Well spring is here — or is it? There is a saying, “If you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes.” This is very true in the Adirondacks. Last week I hiked St. Regis Mountain in a short sleeved shirt, no mittens or hat and pants rolled up to my knees. and still I was dying with the heat. I hate to think of what it will be like when hot weather arrives. Last Sunday, a group of us decided to hike the Tupper Lake Triad. The triad consists of Mt Arab, Mt. Coney and Mt. Goodman with each being only a few minutes drive from Tupper Lake. The weather forecast predicted wind chills of -11 on the summits. A far cry from the warm weather of our St. Regis hike. Our crew would consist of Kelly Moody, Mary Murphy, Jamie Hall, Mary Jo Jubert, Richard Apelt, Ruthy Ayalon, Peg O’Connell, Bob Meconi and myself. The ages of our hikers would range from 40 to 78 years old.
We set a meet up time of 9 am at the Arab trailhead. That may seem a little late to start but some had a 2 hour drive to get there. There is a large parking area and we were the first 3 vehicles there. The gang is pretty punctual. We all arrived within 2 minutes of each other. Kelly had read recent posts from other hikers that had climbed Arab lately so we were pretty confident that microspikes would do the trick. Do you remember the saying in the movie ‘The Karate Kid’ — Wax on — Wax off? Well on all three mountains, it would be spikes on — spikes off. In no time at all we were set with spikes on our feet and packs on our backs ready to hit the trail. A loud call of ‘Wagons Ho!” from Richard and we were off.
The hike is 2 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 750 feet. It has a bit of everything. Flat sections, some ups and downs and some stone staircases. There was a firm monorail for some of it, sections were just plain old dirt and there was just a bit of ice. The weather was perfect. An Adirondack blue sky and no winds. With lots of interesting conversations going on and plenty of laughing, it seemed like no time at all when we arrived at the summit. Here you are rewarded with a great 35 foot fire tower. The steel tower was built in 1918. It was so nice to see that it was open to climb. and climb it we did. From the cab there is a magnificent panoramic view of the private Mount Arab Lake and Eagle Crag Lake, Tupper Lake and many high peaks in the distance. After the tower, and some fun photos, we headed to a small lookout with a cool looking bench.
Knowing we had two more mountains to climb, we did not hang around too long. The hike down was much quicker. We met several hikes ascending and we wished them well as we passed by. Soon we were back in our cars and headed to our next mountain.
A short drive and we arrived at the Goodman Mountain Trailhead. The trail is a little longer than the other two mountains at 3 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 615 feet. This mountain is named after civil rights activist Andrew Goodman and has wheelchair accessibility for part of the trail. With the sun high in the sky, the day had warmed up a bit. Spikes again on the start of this trail but at one point they were not necessary so off they came. As our group of 9 hiked along, we changed spots in our line to be able to visit with everyone . Again, it didn’t take long and we were on the open summit. From here, we had great views of Tupper Lake, some high peaks and an up close view of our next mountain Coney. We spent a good amount of time on the rocky top taking photos,chatting, eating and hydrating. It was so nice to soak in that beautiful sunshine. After a bit, Coney Mountain was calling us so we gathered our packs and said our goodbyes to the mountain. The descent was fast and soon we were on our way driving less than 5 minutes to our final hike.
Coney Mountain is my favorite hike of the three. I find this hike the easiest and I love the bald summit. The hike is 2 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 560 feet. The constant chatter and easy trail conditions made the time pass quickly and soon we were absorbing those warm rays as we reached the top. As I approached the summit, I noticed something to my right. There was Ruthy laying flat on her back on the side of the mountain taking in that vitamin D. That girl knows how to relax.
With views in every direction, it is hard to know which way to look first. Not too far off, Goodman Mountain sits in all its glory. Maybe in the future they will put a zipline in between the two. On second thought, maybe I should be careful what I wish for. The partly frozen waters of Tupper Lake can be seen to the north and the tree covered hills of Horseshoe lake Wild Forest to the west. Off in the distance, the Sewards and Santanoni Peak can be spotted.
We wandered the summit a bit and of course took lots of photos but by now the sun was starting to lower itself in the sky and it was time to retreat. One foot in front of the other, we made our way down. It was quite noticeable how the strong sun had melted some of the ice and snow on the trail. Below the ice, you could see running water which resembled pollywogs. As we were close to the parking lot, Richard decided to add some humor to our day by telling a joke. “What did the Monkey say when he got his tail caught in the fan? It won’t be long now.” It was good timing for that joke.
Back at our cars with smiles on our faces, we said our goodbyes. I think I can speak for everyone that this was one of those perfect days in every way. Beautiful mountains, gorgeous weather and great hiking buddies.
If you are into ‘challenges’ the Tupper Lake Triad hiking challenge may be one you would want to consider. Information can be found at: https://www.tupperlake.com/tupper-lake-hiking-triad
Happy Trails!
Peru resident Joanne Kennedy is a photographer and writer who can be found exploring the many lakes and mountains in the Adirondacks or other wilderness areas. She enjoys sharing the unique places she visits in the natural world with her readers. Reach her at loonsrcool@gmail.com.