Wright, Algonquin, Iroquois

8/3/2013 - High Peaks #1, 2, 3.

Our quest to complete the Adirondack 46 High Peaks started with the MacIntyre Range. When planning for which mountains would be the first off of our list, Zak and I agreed that we didn't want to start small and work our way up in difficulty or elevation, but also that we didn't want to be naive and tackle something we weren't prepared for either. I think we found a perfect level of difficulty in these three.

The hike began very easy with a steady climb over nice soft ground. About 45 minutes in, however, that changed as we began to ascend more rapidly over larger rocks, roots, and boulders. As we climbed, we took note of the changing smells and temperature swings that seem to come from nowhere. At around 3500 feet we came across a beautiful waterfall and stopped to take a picture and cool off. With many more hours of climbing ahead though, we carried on.

We continued on until we reached the junction with the Wright Peak Spur Trail. Excitement overtook any fatigue as we knew we were only 0.4 miles away from bagging our first 46er. As we climbed, we noticed the clouds were getting thicker and the wind picking up, something to be expected on the Adirondack mountain best known for wind factor. With such dense clouds, finding the actual summit proved to be difficult as wind gusts nearly knocked us off our feet several times. A quick picture at the top and a scramble back down below the treeline was the only summit memory of our first High Peak.

After reaching the original junction, Zak and I stopped to fill out our climbing log, get a quick drink and something to eat, and share in the excitement of our accomplishment. After cooling off for a few minutes, we began the ascent up to Algonquin. As we climbed, we continued to turn around and look back to Wright Peak which by this time, naturally, was cloud free and we could see people at the summit. Fatigue was barely starting to set in as we were anxious to get to the top of the 2nd highest in NY. When we completed the trek to the summit, we talked to the Steward for a few minutes, picked out some of the nearby peaks, and headed out to Iroquois.

The trail out to Iroquois was interesting as the high winds continued to be a factor since we were still above the tree line. One wrong turn started to lead us down the Iroquois Alternate Route, however it was a mistake quickly reversed. Crossing the bog on the new foot bridges was nice and we commented several times that we would have been a muddy mess without them. The final climb to the top of Iroquois required a little scrambling but was more fun that challenging. At the top, clouds and wind moved in once again shortening our stay at the summit. We scrambled back down from the summit first before taking a break to enjoy the accomplishment of our third High Peak of the Day.

The climb back out to Algonquin was a little more challenging. We were beginning to get tired and we no longer had the motivation of making it to the next peak to keep us intrigued. We encouraged each other to keep moving and much to our surprise, the second time at the summit of Algonquin rewarded us with amazing views as very briefly the clouds parted! We stopped at the top for several minutes to take pictures and relax before moving on back down the trail to Adirondak Loj. Once back below the tree line, we stopped for lunch and a drink and filled out our hiking log. The rest of the hike back down went rather quickly as we discussed the events of the day and began to plan our next conquest. Overall, it was an absolutely great day and an awesome first experience of hiking the 46 High Peaks!

Weather:

Rainy very early that morning which threatened our chance of even hiking. Rain stopped around 5 AM so we decided to go for it. Most of the hike was cool with heavy clouds and high winds. These broke at times to reveal great summit views from Algonquin and occasionally at Iroquois.

Hike Stats:
7:05 - Left the Adirondak Loj
8:50 - Summit of Wright Peak
10:15 - Summit of Algonquin
11:05 - Summit of Iroquois
2:15 - Back to the Adirondak Loj

Wright Summit: 4580 feet
Algonquin Summit: 5114 feet
Boundary Summit: 4826 feet
Iroquois Summit: 4840 feet