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I've looked into either staying at/near the Adirondack Loj campground, or the Johns Brook campground. The person at the Loj told me it was 5 miles one-way to Mount Marcy from the JBL (after you've hiked the 3.5 miles to get to the JBL).

It looks like the ADK Loj will be around 7.5 miles roughly. So I'm looking at either a 13 mile one-day hike, or a 14-15 mile one-day hike. Is there a major difference b/t either the JBL or ADK Loj?

Is there a major difference b/w the Van Hoevenberg Trail or the Johns Brook trail?

I'm just trying to figure out which option to take, and I appreciate everyone's help. This is my first trip to the ADKs.

Did you read the South Meadow Road page? That's the route I took and found it to be very straight forward. I'm a pretty averaged pace hiker and it took me about 8 hours RT. South Meadow Road meets the Van Hoevenberg Trail at Marcy Dam...

The approach from the Loj is easier, as opposed to the the Phelps trail. If you're staying at the JBL, well then it might be different.

When are you going? How light is your camping setup?

If you camp light, you can head in further than JBL or the Loj. Slant Rock would make a very easy trip up Marcy, but if you carry 30lb to SR you'll be exhausted. If you can count on getting a lean-to or check the weather and be OK sleeping under the stars, you could hike into SR with 15lb and be very close to Marcy.

The easiest route is probably hiking from the Loj or South Meadows into Marcy Dam, and setting out from there. It's 1hour hike from the dirt road parking area to the Dam, and probably only 10mi round trip to Marcy and back to the Dam.

Can you actually camp at the Dam? My wife seems to think you can, but I'm having a hard time finding anything. I know I can camp at South Meadows, the Adirondack Loj, now Slant Rock, and Lake Colden (probably won't do that).

I get confused on the South Meadows page when it talks about it not being as popular as the "sites near the dam". Where are these Dam sites, lol?

It's a reasonable day trip from Heart Lake (ADK Loj). I'd camp at Heart Lake and make it a day trip. Other factor to consider is you have almost 1000 ft. less elevation change from Heart Lake than from the valley.

I still like the approach from the south the best. That necessitates camping at Lk. Colden unless you want a really long day hike.

Have fun!

Yes, there is camping at the Dam.

You need this: it comes with the map as well.

http://mountaineer.com/store/merchant.m ... y_Code=931

Thanks, auto, I absolutely do need that, but I'm leaving Sunday morning. I don't think it would get here in time. I'm hoping they can help me at the High Peaks Visitor Center on Monday.

You can get it at the Mountaineer in Keene Valley, or EMS in Lake Placid. Both are open Sunday mornings.

Marcy was actually a pretty easy day trip.

Autoxfil wrote: Slant Rock would make a very easy trip up Marcy, but if you carry 30lb to SR you'll be exhausted.

Of course everything is relative, but by most backpacking standards, carrying a 30-lb pack over less than 7 miles of generally easy trail without any major steep or rough sections, over an entire day, is not considered particularly exhausting, assuming we are talking about an average-sized adult male in decent shape. I could see it being a problem only if you have less than a full day (say, you only arrive at the Garden in the afternoon). In that case, however, there are other lean-to and camping options available, for instance at Bushnell Falls, which is about 5 miles from the trailhead.