solitude

[askus3]

Are the mountains getting overrun with hikers? Can you ever climb, Lafayette, Katahdin or Marcy and have some solitude? I was wondering which summits, have you enjoyed either by yourself or only shared with members of your own group. If you have a summit that you enjoyed by yourself, could you tell me your experience, what day of the week, time and weather conditions. I will start by saying I hear so many folks on these boards saying they always have crowds or at least some others to share a summit with and you have to go early in the AM or at dusk or mid-week to get a solitary summit experience. I was quite surprised by having Abraham in Maine for myself. I found the spur trail from the AT and the summit to be a fantastic summit experience. Saw noobody else for the 3.4 miles including the summit and said "WOW!" this is great. I was there on a beautiful 70 degree afternoon from 2:30-3:30 PM on Tuesday, August 23, 2005. I have got this beautiful, open, exposed, above treeline summit for myself. Is this rare?

 

[post'r boy]

i had all of the above summits to myself until i ran into a guy from warwick ny!!!

 

[NewHampshire]

Well, they aint big, but 2 places we had all to ourselves were North Pawtuckaway Mt. on a sunny Saturday this past summer. Not a soul around till we got down to the boulder field.....even then there were few people. And the other was Oak Hill in Concord. All alone for about 10 or 15 minutes till some ladies on horses appeared.

As for "big guys" we were alone on Jackson for about 15 or 20 minutes till a couple of gals from Boston appeared. But then again it was rainy and the prezzies were socked in, so Im sure that had something to do about it.

Brian

 

[dudley]

I took my son and his girlfriend up Chorcorua on a weekday, the first week of this past August. The parking lot at the liberty trailhead was nearly full when we pulled in.
When we got up to the ledges you could see a storm rolling in from the west.
On the cone it looked like rats jumping ship. It seemed to me as if the rain would miss us so we kept on.
When we hit the summit we were alone. It poured on us for less then five minutes then it was back to clear skies, bright sunshine.
The next batch of hikers showed up around fifteen minutes later

 

[nartreb]

Can you ever climb, Lafayette, Katahdin or Marcy and have some solitude?

Easy, climb in the winter!

 

[SteveHiker]

well, as I noted in my Baxter trip report, I had Hamlin and North Brother completely to myself. Last weekend, Poison Ivy and I were the only ones on Mendon, and I went to Pico by myself. I finished the 48 last year on Cabot and there was no one around. I've also had Abraham, Ellen, South Horn, Monroe, Cannon, Passaconaway, Jackson and East Pond all to myself. I don't remember the exact times on most of these, it was sometime between sun-up and sun-down.

Solitude is out there, you just have to stay away from the more popular places.

 

[Peakbagr]

Almost any one of the trailless lower 54 peaks of the ADK Hundred Highest. Many don't get more that a few visitors during an entire year.

Of "major" peaks in NY, I've had Dix to myself in the fog and mist. Same conditions on Mt Marcy. We've had Marcy, Dix, Giant, Algonquin, Skylight, Haystack and many, many more all to our lonesomes during the winter.

Had Bondcliff to myself for 3 hours one gorgeous summer day. Just me and a flotilla of ravens doing acrobatics(the ravens, not me). Same on Saddleback and the Horn and other peaks in the lake area.

Interesting topic.

PB

 

[rhihn]

In the Adirondacks, I think it goes without saying that mountains such as these are going to be crowded on a nice summer weekend, and probably most other summer days as well. Some thoughts about finding solitude on popular peaks:

1. go on a weekday
2. plan to arrive later in the day and avoid the lunch crowd (might need to camp)
3. camp and start hiking before sunrise and plan to arrive at summit early AM.
4. hike after labor day.
5. hike in the winter (requires specific expertise)
6. consider alternative mountains. (example: I think it's nicer to be on Skylight looking at Marcy, rather than the other way around).

 

[jjo]

rhihn]1. go on a weekday
2. plan to arrive later in the day and avoid the lunch crowd (might need to camp)
3. camp and start hiking before sunrise and plan to arrive at summit early AM.
4. hike after labor day.
5. hike in the winter (requires specific expertise)
6. consider alternative mountains. (example: I think it's nicer to be on Skylight looking at Marcy, rather than the other way around).[/QUOTE]

Agree w rhihn. Most important I think are #1,4,5 and 6. Winter is the best insurance IMHO.

 

[sweeper]

Start EARLY

Most summits CAN be enjoyed in solitude. You just have to get there FIRST that day.
Starting in the predawn light and you're not only going to be first on the summit, there's a lot more wildlife to see.

 

[sli74]

I have had MANY summits either to myself or with just those I hiked in with. The best one I can think of immediately is Camel's Hump when I was hiking the Long Trail last summer. All my partners had left by then and I got a pre-dawn start from the shelter just south of the summit. Sat at the summit on a crisp, CLEAR, gorgeous late summer morning and ate my breakfast for almost an hour and didn't see another soul till I had been hiking north off the mountain summit for about 90 minutes.

I have also been alone or with my group on Abraham, Ellen, and Mansfield in VT also during my LT hike. . .

In Maine, myself alone or just my group on all the 4000-footers except North Brother.

And in NH, the list for the summits I have had alone or with my group is longer than the ones I have shared with others so I have had them ALL alone EXCEPT:

Washington, Moosilauke, Tom, South Kinsman, Carrigain, Wildcat, both Hancocks, and Hale.

I have 2 tricks:
I start EARLY and/or I hike in winter.

If you want a summit to yourself, there is a way to get it. But in general I am not bothered by other people, if I want true solitude, I hike something not on a list and that tends to help. The most solitude I have ever had is on the Northville Placid Trail, give that a try, particularly as a thru-hike.

sli74

 

[sapblatt]

Early

Another vote for the early start...
This can be crazy early (I have started as early as 2:30am) or even regular early...say, 6:30-7am. Most people will just not get to a trailhead that early.
My favorite examples of this were last fall (both hikes were on weekends)...I started on the Caps Ridge Trail at 6:45am and did not cross paths with another hiker until after I summited, came over the Monticello lawn and was descending the Caps again...from there down I saw between 15-20 people all on their way up...very similar experience on Lafayette and Lincoln...saw dozens of folks, but not until around noon, well after I summited Lafayette and was on my way to Lincoln. Get up and start early!

 

[una_dogger]

Lonely at the top

Solice on these summits:

1. Algonquin, a sunny clear lunch by myself on a Tuesday.
2. Hurricane on a friday afternoon.
3. Dix, not sure what day it was but also a weekday.
4. West Peak and Avery Peaks on the Bigelow Range in Maine, sunny weekdays!

I think the key to solitary summits is to hike on a weekday.

Sabrina

 

[SteveHiker]

Had Bondcliff to myself for 3 hours one gorgeous summer day.

I'm very jealous.

...from there down I saw between 15020 people all on their way up...

how did all those people fit on the summit?

 

[Mark Schaefer]

I solo hike most of the time, and hike mid-week often due to irregular work weeks, so I have summits to myself a lot. I have had each of the 35 Catskill 3500 peaks to myself at least once, and the same is true for about half of the Adirondack 46. I also agree that early morning starts or late afternoon visits are the best plan if you cannot go midweek. For most 3Ks and 2Ks -- well just about anytime will do.

 

[grouseking]

Solitude

If you don't want a peak that has few people, go to a trail with normally fewer people like the Shoal Pond trail, or Stillwater area in the Pemi. As for mtns, I agree that hiking early is important. My trip yesterday traveresed the Willeys then down the AZ trail and out the Ethan Pond trail (long day...). We started at 630 am and didnt see anyone till descending halfway off Field at around 1030 am. Then we saw a few near Zealand Hut. Then two others near the end of the trip who had just summited Willey as number 48. All in all, 17+ miles and 8 people, not bad.

 

[dewoods]

The previously mentioned very early or very late work for me. By far my favorite was Katahdin:

I'd been volunteering for a week with a crew doing some rock work near the top of Cathedral Trail. We spent evenings at Chimney Pond. Now normally, the crew climbed and descended via the Saddle Trail, but I'm so fond of the Knife Edge that I persuaded our leader to allow me to return by this other route.
When we wrapped up for the day at about 5 PM, the crew started toward the saddle and I headed the opposite direction: to the summit. At the start of my ascent, I spotted the last few summit stragglers turning away. By the time I'd reached the big cairn on top, the trail crew was starting down saddle. Nobody else was in sight. I had the summit -- my favorite -- all to myself! I sang, I giggled, I "prayed" to Pamola, the guardian/god of the "Greatest Mountain." Then started toward the Knife Edge.
For a while, the breeze became stiff, a cloud came over, temperature seemed to drop. I thought how uncomfortable the descent would be if rain came in. The narrow edge -- cliff on both sides -- could be hazardous, especially if the wind became too gusty. Crossing the slope of wet boulders furthur down, alone in the evening, is no laughing matter. But this threat passed and I continued my euphoric traverse.
Somewhere between Baxter Peak and Pamola Peak, I lost sight of the trail crew. With no people at all in view, somehow my ecstatic mood rose even further. The solo descent was without incident otherwise. It was a small let-down when, near the campsite I heard voices.
I still get thrills from the memory.

 

[dentonfabrics]

Plenty of solitude this summer on Carter Dome, Tom, both Hancocks, Monroe and Tecumseh. All were hiked mid-week.

bob

 

[Artex]

The more I explore Maine, the more I find out how true that is about the uncrowded peaks. Pretty darn cool. But there are many gems in the Whites and Dacks where one can find solitidue. They might not be 4k'ers, but so what? One thing I think that's cool about the Catskills in NY is aside from Wittenburg-Cornell-Slide... the park tends to get overlooked big time by the masses.

 

[Doc McPeak]

Just did the Santanonis for my 46 Solo round. A Thursday and Friday and never saw another soul on all three, or on the trails until I was leaving and was on the lower Santanoni Brook.

For the ADKS:
Midweek, non winter:

Allen
Big Slide
Cascade
Porter
Rocky Peak Ridge
Marcy** (3 times, including my 46th alone for an hour and a half)
Haystack**
Skylight**
Gray*
Basin
Saddleback
Gothics
Armstrong
Upper Wolfjaw*
Lower Wolfjaw**
Colvin**
Blake*
Dial*
Nippletop*
Dix***
Hough
Carson
Grace*
Marshall*
Redfield
Colden
Tabletop
Iroquois
Phelps
Esther*
Santanoni**
Coochie*
Panther**
Donaldson
Emmons
Seward
(*= multiple empty summits awaiting me)

Actually a good handful of those have been on the weekends. Winter almost doubles the list.

I've only been chipping away lightly at the Whites but have had great Mid-week luck there, including:

Carrigain
Tom
Field (on the return trip form Willey)
Willey
Jefferson
Bond
Bondcliff
West Bond
Zealand
North Twin
Galehead
Garfield
Lafayette (cleared out while we were up there, then walked the entire Franconia Ridge never seeing another soul until the Liberty Site)
Lincoln
Liberty
East Osceola
Osceola (for a bit)
Hancock
South Hancock
Tecumseh
Hale

Vermont:

Camel's Hump
Killington
Ellen

Occasionally it is the early start that does it, more often it is being able to shoot up mid-week when the weather gods make it irresistable. So I've had great late start luck as a result. For NH I've just lucked out I guess, especially Franconia Ridge late afternoon, mid-week in early September, views to New York with the sunscreen on, shorts and tees ... and I still haven't been able to wipe the grin off my face.