MacNaughton Mountain

MacNaughton from its south summit

I started the 9/11 Memorial hikes to the Adirondacks in 2005 only to find my beloved cat Sherman in a box on my front porch after getting hit by a car.  So each hike has been dedicated to the memories of those lost on 9/11 and my cat Sherman.

Although I did not go to the Adirondacks in the years 2007-2009, I have managed to summit 9 forty sixers on previous 9/11 trips.  Since my options are running thin and I still have not figured which 46er I'd like to save for last, I planned to hike up Seymour.  In doing a little research, I found that the road to the trailhead would be closed for the week.  I then came up with the plan to do MacNaughton.

MacNaughton happens to be just shy of 4,000 feet (or is it?) and is higher than 4 of the forty sixer peaks.  When the Marshall Brothers and their guide Herbert Clark completed the 46 summits which were thought to be 4,000 feet in the early 1920s, the 46ers were born (though its official start would be 1937).  At last count over over 7,000 have endured the ascents to obscure peaks such as Cliff and Couchsachagra and the mountains of the Seward Range.  Years later as USGS surveys determined Blake, Cliff, Nye and Couchsachagra did not reach the lofty height of 4,000 feet, the summits remained on the list.  In 1953, the USGS survey listed MacNaughton at 4,000 feet.  Later surveys have shown it at under 4,000 feet, though the forty sixers claim otherwise.   So who really knows what its height actually is.  Unlike other peakbagging clubs such as the 4,000 footers of New Hampshire or the Munros of Scotland, the 46ers have stuck with what originally were thought to be 4,000 footers.  So in the minds of many aspiring 46ers, MacNaughton is a 46er.  That's what brings me here today.  

The walk out from The Works parking lot towards Indian's Pass started out innocently enough.  The trail was a bit wet in spots, but nothing even remotely close to what I would run into later in the evening.  Most of the trail followed a creek that eventually leads into the Hudson.  I passed a couple of lean-to's that appear to be ideal campsites.  After about an hour and a half I came to what I thought to be the brook that flows from the Wallface Ponds.

That's how it would be for much of the day

My plan had originally been to bushwack from the trail following a brook to the Wallface Ponds.  From the Wallface Ponds I would bushwack straight up to MacNaughton.  I knew there would be a distinct possibility that I would pick the wrong stream.  After about an hour, I realized I most likely picked the wrong one.  After about 2 hours, I was certain.  I planned for this.  I maintained compass bearings that would keep me on the mountain.

The walk was just so pretty.  The brook was just one giant cascade.  I slipped and fell hard a couple times.  There were many slippery rocks to negotiate, but overall this part was not too bad.  Mostly I noticed how the place was just so alive and green.  Moss is growing all over the place.  I'm developing a moss fetish.  I have no desire to molest or do anything inappropriate with all this moss, but I'd like to just lay down in it looking at the clouds, trees and sky above me.

Followed this brook up MacNaughton

A nice spot to live

I wanted to lay right down in this

So incredibly wild

Once the brook disappeared into the depths of the mountain, the going got tough.  Nothing that I have never experienced before on some of the tougher bushwacks I've done in the Catskills, but quite a bit more intense.  Near the summit of the south peak, there were plenty of cliffs to negotiate.  If there weren't cliffs then there was plenty of blowdown (and I mean plenty).  If there were neither of those two, then there was a wall of dense evergreens (on this point, nothing like what I encountered on Dink in the Catskills).  Tough, tough stuff.  The thought of turning around entered my brain seriously at least twice.

I walk up, down, over, around and through

At last I made it to the South summit.  I did not know this until I saw the summit ridge of MacNaughton to the north.  I hoped that I was on the summit ridge.  Still it was nice to see the whole summit ridge in front of me.  How many of taken in that view?  Probably very few.  And fewer still of those that would even want the view.

Coming down south summit.  Lots of blowdown.

Santanoni & Panther

They forgot an A!!!

The col from the south summit to the main summit ridge did not appear to drop much.  But it was clear there was a ton of blowdown.  For about the next 20 minutes I walked about 50 feet.  This may be an exaggeration, it was probably more like 20.  Once in the col, the going got much easier.  The climb up to the summit passed through a mostly friendly forest.  After much perseverance, I made it to the eastern half of the summit ridge.  After about 20 minutes of walking along the summit's herd path, I came to the MacNaughton summit sign at the NW portion of the summit ridge.

MacNaughton puts up a good fight, but does not provide the greatest of views for the struggle.  Though a bit obstructed by the trees, views of the Sewards, Santanonis, Sawtooths, and Lost Pond Peak and Street could all be made out.  This perch really makes me want to go to Lost Pond Peak.  In the winter, the views are probably outstanding.

The Sawtooth Range

As any bushwacker knows, it's much easier finding a summit than finding your way down.  As long as you're on the mountain, if you go up, you'll find the summit.  One cannot take this approach going down, as you can end up just about anywhere.  I pulled out the map and compass and took a reading for the Wallface Ponds.  This was the first hike in almost 7 years that I've used my compass.  While heading down, I was quite pleased to see the ponds where they were supposed to be.  It was a beautiful walk down with some views of the ponds through the trees.  What was especially pleasant about the walk down (besides gravity being on my side) was that there was not much blowdown or cliffs to negotiate around.  The forest was not all that thick either.  Pleasant indeed.

Pretty forest which I enjoyed the entire day

I eventually made it to the ponds and came upon a herd path that took me around and in between the ponds until I reached the trail.  After being away from civilization and marked trails for more than 6 hours, I was quite happy to be back on the trails again.  I expected to be back at my car in about 5 hours.  I could not be more wrong. 

The 2.9 mile trail that connects the Wallface Ponds to Indian Pass was a complete mudfest.  Tough Mudder has nothing on this!  There were a lot of marshy areas along the trail.  But most of the time I could not tell the difference between the trail and the marshes.  The logs were of not much help since the tended to be extremely slippery.  There were many herd paths that wandered away from the most extreme muck.  I lost my shoe at one point and a few other times I landed in knee deep mud.  Regardless of all the mud, it happened to be an amazing area.  Near Scot Pond there was a great view of Wright Peak.  As I pulled my camera out, there were a couple lightning strikes over the mountains.  I missed the money shot by only a few seconds.

The smallest of the Wallface Ponds

In between the two larger Wallface Ponds

That's the trail.  Pure mud.

Wright and Algonquin where I just saw a couple bolts of lightning

 

After more than two hours, I made it to the Indian Pass Trail.  I was relieved.  Again, I would be disappointed as this trail would be in even worse condition than the Wallface Ponds Trail.  I noticed the Indian Pass Brook flowing North.  I wondered if I were going the wrong way, but here the water runs north and ultimately ends up in the St. Lawrence.  Like the Catskills and its Hudson/Delaware divide, the Adirondacks have a Hudson/St. Lawrence divide.  In the Catskills if you're on the divided some of the water will reach the Atlantic at either NYC or Phileadelphia.  Here the water enters the Atlantic at NYC or near Labrador.  That's a far more impressive divide!!!

This water flows to the St. Lawrence

Despite having much difficulty following the trail, the Indian Pass Trail is one of the best around.  Rugged, with awesome, close up views of Wallface, New York State's highest rock face at 800 feet.  I rather enjoyed the trail.  It also happened to be almost as wet as the Wallface Ponds Trail.

The trail markers were few and far between.  I spotted a marker and just ahead of it I see never ending swamp.  There's just no way I can walk through it.  It looked like it could be a few feet deep.  I see herd paths walking all over the swampy marshy area.  I try many of them until they peter out.  The one I kept coming back to.  There was a "peninsula" that stretched into the swamp where I thought the trail may be going.  I started to panic a bit, but then decided to skirt up on the left bank.  The red markers re-appeared.

Many times I had to cross the Indian Pass Brook

There's always some interesting tree growth

Wallface

After an ascent, I then lost the trail again.  I had difficulty back-tracking so I started to scale down towards the water.  I figured I'll just follow the water to get back to the trail.   Big mistake.  I reached a bolder field that just led to cliff after cliff.  Again, panic started to set in.  At this point it was dark and I had my headlamp on.  I back tracked a bit, but to no avail.  I then came to the brook, but it seemed to just drop and drop and drop.  It did not look promising.  At one point while negotiating around a bolder, I slipped and I had no idea where the bottom was.  I thought, "this is really going to hurt."  Fortunately my feet touched bottom without getting myself hurt.

At this point I started coming to my senses.  I made my way back to somewhat stable ground.  At this point I started to convince myself I would be spending the night and I'll find my way out in the morning.  I was soaking wet, but I could dry myself and I had a dry top and a dry fleece.  Plus I had 2 rain jackets and a hat.  I did not have dry pants.  But I could survive the night without much difficulty. 

I was not ready to concede this scenario.  I pulled out my map, GPS and compass.  I approximated where I was and where I needed to go.  Next, I took a real hard look at my surroundings.  They still appeared quite daunting.  But there were trees in the direction I needed to go.  I tried as much as possible to head in the direction I needed and keeping on as level ground as possible.  This strategy seemed to be working and it calmed me quite a bit.  Amazingly, I soon found a red blaze staring me in the face.  I did not expect this.  At first I went the wrong way, but then got going in the right direction. 

This time I made sure I did not lose the trail.  This would be challenging though.  I would be back-tracking for the next hour, but my main goal was to stick with the trail.  After 16 hours of mud, rain, blowdown, slippery rocks, cliffs, ascents and descents and thick forest,  I returned to civilization.  MacNaughton pulled back no punches.  Chris Hiker almost went down for the count.  Although at times it may not have been the most enjoyable of hikes, it most certainly was one of the most satisfying.        

Here are some stats:

mileage: unknown (a little over 12 on "trails" plus around 5 miles bushwacking)

3 good falls, countless scratches and one good poke in the eye (I did pack goggles but didn't wear them)
Immense amount of Adirondack mud (my guess is that it will take 3 to 4 showers before I'm mud-free)

Bagel w/ butter and a cup of coffee
2L water + 1 L of Powerade
A hershey bar and peanuts
2 bananas and a grapefruit

The Works to bushwack point: 1.5 hours
Start of bushwack to "South MacNaughton": 3.5 hours
South MacNaughton to MacNaughton: 1 hour
Basking in my glory on the Summit of MacNaughton: half hour
MacNaughton to Wallface Ponds and return to trails: 1.75
Wallface Ponds to Indian Pass Trail: 2.25 hours
Indian Pass Trail to return to Bushwack Point: 4 hours (this was about 3 miles of "trail")
Bushwack Point to The Works: 1.5 hours  

A total of 16 hours!!!