Alas, our final camping weekend in the Northeast has arrived! What a whirlwind! Welcome to the largest wilderness area- the Adirondacks– in the lower 48! At 8 million acres, there is literally no end in sight for any type of trip up here. Of course, there are some more popular spots in the park than others, but we feel like we got a pretty good tour over the course of a few days. And it didn’t rain on us!
We enjoyed some great autumn colors on our drive!
We enjoyed some great autumn colors on our drive!
Sleeping Beauty Mountain Trail
Our first stop on Friday was in the Lake George area. Sleeping Beauty Trail is a 6.8-mile 1300 ft elevation hike up to a couple brilliant rocky bluffs that give you a perfect view of Lake George and the surrounding forest. On your way to the trailhead it might feel like you do not belong at all- you’ll see a bunch of posted no trespassing signs- and the road narrows down to the width of one lane. But no worries- keep on driving along and you’ll hit a small parking lot. We could’ve started the hike here, but you can also continue to drive down this skinny dirt road to another parking lot marked as Dacy Clearing about two miles down and make your hike only 4.8 miles. We did this as our time was crunched as usual. This hike still took a while because most of the trail follows a riverbed/stream and you spend a lot of time dodging extremely muddy areas.
Don’t park for the Sleeping Beauty hike until you see this sign.
Enjoying a spectacular fall hike!
Even though it’s later in the season, we still found popping colors!
Sleeping Beauty Summit.
View from Sleeping Beauty Summit.
Don’t park for the Sleeping Beauty hike until you see this sign.
Enjoying a spectacular fall hike!
Even though it’s later in the season, we still found popping colors!
Sleeping Beauty Summit.
View from Sleeping Beauty Summit.
Paradox Brewery
Continuing our journey from Lake George north, we decided to stop for a snack before our next hike. We hit Paradox Brewery just off the highway and were greeted with a very torn-apart vibe as they are in the middle of creating a new brewpub. For now, everything is outdoors or inside a giant party tent that the wind easily blows through. The bar is kind of cool, but the beer is nothing to go crazy about. The best part might’ve been our pretzel snack, made with one of their IPAs.
Paradox Brewery
Where their theme is hiking…fitting!
We didn’t love the beer, but the IPA soft pretzel was great!
Paradox Brewery
Where their theme is hiking…fitting!
We didn’t love the beer, but the IPA soft pretzel was great!
Severance Mountain Trail
Our last hike on Friday before we lost the fading light of autumn was Severance Mountain, located in the Schroon Lake area. This is just a 2.4-mile 725 ft path that brings you to an absolutely gorgeous view of Schroon Lake. We initially thought the directions AllTrails gave us to the trailhead had finally betrayed us, but in fact it just took some extra looking. The directions told us the trailhead was right off the highway, but we zoomed by it without seeing any sign of a trail. We took the next exit and backtracked, taking our first two immediate right-hand turns. Roughly half a mile down the road sat a sign pointing to the Severance Mountain Trail. What threw us off was the trail starting literally underneath the highway. You go through two tunnels prior to reaching the registration post, and then you’re in the forest and you’ll hike up to a beautiful clearing with a framed view of Paradox Lake.
You hike under the highway at the start of the Mount Severance Trail.
But at the end, you get to this beautiful clearing!
Mount Severance, overlooking Paradox Lake.
You hike under the highway at the start of the Mount Severance Trail.
But at the end, you get to this beautiful clearing!
Mount Severance, overlooking Paradox Lake.
Blue Line Brewing
For dinner we drove another hour northwest to Saranac Lake and dropped into Blue Line Brewing, what appeared to be a family run brewery. They had very solid beer and pizzas in a cabin-like atmosphere drenched in Boston sports memorabilia. Megan’s sweet tooth was calling so we got their version of a brownie sundae named the “puppy bowl” to cap everything off.
Blue Line Brewery in Saranac Lake.
Good beers and pizzas!
But my favorite part was the “puppy bowl!”
Blue Line Brewery in Saranac Lake.
Good beers and pizzas!
But my favorite part was the “puppy bowl!”
Fish Creek Pond Campground
Late into the night we finally arrived at our home for the weekend- Fish Creek Pond Campground. This is a relatively secluded camping area about 30 minutes from Saranac Lake. Literally all other campgrounds we researched in the Adirondacks were full this weekend, so Fish Creek it was! And it turned out to be quite nice. Nearly every site sits on the edge of the pond (pond front property, woo-hoo!) and has a very nice fire pit made of concrete.
A foggy morning at Fish Creek Pond Campground.
Whiteface Mountain Summit Trail
We had a busy day ahead of us for Saturday, so we woke just prior to the sunrise in order to fit everything in. It started with the Whiteface Mountain Summit Trail, a 10-mile 3600 ft elevation hike that literally took us through three of the seasons. The first mile or so was a relatively flat walk through the crisp fall forest air, and then it turned into significant inclines after that. About halfway up we were realizing that there was more snow than rock on the trail, and it was at this moment when we should’ve believed the bartender at Paradox Brewery who said the high peaks were covered in snow. Not lying! The last few miles were spent meandering through a winter wonderland in two feet of snow up to the summit- but it was worth it! The views were amazing and who cared if our socks were soaked from the snow piles seeping in? On the way down we got to experience what felt like springtime, as the snow and icicles were quickly melting due to the rising mid-day temperature. This trail follows a stream for a long time, so we spent a lot of time dodging around muddy areas to avoid completely trenching our feet down into the half-frozen water. There is also another trail up to the peak of Esther Mountain that you’ll eventually come by if you want to try and hit two of the 46 high peaks in one day, but even we were spent after this hike.
The trails are all well marked in the Adirondacks.
We enjoyed the sunrise through the fall colors on our hike up Whiteface.
We then hiked through spring…
…into straight up winter!
The flocked trees added nice contrast to the never ending lower mountains!
And the summit was cold but beautiful!
The trails are all well marked in the Adirondacks.
We enjoyed the sunrise through the fall colors on our hike up Whiteface.
We then hiked through spring…
…into straight up winter!
The flocked trees added nice contrast to the never ending lower mountains!
And the summit was cold but beautiful!
Lake Placid Pub and Brewery
To replenish our bodies, we drove a quick 15-20 minutes into the heart of Lake Placid to stop at the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery. This seems like the place to be. All three levels of this renovated church building were packed, and everyone was having a great time. It’s situated almost right on picture-perfect Mirror Lake. The brewery also delivers great food and beer options. We had steak mac n’ cheese and a maple glazed cranberry chicken sandwich with Oreo cookie dough truffles for dessert. We highly recommend their cranberry almond brown ale- or just get the entire tasting flight.
The Lake Placid Pub & Brewery
In an old church building!
With an awesome basement bar!
The Lake Placid Pub & Brewery
In an old church building!
With an awesome basement bar!
Olympic Museum
After a slightly late lunch we decided to walk over to the Lake Placid Olympic Center where we found the Olympic Museum! We quickly learned that it was the only part of the Olympic village that was open to the public currently. The ski jump tower and bobsled tracks were closed (though we would have loved to try these out!) and everything else had closed for the winter on Columbus Day weekend. The museum itself is pretty cool, but very small. It has sports gear and memorabilia from the 1932 and 1980 winter games which Lake Placid hosted. You can also access Herb Brooks Arena, home of the 1980 “Miracle on Ice”, and it gives you some feel good chills.
Lake Placid: the site of the 1932 and 1980 Olympics!
The facilities are still kept up pretty well!
Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum
Where you can watch the Miracle on Ice game!
And check out the arena where the miracle happened!
Lake Placid: the site of the 1932 and 1980 Olympics!
The facilities are still kept up pretty well!
Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum
Where you can watch the Miracle on Ice game!
And check out the arena where the miracle happened!
The Wild Center
As the afternoon wound down, we headed 40 minutes west to The Wild Center. This is a natural museum located in Tupper Lake. It takes you through how the Adirondack Park came to be and has some nearby trails to stroll around. The most popular trail is “The Wild Walk”, an elevated and in some areas suspended boardwalk through the trees that is very educational and provides families with young kids a glimpse of some great mountain views.
The Wild Center in Tupper Lake.
Where we enjoyed being kids for a bit!
Played life-size board games!
Pretended to be birds!
And enjoyed the tree house vibe of “The Wild Walk.”
The Wild Center in Tupper Lake.
Where we enjoyed being kids for a bit!
Played life-size board games!
Pretended to be birds!
And enjoyed the tree house vibe of “The Wild Walk.”
Mount Arab
In the fading light of a beautiful Saturday, we made the decision to go on a short hike to watch the sunset. We drove to the Mount Arab trailhead about 15-20 minutes away from The Wild Center and started our evening hike. This is a 2-mile 738 ft path that takes you to the summit of Mount Arab, but that is not even the best part. At the top sits a fire tower that you can climb and when you reach the lookout platform the 360-degree views are fabulous. Almost just as good as Whiteface to be honest. We could see for miles- and the tower also has a mountain top map so you can locate specific peaks easily. If you don’t want to hike very far but still desire amazing views- go here.
The fire tower on the top of Mount Arab.
That provides views like this!
We enjoyed the remainder of the sunset through the trees on our hike down!
The fire tower on the top of Mount Arab.
That provides views like this!
We enjoyed the remainder of the sunset through the trees on our hike down!
Raquette Brewing
Following our “cool-down” hike we stopped by Raquette Brewing for a celebratory beer and we were glad we did! They had great beer options- such as a Mango Wheat and Imperial Pumpkin Ale- and an extensive food truck menu that looked bomb. I really wanted to sit outside on their large patio next to the couple of fire pits going, but Megan’s warm thoughts prevailed, and we stayed indoors.
Raquette River Brewing in Tupper Lake.
Where they have a nice patio with fires (and of course, Adirondack chairs)!
They also have a cool cabin vibe! (and solid beer)
Raquette River Brewing in Tupper Lake.
Where they have a nice patio with fires (and of course, Adirondack chairs)!
They also have a cool cabin vibe! (and solid beer)
Smoke Signals
Winding our way back to Lake Placid for a late-night dinner, we wandered around the bustling Main Street area and found a top spot for food- Smoke Signals. This is a low-lit, somewhat intimate BBQ joint with solid live music. And everyone knows they have good food too. That’s why when we showed up there was a 40-minute wait! But the cornbread and rib nachos are well worth the patience.
Smoke Signals in Lake Placid.
The seafood chowder in the upper left corner is quite delicious!
Smoke Signals in Lake Placid.
We highly recommend their rib nachos and warm corn bread!
Castle Rock Trail
Sunday morning arrived and with it came renewed energy through our legs in order to do a couple more hikes. For our first hike we drove south from our Fish Creek campsite for about an hour to the Blue Mountain Lake region. The drive, like most of our upper New England drives, was very beautiful and full of scenic views. It led us to the Castle Rock trailhead located just behind what appears to be a cabin resort area. You actually just follow the dirt road to the trailhead marker for roughly .3 miles until you cross a small bridge into the forest. This is a 2.8-mile 656 ft elevation journey that brings you to the top of a giant boulder (Castle Rock) overlooking Blue Mountain Lake. Definitely a good morning punch in the face that can take your breath away.
Castle Rock!
The view we had to ourselves from Castle Rock.
Castle Rock!
The view we had to ourselves from Castle Rock.
Chimney Mountain Trail
Thirty minutes east in the Indian Lake area sat our second Sunday morning hike- Chimney Mountain. The trailhead starts from what looks to be the outskirts of a camp, and it is 2.5 miles long with 980 ft elevation. We got to the middle of the straight up trail and thought we were okay- but it keeps increasing its incline gradually as our thighs burned from already pumping out 20+ miles. The views from the top when we eventually got there were solid, with a nice shot of the “chimney”.
We also had the chimneys to ourselves!
View from Chimney Mountain.
We also had the chimneys to ourselves!
View from Chimney Mountain.
Adirondack Pub and Brewery
After crushing our last hike of the Adirondacks, we only felt it was necessary to make a pit stop for lunch in Lake George Village at the Adirondack Pub and Brewery. This is an awesome little pub with a great looking outdoor patio area for Oktoberfest, but we had just missed their festivities. A bunch of people were here to watch Sunday football, but we just wanted some fuel so that we could make it back home!
Adirondack Pub & Brewery in Lake George.
Our final stop to try to eat back all of those calories we burned hiking over 24 miles!
Adirondack Pub & Brewery in Lake George.
Our final stop to try to eat back all of those calories we burned hiking over 24 miles!
Wow! What a whirlwind month of exploration we just finished up! And like our other weekends, we still didn’t have enough time to fit in everything we wanted to. The Adirondacks are vast, and we couldn’t possibly do it justice with one weekend. Look into Revolution Rail Co.– something we really wanted to do- in North Creek. It’s a seated bike ride through nature on an old railway no longer in use.