I lead my first ADK hike as a trip leader up Goodnow mountain.  I love this mountain because it has such variety on the trail.  The very initial 100 feet or so is a quick steep up to stairs and a short bridge, and then it levels out for a good long while.  For the entire stretch of the "flat" part of the trail, you can see the reforestation project SUNY ESF is doing on the mountain.  When you leave the flat trail and turn to start heading uphill some more, you cross the study area, and they have a sign explaining what they are doing.

In my quest to do all the fire towers, and my desire to get used to my heavier winter pack, I did 2 fire towers.  First up was Goodnow.  This is maintained by SUNY ESF and last winter they did some logging to study different methods of reforesting.  That was clear on the way in as you walk through the experiment.  But overall, the trail was a lovely trail, gentle, and the views from the top were just wonderful.  I didn't get on top in time to see the sunrise, but I did see it on the surrounding hills.  This is for sure a repeat hike for me in the future.