Algonquin Peak Traverse - A Walk on the Wild Side
Jan 28, 2012
What an incredible day in the mountains! This is
one of my favourite winter hikes in the Adirondacks. A traverse of
Algonquin, heading up the very steep, but exquisitely beautiful back
(south) side via Avalanche Lake and Lake Colden. We were Elisa, François, Paula, Peipei, Peter, Richard, Stuart, Timothy, Uliana and me. Total loop was 12 miles (19.3 kilometers). It had been a very mild January day at the parking lot. However, after six hours of hiking and climbing, as we approached the summit, it was anything but. Beautiful with gorgeous views, but most definitely unworldly. I consider it a privilege to be able to get to and spend a little time in places like that. Six hours up, two hours down. All of these great photos were taken by Mr X, aka Peter Collins. I was taking the day off. Sure, we also got the usual posed photos at the parking lot and along the trail, but the last thing the web needs is yet another photo of, say, my face. These are the photos that illustrate the best parts of our day in the mountains. Note: Hike statistics are at the bottom of this page. |
(Scroll down to see photos)
Peter is walking on water. Avalanche Lake.
In the middle of Avalanche Lake, with the Mount Colden Trap Dyke in the
background. If
you look carefully in the middle of the dyke, just a little higher and slightly
left of the top
of the tallest tree, you can see a climber heading up.
We were not able to decipher this sign. Perhaps it was a warning about the
harsh weather.
Although it was very mild in Montreal and even Keene Valley, up here it was anything but.
These were the last
vestiges of any
vegetation, about half a kilometre and one or two hundred
vertical metres below
the summit.
Heading up the very exposed summit slopes of Algonquin Peak. Or perhaps we're on
another
planet. Certainly a place somewhat incompatible with human (or any living)
habitation. We
were merely making a brief visit.
Getting close to the summit, walking in a land of bullet proof ice and gale
force winds. Some
of those big ice clumps are actually large cairns which are completely covered
and hidden.
Crossing over the vast summit area, there was not one single millimetre of
exposed granite.
And, on our bodies, not a single mm of exposed skin, as frostbite could be
minutes away,
in that wind.
Can't you see all our smiling faces?
One whole hour in this twilight zone and we didn't see another single person up
there.
Not sure why, it was such a bright, sunny and relatively mild day. Go
figure.
Greetings from the Arctic Zone, on the summit. Properly prepared and attired,
being up
there is a really exhilarating experience and visual treat. The exquisite and
expansive views,
the contact with the forces of nature, being in a place where very few others
venture. In
case you couldn't tell, I'm on the left, in red.
We are starting to head down from the summit. The entire surface area above
tree-line is rock hard
boiler plate ice thick enough that you can't see what is underneath. Could be
shag carpeting, for all we know.
There is almost no snow as it is continuously blown away by the never ending
wind. Needless to say,
reliable traction on our boots, be it crampons or MicroSpikes, was an absolute
necessity.
Falling is not an option!
Heading down towards tree-line. The close mountain on the right is Wright. With
about 15
minutes on the summit, as well as climbing up and down from the tree-lines on
each side of the
mountain, we were in this open, exposed, cold and windy alpine zone for about an
hour. It
felt great to be in this area, but it was also good to return to the relative
calm of the trees...
the land of the living.
On our way down, back in the world of trees, on a trail of ice and snow.
Note: The ten of us all started hiking at the same time, but
soon split into two groups of three and seven. My Group of Seven hiked
slower than the others and the times below are for my group. Back at
the end of the hike, someone from the faster group remarked that they had
done the whole hike about two hours faster than us. I did not say
this, at the time, but my thoughts were that it meant we got to spend two
extra wonderful hours in God's country. This was a very remarkable day. 6:15am Depart Mtl 9:30am Start hike from Adirondak Loj 12:15pm Finish crossing Avalanche Lake, 1st third on the ice, last 2 thirds by the trail. 1:00pm Start the real climbing up the Boundary trail near Lake Colden after break & snacks 3:15pm Just below tree-line, we stop to cover up and put on every article of clothing we have. 3:50pm Arrive Algonquin summit 4:05pm Depart summit 4:59pm Sunset (normally, in winter, you still have a good 30 to 60 minutes of decent light after the sun sets) 5:35pm Back at the Marcy Dam & Algonquin trail junction. Some started using headlamps, at this point. 6:00pm Back at Loj parking lot Total of 8.5 hours on trail (probably 8 of which we were on the move) 7:45pm Supper in Plattsburgh (Mangia) 10:30pm Arrive back in Montreal MicroSpikes were used most of the day for most of us. For safety, snowshoes were used to cross Avalanche Lake. |