Views from the summit of Cascade Mt in the High Peaks area of the Adirondacks near Lake Placid, NY

[mtnsnake]

The pictures here are some that I took from the top of Cascade Mt, one of the more accessible "high peaks" of the Adirondacks. Mrs mtnsnake and I snowshoed up this mountain yesterday afternoon. It was a beautiful day and the ample amount of snow was packed perfectly on the trail. We met some hikers from NYC on the summit who were also enjoying the beauty of the wilderness. Captions of each shot are just above each picture.


View of The Great Range from the windblown rocky summit of Cascade


Looking towards Lake Champlain and Vermont


Hikers heading down from the summit


Trees covered with hoar frost with Mt Colden and Algonquin Peak in the background


Headed back down to treeline with Mt Marcy in the distant background. Above the tree line, the winds were pretty fierce yesterday but invigorating.


Mrs mtnsnake just below the summit seeking shelter from a stiff cold wind. The Lake Champlain Valley is in the background.


Snaking my way on the trail through a winter wonderland of fir trees

[petronius]

1. Awesome pictures - looks like a great day!

I'm guessing you were ready for hot chocolate and warm slippers after that...

[mtnsnake]

3. You betcha

Hot chocolate was on Mrs mtnsnake's mind when we got to the car, so we picked one up to go on the way back. Yum.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. My dear mtnsnake...

These are wonderful!

I love the snow on the branches...

You and your wife must have had a fabulous time!

Thank you for posting these...

:hi:

[mtnsnake]

4. Thanks CaliforniaPeggy

Yup, the winter is one of the most beautiful times to be in the woods. Everything is covered over in white. In the summer, the trails going up the mountains are usually irregular with rocks, large boulders, roots, etc...and in the winter everything is leveled off in a near-perfect pillowy walkway. We've been up there at times when there's so much snow on the branches of the firs that you can't see a single bit of green on the branches, not an inch.

:hi:

[kwassa]

5. My parents have a cottage up there ...

on Rainbow Lake, my brother and sister have climbed most of the high peaks, and we have lots of summertime photos of them on mountaintops with their kids.

I've climbed only one.

it is a beautiful area, and we go up every summer.

[mtnsnake]

10. Is it the Rainbow Lake that's near Paul Smiths?

We go by there all the time on our way to most of our hikes. Nice area with so many ponds and lakes. There are several mountains we hike in that vicinity fairly often like St Regis, Baker, Ampersand, and Azure. I hike Azure Mt probably more than any other mountain, especially when I don't have much time and just want to do a quick climb with gorgeous views. Plus, I do volunteer work on that mountain in the warmer months.

Which one of the high peaks did you climb?

[kwassa]

17. I think it was Mt. Baker, which isn't all that high.

Yes, Rainbow Lake is near Paul Smiths. We sail and canoe quite a bit on the lake.

[fight4my3sons]

6. beautiful pictures

my husband and I went up to the Adirondacks camping when we first started dating. We went to Whiteface Mtn. (I think that was the name). He always wanted to go back up to the area for the ice climbing, but we moved to Maine. He used to climb in the Catskill Mtns and was a climber at the Gunks for quite a while in college. I'm not a climber, but love to hike.


edited for spelling

[mtnsnake]

11. Yup, Whiteface is the correct name

Whiteface is just awe inspiring, and it dominates the view from so many different vantage points in the region.

He always wanted to go back up to the area for the ice climbing, but we moved to Maine

We never get into the ice climbing, although my daughter is into that and tackles the frozen waterfalls and that kind of thing. Maine is gorgeous, too.

[fight4my3sons]

18. does your daughter climb too?

we are hoping that our sons will be interested in climbing. They love to go hiking. They aren't much into the winter sports yet, but they are so young now (oldest is 5 and the twins are 3 1/2). If the gloves come of or a hat is crooked they all hell breaks loose. The other three months of the year they love being outside. We haven't even been up to Acadia or Baxter State Park here in Maine yet. When we moved up here the twins were only 6 mos old and Max was 2 so they are just getting to the age where it's a lot of fun to get out with them. They love going to the Gunks when we go back home to visit family. Except now when we go it is packed and we usually can't even get a parking spot. Back in the day you could just go up there and hike. Now it is a big ordeal.

[mtnsnake]

19. Yes she does

My daughter, now in her late 20's has done lots of rock and ice climbing (and yes, Mrs snake and I worry when she does it). I never got into any of the really technical stuff myself.

My daughter was always the quickest one to agree to do some of the tougher hikes with me, and she and I did lots of peaks together. We still hike together when we get together for visits. Our family started hiking when my son and daughter were in their early teens. It was one of those things that kids would actually do with their parents all through their teen years and well beyond. I'm sure your kids will love hiking at their young ages. Get them interested now because when they get to be teenagers, hiking will still be something that they'll enjoy doing with you. Once they're teenagers, there aren't that many activiities where parents and kids will bond, but hiking is definitely one of them.

Thanks for posting :)

[fight4my3sons]

21. thank you for your insight

I often wonder what I'm going to do when the boys don't want to hang with their mama any more :( . At least we will always have hiking in common. :)

[mtnsnake]

23. My pleasure

and yup, if they get into hiking, they'll appreciate it forever and it's something they'll do with you at any age. :)

[Catchawave]

7. I loved living in Lake Placid

Really beautiful country and the perfect Smalltown, USA ambience. Thanks for sharing your photos :hi:

[mtnsnake]

12. If I could have my choice of places to live, that's where I'd be

but real estate prices are obscene in Lake Placid and the nearby vicinity, especially if you're on water or if you have anything with a view.

Glad you liked the photos, Catchawave :hi:

[underpants]

8. Is it NOT open in the summer?

:shrug:

[mtnsnake]

9. Not sure what you mean, but if you're asking if the trails are open in summer, sure they are.

The big advantage to summer hiking is the extra amount of daylight, the less you have to carry, and the less preparations safety-wise. The disadvantages can be the heat and humiditiy on the muggiest days, and sometimes the black flies in May and June can be annoying at the lower elevations. The visibility in summer isn't usually quite as clear as what you can get in the winter on those cold clear days when you can see forever.

Anyway, let me know if that's what you meant by "open".

[underpants]

13. I was making a comment on hiking in the cold vs. in the not cold

but the flies element may change my kneejerk assessment on this.

Looks like lots of fun

[mtnsnake]

14. Yeah, it really is fun with lots of rewards

Being in the woods away from it all is nice, the exercise is awesome, the views are something that you can only get by going on foot, and the people you meet are usually other people who really appreciate and respect the environment.

For sure there is lots more flexibility with hiking in summer as opposed to winter, but the winter season is probably my favorite time to hike, only because there's so much more going on in summer that you can do.

The blackflies are a nuisance for sure in May and early June. If you're not moving they'll nip away at you unless you put on the old bug dope. I don't usually put on much bug dope unless it's a really bad day for them. Even though their bites don't hurt very much, they can drive you right out of the woods and draw lots of little bites, some that will itch for days after.

Thanks for posting :hi)

[underpants]

16. Have you tried drier sheets

A lot of people wear them on golf courses in the summer time as well as gardening. Apparently there is something about them that keeps bugs off.

[mtnsnake]

22. I've seen people trying everything, but for black flies there's little that works, other than DEET

unfortunately. I've heard of the used dryer sheets for mosquitoes but haven't heard anyone having luck with them for blackflies. I'll look into it.

The bugs that annoy me the most are deer flies, although I usually don't run into them in the mountains. Usually I run into swarms of deer flies around stands of pine trees. I hate those pests. There is nothing that repels deer flies to my knowledge. I swear those things all have black belts in karate and are equipped with 3" teeth.

[soleft]

15. Beautiful pics!

:yourock:

[mtnsnake]

24. thanks, glad you liked them

I posted some other pics last week from a smaller mountain that my wife and I hiked. In case you want to check those out sometime....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=7485142

[geardaddy]

20. I climbed Mt. Marcy

when I was freshman in college during a hiking trip. It was great!

[mtnsnake]

25. Marcy is a fairly long hike, around 15 miles round trip

I have some younger friends who made Mt Marcy their first hike because they wanted to climb the highest mountain in NY, and they didn't realize how exerting a long hike like that could be. These particular people would've been better off to start on shorter dayhikes and work their way up to the longers ones when they got in better shape.

Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed it. Mt Marcy is in such a spectacular area.

BTW, the mountain you see in the first photo at the far right is Mt Marcy. Did you have a clear day when you climbed it?

[geardaddy]

26. Yeah, we were on a week long hiking trip

so we had plenty of time to hike up. We did have a clear August day. It was a specatular view.

[mtnsnake]

27. cool!

August is the best of the summer months to hike. Pretty often, July can be awfully muggy, and when it's like that the views can be hazy. Glad you had such a good experience!

[geardaddy]

28. Thanks!

and thanks for posting the pictures!

[kwassa]

29. My dad, at 82, is finally climbing fewer of the peaks than he used to.

He made the front page of the Adirondacks newspaper as he climbed at age 79.

[mtnsnake]

30. I'm glad you posted about that

Your dad is the type of person who is an inspiration to anyone of middle age or older, and he proves that you can still accomplish amazing things physically at any age if you take care of yourself. Anyone who knows how demanding hiking up some of these peaks can be is sure to appreciate what your dad has done and is doing. That is so awesome that he is still climbing.

:thumbsup:

[seemunkee]

31. Great Pictures

I spent a week ski touring in the high peaks area back in 77(I think). Did some ice climbing and summer backpacking up there too. Beautiful area.

[driver8]

32. I grew up in the Adirondacks.

I live in Los Angeles now, but I love going home to visit my family. Such a beautiful part of the country.