Rescues abound as hikers urged to avoid muddy peaks of Adirondacks
Warm winter has led to trail conditions usually found later in spring, DEC says
ALBANY — A combination of warm weather, rain and melting snow has turned trails in the Adirondack Mountains’ High Peaks into a nearly impassable mess of muck, slippery icy spots and high-water stream crossings, prompting state officials to warn people away from the area until it dries out.
Outdoor experts at the state Department of Environmental Conservation are urging people to postpone high-elevation activities in New York’s mountains, including areas above 2,500 feet in the High Peaks.
With one of the warmest winters on record, trail conditions are like those normally seen later in the spring. Those heading into the mountains will find thinner snowpack on trails, deteriorating and variable depth snow next to and off the trails, poor quality ice, slippery trails, and high-water crossings. When snow and ice melt at high elevations, steep trails can pose a serious danger to hikers. “With the lack of a true North Country winter and a marginal snowpack, trails in the High Peaks Region are proving difficult to navigate,” said Forest Ranger Director John Solan. “Over the last couple of weeks, forest rangers were busy responding to numerous backcountry rescues due to icy conditions. Trail conditions will continue to decline as spring weather prevails and April approaches.”
Despite the warm weather, high-elevation trails are still covered in slowly melting ice and snow. Steep trails often have thin
soils that become a mix of ice and mud as winter conditions melt. What remains is compacted ice and snow on trails that are slippery and will not reliably support a person’s weight. These conditions, known as “monorails,” are difficult to hike and the adjacent rotten snow is particularly prone to post-holing, or the making of deep, treacherous holes from hiker footprints.
Hikers were advised to take caution even on low-elevation trails, where they will encounter ice, thick mud, flooded areas, and deep, slushy snow. Backcountry streams are particularly susceptible to high waters and flooding due to melting snow from high elevations mixing with spring rainfall. Hikers should not attempt stream crossings during periods of high, fast-moving water. The stream water is cold and hikers who fall in can become immediately hypothermic.
Avoiding high-elevation trails is more than a safety matter. It also helps reduce erosion on and
alongside trails while protecting alpine vegetation. Hikers who step off the trail to avoid ice, mud, and snow easily erode the thin soils. That can severely damage fragile alpine vegetation, and widen trails.
When encountering mud, hikers should simply walk through it instead of around it to help reduce trail widening and minimize damage to trailside vegetation. Proper footwear and clothing, such as sturdy boots with gaiters and traction devices like microspikes should be used.
The unusually rugged conditions have led to three lengthy rescue operations.
At 7:30 p.m. Friday, Forest Rangers Andrew Lewis and Robert Praczkajlo answered a call for a hiker who had slid down Wright Mountain and cut his leg. The 43year-old from New Jersey applied a makeshift tourniquet so he could continue hiking down the mountain with his hiking partner. Rangers reached the pair and assisted them to a waiting ambulance.
The next day, rangers were called to two separate rescues in the Johns Brook Valley area. The two rescues were handled as one incident with Praczkajlo assigning 30 rangers while serving as incident commander.
The first call was at 2:45 p.m. for a 61-year-old hiker from Pittsford who had suffered a lower leg injury on an icy trail on the west side of Saddleback Mountain. The injury occurred approximately nine miles from the trailhead. Lewis served as the lead ranger.
At 4:10 p.m., the second call came in for a 38-year-old from Maryland who injured his leg while sliding down the icy trail off Basin Mountain. The injury occurred approximately nine miles from the trailhead. Ranger Hannah O’connor served as lead ranger for the rescue.
The weather conditions prevented helicopter hoist rescues, so rescuers prepared for long and icy carry-outs. O’connor’s team reached their subject at 8:15 p.m., splinted his leg, and wrapped him in hypothermia wraps to keep him warm during the carry-out. Rangers used a sled and a fourperson backpack system.
Lewis’ team reached its rescue location at 8:44 p.m. The victim suffered a shoulder injury in addition to a leg wound. Due to the steep conditions, they set up a rope system to get the subject to the summit from the westside trail. At 1:58 a.m., the carry team began moving the subject in a sled down to the Ore Brook trail.
At 5:30 p.m. Sunday, dispatchers were contacted by a Garmin Inreach device signaling an SOS from a hiker who had gone off the trail in the Seward Range. Coordinates placed the 70-year-old man approximately one-half mile north of the Calkins Brook herd path. Three hours later, Forest Rangers Jenna Curcio and Praczkajlo reached him and helped him back to the trailhead.