Mount Colden Camping Trip

Aaron on Ladder

One of the ladders on the ascent up from Colden Lake.

Trail to Avalanche Lake

The trail to Avalanche Lake was rather packed down - so we didn't feel the need to wear snowshoes.

Avalanche Pass Hazard Sign

Just prior to reaching Avalanche Pass, you are forewarned of the dangers from this sign.

Avalanche Lake

Because Avalanche Lake was well froze over, we chose to walk across it instead of trying to negotiate the trail and its various stairs and steps.

Avalanche Lake

View of Avalanche Lake from its south shore looking north.

Avalanche Lake

An HDR image of Avalanche Lake from the north shore looking south.

Campsite Cooking

Picture of me boiling water for out food.  

Beaver Point Lean-To

Our campsite for the night was the Beaver Point Lean-To, which is located on the south shore of Colden Lake.  My brother Aaron's boots had gotten wet and so he was using the stove to try and dry them out while not getting out of his sleeping bag.

Mount Colden Ascent

Once you reach the Arctic Tree Line the path up Mount Colden gets very rocky and, because of all the recent rains, very icy.  

Mount Colden Ascent

As you approach the summit of Mount Colden, the winds reached around 40-50mph.  Combined with the recent rains, the ascent was a steep frozen river.

Mount Colden Ascent

As you approach the summit of Mount Colden, the winds reached around 40-50mph.  Combined with the recent rains, the ascent was a steep frozen river.

Aaron on Mount Colden

This is Aaron as we approached the summit.  The pictures do not do justice as to how steep and exposed the ascent is.

Mount Colden Ridge Line Trail

As you follow the ridge line on Mount Colden, you walk through this narrow band of trees that frost and wind-blown.

Aaron and me on Mount Colden Summit

Picture of Aaron and I at the summit of Mount Colden.

Decent trail of Mount Colden

We approached from a draw on the west-side of Mount Colden.  It was rather a treacherous hike.  The decent on the North East side of the mountain was far easier.

This weekend my brother, who is visiting me from Colorado, and I did a two-day camping trip in the Adirondack High Peaks.  In all, it was truly one of the best camping trips I have ever had.  Far too often, I feel we get wrapped up in searching for the more extreme and difficult journey's and associate it with quality.  This was a trip of no significant technical skill, but just beautiful views and decent weather. 

Day one of our trip, we hiked from the Adirondack Loj to the south-side of Colden Lake to the Cedar Point Lean-To by way of Marcy Dam and Avalanche Lake.  Once we hit Colden Lake, we chose to take the trail that hugs the east side of the lake since we wanted to avoid the Ranger outpost since we may not have been 100% compliant with the New York State snowshoe rule, strictly speaking.  (NY requires the use of skis or snowshoes in the park when the snow is 8" or deeper.)   

The next day, we ascended Mount Colden from the lake side.  It was clearly the road less traveled.  There were a few points where we had to search for the trail as it seemingly would just disappear.  Upon approaching the summit, it turned quite treacherous with significant ice rivers lining the steep ascent trail.  I used microspikes and Aaron used my new MSR snowshoes (which I have still yet to use).  Having the traction these devices offered was essential for the climb up.  If I had the foresight, I would actually preferred to have crampons and an ice axe. 

At the summit, the wind chilled dipped well below zero with its 40-50mph gusts.  The summit was well in the cloud base which spoiled any panoramic vistas one would hope to have.  Despite this, the immediate snow packed and windblown summit offered its own unique scenes - like a frozen underwater coral.  

Although my watch says the total trip was just shy of 20-miles, I figure it was closer to 18 or so.  I found my Garmin having difficulty with accuracy in the densely wooded trails and in the valleys of the mountainous terrain (no surprise there).  It did an alright job, but I did notice it jumping around a lot in places when I was stopped.  

In my opinion, this was a 5-star trip and am looking forward to playing around in this area again.  Playing in and around Avalanche Lake and Lake Colden was just as good as the trip up Mount Colden.  In fact, my brother, who is use to playing in the Colorado Rockies, admits to having a new found respect for Adirondacks. 

I have already begun planning the next couple of trips which will include Mount Marcy and Mount Washington in February.  (I will be 100% off the grid for almost all of January)