Whiteface and Esther to close out the winter 46 hiking season, and a day after birthday hike.
The trails are a mixed bag. I decided to keep things easy so I went up via the road... adds 2 miles but it's not steep at all so much easier overall. A little bit after the toll booth, I put on the snowshoes as I was starting to sink into the snow and ice.
Saturday, May 23, I did go up to do Whiteface and Esther. I started at Marble Mountain, which is an old ski mountain, and the trail literally goes up the old tow path for a lift. It was steep and rocky. Once at the top, great views though. At that point I joined the Wilmington trail and it was a slightly less steep climb to the point the trail for Esther comes off. At about 3500 feet though, about 0.6 miles from that point, it became mostly snow/ice instead of mostly mud/water. Thankfully I had my spikes, and I wore the most of the rest of the hike up.&nb
This coming weekend, I will go out and attempt the northern most peaks of the high peaks, Whiteface and Esther. These are both north of Lake Placid, and Whiteface was actually a major venue for the 1980's Olympics. There is an observatory and a road to the top too.... I'll be hiking in from the old Marble Mountain ski area, going to Whiteface first, and then hitting Esther, which is an unmarked trail/herd path, on the way down.