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Please note: this article is intended as a reference only. It is not a substitute for an updated guidebook and map. Also, travel in the wilderness requires experience and preparation that a guidebook can offer. Always check trail conditions on the DEC website to make sure the trail is open. The Adirondacks are prone to slides, flooding, and trail erosion.
The Great Range is a mountain range in the High Peaks region, Adirondack Park, NY. Starting at the Rooster Comb trailhead in Keene Valley, the range follows a series of 10 peaks, ending at the highest summit in New York State, Mt. Marcy. The 14.5 mile traverse follows some of the most breathtaking views and rugged marked trails in the Adirondacks. The range is considered by Backpacker Magazine as the third hardest day hike in America.
The summits: Rooster Comb, Hedghog Mtn., Lower Wolfjaw Mtn., Upper Wolfjaw Mtn, Armstrong Mtn., Gothics, Saddleback Mtn., Basin Mtn., Mt. Haystack, and Mt. Marcy. All but Rooster Comb and Hedgehog Mtn. are above 4000ft, and considered part of the 46 high peaks. The return trip via the Phelps or Hopkins trail adds another 9.1 miles to reach the Garden parking lot.
Trailhead: On I-87, take exit 30 for US-9 toward NY-73/Keene Valley/Keene. Head North on US-9. Bear left on NY-73. You will pass trailhead parking for Giant Mountain and Chapel Pond. Before reaching the Bed & Breakfasts, restaurants, and shopping of Keene Valley, you will see trailhead parking on your left for Rooster Comb. This is the start of the Great Range. If you have another vehicle, or parking is congested, you may consider continuing past this point, taking a left at the sign for the Garden parking lot. The Garden parking is where the Phelps trail begins. The Phelps trail follows Johns Brook for the most part, leading a mostly gentle elevation gain to the other end of the Great Range. If you park one vehicle at each parking area, you shave a few miles of road hiking or a shuttlebus ride. I suggest the Guide to Adirondack Trails: High Peaks Region as a guidebook and the National Geographic Illustrated Map, Lake Placid/High Peaks for a map. For Upstate New Yorkers, the nearest Barnes and Noble or Eastern Mountain Sports may stock these things. I also suggest bringing a GPS on your trip with appropriate map sets, as some of the roads and trails in the Adirondacks are confusing. Don’t count on cellphone reception.
As a day hike, expect starting very early and ending very late. The hike easily takes 15+ hours, and may even push in the 20+ hour range. It is very grueling, challenging, and even dangerous at portions, especially when factoring in fatigue. Only experienced hikers should press such a challenge, carrying the proper clothing and equipment for summit conditions, as well as water to last the hike. From early September through late May, there can be considerable snow and ice at the summits. Weather forecasts may not accurately predict conditions specific to the higher elevations.
As a backpacking trip, allow multiple days. It’s best to pack as light as possible, while carrying adequate provisions for the conditions and length of stay. From Lower Wolfjaw to Marcy, the trail becomes very difficult at times, and may require lowering or raising a pack with a length of rope. Heavy packs become a liability when scrambling.
There are no lean-tos, and only one designated camp site along the trail (Sno-Bird). DEC regulations prohibit camping within 150ft of any trail or water source. Also, above 4000ft (much of the trail from Lower Wolfjaw), camping is prohibited, except for designated areas. If you’re camping, you’ll likely have to take a detour to Wolf Jaws lean-to, Ore Bed Brook lean-to, and/or Slant Rock. Know the location of all these lean-tos.
An important note, if you’re using the National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map, Lake Placid/High Peaks (I recommend it), it doesn’t mark the Sno-Bird site. For your reference, it is on the Range Trail, in between the Shorey Shortcut Trail, and the Haystack summit trail.
Rooster Comb & Hedgehog
The beginning of the Great Range is deceptively simple. The transition from the warmer deciduous forest starts in the Rooster Comb area. There is a 4 way jct. 2mi from the trailhead, with a small stream nearby for filling water. Going straight leads to Hedgehog Mtn. Taking a right, the steeper summit approach to Rooster Comb is a .5mi spur from the main trail. The approximate ascent to Rooster Comb is 1640 ft (2788 ft max elevation). At 2.2mi, there is a .1mi trail to the right, leading to a view of Keene Valley. To the left, the trail continues .3mi to the summit. Both views are pleasant. From the summit, one must double back to the four way trail juncture mentioned earlier, taking a right towards Hedghog Mtn.
Heading towards Hedgehog, the grade gets steeper. The ascent to the summit from Rt. 73 is 2530 ft, reaching an elevation of 3369 ft. Distance traveled, factoring in Rooster Comb: 4.1mi. The summit is wooded, offering no notable views.
Lower and Upper Wolfjaw
Prepared to get chewed up in the Wolfjaws. The ascent up the northeast portion of Lower Wolfjaw begins to get challenging. At 6mi, the summit of Lower Wolfjaw is 4173 ft. Approximate total ascent, 3670ft. There are brief viewing points, but nothing dramatic.
Heading down Lower Wolfjaw, the challenges begin, with steep and rocky portions leading to a col between the Wolfjaws. At the bottom of the col, there is a trail to the right heading about a mile to Wolf Jaws lean-to. This may prove a satisfactory end to a first day, with Wolfjaw Brook as a water source.
From the Wolf Jaws trail juncture, the trail to the summit is .9mi. The ascent of Upper Wolfjaw proves a greater challenge, requiring a lot of scrambling. Near the beginning, in particular, there is a 6ft high ledge I had trouble getting up with my loaded pack. The trail switchbacks over steep areas before reaching a lesser summit. After an easy descent into a col, and another ascent, the summit is reached at 4185 ft., with a nice view to the south and the east. Total ascent: 4510ft, total miles traveled, 7.4.
Armstrong and Gothics
Continuing from the summit of Upper Wolfjaw, the trail descends to a small col, over a bump, and to the base of a long ladder that climbs over a steep area. Climbing remains steep to the summit, 1 mile from the summit of Upper Wolfjaw, with even better views; John’s Brook Valley, and the upper Great Range looming in the distance. Elevation: 4400ft. Total ascent: 5030 ft. Total miles traveled: 8.2mi.
After passing the south peak of Armstrong, the trail descends to a trail juncture, one trail leading towards Lower Ausable Lake. Continuing on the Range Trail, the trail climbs steeply to the east peak of Gothics, around the beginning of the marked Arctic-Alpine zone. Shortly after, the summit of Gothics is reached, with panoramic views and 30 major peaks visible; the best views so far of the trek. Elevation: 4736 ft. Total ascent: 5530 ft. Distance: 9.1mi.
From a trail juncture in the summit area of Gothics, a southeast trending trail leads to Sawteeth and Lower Ausable Lake. From the juncture, it is half a mile descent to a col between Gothics and Saddleback. The west face of Gothics is exposed along the trail, leading to some tricky scrambles down lichen covered rock face. Large tracts of this trail have polymer coated steel guide cables bolted to rock face. These cables were removed in 2003, but have since been replaced, and are still there as of 2010.
From a trail juncture at the col, a 1.8 mile descent along Ore Bed Brook leads to a lean-to, just over a mile away from the John’s Brook Lodge area.
Saddleback, Basin
Continuing on the range trail, the half mile ascent up Saddleback is not as difficult as other neighboring mountains, with good views of Gothics. The summit offers a broad viewing ledge, though not as panoramic as Gothics. Elevation: 4515ft. Total ascent: 6130ft. Distance traveled: 10.4mi.
Once heading down the west side of Saddleback, the trail traverses a series of very steep exposed ledges, and may require one to lower a pack with rope. The tree line envelopes the trail again, leading down steep sections to the bottom of a col between Saddleback and Basin.
The trail climbs again progressively steeper, until reaching the shoulder of Basin, descending into a small col, before steep climbing to the summit. Panoramic views of the surrounding area is afforded, although I was caught in a fog at the time, and cannot compare to other views. Elevation: 4827. Total ascent: 6800ft. Distance traveled: 11.3mi.
The southwest trending descent is not as difficult as the northeast side, although there are challenging sections. After .8mi from summit, a trail juncture indicates the Shorey Shortcut trail with the Slant Rock area 1.1mi away, offering multiple designated camping areas and a lean-to near John’s Brook. Another .1mi along the Range Trail from the Shorey Shortcut juncture is another designated campsite, Sno-Bird.
Haystack, Marcy
1.4mi from the summit of Basin, there is a trail juncture leading left to the summit of Haystack. The quickest method to ascend Haystack and Marcy is to follow this juncture to the summit of Haystack, but to double back to the trail juncture, instead of passing to the south of Haystack and the Panther Gorge area.
The distance from the juncture to the summit of Haystack is .6mi. The tree line opens up approaching Little Haystack, but the climbing is not as challenging as the Saddleback-Basin area. After zigzagging around a few ledges, the summit of Little Haystack opens up, offering a clear view of Haystack ahead, as well as some of the surrounding Adirondacks. The trail proceeds down little haystack, following cairns in a left diagonal, before a switchback to a wooded col. From here, the trail proceeds exposed to the bald summit, where recesses provide protection against the winds. The sweeping panoramic view is excellent, with a unique vantage point of Marcy. The people at the summit not quite visible to the naked eye. Elevation: 4960 ft. Total Ascent: 8062 ft. Distance Traveled: 13.3mi.
For the sake of curiosity, the south descent of Haystack is not as difficult as the ascent, but the distance traveled and elevation lost at Panther Gorge and Four Corners means a longer and more difficult hike. Although the southern approach to Marcy has a unique beauty to it when ascending.
Returning towards Little Haystack and back to the Range Trail juncture, after heading northwest .5mi, the Range Trail joins with Phelps trail. Heading left, the trail takes a steep 1.3 mile hike to the summit of the Mt. Marcy, the highest peak in the Adirondacks. .7mi from the Phelps juncture, the trail intersects the Van Hoevenberg trail. Bearing left, the summit comes into view in the arctic-alpine zone. Care must be exercised on this delicate, highly trafficked terrain.
A series of alpine bogs are traversed by way of planks to a rocky open area, marked by cairns and yellow paint to the exposed summit. Although crowded at times, the summit of Marcy provides a sweeping panoramic, and is an excellent mountain to end the range. The rest is downhill, literally. Elevation: 5344 ft. Total Ascent (including Haystack side trip): 9432 ft. Distance traveled: 15.7mi.
Return to Garden
The return to the Garden parking lot follows the Phelps trail 9.1 miles, descending 3821 ft, most of the way along Johns brook. The trail crosses Johns Brook periodically, notably at Slant Rock, where there are multiple campsites and a lean-to. Crossing the brook again, and a little further, at 1.9mi from Slant Rock, Phelps and Hopkins trail intersect, with Bushnell Falls lean-tos nearby. It’s another 1.5 miles to the next trail juncture in the Johns Brook Lodge area. Care must be taken to stay on the right trail, as many junctures intersect with one another. It’s 3.6 more miles to the Garden Parking, where you can ask about a shuttle bus, if they’re still running. Or you can hike a couple miles down Johns Brook Lane, Market Street, and south on Rt.. 73 to Rooster Comb, if you parked your vehicle there. Keep clear of the road on Johns Brook Lane if you walk, as there are a lot of blind spots and some fast drivers. Total distance on complete Great Range, looping back to Garden: 24.8mi.
Other Articles in this series:
Great Range Trail Report 2010: Part I Audio
Great Range Trail Report: Part II Audio
Great Range Trail Report: Part III Audio
Resources:
- . "America's Hardest Dayhikes."Backpacker Magazine.. May 2005. 'http://www.backpacker.com/may_2005_feature_hardest_dayhikes/destinations/8485'.
- Goodwin, Tony. Adirondack Trails High Peaks Region. vol.1 13 ed. Lake George: Adirondack Mountain Club, Inc., 2004. Link
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