Hike to Blue Mountain summit challenging, picturesque

Oct. 10, 2003
By LINDA MURPHY
Observer-Dispatch

BLUE MOUNTAIN LAKE - Each autumn, Bob Sheldon packs his SUV and leaves his Budd Lake, N.J. home for a visit to Adirondack Park in time for the changing colors. Some years he goes to Lake Placid. Occasionally he`s drawn to the wilderness surrounding Saranac Lake or the serenity of the Lake George region. Last Friday, as Sheldon drove along Route 28, he suddenly came upon Blue Mountain Lake and the stunning mountain that rose behind it.

"What I noticed was the contrast," Sheldon said as he neared the summit of Blue Mountain. "There was beautiful foliage at the bottom and snow at the top. I wanted to see what it would look like from up here." An arctic front from Canada descended the night before and coated the top third of the Central Adirondack mountain with slick ice and powder. "I thought it was fall but it`s really a winter hike," said Elaine Allen of Hamden, Conn., as she carefully picked her way up the slick, steep granite. "But this is gorgeous, it`s lovely," added Allen`s friend, Diana Swancutt, treading carefully behind her.

No matter what the season, Blue Mountain in Hamilton County is a great and popular starter climb.

The 1,560-foot rise is challenging but not impossible. The hike is four miles round-trip and takes about three to 3 1/2 hours.

From the parking lot, register at the trailhead then follow the red markers. (This parking area is also the start of the trail to Tirrell Pond.) A box located several hundred yards from the trailhead contains maps that point out certain natural phenomena along the trail - such as a rock that was split by lightning. Unfortunately, the box was empty the day I hiked. Hopefully you will have better luck.

The trail starts wide and easy. For the first half hour of my hike, great droplets of water plopped on the leafy trail as the morning sun melted snow from the tree limbs. Steam hovered about a foot above the ground. Cross a stream then start the first steep climb. (Don`t be too proud to take a breather - remember, this is supposed to be fun.) The path then gives you respite before taking another sharp climb.

Take time to stop and look around. Glance down the mountainside through the birch and pine branches, and you`ll see lakes sparkling in the distance. Just before reaching the summit, the path flattens and is cozily lined with a thicket of trees.

Glaring sunlight, cold wind and exhilaration hit me when I broke out onto the summit. The top of Blue Mountain is flat, expansive and full of interesting sights. A 35-foot galvanized steel fire tower, built in 1917, is dominant. From this vantage point, you can see ponds, lakes and distant mountain peaks such as Marcy, Whiteface, Dix, Sawtooth, Ampersand and others.

Prominent also is a slab of concrete left by the Air Force, which, during the Cold War with Russia, built a radar station atop the mountain. This slab was used by one of the fire observers of the 1970s as a tennis court, according to Martin Podskoch, an author and expert on the Adirondack fire towers.

Chain link fences along the side are other vestiges of the Air Force. Considered ugly by some, these remnants do nothing to diminish the beauty of the view.

Be careful on the descent. The pitch is steep at times and the path uneven and rocky at others.

On the drive back home, be sure to watch the procession along Route 28 of some of the Adirondack`s prettiest lakes. Between the hamlet of Blue Mountain Lake and Old Forge, you`ll glimpse the quiet waters of Blue Mountain Lake, Eagle Lake, Utowana, Raquette and the eight lakes of the Fulton Chain of Lakes.

The loveliness and grace of these waters alone makes the trip to Hamilton County worth the drive.

lamurphy@utica.gannett.com.