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The Adirondack Explorer has just published its second pocket-size guidebook, 12 Short Hikes Near Old Forge.
The book is similar in format and price ($9.75) to the Explorer’s first guidebook, 12 Short Hikes Near Lake Placid, which was published last year.
For the second book, we chose a dozen hikes to summits, ponds, and rivers in the vicinity of Old Forge and Inlet. Each chapter includes detailed trail descriptions, GPS coordinates and driving directions for the trailhead, hand-drawn maps by local artist Nancy Bernstein, and photos by a variety of veteran photographers. We also rank the difficulty and scenic beauty of the hikes.
The cover photos were taken by Carl Heilman II, one of the Adirondack Park’s most celebrated photographers. Those who contributed inside photos (besides Carl) include Nancie Battaglia, Nancy Ford, Clark Lubbs, and Bill Ingersoll.
The book is aimed at casual hikers, families, or anyone who wants a quick dose of wilderness. They range from one mile to 6.4 miles in length (round trip). Half of the hikes have an elevation gain of under 300 feet. The hike up Black Bear Mountain near Inlet entails the greatest elevation gain, but that is just 660 feet. These are not the High Peaks!
The destinations of the hikes are Bear Lake, Remsen Falls, Middle Settlement Lake, Moose River Mountain, Moose River Lock & Dam, Bald Mountain, Cork Mountain and Mountain Pond, Becker’s Ledge and Bubb Lake, Moss Lake, Cascade Lake, Rocky Mountain, and Black Bear Mountain. In addition, we included Cathedral Pines north of Inlet as a bonus hike. It’s a tenth-of-a-mile loop though a stand of giant pines, with a memorial to an airman killed in World War II.
Most of the hikes can be done in a few hours or less. Excluding Cathedral Pines, the easiest is the mile-long and largely flat walk through the woods to Lock & Dam on the Middle Branch of the Moose. The hardest is the four-mile round trip up Black Bear Mountain.
Both 12 Short Hikes Near Old Forge and 12 Short Hikes Near Lake Placid can be ordered online from the Adirondack Explorer website or purchased in stores in the region. The profits will help support the Explorer’s mission of educating readers about the Adirondack Park and the need to protect it.
The Adirondack Explorer is a nonprofit newsmagazine with a focus on environmental issues, natural history, outdoor recreation, and general news. It publishes six issues a year in addition to an annual Outings Guide, an anthology of recreation stories. Click here to subscribe.
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Phil, you didn’t say who wrote the book? Wink, wink. This is great. Did you write the one on short hikes around Saranac Lake. You (even if it wasn’t you) should write another one for that area with some new ideas.
Nice. I could pay my mortgage selling these. People ask me all the time about where to go on a short hike when they visit the restaurant. I keep a copy of the ADK West Central guide and a NatGeo Old Forge/Oswegatchie map on the bar for these folks, but a dedicated book would be much better. Thanks for filling this needed information gap with your new book, Phil. I’m definitely going to pick up a copy for customers to use.
Just ordered one. If you like to paddle in the Adirondacks Phil’s 60 flatwater adventures is an amazing resource. We have done 12 of them so far and they are all spot on. Would definitely like to see a follow up for that book with more adventures that don’t involve a shuttle as it is difficult for us to get a shuttle as we travel a great distance so it is not practical to have two cars
I’ve been spending time in the Old Forge/Eagle Bay area nearly every summer of my 55 years and hope one day to retire there. Ordered this and can’t wait to check it out on our trip to OF in August. Am introducing a new person to the area this year and she’s a pretty avid hiker. The book sounds great — even after all these years, you’re covering some hikes I’m not familiar with at all. Thanks.