Adirondacks, NY, part 4 of 5, 10/10/22

[Fungi]

FISHHEAD

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Day 5 started sunny but cold. We got up at early, had breakfast, and packed up. From our campsite near Gill Brook, it was a short walk back to the trail leading to the Fish Hawk Cliffs. We reached the cliffs fairly early, well ahead of most of the dayhikers coming up from the Saint Huberts trailhead. When we arrived, we were greeted with a stunning view of Lower Ausable Lake and peak fall foliage adorning the slopes of The Sawteeth and Gothics. There was also an icy wind, which made it a little hard to relax.

Lower Ausable Lake from the Fishhawk Cliffs
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I explored the cliffs and found another great viewpoint towards Indian Head, the lower end of the lake, and the mountains to the north. I rejoined Larry, and followed a trail that descended briefly before a steep climb up to the cliffs of Indian Head. These cliffs offer a similar view, but it was worth visiting both to get a different perspective on the lake and the surrounding mountains.

It was a bright, sunny morning, which was not ideal for photography. The fall color was incredible, but it is somewhat muted in my photos due to the harsh conditions. The sun also created some harsh shadows along the east side of the lake. Mid-day may have been the optimal time there in those conditions, but we had too much planned to wait a couple of hours.

View from Indian Head


Me and Larry on Indian Head
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We packed up and began a long, steep descent to the lake. On the way down we took a short side trail over to a nice view of Gothics.

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From there we backtracked to the trail and continued the descent down to the lake. Lower Ausable Lake is a bit unusual. It’s a gorgeous mountain lake, but it is not a wilderness. There is an elaborate boat house on the north end, and residents can drive to it. It was a little weird seeing cars parked along the lakeshore in the middle of a long, rugged backpacking trip.

Lower Ausable Lake
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We enjoyed the views of the fall foliage along the lake before dropping down to cross a footbridge over the Ausable River just downstream from the dam. After the bridge we encountered multiple junctions. We started on the Weld Trail, which leads to Rainbow Falls, the Sawteeth, and Gothics. After a short distance we turned onto the “Scenic Trail”. The Scenic Trail follows the west side of Lower Ausable Lake. That sounds easy, doesn’t it? It’s not. Instead of a gentle stroll along the lake shore, the trail wanders up and down the slope, passing through cliff bands and boulder gullies.

We eventually did find our way down to the lake shore. We found a nice sunny spot for lunch, and pulled out all of our wet gear (in other words, all of our gear) to dry. We ended up lounging there for far too long, but that spot was too nice to leave.

Originally I was hoping to make it to The Sawteeth that afternoon, but I didn’t have anywhere near enough time. I suggest to Larry that we just hike out to a couple of overlooks from cliffs above the west side of the lake. He decided to stay back and enjoy the lake, but encouraged me to do it. That worked out well, because I was able to leave most of my gear out to dry while I did the hike.

The next stretch of the Scenic Trail was easier, though I did lose the trail at one point. I regained the trail, and after a moderate climb I reached a spur trail to the first viewpoint. From there, it was just a short stretch to the second. Both offered nice views of the lake, the cliffs, and the fall foliage. Unfortunately the views were mostly to the south, towards the sun. Conditions were even worse for photos than they had been from Indian Head. I thought about continuing to the next viewpoint, but that one would’ve required a major climb. It was well into the afternoon at this point, and we still had a long way to go.

View from the Scenic Trail





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I backtracked, rejoined Larry, and repacked everything. At that point it was time to start the return journey to the car. First though, there were a few more sights to see in the Ausable River valley...


Full photo album: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAtBLd