Some of the best mountain adventures start with a late-night text and a terrible idea that turns out to be brilliant. Late on August 14th, the four of us made a last-minute decision: set the alarms early, skip the extra sleep, and turn our August 15th Adirondacks excursion into a sunrise hike.
By the numbers, it was a beast of a day—over 16 miles and 5,700 feet of elevation gain—but the conditions couldn't have been more cooperative: crisp mid-60s temperature, clear skies, and continuous sunshine.
We pushed hard through the early morning dark to summit Wright Peak just as the horizon began to glow. Headlamps were on and the stars above shined bright. After taking in the first light of dawn, we made the quick push over to Algonquin Peak—New York's second-tallest peak—to watch the morning sunlight sweep across the High Peaks wilderness. The sun looked like a small ball of fire, and the clouds were all underneath us - making us feel like we were truly on top of the world.
Next up was the infamous Trap Dike route up Mount Colden. But first, we took a quick break for some fly fishing in Avalanche Lake - We even reeled in a couple Brook Trout! Negotiating the sheer rock walls and steep slide climbing of the Trap Dike provided a potent mix of nervous excitement and pure exhilaration. Climbing that Class 3/4 scramble is an experience none of us will forget anytime soon. Once we got past the daunting crux waterfall, we knew we were almost in the clear. We finished the last half mile to the summit by bear crawling up the slick rockslide, which proved to be almost as challenging as the dike itself.
Along the trail, we ran into a few familiar faces—followers from our Instagram account! It was awesome catching up with people from the community, and we made sure to hand out a few free summit flags to mark the occasion.
A tough day on the trail requires proper hydration, so we cracked open a few cold IPAs from Druthers Brewery to keep the spirits high along the way.
After logging the final miles back to the trailhead, we rested up with a well-earned nap before hitting Lake Placid to celebrate an unforgettable day with good food at Smoke Signals (Our favorite spot) and a proper night out!
We all agreed that this was hands down our most epic adventure yet! The only thing left to do was figure out how to top it next time...
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