The view from Gothics is spectacular; however, the view from Pyramid is even better. This unique angle perches the climber atop the massive basin in front of, obviously, Basin Mountain. Marcy rises directly behind Basin, Haystack is to Basin's left, and Saddleback is to its right. Pyramid also has a stunning view of Gothics South-facing slide. From Gothics' true summit, you can see all the peaks mentioned, but you cannot see the whole mountains like you can from Pyramid. This is because Gothics' summit is on the North side of Saddleback, whereas Pyramid forms the Eastern side of the basin in front of Basin. From Gothics' true summit, however, there is a better view to the North (where Pyramid has none) and a clearer view of the MacIntyre range in the West.
I climbed Gothics for a third time during the last weekend of September. I climbed it from Lower Ausable Lake via Pyramid again, but I added a little twist this time. Instead of heading to the main summit right away, I went over to the west summit after climbing up from Pyramid. I enjoyed the view from the west summit even better than Gothics' true summit. Basically, I thought it was better because you're simply closer to the highest peaks (Basin, Haystack, Marcy, etc.). In addition, the view down to the col between Saddleback and Gothics is pretty awesome (and quite steep) and the view of Gothics itself is great. I'm not sure if it's a better view than Pyramid, but I was impressed! And it's a nice short walk from the junction, so it doesn't require much extra effort.
skiing311 - Sep 5, 2002 3:51 pm - Hasn't voted
Untitled CommentThe view from Gothics is spectacular; however, the view from Pyramid is even better. This unique angle perches the climber atop the massive basin in front of, obviously, Basin Mountain. Marcy rises directly behind Basin, Haystack is to Basin's left, and Saddleback is to its right. Pyramid also has a stunning view of Gothics South-facing slide. From Gothics' true summit, you can see all the peaks mentioned, but you cannot see the whole mountains like you can from Pyramid. This is because Gothics' summit is on the North side of Saddleback, whereas Pyramid forms the Eastern side of the basin in front of Basin. From Gothics' true summit, however, there is a better view to the North (where Pyramid has none) and a clearer view of the MacIntyre range in the West.
skiing311 - Sep 30, 2002 10:43 am - Hasn't voted
Untitled CommentI climbed Gothics for a third time during the last weekend of September. I climbed it from Lower Ausable Lake via Pyramid again, but I added a little twist this time. Instead of heading to the main summit right away, I went over to the west summit after climbing up from Pyramid. I enjoyed the view from the west summit even better than Gothics' true summit. Basically, I thought it was better because you're simply closer to the highest peaks (Basin, Haystack, Marcy, etc.). In addition, the view down to the col between Saddleback and Gothics is pretty awesome (and quite steep) and the view of Gothics itself is great. I'm not sure if it's a better view than Pyramid, but I was impressed! And it's a nice short walk from the junction, so it doesn't require much extra effort.