 |
| View to the South to Ausable Lakes from Saddleback Mountain Summit |
For a late-summer, mid-week section hike of the Great Range, I knew that the famed Saddleback Cliffs were something that I'd very much prefer to go up, rather than down. I therefore mapped out a hike over Basin and Saddleback as a counterclockwise loop wherein I'd hike past both and then circle back over the summits. The hitch? This route meant going up the Shorey Shortcut, a route with the ignominious reputation as being the "most hated" trail in all of the Adirondacks.
 |
| First Trail Break Spot - John's Brook Lodge |
I arrived at the Garden just before 6 a.m. and was on the trail within a matter of minutes. It didn't take much energy to do the easy 3.5 miles on the Phelps Trail to John's Brook Lodge, where I took my first break of the day to fill up my water bottles. I never stay overnight there, but the great thing about the JBL is that you can save water weight on the first part of your hike by traveling with empty bottles and filling up there. I hung out on the porch and figured that I'd talk to a few hikers while eating second breakfast, but the place was super quiet and not a soul stepped out of the lodge. Too early, I guess.
 |
| John's Brook Running High |
I soon pressed on along the Phelps Trail and quickly noticed that John's Brook was raging, probably from the previous two days of showers and thunderstorms. My observation of high water was quickly confirmed by three hikers who passed me heading down to the lodge, warning me of a tough crossing. Sure enough, the crossing point was way too high to cross safely, so I spent a good 15 minutes scouting for a better place. I finally found one that was pretty safe to negotiate using trekking poles for balance on the slippery rocks, but it did require one fairly substantial leap. I made sure to lunge low and forward on the landing rock in the event that it was algae-covered and fortunately had no issue.
 |
| View of Saddleback from the Shorey Shortcut |
After the crossing, the trail starts its gradual climb to the junction with the Shorey Shortcut. The Shorey really wasn't THAT different from many other muddy, seriously-steep-trails-turned-streams in the High Peaks, but I guess I can endorse its hated reputation. The issue is that the trail makes you climb high up above the col on the west side of Basin and then you have to climb all that way back down to get to the point where you even begin your climb of the high peak. Why didn't this Shorey dude just build the trail directly there?
 |
| View of Marcy from Basin Summit |
Once I negotiated ups and downs of the Shorey Shit Show, I was ready to head east to the two high peaks of the day. I made quick work up the many scrambles to Basin and admired the bare summit view back towards Mount Marcy. It was windy, so I decided against my usual practice of taking a break on the top and instead quickly pressed on to Saddleback. The Range Trail requires you to go over one "hump" before finally arriving at the eagerly-anticipated highlight of the day's hike - the Saddleback Cliffs.
 |
| Approaching the Saddleback Cliffs |
When I arrived, I encountered a flummoxed solo hiker with his black lab. I quickly learned that they had hiked the same route as I did, but were now stuck. Much of the time, four legs work better than two in the high peaks. But not here. The Saddleback Cliffs are seriously vertical, requiring hikers to use hand and foot holds to clamber up the open rock faces to various ledges, each leading to the next hand-over-hand climbing point. I offered to help the guy out and our strategy was for me to climb up first. Then, when I got situated and balanced on the ledge, he would lift his dog up and then toss me the leash so I could lead the pooch up to the ledge. It worked on the first section, but that was it. It became way too steep and, coupled with the high winds, the poor dog kept getting scared and pulling out of his collar. In the end, they had no choice but to retrace their steps the way they came.
After bidding farewell to the unfortunate pair, I finished the climb. There are tons of descriptions of these cliffs online - some say they are easy, and others are overly alarmist. None of them accurately describe just how exposed you are on the bare rock, so I was unsure what to expect. In the end, it really wasn't that bad. After taking a few quick summit pictures (it was still too windy to linger), I pressed on and started my descent via the Ore Bed Brook trail. This is one of my favorite trails in the High Peaks as it offers sweeping views on the descent, with one remarkable section in which a wooden stairway descends 100 yards to allow safe passage back into the valley over a long section of bare rock. One of my favorite birds, the White-Throated Sparrow, was singing his distinctive song at a pretty spot where runoff was cascading down a granite slab. I stopped for a quick break and then entered the woods on the final section that pretty much follows a brook the whole way down.
 |
| Stairs on Ore Bed Brook Trail |
Peaks: Basin and Saddleback
Elevation: 4.827 feet and 5,515 feet (Gain: 4,100 feet)
Distance: 15.7 miles
Route: "The Garden" to Phelps Trail to Shorey Shortcut to Range Trail to Ore Bed Brook Trail to Phelps Trail
Conditions: Partly Cloudy, 40 degrees F, 15-25 mph winds
