Hiking

High Peaks Ridge Traverse

Nippletop and Dial

by Bill Ingersoll

It is rare that I recommend a hike in the High Peaks. This is not because the highest mountains in New York State are anything but rugged, wild and imminently beautiful. Indeed, the High Peaks region boasts the most intricate network of wilderness hiking trails in the Northeast. While these mountains are medium-sized even by eastern standards, they have been forever preserved in their wild state under Article XIV of the state constitution.

However, I don’t often recommend hiking in the area because more than enough people find their way to the High Peaks without my help. Even if there were no guidebooks or guidebook authors, this mountain region would still be a very popular place. In fact, some parts of the region are so overused that the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), which manages all public lands in the Adirondacks, has imposed new regulations, which will hopefully protect these fragile mountain ecosystems from the very people who come to enjoy them.
Among the new regulations are limits on overnight groups (8 people), limits on day-use groups (15 people), restrictions on camping sites (camping in the mountains is allowed at designated sites only), and a general ban on all campfires in the most heavily used section. That last regulation holds a special significance for the hike I am about to describe.

All that being said, there are many exceptional trip possibilities in the High Peaks region worth noting. One is a loop over Nippletop and Dial mountains, in the Dix Mountain Wilderness Area. These two peaks — summits on one continuous ridge — offer outstanding views of the Great Range. Plus, the route described passes a number of delightful waterfalls on a crystal-clear brook, as well as the collection of shallow tarns in Elk Pass. This loop is 14.7 miles long, and its 6,500-foot cumulative elevation change (both up and down, and often back up again) will make for a very challenging day. Get an early start!

How To Get There
The trailhead is located in St. Huberts, on NY Route 73, south of Keene Valley. The preferred parking area for this trip is also shared with the trailheads for Giant and Noonmark mountains, and it often fills to capacity. To reach the trails to Nippletop and Dial, walk along the side road leading past the private golf course to Lake Road, and bear left. The Adirondack Mountain Reserve (AMR) owns this land, although the state holds an easement that allows public access to the hiking trails. The club has a long-standing policy that forbids all dogs from passing through, however.

The Trail
Follow Lake Road for 2.7 miles past the elaborate gate at the headquarters area, and pass a number of side trails to one marked as the Gill Brook Trail. (Along the way, you will also pass a trail marked as the Henry Goddard Leach Trail. That will be your return route.) The Gill Brook Trail leaves the road and follows its namesake brook quite closely. It is all a joyous cascade, but the first real waterfall occurs 0.5-mile from the road. Several more await you just upstream, and you will find no two are alike. One of them is named Artist’s Falls on topographical maps, though which one is unclear.

The trail is very close to the brook when possible, and pulls back when necessary. After a while, you begin to encounter several side trails to the right, leading to such places as Indian Head, Fish Hawk Cliffs, and Colvin Mountain. For this particular hike, stay faithful to Gill Brook and always bear left.

Past the intersection with the trail to Colvin, the brook lies secluded within a deep, wooded glen, mostly out of sight of the trail. You can glimpse the mountains towards which you are climbing to your left, and although you have already climbed 2000 feet, the distance you have yet to climb seems daunting.

Nearly 6 miles and over 3 hours from your car, you reach Elk Pass. This saddle between Nippletop and Colvin is home to three shallow pools, and the trail winds sinuously among them all. Finally you reach a fading sign pointing up the mountain: Nippletop, 1.1 miles away. It is also nearly 1,300 feet up, and that makes it quite a climb!

The trail is steep, rocky and eroded. Set a steady pace for yourself, and when you pause to catch your breath, look behind you to enjoy the developing view of the Great Range. The steep section ends at a trail intersection on the crest of the ridge. Bear right for the 0.2-mile spur to the summit of Nippletop. Like many of the High Peaks, the top of this mountain is forested with a dense layer of spruce and balsam — almost impenetrable, were it not for the trail. The destination is a small open area that peers into the heart of the High Peaks region, dominated by Mount Marcy, the state’s highest peak.

Return to the last intersection and bear right to follow the ridgeline to Dial. As you lose elevation, the woods become taller. You descend and rise over several bumps and knobs on the ridgeline. Dial’s summit is two miles from the intersection, and you will recognize it for its rock ledge overlooking the ragged peaks of the Great Range.

You descend from Dial, and then climb over the completely wooded summit of Bear Den. From Bear Den, you drop into a draw filled with white birch, and soon you will sense a queer opening the woods ahead. In September 1999, a forest fire ravaged this section of the trail. Some careless campers had not been able to completely douse the coals of their fire when they left, since there was no nearby source of water, and the smoldering embers soon grew into flames that engulfed entire trees. Rangers and prison inmates ultimately contained the blaze, and the timely arrival of Hurricane Floyd extinguished it for good.

From the burn area, you descend through hemlock-filled woods to eventually reach the Lake Road once again. Bear right to return to the headquarters area, and then bear right again before the golf course. After your day spent traversing this mountain ridge, you will appreciate the seat of your car like never before.

Bill Ingersoll (hikerbill30@msn.com) lives in Barneveld. He has joined Barbara McMartin in revising the Discover series and is co-author of several books. For more information, consult Discover the Adirondack High Peaks (Lake View Press).

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