 |
| Mount Marcy from the Cliff Mountain Cliffs |
As far as big hikes go, this was one of the biggest. Many people like to tackle the most remote ADK peaks as overnight trips. That way, they can hike in, set up a base camp and then do assorted peak hikes from there. Instead, I've done all of my 46ers as single day hikes. For Cascade, Algonquin, Giant and the other easily-accessible peaks, day hiking makes sense. But for the remote peaks like Redfield and Cliff, one can easily understand why people choose to camp overnight. If you don't, you're facing major mileage, major elevation gain and major trail time in a single day.
A long day hike is how I chose to do Redfield and Cliff. These peaks are definitely on the favorites list and I'd happily visit either one again. But both in one day? Not a chance. I turn 50 this year, FFS.
 |
| Floating Logs |
Although the approach to Redfield and Cliff via the Upper Works parking area is shorter, I started my hike at the Adirondack Loj since I wanted to minimize my morning drive time. I hit the trail at 6:30 a.m. sharp and passed the time on the boring first leg chatting with two hikers from Maryland who were (of course) on their way to Mount Marcy. I left them shortly before the dam and from there had the trail to Lake Arnold all to myself - probably because it is a notoriously rough trail. Beyond the height of land at Lake Arnold, the trail descends to the famous floating logs where I encountered a flummoxed solo hiker who had just fallen into the water. I showed her the bushwhack (into the trees/brush on the right) that allows one to circumnavigate the trouble spots. From there, I pressed on past Feldspar Brook and towards Uphill Brook.
 |
| Redfield Herd Path |
I took my first long break of the day at the cairn where the Mount Redfield and Cliff Mountain herd paths diverge in order to fuel up for big climb #1. I decided to do the longer spur first - Mount Redfield. I found it to be a great trail. For the most part, it follows picturesque Uphill Brook and then a smaller tributary thereof. At some points (in classic Adirondack fashion) the brook actually BECOMES the trail. It is a long, steady, upwards slog of rock hopping almost the whole way to the summit. The reward is a fabulous sweeping view of the southern Adirondacks.
 |
| View to the South from Mt. Redfield, Allen Mountain at Center |
After Redfield, I returned to my base camp at the cairn to prepare for Cliff Mountain. The herd path to the peak couldn't be more different than Redfield. Instead of the long, steady rock-hopping climb, Cliff starts with a notoriously messy and muddy lower section which leads to the peak's apropos natural feature - the cliffs. These are vertical exposed rock slabs requiring hand-over-hand and root-grabbing technique in order to negotiate. I expected one or two of these slabs, but there are actually four super-steep sections to tackle before you reach the top. But the "top" isn't really the top because Cliff also has a demoralizing false summit. So one must go down and then back up, trudging through more mud pits, until reaching the true, wooded summit. The peak offers little more than a partial view of Mount Colden. For Cliff, the fun is in the journey, not the destination. If you don't mind the mud, that is.
A lot of the fun of these peaks, I suppose, was the unexpected discoveries of the herd paths. My go-to ADK trail book, High Peaks Trails, is sorely lacking in descriptions of these peaks. Even the recently-published 15th edition has almost nothing about them. They really should do an update on Redfield and Cliff.
 |
| The Cliffs |
In their own ways, the herd paths to Redfield and Cliff were both tough. And after all of that, I still had the 6+ mile return hike to the parking area. By the time that I had renegotiated the floating log bushwhack, I started to realize why my chosen hiking route was harder than I had anticipated. I now had yet another long climb - the fourth of the day - back up to Lake Arnold before (finally) being able to descend. But because the trail to Lake Arnold is rough, even going down didn't offer much solace. I encountered a few hiking parties on the return and chatted for a few minutes with each. When I told them that I was returning from Redfield and Cliff as a day hike from Heart Lake via Lake Arnold, they looked at me like I had three heads.
 |
| Extra Socks, as ever, are Essential Gear in the ADK |
Mud-covered and weary, I finally reached the Loj at 5:30 p.m. 11 hours trail time. 20 miles distance. 5,000 feet of elevation gain.
This hike was tough... probably the hardest of all my 46er hikes.
Peak: Mount Redfield and Cliff Mountain
Elevation: 4.606 feet and 3,960 feet (Total Gain: 4,900 feet)
Distance: 20.5 miles roundtrip
Route: Out and Back: Loj to Marcy Dam via Trail 61; Trail 68 and 73 to Feldspar Brook lean-tos; Trail 121 to Uphill Brook; herd paths to Redfield and Cliff; return same route.
Conditions: Sunny, 70 degrees F
