Monday, June 17, 2013

Memorial Day & Climbing the Wolfjaws

It was an amazing spring day in the Adirondack high peaks region. At least below 3,000 feet. Nolan and I started off from the trail head at St Huberts (Roaring Brook)around 9:30am and headed up past the Ausable Club and onto Lake Road. The golf course was spring green, and a few players were hacking away in the distance. The backdrop to the course was the majestic mountain; "Giant of the Valley". Nolan and I were excited about the climb and even more so seeing our first high peak climbed, keeping watch on the horizon. AFter scooting by about 10 trekkers we ran into the first traces of snow at about 3,000 feet. As we continued the ascent, the snow was heavier and deeper, and very wet! In fact it was starting to stream down the mountain trail, and was quite messy and cold. Our feet were soon saturated with water, and mine soon felt like frozen bricks. Anyway, we made the climb to Lower Wolf Jaw summit and decided at the junction sign above, to save Upper Wolf Jaw for a better day. here are a few photos below that kind of shows the contrast...
Cascading waterfalls and rushing spring rivers this day...
First signs of snow, along with toppled trees felled by the heavy snow, and distressed ferns and solomon seal
View of Giant Mountain through trees
At the summit
Save it for another day!
The bucolic scene above was an interesting contrast, to say the least from our snowy, slushy, muddy, summit of LWJ. We signed out around 4:30 and headed to to a much needed back to the car to put on dry socks and shoes and even better to grab a burger and Pepsi at the Noonmark in Keene.