Phelps Mtn 2/18/10

I went into this winter wanted to get a couple high peaks done, to take some of the load off this coming summer. As it turned out, I ended up only getting this one. We left early in the morning and were on the trail by 9am. It was myself and HikingMates partner Jennifer. We started out of the Adirondack Loj, up past Marcy Dam and back the same way. The temps were pretty mild, in the twenties, but unfortunately the cloud cover was very low so our visibility was very poor for the hike, with no visibility at the top. The trails up to the Phelps trail were packed snow, with 2-3 inches of fresh powder on top. When we got to the Phelps trail we threw on our traction for the steeps and ice that we found on the last stretch. Overall, no issues with traction or on the trail. We encountered several parties on the way in, including a group that had over-nighted and was headed up to Algonquin, and then a handful of parties snowshoeing and skiing on the way back down. The black capped chickadees were out in force around Marcy Dam. We stopped for a picture and they came right down and were landing on my trekking poles, and even my hand! I'm sure they were hoping we had a snack for them, but no luck. Overall, I had a great time, but another hike this winter with no views or limited views on top. Oh well.

Big Slide 10/18/09

I decided to do the hike via the Brothers, and down Slide Brook to create a fun loop. My friend Dan and I had tried to do this hike last year, well not the loop but over the Brothers, and ran out of time to finish it. This time we left earlier in the morning and gave ourselves plenty of time to finish. When we left the Garden we were hiking in fall conditions: cool, leaves on the ground and some blue skies. As we made our way up past the second Brother we encountered snow and ice. We took a snack break on top of the first Brother and its great views entertained. There were still fall colors throughout the Great Range, but barely. One more week and they were probably gone. The hike from the second Brother up the the summit of Big Slide was over snow and ice, well mostly ice. The micro spikes we brought work like a charm. The last jaunt up to the summit was quite steep, with a couple ladders thrown in, but nothing technical, just had to do some scrambling. Once we made it to the top, I was amazed by the range of the views to be had. I think I counted 22 visible high peaks from the summit! I think this is currently my favorite vista from a high peak to date! The trail down the Slide Brook trail was much easier than the trail up over the Brothers and even easier from the Interior post back to the Garden. We passed a couple of leentos and jumped a two deer as we made our way back out. Overall a awesome hike, one that I won't mind doing again.