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Hi. I'm thinking about running up Mt. Marcy at the end of an upcoming trip to NYS.

Was wondering if anyone here had done it before.

If so, I'd love to hear about your experiences...route, time, difficulties, advice, etc.

I'm estimating a 4-hour round trip. Is that in the ballpark?

Thanks.

I used to run up Mt. Marcy every few weeks in the non-winter months when I lived in Lake Placid.

My preferred route was to start at the South Meadow trailhead and take the truck trail to Marcy Dam, then follow the Van Hoevenburg trail to the summit. It is pretty easy to maintain a steady run until the second crossing of Phelps Brook (just a little ways past the cutoff for Phelps Mt.), at which point I would switch to a mix of running and fast hiking (based on grade and terrain - lots of rock hopping) on the way to the summit.

The summit from South Meadow is roughly a 14 mile round trip and it would take me approximately 3:15-3:20 at a long, slow distance (LSD) pace.

RobG

Deungsan, notice you are from California. Not sure if you are used to our Eastern hiking trails. Preceding posts are correct that the Hoevenberg trail is is well maintained. But it is nothing like your western trails with switchbacks and incredible trail building (yes, detect a note of jealousy here). The ADK trails are great but are very rocky and can get quite wet in places. Not to dissuade you, just be prepared for a good challenge! Great for hiking, very challenging to run on most of them.

To reiterate -- you may be surprised by all the slippery rocks and mud. Doubtless you will find places where the trail has logs floating in muddy water... and shoes don't dry out too quickly when the humidity is 70%.

Thanks, all, for the pointers.

Since I spent the first 20+ years of my life in that part of the country, I know very well how wet it can be.

I'll be wearing trail running shoes with aggressive soles, so traction should be OK. Won't be looking for them to ever dry out. If they just drain and shed mud, that will be fine.

I'm thinking mid-Sept. -- mostly because of my travel schedule. Seems like that will be nice and cool but too early for snow. Correct?

What about biting insects? Will they be gone by then?

Thanks!

In most years, by September, the black flies are mainly gone.

Thanks, MoapaPk. That's what I was hoping to hear.

Agreed...I think generally August - September is the nicest time of the year in the ADKS.....assuming they don't get a nasty rogue hurricane like Irene.

In the 60s, there were several tornadoes that swept through the southern part of the Adirondacks and totally flattened areas near Forestport and Old Forge. In August of 1976, a hurricane off the east coast brought extreme weather to the Adirondacks -- I was on the trail at the time, and it was a major effort to cross the normally small streams by the John's Brook Lodge.

Hi, all.

I just finished my Mt. Marcy run.

2:38 to get to the summit.

Drizzle all the way with wind chill below freezing, according to the people working at the bottom.

Trail was very wet, but my inov-8 Roclite 295 shoes provided great traction.

No views at the top, but that was OK.

Route was well marked, making it hard to get lost.

Overall, I had a great time!

Cool! I'm planning a trip over the next two weeks (can't wait for the foliage!).

What trail did you take? Start time?

deungsan wrote:Hi, all.

I just finished my Mt. Marcy run.

2:38 to get to the summit.

Drizzle all the way with wind chill below freezing, according to the people working at the bottom.

Trail was very wet, but my inov-8 Roclite 295 shoes provided great traction.

No views at the top, but that was OK.

Route was well marked, making it hard to get lost.

Overall, I had a great time!

Too bad you couldn't have waited another day. Saturday weather was spectacular!

LesterLong wrote:Cool! I'm planning a trip over the next two weeks (can't wait for the foliage!).

What trail did you take? Start time?

The Van H. Trail ... Loj to dam to top.

Started around 10 a.m.

Regarding water: It was very wet and muddy. You can't keep your feet dry for long.

In some areas, there's water flowing down the trail. There are also puddles you can't avoid. And some of the planks that are mounted over the wetter areas will give when you step in them, dunking your foot when you least expect it.

If it is warmish and you have the right shoes and socks, that's one thing.

If it is cold, you'd better be used to functioning with frigid feet.

Fun, though.

whoo, that's good time.

But those shoes aren't waterproof? Seems some trail shoes are and some aren't. Of course nothing's waterproof when it goes over the top.

I just googled those shoes and one site has them like 50 balloons less than the others.

http://www.geartrade.com/item/341030/ro ... 4AodClcAsA

I've actually managed to get 3mm neoprene socks (surf socks, low-cut) in my inov8 approach shoes. Neoprene socks really suck for all day on the trail; I typically use them as a last resort, when on snow. YMMV. Most shoes don't stretch enough to accommodate such thick socks.