descent. Certainly glad to get these two peaks in while there was still some fall colour and equally pleased to principally have them both to myself. On the way home I checked out a few other trailheads I want to explore in the future. Lots of options down there, just need to find the time to get them all in. On the way home I picked up a sandwich at my favourite deli in Saranac Lake and then drove up to Osgood pond to have a late lunch. Thought maybe I could get in to see White Pine Camp but turns out they only run tours on weekends and even then (the tours) have closed for the season so I had to make do with enjoying my lunch at the local boat launch (still a nice spot). Snow fell that night on the high peaks and again the next day. Time for traction control when hiking? Or will the fall suns melt the snow again? Who knows. Either way it was a nice day to get out.
1 comment:
Noonmark is for sure one of the best view vs effort hikes in the Adirondacks! I had wondered about the views from Round mountain...and now I know!
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