Algonquin & Iroquois Mountains

At 4,115 feet Algonquin is the second highest mountain in New York and, judging from the crowd at the top on June 29, 2002 one of its most popular. We were met by a steward whose job is to keep the hoards from trampling the fragile alpine vegetation. Two women in Department of Environmental Conservation uniform told a tired trecker that they could summon a helicopter to lift her off the mountain, but only if she were unconscious.

The trail to the summit of Algonquin is rocky and fairly steep from the turnoff to Wright Peak but the open rock is so grippy and clear it often feels like walking up a tilted sidewalk.

The top of Iroquois is just 1.1 miles from the summit of Algonquin but distances can be deceiving. Reaching Iroquis means twice crossing Boundary Peak and a smaller unnamed peak and three swampy cols filled with cripple bush. Our guidebook said the last time the trail was worked on was 1976. In those years the trail has closed in to a foot-wide tunnel.

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