Vanderwhacker Mountain

I found this to be a very nice hike. It was nothing that I had expected, I compared that to what I had read anyways. Its like reading a book, forming your own vision in your mind, then watching the movie in a theater, based on some others imagination.

The trail is a soft gradual hike, from trail head to the summit it is a 2.5 mile trip, 5 miles round trip. The climb is so gradual that you do not realize the climb is just under 1700" of elevation gain. The mountain itself is at 3386' of elevation. There isn't a lot of climbing until you reach the cabin, from there to the summit, just under 1.5 miles is where you gain your elevation.

The trail crisscrosses a few waterways, which are either covered with a foot bridge, or rock hop-able. Just before the ridge there is a nice switchback that helps easy the climb as well. Which I will assume is fairly new as it is not defined on the maps I have seen. There were a few other areas where the trail has been re-routed.

I left the trail-head at 8:30 and arrived at the summit around 1030, we took out time. The dogs did very well, and this is a dog friendly climb.

The dirt road into the trail-head is in fairly good shape, with a few pot holes. I had brought my truck because I had read that it was a rough road, and a car may have trouble (with clearance) getting into the trail-head. I didn't see where there would be any issues, so long as someone takes their time and watches where they go.

A real gem.

Goodman Mountain

This mountain is located behind what locals in Tupper Lake call Lumberjack Spring and was once referred to as Litchfield Hill and on some older maps can still be found as such, while It may not be ever an official name. A new trail has been developed by the DEC to mimic the one developed over time by users; it now clearly accesses the summit of Goodman.

This 1.7 mile, one way, hike is over easy to moderate terrain. Danielle wanted to do this one first, and she made a good decision as it is an awesome hike. From the parking area located at the old road at the back. This old road used to be Highway 10 between Long Lake and Tupper Lake, back in the day; the old tarmac is still beneath your feet for quite a ways. Just outside of the parking area there is a sign in and a new bridge over Cold Brook. A short distance in you will be to the right of an long ridge that you will follow along the road. The road is in decent shape and a neat way to hike to this peak.

The road soon climbs steadily to a height-of-land where the new trail leaves the old road on your left. This is roughly 1-mile in from the car. Goodman's summit is only 0.25 miles away by the way the crow flies, but the trail swings around the steep slopes to avoid unnecessary erosion and making the hike much more accessible and achievable for almost anyone. Once on the trail you will enjoy a wonderful open hardwood forest, where deep greens of the leaves and ferns are the primary backdrop. The trail will swing gently around the base of the mountain and slowly ascend before it makes a sudden turn toward the peak and climb a bit steeper to the shoulder. The trail then follows a short ridge line before it finally ascends to the summit.

In 1964, Mr. Goodman was a twenty-year-old college student who decided to give up a tranquil Adirondack summer to battle the oppressive heat and prejudices found in Mississippi, where he joined a voter registration drive called Freedom Summer. The aim of the project, which was part of a larger effort led by various civil rights groups, was to expand black voting in the South. Not long after Mr. Goodman arrived in Mississippi, he and two of his contemporaries, Michael Schwerner and James Chaney, were murdered by the Ku Klux Klan. This tragic news reverberated throughout the country, including the town of Tupper Lake, where the Goodmans were well known and appreciated. Many historians note the deaths of Mr. Goodman, Mr. Schwerner, and Mr. Chaney, as a turning point in the civil rights movement, serving as a catalyst for the passing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Outstanding views of Coney Mt, Tupper Lake, and the Horseshoe Lake Wild Forest are there to await you.

Elevation: 2,178 feet

Elevation Gain: 570 feet

A beautiful hike, that isn't strenuous. Danielle really liked this.