Sunny 46

The trail immediately climbed the valley ridge where a Maple Syrup operation was set up. It's so cool to see how these work and you can see them here and there throughout the Adirondacks.

The leaves were on the ground for the most part and the trail was a little tough to follow. I was glad to have AllTrails today. I know it gets a bad rap for location services, but I just do not have any bad experiences in that regard. The only issue I've seen is that the distances it reports are generous by about 15 to 20 percent. But the important thing, location and tracking, works really well. I'm sure there are more accurate and more expensive options, but this app has never failed me.

Despite the late season, the day was beautiful. We quickly shed our jackets, hats, and gloves and continued in good spirits. We made great time, though we didn't rush; days and hikes like this are all about the stroll. 

There were a few fun formations to clamber up, but none of them were "fall and maybe die" climbs. I suspect some would be vexing were the conditions wet or icy. A few did require some thought and planning to scramble up safely, but these shouldn't deter anyone from trying this hike. 

The hike along the valley ridge ends with a bit of a knob with its own little peak. Here, you skirt around the knob where the trail is near a sheer drop, but not dangerously so. It offers some really pretty views of Cascade Mountain and points East. 

The final ascent up Pitchoff is rugged but sturdy with very little loose material to slip you up. Many of the streambeds had parts where hikers have bypassed difficult scrambles or deadfalls. We tried using the real trail where we could.

The trail was well-maintained with the minor exception that many trail markers were rusted and there were some spots where an additional marker would have been nice. There were several parts of the trail where the bed of the trail seemed recently reengineered and this was quite welcome in those areas.

We came to Balanced Rocks within about an hour and a half.  The geology at the summit is really cool to look at and the view is incredible. We figured the hike would be worth it for this section alone. It's no wonder that people sometimes start the hike at the Northeast side of the range and make this their ultimate payoff destination.

The trip back was largely uneventful. Pitchoff is a pretty cool hike for folks who want to know what elevation gains in the Adiorondacks look like, but on a smaller scale. It's been dry lately, so the few spots we noticed where mud should have been  were mostly dried up. Still, this was a very dry hike and none of the stream were flowing at all.

Several hikers we met along the way were doing the whole ridge. One group had two cars and were hiking through the ridge then driving back (I later learned this is called a "traverse"). One gentleman was hiking from the Cascade trailhead to the end of the ridge and back. While I love a good ridge walk, Chris and I had another mountain to do today!

It was a very short hike from the trailhead to the base of the mountain. There was a single stream trickling along the path.

The hike up the side of the mountain is actually rather steep with several scrambles. As with Pitchoff, the scrambles didn't feel dangerous at all, but they did require a bit of planning. One or two little slides required a bit of switchbacking. There were some visible scrapes  on the exposed rock from folks doing this one as a winter hike.

We had some beautiful views at the top of Big Crow. When you first reach the summit, there are decent exposed views looking Southeast, then you can walk along the top of the mountain to the other side and look Southwest.

Big Crow is a good one to add to a short day like we did or if you're in town and want a quick run or hike before or after work. Looking at the map, it seems like there are several ways you can do this one, either with a loop along "Soda Range Trail" or by extending your out-and-back to include Little Crow.

When we came down from the mountain, there weren't many cars left in the lot. Sunny got some pets from folks as they drove off. As we were about to take off ourselves, a couple of hikers approached us and asked us how far they were from Hurricane Mountain. Suffice to say, we drove them to their car at the correct trailhead and called it a day.

Both of these hikes could be done with longer routes and higher difficulties and I think that's one of the cool things about the Adirondacks. You are welcome to choose your own adventure whether you're doing a little hike or a big hike. Just try to pay attention to the trail as you go and keep your map and compass handy so that you don't end up making it harder on accident!

Quinn and I have also been doing some walking in the woods and will likely do some more soon, but the next entry here will likely feature snow and ice. The weather this weekend was unreal, but nature is definitely trying to trick us into a false sense of security. Winter will come soon enough.