Hiking to the top of Cascade and Porter Mountains in the Adirondacks

In August, I went to the Adirondacks with a friend for a weekend. We wanted to do some challenging hikes, so we decided to tackle some of the region’s famous High Peaks. We started with the two peaks in the challenge that are arguably the most popular and accessible: Cascade and Porter Mountains.

For those seeking the famous 46er title (which you can get by reaching the summit of all 46 mountains over 4,000 feet in the Adirondacks), Cascade and Porter Mountains are often the gateway to the challenge. This 10.2-km (6.3-mile) hike is considered one of the easiest in the challenge, and the summits offer unparalleled views of the High Peaks region.

Since we knew this hike was extremely popular, my friend Vero and I made sure to arrive early at the trailhead along Route 73, southeast of Lake Placid. The parking lot was still almost full when we arrived, but we were able to find a spot and then we set off on the trail, heading towards our first High Peaks!

A note before I begin: the trail we took is considered the old trail. At the time of writing, it seems that a new trail, built with sustainable design practices to reduce trail erosion, is almost complete. This trail will start from Mount Van Hovenberg Rec Center. When it is open and accessible, the old trail will be closed and gradually returned to nature.

But as this new trail is not yet open, we hiked the old one that starts along Route 73. After signing in the trail log, we began the hike, on a rocky trail, which climbs from the first few metres.

The climb

In fact, for a hike that has a reputation as the easiest of the 46er Challenge, the Cascade and Porter Mountains trail offer little respite! The trail is rocky and climbs almost constantly. We had to navigate around large boulders, but fortunately it wasn’t overly technical (nothing like McKenzie Mountain in Saranac Lake, probably my hardest hike to date in the Adirondacks).

In fact, despite the constant climb, we were still moving at a fairly brisk pace. The trail didn’t seem well marked to me, but given its popularity, it was very clearly well-trodden.

The climb seemed to become even more intense after the first kilometre, but fortunately there were also a few short (very short) flatter sections to allow us to catch our breath.

After about 3 kilometres (1.9 mile), we came to a section with a large rocky surface that we had to climb over. Again, nothing like McKenzie Mountain, but I imagine it must be a little more difficult to deal with in the rain, when the rock is slippery.

It was near there that we arrived at what is probably the first viewpoint on the trail… The problem was that when we arrived at this point, we realized that a thick fog was covering the surrounding area. Impossible to see the landscape, even though the weather forecast was supposed to be good that day.

We continued our climb, which seems to me from this point on a little less demanding. Around the 3.2-kilometre (2-mile) mark, we reached the split between the trails leading to the Cascade and Porter Mountains summits.

Since Cascade Mountain has a reputation for offering exceptional views, we decided to save this summit for last and start with Porter, hoping that the fog would clear by the time we reached the summit.

Porter Mountain

At an elevation of 4,059 feet (1,237 metres), Porter Mountain is the 38th highest mountain in the Adirondacks. It was named after Noah H. Porter Jr., who is said to have been the first to summit it in 1875.

From the split, it’s a little over a kilometre to the summit of Porter Mountain. The trail first climbs down a bit, allowing us to catch our breath after the steep climb. Then the trail flattened out, taking us through some very, very muddy sections.

Despite the mud, we reached the top of Porter Mountain without too much trouble. The only issue was that the view didn’t clear at all. Apparently, on a clear day, you can see the Great Range and the summit of Cascade Mountain. But that’s a view for another time for us, I guess! So we just sat on the big rock at the top, had a snack and enjoyed the quietness in the fog.

Then we hiked back on this short section of the trail to get back to the split and head towards Cascade Mountain.

Cascade Mountain

At an elevation of 4,098 feet (1,249 metres), Cascade Mountain is the 36th highest mountain in the Adirondacks. Its name comes from a waterfall that flows at its base into Upper and Lower Cascade Lakes (which can be seen from Route 73).

The summit of Cascade Mountain is about 500 metres (0.3 mile) away from the spit. This portion of the trail started out relatively flat and easy to follow. The trail first meandered through conifers, then took us across a grassy section on a small wooden footbridge.

Eventually, at one point, the trees began to clear, and we came to the final climb to the top of Cascade Mountain. At this point, we had to follow the yellow markers and cairns indicating the way forward on the open rock face. In the fog, even the cairns were a bit hard to see from a distance.

Despite my disappointment at not being able to see anything of the landscape, the thick fog gave a special atmosphere at the summit. I felt like I was walking in another world.

There is one last good final climb to do on the rocky surface, and then we finally reached the official summit of Cascade Mountain. We sat at the summit for a long time, hoping that the fog would eventually clear. It seems that on a clear day, you can have a spectacular 360-degree view of the surrounding area.

While we were waiting, we had the chance to talk with a forest ranger who gave us information about the summit, and the alpine ecosystem found there. Cascade Mountain is one of the few peaks in the Adirondacks where alpine flora is found. As it is particularly fragile, it is very important to stay on the marked trail.

We waited a long time, but in vain. As the fog did not seem to want to clear, we eventually decided to start the descent.

We came across many, many hikers on the way back, proof that this hike is very popular. The descent was not too difficult, we took our time to navigate between the many rocks, and finally, we reached Route 73. In all, it took us 3h30 (including a few breaks) to cover 10.3 kilometres (6.4 miles), with an elevation gain of 792 metres (2391 feet).

Of course, as is often the case, by the time we arrived in Lake Placid for lunch, the sky had completely cleared. The hikers who arrived at the summit after us were probably luckier and might have been able to get a glimpse of the landscape. But that is also the reality of hiking in the Adirondacks! And I had reached my first summits of the High Peaks, something I was pretty proud of!