Adirondacks in October

ZippyA

I'm headed to the Adirondacks in a few days - my first extended (7 days) trip this year.  Will stop in Lake George and then 3 days in Lake Placid.  My first time in the area in the fall so I hope to see some great foliage.  I do want to get in some good hiking with my dog.  And because of COVID, I will actually be using the toilet (a thought that strikes fear in me)!

Any recommendations/advice/warnings from anyone who's been to that area?  I know it's going to be cold at night!

VictoriaP

No advice on the location, but...no need to fear the blank tank, it’s super easy. Dissolve a scoop of Happy Campers in about a gallon of warm water, dump half down into the empty black tank and half into the grey. Then go camp. Basically turns everything into a fast flowing liquid with no odor. Best product ever, makes dumping so simple.

dlb

In the Lake Placid area there are wonderful hikes.  Mount Jo, Heart Lake and Avalanche Lake/Coldon Lake are wonderful hikes.  You can also get trails into the High Peaks region from there.  If you prefer the road to the top of Whiteface Mountain should be open.

ChanW

Check the Lake Placid forecast for temperatures. You might want to winterize your black and gray tank valves with some antifreeze.

Leaves will be beautiful on your drive up, but might be done already up there! Or they might be perfect!

Lake Placid and Saranac Lake area is great for finding trailheads. You might have difficulty finding open campgrounds, dunno. Check online.

Fish Creek Pond / Rollins Pond state campgrounds (same driveway off route 30) are very nice (we did Rollins) spacious sites, right on the lake. Might be closed, dunno.

There's a moderate hike going to the peak of St Regis Mountain overlooking Lake Clear near Saranac. Go though Paul Smith's up Keeses Mill Rd to get to the trailhead. Beautiful view. Here's a Google maps pin for the trailhead:

https://maps.app.goo.gl/RFdTo7rxK9KqqmLS8

The hike up Blue Mountain (overlooking Blue Mountain Lake, of course!) is nice too, if you're in that area.

4ncar

@ZippyA take a sweater with you to the loo if you get up in the night...it gets chilly in the wetbath! Safe travels, and I am envious!

rfuss928

We are in the West Central region right now.  Beautiful colors.  Cool damp rainy days with cold nights forecast for the next week.  Good timing for a classic northeast fall trip.  Have fun!

YanniLazarus

Really bad Cell phone reception there.  Bring maps or have navigation system that works without phone reception. Enjoy! 

ChanW

Heh! +1 re cell service!

For hikes you'll want a mapping/gps app that downloads the topo maps before you lose cell service. Many trails are marked and obvious, and many aren't.

I highly recommend Backcountry Navigator.

Make sure you set aside enough time to get back down the mountain! (BTDT!)

Have fun! Jealous.

YanniLazarus

... great trail map comment.   So - plan for navigation contingencies on AND off the road! 

johnfconway

Sometimes flashbacks are nothing but pleasant! We lived 24 years 40 minutes from the southern border (the "Blue Line") and never missed an annual October trip into the Adirondacks.

The park is huge, a lot of latitudinal change south to north. Elevation changes in your viewscape are many since most roads are following river valleys and you're looking up and across. So "peak" color is literally all over the map due to the many, many microclimates. The loop described below takes you through the heart of the park. By doing so, you will optimize sections of peak color.

Since you would be coming from the south, the park loop can be done starting from either east (I-87) or west (Rt. 10). So Lake George stop could be either on way in to Lake Placid or way out.

This is how it would go if you choose the west side first. Exit I-90 at Rt. 10, Canajoharie/Palatine Bridge. This way into the park takes you through Amish dairy farm country. You can pull off on road shoulder anywhere and stock up on many offerings of "Amish Baked Goods". Stay on Rt. 10 until it ends at Rt. 8. Head east. At Speculator you head north on Rt.30. At Indian Lake you are heading west on Rt. 30/Rt.28. At Blue Mountain Lake you are heading north on Rt. 30/Rt. 28N. At Long Lake stay on Rt. 30. At Tupper Lake take Rt. 30/Rt. 3. East of town take Rt. 3 where the highways split. At Saranac Lake take Rt. 86 to Lake Placid (thank your lucky stars it's October not January and -45 degrees). Lake Placid (to or from) I-87 is pretty straightforward via Rts. 73 and 9N. Note that all of these highways are valley roads. Easy sweeping curves, yes... but no tight mountain switchbacks.

A good leg stretcher might be at Blue Mountain Lake. Park T@B in museum lot. On west side of Rt.30/Rt. 28N is a trail that runs along the west side of Blue Mountain Lake. On east side of the highway is a trailhead that splits either to Tyrell Pond or up Blue Mountain.

A weird suggestion for Lake Placid area. By the time you get there you will have passed countless square miles of gorgeous flat water. If you're saying to yourself, "I wonder what it would be like to be out on that water gliding along powered by muscle glycogen", there's a cool option. Joe Moore builds world class carbon fiber canoes at Placid Boatworks right on the edge of town.

https://placidboatworks.com/our-boats/

His shop is on a beautiful pond (it's actually pretty big). He lives to see the look on people's faces when they get in one of his canoes and are blown away. We have the 17' tandem Ohneka hanging from garage ceiling. It's a whopping 37 lbs. These canoes are so stable you can literally lean into a turn. They split the water like a razor. You are sitting on a padded seat shaped like that on a tractor and are using a carbon fiber kayak paddle. I see he is doing test paddles between 1:00 and 4:00 p.m. by appointment. If you're inclined, we'd highly recommend it!