Veterans Memorial Highway

The Toll House

Anytime we see the sun peek through the clouds we rush around to do something that needs a clear day for the optimum experience. Today was such a day and we took advantage of a clear blue sky to drive up the Veterans Memorial Highway to the top of Whiteface Mountain. Since we had hiked up a few days ago, the summit was sort of anticlimactic, but the highway was a great experience and I am glad we did it.

A wind-swept tree

The entrance to the Highway is through the gate at the Toll House. This Alpine-style gatehouse sits on the bank of the small Lake Stevens. The road from here to the summit is 5 miles in length with numerous pull-outs, most with picnic tables, for a view of the valley below or the mountain above. Even though the sun was out, there was a fog or haze settled on the valley, so it was not so good for photos. So I pointed my camera at several small waterfalls along the road or at the castle and summit house at the top.

End of the road at the castle and parking lot.

The castle is at the end of the road. It has two drive-through arches to create a U-turn area so you are set for the return trip down the mountain. The castle has restrooms, a gift shop, and small snack bar. From here there are two options to get to the summit—ride the elevator or walk. We took the elevator up. To get to the elevator we walked about 300 feet through a tunnel into the mountain. The elevator whisked us up quickly to the summit house. We walked the half mile “trail” back down to the castle after a few minutes on the top.

A drive-thru castle

In the tunnel to the elevator

The summit area of Whiteface, as well as the other high peaks in the area, is classified as an Alpine zone. Although at first glance it may look like a rock surface, there is actually a shallow layer of soil and on this soil is a whole different world of vegetation that struggles for survival in a harsh climate. We stayed on the rock, of course, to protect the vegetation, but I was able to get a couple photos of these delicate flowers no more than a couple inches off the ground. In the Alpine zone, if there are trees at all, they are short and scrawny. The winds have blown these trees into unnatural shapes creating a strange, sort of alien landscape.

Waterfall photo stop

The highway itself is paved but a very rough drive. The pavement is buckled in many places—probably a result of frost heaves. However, it was plenty wide with a stone wall along the edge in most areas so you don’t get that feeling like you might fall to the valley below. The pull-outs were long and deep giving plenty of room for several cars. It was not a heart stopping drive like Mt. Washington in New Hampshire. We enjoyed it.

Tundra flower

Whiteface Mountain

Whiteface Mtn from Ski Resort at the base

The sun came up on a big blue sky this morning so we threw our stuff in our packs and headed up the mountain. After our first attempt a week ago we had studied the map and guidebook in detail and decided an unmaintained and unmarked trail to Mt. Marble would get us up Whiteface in 2 less miles. Last week we had seen the trail intersection sign where the trail connects with the Wilmington Trail. The Mt. Marble trail essentially follows the old T-bar lift route from when this section of mountain was used for skiing. The trail was easy to follow (right up the stream bed) and we both agreed it was easier than the Wilmington Trail even though it was nearly as steep.

The trail up Whiteface Mountain

Once on the Wilmington Trail, we climbed steeply and steadily for about a mile and a half. The trail leveled off for about a mile after that, but level was wet (almost as wet as last week when it was raining. I have decided they really don’t “build” trail here. They just route the trail through the stream bed, wet or dry it makes no difference, and then just tack up trail markers on the trees. There was one point in the trail where I think we actually crossed a pond. By the end of the day my boots were so wet and heavy with mud I felt like I was lifting club feet. Then came the steep pitch to the summit. Once on top, the view was spectacular. There were a few clouds, but we had good views of the high peaks region, Lake Champlain, and Vermont.

The summit as seen from the trial

Parking lot for those driving up to the top

Whiteface is the 5th highest peak in New York and it is a skier’s mecca. It’s not just world class, it is Olympic class with a 3,166 feet vertical run, the greatest this side of the Rockies. Whiteface stands alone a little north of the rest of the high peaks so the views from the top are fantastic. On a clear day, they say you can see Lake Champlain, Vermont, and all the way to Montreal. The Atmospheric Sciences Research Center maintains a summit building which houses some of their equipment. It has a great observation deck.

Atmospheric Sciences Research Bldg

Great view of Lake Placid

On the summit

Opportunities for activity abound on the mountain. In addition to the ski runs there are hiking and mountain biking trails. Whiteface is the only high peak in the Adirondacks whose summit is accessible by car. The Whiteface Mountain Veterans Memorial Highway will get you almost to the top. Our special “see it all” tickets include this so we will wait for another sunny day and go to the top again.

Tram building and ski runs

View from Mt Marble

The Flume

Have I mentioned that it has been raining in New York? It has rained everyday since we moved to Wilmington. Apparently, it is very unusual to have this much rain. We are noticing the weathermen saying “sorry” at the end of their forecast. We really didn’t mind. After all, we are from Tennessee where drought conditions have been a major concern for a couple years. So we always welcome rain. Well, I finally got tired of it yesterday.

A stone wall

One of the luxuries of being in an area for an extended amount of time is that you can wait for the “perfect” day to do some particular activity that is high on your priority list. There is only one thing we really want to do while we are here which weather can make or break—climb Mt. Marcy. It is going to be a hard hike and since we haven’t done anything that difficult in a long time, we wanted to “practice” first. Our practice mountain—Whiteface. We have been waiting and waiting for the skies to clear. All last week the weatherman kept saying that Monday looked like it would be a dry day. We made our plans to climb the mountain.

A wet, boggy Wilmington Trail

The campground boasted of a trail at the back of our section which connects with the Wilmington Trail, the favored trail to the summit. Careful scrutiny of all the maps we have gave no indication of such a trail. Not wanting to find ourselves in a bind on Monday, we decided to scout the campground trail on Sunday afternoon (in the rain). Sure enough, the trail exists and goes right to Wilmington Trail. However, we estimated it to be about a mile one way and it hit the Wilmington Trail just a stones throw from the trail head. No thanks, I’ll drive around.

An old toboggon shelter

Well, our attempt to hike up Whiteface Mountain yesterday was unsuccessful. By Monday morning the weatherman had changed the forecast and was saying that there was a 30% chance of rain. We decided to go anyway because Gene couldn't go on Tuesday because of his work and the rest of the week is supposed to be raining. So we struck out bright and early. It got cloudier and cloudier with every step we took. It would drizzle a little bit then stop. About the first mile and a half was pretty good--almost level and pretty dry, not many rocks. After that it got really steep. We climbed 3000 feet in the next 2 miles. For you non-hikers, that’s very steep. The drizzle kept up so the rocks, and there were plenty of them, were wet and slippery. About the time we got to where the trail leveled off some it came a downpour. Since the trail was more flat, it held all the water. We much have walked for half a mile with water over our boots. With the rain, and the rocks, and the mud puddles we had only gone about 3 and a half miles in 3 and a half hours. It was about that time that I looked up and as far as I could see down the trial was a puddle who knows how deep. We still had almost 2 miles to go so we decided to turn around. We got another downpour on our way back to the truck. We were soaked with mud by the time it was all said and done.

Flume with Whiteface Mtn in background

So, since the weatherman said that now Tuesday was going to be dry day this week, I decided I would just drive to the top of Whiteface Mountain. I got up and got my stuff done so I could get an early start. I went down the road about a half mile from our campground to take a couple pictures of the river. I happened to look up at the mountain and saw it was in the cloud. I didn’t want to pay the fee for the drive up and then not have any views once I got there. So I did laundry instead; and it rained this afternoon.

Flume

The photos were taken at fleeting moments of sunshine on our hike up Sunday. We were surprised to find a stone wall along the trail. This type of stonewall is common in the South. Farmers cleared the stones from their fields (themselves or their slaves). The stones were simply piled along the edge of the field or property boundary. Here, however, a trench of sorts must be dug to create a foundation layer of stone to prevent the frost heaves from pushing the wall over.

The photos of “the flume” were taken this morning. Over time the Ausable River and geological changes of the area has gouged out a gorge. With the heavy rains the river is full forcing its way downstream. Pretty spectacular.