Main route to Mt Marcy is far and away the best quality trail - minimal debris and erosion - I’ve hiked in the Adirondacks. Continuing on to Four Corners is a bit boggy - and scraped-off granite, but generally better than MacInture ridge. Gray trail is worse, Table Top trail is an eroded slash-n-mash mud pit.
Overall, however, Marcy’s quality approach drags up the overall rating.
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Hiked: Saturday Sept 21, weather was clear and high 60’s.
With all the hype of stream crossings and blowdowns all over, they both turned out to be non factors. Trail was easy to follow, but may get trickier as leaves fall. Passed about 30 hikers coming up as I was on my way down. Tried to tell all to not forget to seek the stunning view from Street. Just past the Street summit sign and left on an obvious path, you walk less than 100 feet and there's a boulder to climb on that gives a fabulous vantage point of Wright, Marshall, and many other fabulous panorama High Peaks views.
Some say it's not worth it if you're not going after your 46r, I disagree. It’s a moderate hike if you're in decent shape and have some basic trail-finding skills. Though Nye doesn't have a view, Street does. Enjoy!!
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Seymour was ok. The rest terrible. Never ending slog up to Seward. Donaldson and Emmons were a miserable bog
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Decent hike up Mt. Nye but not a very good view from the top due to the trees.
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I mean, I hiked this in pouring rain and no visibility from either peak, but the hike was awesome. A fair amount of the mileage is flat, and there’s no hard rock scrambles or slides for these two (at least compared to Seymour and Seward). Instead, it’s a lot of root terraces and tripping hazards, so keep an eye out :) Also, there’s a fair amount of trail braiding on the herd path, so you need to know where you’re going and keep an eye out. On the wet day I did it, it was plenty muddy and at times quite deep in mud especially between Donaldson and Emmons. Otherwise, even in the rain, this trail is a treat: a large part of it follows the Calkins Brook and it’s just, well, pretty. I enjoyed it.
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- [ ] Not a lot of parking
- [ ] First .5 potential to be muddy if any previous rain the recent weeks
- [ ] Rock hop stream cross at 0.3, levels okay with some snow melt
- [ ] Slight incine/flat first 0.5
- [ ] Gets steep at 0.75 with a short flat section at 1.0
- [ ] Good break spot at 1.17
- [ ] amazing views! 360
Overall easy to moderate hike, definitely will be run in the summer with kids
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Great hike! Definitely one of the more enjoyable ones. From Heart Lake to the river crossing is downhill, so note you’re last mile on the way back is slightly uphill. The trail is sometimes like an obstacle course, but easy to follow.
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Took our time. Spent time at the top …Fantastic view. Hike not too difficult. Long hike..almost 9 miles round trip, but one of the easier high peaks. We spent time at too and at dam along the way. About 7.5 hours.
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Lots of boulders and scrambles last 2/3rds. Just did Wright’s Peak and back with family. Novice hikers …lots of breaks and sightseeing and about an hour at the top. Took a little over 7 hours. Amazing at the peak! Super windy but amazing views.
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Needed Hough to finish the range. Stayed at elk Lake Lodge, 8 hours start to finish including lunch on top and stopping to cool our feet in the brook on the way down. The views were excellent! Almost 360! Great hike. Got off trail 3 times on the way down Lilian Brook, and the app got us back on track.
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This was one long, slogging mudfest. The Santanoni Express was a really pleasant trail to head up. The trail to/from Couchsachraga is really pretty. Panther is short with a big payoff. The descent through the boulder field of Panther Brook SUCKED.
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Great hike! Fewer rocks than most of the other high peaks, so easier to come down for those of us with bad knees. Just under 2 hours up including breaks and just over and hour down. Soooo many small flying bugs on top. We had to leave after 10 mins, because they were in our eyes and mouths
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Great hike we got at the trail head at 2am to summit for the sunrise slated for 5:19am embarked on our adventure to climb! Not to muddy, little brisk conditions were suitable for this hike. Had a lot of ascents with rock scrambles this definitely was a great workout. Then we Summited conditions were perfect a bit windy tho..
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Arrive early on weekends or high season as parking is limited. Fees apply at the parking area and facilities are available when the welcome center is open. The trail out to Marcy dam has gentle grades and might be considered flax by ADK High Peak standards. The Dam is worth a stop and look around and is a nice place for a snack. Phelps trail climbs steadily from the dam and the last mile is a spicy one! Summit offers nearly 360 views and is a mix of bare rock and stubby spruce/fir.
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Superbe randonnée, deux sommets qui valent vraiment le coup. Point de vue à couper le souffle. Descente exigeante vers avalanche pass. Journée bien remplie.
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Table top hike unmarked and muddy. No clear view on top. The trail back by Marcy brook is really nice. Top of Indian fall really worth a stop.
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A nice marked trail which would be good for a 12 mile out and back as a trail run or a great backpack trail to camping at Colden dam which gives you access to 10 Adirondack high peaks. I packed in 35#s without too much difficulty. Took me 4 hrs and 15 mins with a few breaks to cover the 5.9 ish miles.
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The weather was really nice but around 45° which is too hot for a winter hike and made snowshoeing difficult. Clear skies and incredible views though especially from Nippletop and Colvin.
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Great hike, easy to follow trails even though it’s unmarked.
Lots of mud, very small patches of ice. Had spikes, but never took them out. The stream crossing weren’t bad, just need to be patient and find a good crossing.
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This is a nice hike. The unmarked trail is easy to follow, diverse, never steep and all around very pleasant.
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Amazing hike with evidence of moose but no actual sightings- footprints and loud tree branches breaking
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Very hot and muggy with lots of bugs- mosquitoes and deer flies !! But glad I did it anyway. Saw the bridge that was out at Marcy Swamp. There was new lumber on the ground for the replacement bridge. Not sure how long it will take though.
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Got engaged at the summit!!! Challenging but got through it
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Sooooo wet. There was a steady stream the whole way. Very muddy but it was awesome anyway. Minimal issue with black flies. Be aware....... the path that leads to Iroquois is the one immediately to the left of the “footpath” sign. The other one takes you down towards colden lake.
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Started in fog, banged out our peaks, got lost on the way down but +5 peaks
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5/3021 overall this was a great hike with my adult kids. We started at 7am, weather was cool low 40s. The hike is easy for the first 3-4 miles then it starts to get steeper with lots of rock scrambling but at time levels out. The last 1.2 miles seems much longer then the sign says. The top was windy with sleet and rain and dipped into the 30s. Cloudy but the visibility was good. Spent 20 mins on top and then headed down. Light rain all the way down which made the rocks a bit slick. Got back around 4:30 and logged between 14.5 and 15 miles. This was my 4th high peak and by far the longest but was not as difficult as I was expecting. First time with hiking polls which I will never hike with out them.
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Beautiful trail and loved taking a break at a blueberry lean-to. Trail is a bit muddy, but flat and easy 5 miles until Seymour trail. It’s a brutal ascent, super steep scrambles and several challenging areas. Put your piles away and take your time finding safe footing. Some snow and ice at the very end and spikes helped. Try to stay on trail even on mud spots to avoid destroying vegetation. Gorgeous view at lookout right before summit. A super hard hike, but enjoyed every minute. Even jogged the last 3 miles back to the car 🙌🏽
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Enjoyed this hike. On snowshoes all the way. A few tricky parts on the way to upper WJ but nothing too difficult. Weather was in the low 20’s. Lower WJ was a steep hike from the saddle. Slide on my butt a few times to get down. No ice on either hike. Great views.
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This was a really nice hike. Was attempting to get to East Dix. Had to break trail in 8 to 10 inches of wet snow. Stream crossings were a bit challenging. The hike parallel to Boquet River did me in. Lots of snow covered rocks and ice.
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Great, easy trail compared to other ADK hikes. Needed spikes.
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This was a tough hike. The first stream crossing was challenging. Trail would have been hard to follow, thankfully two other hiking groups had gone in before me. The top half of the hike was beautiful.
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Caveat here.. this is an amazingly beautiful trail and well worth the camp too.. the top is perfect.. the views are amazing when it’s clear. Weather or not, it’s awesome. However, this is an incredibly busy trail. I had to park a mile down the road to start but I’m on a mission to tackle all 50 highest points in our country.. what happens is the trail is well worn and when Mother Nature calls and rains heavy the trails become tributaries full of mud and often the feel of a cow path.. that’s the human element. Take that away,, and maybe some of the rock scrambling the whole way and it’s awesome.. the upper half of this thing is a wet messs today.. fortunately I’m a hot 🥵 mess 😎😍💪
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Definitely short. But I disagree with calling it easy. In late summer, complex bog navigating at the bottom, then multiple technical cliff-like (see the title of the peak) rock scrambles.
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Difficult, steep trail up to Times Square. From there, quick and easy out to Panther.
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Great hike on a perfect day. Views from the top are some of the best in the ADK. The last 1.3 miles were steep with rock scrabbles and some climbing but totally worth it. It’s a popular hike so there were a lot of people at the top and on the trail.
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A great hike. Awesome views from all 5 peaks. The only annoying thing was the upper parking lot was closed which added a two mile walk in to the trail head and another 2 miles on the way out.
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Great hike, decided to do the range in two parts, rather than one marathon. The road section goes quickly and is a good warmup and warm down. A little muddy after a rainy day previously, but certainly moderate by Adirondak standards. Bradley Pond trail is very nice, if a bit wet. The herd path up Santinoni was very easy to follow and classic roots, rocks, and brush. Wooded summit but look over your shoulder to get great views of the high peaks to the north as you ascend. There are also a couple of turnoffs to get some nice views, and a rock to stand on at the top. The Santinoni brook is very nice, and you travel along it most of the trip; several spots are available to rest or freshen up. Be sure to check out the industrial archeological site (1855 iron smelting) up the road. Bring bug spray, we had black flies, mosquitoes and horse flies; surprisingly worse along the road than in the woods.
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The trail from Grace to Rt 73 is unmaintained and difficult to follow
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Very backpacking loop. 20+ miles of never ending ups and downs with some flat areas along the flow lands. Hardest parts are definitely the one around Avalanche and Colden Lake and the ascent and descent to Indian Pass with a lot of scrambles on rocks and very wet slippery areas. Trail in some of those spots is not well marked and it is hard to follow especially when going down the ravine from Indian Pass. All along the loop you can find water has you will be near a lake or follow a brook most of the hike. There are campsites and lean-to scattered along the trail. In some area of the trail carrying larger backpacks makes it for an interesting challenge and definitely a burden for the legs. LOL
This time of year we found a li
Scattered along the trail we found a lot of flooded areas with bad mud. Mosquito and black flies where, in some area, very aggressive. We left from Heart Lake ADK Loj Wednesday June 10th at around 2:30-2:245pm and returned to it Friday June 12th at around 4:30pm tired but excited about the adventure we have just completed.
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There is blowdown all over from the Halloween storm. Whole groups of trees blocking the path. The river flooded and deposited debris on the final 2 miles until the climb. Climb up was hard to follow path. Ended up staying on the slide a lot on the way down. Some ice on slide woods had a dusting of snow
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Trail is a nice one and the pay off are nuce view from the top. Season is changing and up above 3000 ft is winter already. The trail this time of here is very muddy and slippery but I would not consider this trail hard. Challenging maybe but not hard. We did both peaks and the one to Porter was muddier and at moment very narrow. It is a great hike probably better for beginners at a better time of the year.
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This was an excellent hike that took ADK high peaks. The ascent is a little steep but once you get to dial mountain the walk over to Nippletop is essentially all along the ridge line I would recommend a side trip to Indian head on the walk back to the Au Sable parking area
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This was a very challenging but spectacular hike. Background : we are both in our early 60s, very experienced regular hikers.We went with our able hiking dog via Avalanche Lake, which is amazing. You need to traverse several ladders and catwalks bolted to sheer cliff down to the water. This section is only a mile but took us 45 minutes due to many boulders to scramble over. IF YOU ARE BRINGING A DOG: there are vertical ladders. Be prepared to be able to lift or boost your dog up. We used a RuffWear harness with a handle, which was excellent. Be prepared for amazing scenery.
The 2.1 mile trail up to the col between Iroquois and Algonquin is unrelentingly steep and pretty much wore us out. At the top we took the unmarked trail over to Iroquois and Boundary Peak, about 2 miles out and back. This is an unmarked trail but very easy to follow. There are some scrambles.
Returning to the main trail we continued about a half-mile to the summit of Algonquin, 2nd highest peak in NY. This is all exposed alpine summit but well marked with paint blazes and rock cairns. Phenomenal views 360 degrees.
The 3 mile trail down from Algonquin was a workout on 60 year old knees; we watched as young hikers rock-hopped down while we picked our way down. Seemed a lot longer than. 3 miles down. But all in all a great hike.
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Pretty challenging. Cold Brook trail is very tight lots of wet evergreen to fight through. Plane wreck near too is very cool and right off the trail. The hike to Marshall had me turned around a couple times trying to get over the first peak. Someone had it marked with pink tape. I think there is a second trail down the path a small ways. Foggy summit but would have not been a lot to see anyways. Hike down the brook and out to Indian falls trail very nice. Rocky Falls is an awesome spot for a swim.
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Very scenic, however a long difficult loop. Was closer to 14.5 miles.
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Round pond lot is small - show up early. Bushwhack up Gravestone Creek is easy to follow, just follow the creek (duh) but can be tight in places if you don’t pick your spots. Keeping the creek on your left seemed the answer.
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Easy hike to the two shelter lean-tos near each other (.8 mile)
Seymour is first very easy until the last thousand feet of elevation, but steep slabs do offer easy enough traction with good soles and plenty of handholds.
Coming down was much easier than expected!
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Calkins Brook trail is a great way to get out to the three peaks in the Seward Range. I don’t recommend coming down the backside of Seward though. Very wet conditions as you walk down a cascade and through an abundance of mud. If you want to do the loop, go up this way if needed. For all four in the Seward Range, I’d recommend hitting Seymour and then going up Seward.
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Trail was easy to follow. Depending when you get to Skylight Brook, the crossing will need to be waded across. I ended up having to take my boots off. Other than that, the trail map was spot on throughout the hike!
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