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What do you do when the higher Adirondack elevations are muddy, wet, and fragile and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation asks hikers to consider remaining below 2,500 feet in elevation to let the peaks dry? Hike to the half way point just below 2,500 feet on the originally-planned hike and then use the rest of the afternoon to jump off some cliffs, obviously. Spontaneity feeds adventure and curiosity and this change of plan ended up being just as fun as the original plan would have been. The initial plan for friends Neil, Rose, Andrew and myself was to conquer Mount Colvin and Blake Peak via Lake Road off of the Ausable Club. We decided to still hike in this way to hit Indian Head, one of the Adirondacks’ more beautiful and iconic sights.
Map of Route to Indian Head (out of Ausable Club)
We started the day off parking at the far Ausable Club parking lot located at the “P” in the above map (free lot) and hiked past the always beautiful Ausable Club towards the huge timber AMR gate to Lake Road. This access point serves as a means of getting to the Great Range including the Lower and Upper Wolfjaw, Armstrong, and Gothics and the edge of the Dix Mountain Wilderness including Mt. Colvin and Blake. When we signed in at the check-in, a post-it note said “muddy, bugs are bad, go home.” Knowing that we would still be below 2,500 feet in elevation and that a decent portion of the hike would be along the access road, we began walking. This was the soothing start of the first part of the day – a part that would be filled with a timber bridge in the woods and lots of waterfalls. When TLC tells you “Don’t Go Chasing Waterfalls”, they are wrong. Definitely chase waterfalls.
Totally Appreciate a Nice Bridge in the Woods
Waterfalls….Waterfalls Everywhere. And Neil.
Chasing Waterfalls
Once we started to gain in elevation, Indian Head quickly approached. This is not a super intensive hike, but the rewards are incredible. As you get close to Indian Head, there is a junction with a branch to an outlook, which we eagerly took. This was the first taste of views.
The Outlook is Certainly Worth The Exploration
Neil and Andrew on the Outlook
We made short time at the outlook knowing that Indian Head was right around the corner. We were ready to sit down, snack, and take in the Indian Head views for a little while now that we had our first taste of the lush greenery in the mountains along Lower Ausable Lake.
Boom. We made it.
Indian Head
Required Candid Pose (Photo Credit: Rose)
View Looking North from Indian Head
We climbed around the rocks for about a half an hour (it only took us about 2.5 hours to get to Indian Head). This is a great spot if you’re looking for a moderate hike that will allow you plenty of time to snack, eat lunch, and soak in the views. I imagine Indian Head is majestic at sunrise and sunset as well and wouldn’t be too difficult to get to to experience them. We took a slightly alternate route back to Lake Road, cutting down as soon as possible as we left Indian Head. This allowed us to check out the awesome dam at the end of Lower Ausable Lake. Sweet!
Dam at the Edge of Lower Ausable Lake
From this point on, we took the gravelly Lake Road back to the Ausable Club and eventually to the car. Surprisingly, the black flies weren’t nearly as bad as we thought they were going to be (maybe due to the weather?). We were warned ahead of the hike that “the black flies are thick and chewy this year. Prepare to give blood.” Nice!…very descriptive indeed! We were prepped for Armageddon but never really encountered it. With how wet many of the areas in the high peaks are right now, I’m not surprised that other areas may be a war zone.
Anyways, we finished the hike around 1:30pm and still had the entire afternoon to explore, so naturally we went cliff jumping. None of the others had been to Split Rock Falls on the way to Elizabethtown, so that’s where we went. I had cliff jumped there before and was familiar with and remembered the jumps that I wanted to do. This is definitely not the safest activity in this location and many people make mistakes and get hurt or worse, but having done it before and having experienced the thrill of free-falling for about 25 feet, this spot is within my “go on and do it” zone. We started with a few small jumps and then…. jump. We made it to the tallest one.
SO. MUCH. FUN.
We swam for a couple of hours and then headed into Lake Placid for dinner at my favorite – Lake Placid Pub and Brewery. We then sat along Mirror Lake and watched the sunset to cap off an adventurous and perfect Adirondack day. Thank you for reading. Thank you for being you and for following my journeys and for creating your own. I love hearing your stories and adventures!
Sunset over Mirror Lake
Signing off…
-Ryan
