Mount Marcy is the highest peak in the Adirondack Mountains and in New York, soaring 5,344 feet above sea level. It is the monarch of the 46 mountains that comprise the High Peaks of the Adirondacks.
Working for the New York State Geological Survey, Professor Ebenezer Emmons organized and led the first recorded ascent of Mount Marcy on August 5, 1837, naming the peak for New York Governor William Learned Marcy. The mountain was also known as Tahawus, an Indian name meaning “Cloud Splitter.”
Today the Mount Marcy summit can be reached on well-marked trails from four directions around the mountain. All are long hikes for your dog but none are technically difficult. The shortest, and most popular, route comes in from the north on the Van Hoevenberg Trail. It is still seven miles one way, with an elevation gain of 3,224 feet. About two miles in the trail crosses Marcy Lake - a perfect refresher for your dog on the way up and on the way back.
The views are scant along the way as you work moderately through a dense spruce forest. Nearing the summit, Mount Marcy is covered in dense stands of scrubby balsam fir and the trail narrows considerably and a bit of rock climbing is introduced. A few hundred feet below the summit the treeline fades away and your dog is left with a scramble to the top. Views in every direction of the High Peaks await.
Mount Marcy, Adirondack Park, New York
(518) 582-2000
www.adkvic.org/
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