Algonquin

Overview: Algonquin's alternative route is about 14 miles long and located near Lake Placid, NY. The trail is great for hiking.

We started off around 10:00am for the alternate route which I recommend. We started at the Adirondack Loj in Lake placid. The trail took us to the Marcy Dam and then through Avalanche pass which was a stunning glacial lake at the base. Narrow bridges took us around the sheer rock face surrounding the lake with wooden ladders helping us up the boulders. We then hiked through the debris left over from the avalanche towards the ascent of Algonquin. The ascent was very steep at parts with trail markers becoming hard to find along the way.  Half way up there is a beautiful waterfall that the trail climbs up the side of. At the top the trail is basically on the creek that the waterfalls runs off of. The trail then turns into rock face. The steep rock face was wet making it slippery at times. The trail wound in and out of the woods, across the rock face for a good half mile. The final ascent was steep and difficult but it was a great hike, The panoramic views from the top were awesome with Marcy and the other high peaks in sight.