12, 13, 14: Algonquin, Iroquois, and Wright
Sunny and I planned to hike Algonquin, Iroquois, and Wright with our friends, Mark and Daisy this week. I was eager to get onto the trails, and also these three mountains would put Daisy into the single digits needed to get her 46, so we were pretty motivated to get them done despite the forecasted weather conditions. The forecast called for cold, wind, and rain, but not what I'd define as terribly dangerous for prepared hikers.
There was some wildfire smoke in the atmosphere, but we have no underlying conditions and the air was nothing like other areas of the state. Still, as always, we were prepared to turn back if conditions became dangerous for us.
Our original plan was to camp at the MacIntyre Falls campsite at the base of Wright. I've never camped out like that before and I was hoping to be able to learn from an experienced camper what I need to do and what I still need to buy.
The weather conditions looked miserable, though, and even included the possibility of thunderstorms. As such, we stayed at my family's camp about an hour south instead. We had a nice time eating carbs and chicken, and having a few beers by the fire with good conversation. I'm always grateful I can shave an hour off the High Peaks drive by staying at their camp.
The next morning, we started at the Loj at around 7:30 in good spirits.
After the VanHovenberg Trail/Algonquin Trail junction, the trail is a long, steady boulder field climb along the shoulders of Wright. I asked Mark something I've always wondered; were these put here or just exposed over time by hikers? He said this is actually the geology all around these mountains and they're exposed by hikers eroding the earth around them.
Sunny did a lot of rolling and hugging the rocks. MacIntyre Range now belongs to him.
We decided to check out the MacIntyre Falls campsite we'd planned to stay at. It is huge.
One of the bummers of this hike was all the toilet paper we came across on the trail. I truly don't understand why people do this. Sunny's new poop trowel got a real workout.
As we continued the boulder-hop to the Al/Wright junction, visibility began to fail. The smell of smoke suddenly became the taste of smoke in the mist and in our moustaches. I thought it tasted a bit like Scotch Whiskey.
About the time the slides started, the wetness began to set in. We donned our rain gear. The slides were still partially dry during the ascent of Algonquin, but on the descent they were saturated.
The slides on these mountains are quite porous, so they're not too difficult to ascend for the most part, even when wet. If my spikes hadn't been at the bottom of my pack, I might have put them on during the desccent. My strategy on these is to switchback the way up and partially switchback on the way down, but in a way that, if I slip, I'll fall the shortest distance possible and/or have as many handholds as possible.
I haven't seen a peak like this one yet, mainly because Algonquin is so tall. It had the most distance above tree-line I've seen.
With the visibility so low, we used the caerns as waypoints to make our way to the summit. I was surprised how long it took to make the final ascent from the tree line to the summit! Once we reached one caern, there was always another one in the distance...
... but we eventually made it to the summit of Algonquin!
The wind was really blowing and I was glad to have my rain gear and gloves.
We were stunned by the gorgeous 360 degree views from Algonquin. Here, you can see the entirety of the Great Range laid out in its awesome majesty. This sort of view never gets old and pictures truly do not do it justice; you have to experience them for yourself.
For an "unmarked and unmaintained herd path", the trail between Algonquin and Iroquois was very well-maintained with boardwalks along the more squishy parts. I really enjoyed much of this trail. It might have been miserable if I didn't have my rain jacket on because you get really close into the trees and they were soaking. But, for my part, this was a really enjoyable respite from the 3 or so hours of climbing we'd just done.
There is one part of this trail as you approach Iroquois which seems somewhat insurmountable for some folks and dogs. It's a pretty tall rockface with some crags that humans should be able to do, especially humans with long legs. However, if you veer right along the rockface (beyond Mark in this photo), you can easily get around this by simply hiking instead of climbing.
Wow! What a stunning view of the Southern High Peaks region from Iroquois, including Mt.Marshall, the Flowed Lands, Cliff, Adams, and Calamity. A truly unique view from this under-rated mountain.
The return trip across and down Algonquin was a bit long as I hunted and pecked my way down the slides. I'm literally faster going up than coming down some days. Sunny was really starting to look like he'd spent the day in the Adirondacks. When I gave him a bath later, I think a solid cup of Adirondack mud came off him!
I still tried to pause once in a while to absorb the beauty and quiet around me.
It's all slides going up Wright.
Here's Mark, pondering the incredible view of Algonquin from here.
There are also rockfaces. This was one of two we had to haul Sunny up by his harness.
We "let" the pups take the summit of Wright first.
I don't think you can find a better view of the Northern High Peaks like you get on Wright. Everything is laid before you, from the Loj and Heart Lake all the way to Whiteface, and then Giant and Lake Champlain beyond. Wow!
Mark and Daisy couldn't stop gazing thoughtfully at the majesty of the High Peaks.
As we rearranged some of our gear and Mark added electrolytes to our bottles and bladders, Sunny curled up by the boulder and took a breather. He was exhausted and so was I. This hike was no longer than the hike we did up Lower Wolfjaw, but all the elevation and cold had sapped our energy greatly. The 3 mile hike back to the Loj took us from about 4pm until about 7pm. I really appreciate Mark's patience as this probably would have taken him half the time on his own.
Still, I feel like this was a great accomplishment. The conditions were substandard and the trail was challenging, but we pushed through it and enjoyed ourselves along the way.
Sunny and Daisy did a great job on this hike. Of course, Daisy is a seasoned veteran with 37 High Peaks to her name. She's a really good influence on Sunny, although he still likes to pull me hard on the way back to the car. Perhaps I should see that as a blessing in disguise since I truly despise the march back. Sunny's pack got torn up again through the crevasces and I may need to rethink that setup. I really appreciate that he carries his own water, but if it falls out of a giant hole during every trip, that's not quite as helpful.
Here's our map. 10.8 miles with 4400 feet of elevation gain makes for a big day.
I'm not certain what we'll do next. I do still want to try camping, but I'm not sure which mountain would be appropriate for that. I'd like to do a camping hike after father's day, but before my sister comes to visit and we camp on Marcy Brook before climbing Colden. Perhaps I'll forego the High Peaks altogether; there's a really nice lean-to on Lake Ann in Moreau State Park that might be nice for a safe and easy trial run. I'll do some research and we'll see.
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