ADK-Wright-Algonquin-Iroquois Monday, 12/5

[lx93]

ADK-Wright-Algonquin-Iroquois before 12/13

Total mileage 11 miles

Please have appropriate gear; I can provide a ride from or along the way from Boston, MA. In 3-season hiking, I do about a 2 mile per hour pace.

Safety comes first and foremost; I'd rather turn around to hike the mountains another day than go on when prudence & conditions dictate otherwise. Having said that, this is a peak-bagging hike; I have done 51 of the NE 115.

 

[dom15931]

Thats a great hike. I did it last winter with a friend. Only made it up Algonquin and Wright though because of the short days that time of the year. There was a LOT of ice, snow, and wind which slowed us down. Still my favorite winter experience by far. Notice my avitar which is from that hike.

 

[lx93]

Dom,

Thanx. Is the trail pretty well-blazed/marked w/ cairns? The guidebook gives the impression that the trail to Iroquois is not officially maintained, was that a factor in your turning back or was there just not enough daylight?

 

[rdl]

The trail from Algonquin to/from Iroquois is not marked but it is pretty obvious once you get on the trail. As long as you avoid taking the trail that descends to Lake Colden you'll be fine.

Bob

 

[lx93]

How insane would it be to consider adding Mt. Colden on to this hike?

In 3-season conditions, I've done several death marches in the White Mts. (Tri-Pryamids/Passaconaway/Whiteface- 16-18? miles in 11 hours, Cannon/N-S Kinsman, Presidential Traverse, Bondcliffs/Owl's Head over 1.5 days).

I do understand that w/ snow/ice, taking on/off snowshoes, crampons, blowdowns, etc., will slow me down considerably.

But if I bag Iroqouis in really good time and conditions/weather forecast are looking good, are the trails to Mt. Colden bad enough that I shouldn't even consider adding it on?

 

[Tom Rankin]

How insane would it be to consider adding Mt. Colden on to this hike?

I do understand that w/ snow/ice, taking on/off snowshoes, crampons, blowdowns, etc., will slow me down considerably.

But if I bag Iroqouis in really good time and conditions/weather forecast are looking good, are the trails to Mt. Colden bad enough that I shouldn't even consider adding it on?

It's not really far from Algonquin to Colden, as you can look over across Lake Colden to Algonquin and Iroquois, but it will be a LOT of extra elevation drop/gain to climb Colden, as the lake is around 3000' or so. The trail on that side up Colden is steep and not used as much as the other trails, in my experience. You could walk out around (or over?) the Lake and back to the Loj though. That will save you the climb back up Algonquin. From the summit of Colden, it's about 6 miles or so back to the Loj.

 

[rdl]

If you head down to Lake Colden after climbing Iroquois, you'll have the chance to decide based on the time of day, weather and energy level whether to bug out to the Loj via Avalanche Pass or to climb Colden and hike out via Lake Arnold. The trail up Colden from Lake Colden is steep with a lot of bare rock but the trail down towards Lake Arnold is pretty reasonable.

 

[dom15931]

lx93,

I stopped at Algonquin because of the lack of daylight. It was my first 'real' winter hike and definately was a baptized-by-fire type. Times will depend a lot on snowpack, so it is hard to estimate. Iriqois is definately doable in winter conditions as an addition with an early start. I think Colden would be real tough to add in. The decent off of Algonquin is steep and there would be a lot of ice I imagine.

The Algonquin summit is a place to pay attention to the cairns as you can lose the trail in foul weather.

I know when we did it it was about 0 degrees, high winds, and snow showers. It is still and will likely remain on of my fav's


Check out the pics:

http://community.webshots.com/album/360616185eIZQQX

 

[mavs00]

How insane would it be to consider adding Mt. Colden on to this hike?

If you're a 2 MPH 3-season hiker, than you have about zero chance of squeezing Colden into a McIntyre Traverse in one day. Might as well forget it now . Me, I would just go up the standard route, hit Wright 1st, then go over Algonquin and onto Iroquois and then back over and out. If you feel good and want a nice scenic way out, head down to Lake Colden and head out through Avalanche Lake/pass. It's a harder route, but very pretty and certainly offers more in the way of scenery.

Colden, going up from that side is pretty frigging steep and would add over 2400 additional feet (on top of the ~4000) to the Mac traverse. It'd be an additional 6-8 hours on top Mac Traverse. Too much for mere mortals like us to do in a single day, and still enjoy. The whole traverse, given good weather, should take about 8-10 hours depending on how well you travel and how good you feel.

 

[iceclimber]

It's been done before, but really, if you are looking for more of a challenge, head on up the wright slide then up and over and back.

If that doesnt float yer boat, whack over Shepards tooth, down into the pass, and back up to Marshall. That should tire ya out!!!

 

[EarthNsky]

I did Wright, Algonquin and Iriqous this past summer and thought that it'd make a great winter hike. The views from all three peaks are amazing, particularly Wright, since Algonquin just towers over you and before you stands the entire Great Range!

The trail up is all rock slab once you get passed the waterfall. I remember that there was a good amount of water flowing down the trail and it's fairly steep. That water is long frozen now, I'm sure, so it will be really icy and the going will be slow. The trail to Iriquois is really narrow and you have to push through the scrub brush, so the going there gets even slower.

I would recommend just taking one peak at a time and not shooting for Colden. Daylight will be at near minimum. If you get the three Macintyres, that will be a more than outstanding and satisfactory trip! If you still have daylight left, you can go through Avalanche Pass. It's really beautiful in the pass during the winter, but again, there the going is slow too. The trail down from the col between Iriquois and Algonquin is quite steep, and there are some points where you are on slides and near waterfalls.

Be safe and have a great trip! Look forward to reading your report!

 

[NumNum]

ADK-Wright-Algonquin-Iroquois Monday

I certainly would not attempt anything more than what you have scheduled, i would even recommend going out the same way you went in, this way most everything will look familiar. As for Iroquis, i would recommend doing Algonquin first, then over to Iroquois, and hit Wright on your way back, this way you will be back on the marked trail well before it starts to get dark if you run out of time, and it will also allow you to spend a little bit more time on wright to soak it all in. You definately do not want to be caught in inclimate weather between Iroquois and Algonquin, and we all have seen how quick it can change up there. Our first attempt we did Wright, then Algonquin, from here we had to scrub Iroquis because of the front that came in, we could no longer see Boundary from Algonquin, let alone Iroquois. This as mentioned from the others is an awsome hike with views, enjoy!

 

[mavs00]

One other thing that an out and back winter trip has going for it is;

Once you're descending off Algonquin towards the Wright Junction, and you've reached the treeline, there is a killer butt slide opportunity. You can literally butt slide down about 600-700 feet (only getting up 1 or 2 times). From the treeline to the junction seriously only took us 10 minutes.

Ditto coming off Wright, one you reach the trees again, the trail in winter is like a natural bobsled run. I made it down from the summit last year in 13 minutes, with about 6 of them on a 200-300 foot giggling, happy-faced, way-to-childish-for-a-grown-man butt slide.

Butt Slide opportunities exist above treeline to........ but, for obvious reasons, I'd suggest waiting till you get in the trees so you don't go sliding off the wrong side of the mountain

 

[Rik]

One other thing that an out and back winter trip has going for it is;

Once you're descending off Algonquin towards the Wright Junction, and you've reached the treeline, there is a killer butt slide opportunity. You can literally butt slide down about 600-700 feet (only getting up 1 or 2 times). From the treeline to the junction seriously only took us 10 minutes.

Ditto coming off Wright, one you reach the trees again, the trail in winter is like a natural bobsled run. I made it down from the summit last year in 13 minutes, with about 6 of them on a 200-300 foot giggling, happy-faced, way-to-childish-for-a-grown-man butt slide.

Butt Slide opportunities exist above treeline to........ but, for obvious reasons, I'd suggest waiting till you get in the trees so you don't go sliding off the wrong side of the mountain

Unless we get dumped on with snow I think butt sliding might be a little painful on 12/5!

 

[mavs00]

Whooops, I was thinking Jan 5 for some reason, duh

You right Rik, still to early for that. Soon though, right

 

[EarthNsky]

butt sliding down off of Algonquin and Wright sounds like a lot of fun. I'll have to try that sometime.

 

[shin murnane]

Algonquin Trip

I was just there 2 weekends ago. The ice was nasty up top & there was very little snow. We have had some warm weather since but it has cooled back down and I would think that the conditions on Monday won't be much different than they were 2 weeks ago. You will love this trip but be prepared for the wind above treeline. Keep you fingers crossed that you get a clear day the views are spectacular from all 3 peaks. Save Colden for another day, that way you will get to enjoy both trips. And enjoyment is why most of do this

 

[EarthNsky]

well said. The forecast is looking to be quite windy on the east coast even in low elevations.

 

[Tom Rankin]

well said. The forecast is looking to be quite windy on the east coast even in low elevations.

And Colden is a *spectacular* peak!

The first time I climbed it, there was 0 visibility. The next time was in winter. It was partly cloudy, but I could see the potential. This past summer, I did it again, and it was clear. It was utterly amazing to look down into Lake Colden, over to Algonquin, Iroquois, Marshall, Flowed Lands, Marcy, Gothics, Giant, Whiteface, etc., etc., etc.

Save it for a nice day all by itself!

 

[EarthNsky]

I still need to do Mt. Colden, but it is very high on my list of ADK peaks. Perhaps Colden would be a special peak on which to complete the 46, but who can wait?