Extremely strenuous. See related articles under Hiking.
Gothics is the 10th highest peak in the Adirondack 46. Since Courtney and I were last minute dropouts of a planned Santanoni group hike, we decided to make Gothics our destination. This is an extremely long hike, and do not attempt as a first high peak. There are a few options to the summit, none easy.
I know of three ways up.
1. The Ore trail, if you intend to do other peaks (This is the trail that leads you up the steepest part of the summit, where you need to hang onto cables to pull yourself up).
2. Ausable Club, and then head up Sawteeth, to Pyramid, on to Gothics.
We found another route, however, that we did not read about.
Path we took:
We left from the Ausable Club.
About a mile into the walk from the Ausable Club road is a little sign that says, “Gothics via Beaver Falls”. And so we ventured.
So, this was our route:
Gothics via Beaver Falls
Summit Gothics
Cross over to Pyramid
Down Pyramid to intersection with Sawteeth
Down Sawteeth trail.
Again, extremely difficult. Bring LOTS of water. And be prepared for some of the ebst views anywhere. Pictoral essay below. Read captions and check out what you have to look forward to.
This was roughly a 14-16 mile round trip hike, give or take. It took 7 hours for us to summit Gothics. There was a group of five friends tailing behind us, who also managed 7 hours. Consider that’s seven to get to the top, ONE way. There was also a group of 15 boyscouts that left the same time we did but did the reverse loop, Sawteeth, Pyramid Gothics. We did Gothics , Pyramid, Sawteeth. And we ALL met at the same intersection of the Beaver Trail 14 hours later, going in opposite directions.
WORD ON PHOTOS
Click on Gallery for all photos. Under gallery are some individual photos with explanations and travel essay. So please, scroll.
FIRST: Beaver Falls
An extremely beautiful waterfalls within a short walk after the turn off from the road.
SECOND: The Ladders and the Ascent
Almost immediately after Beaver Falls, you encounter a ladder. Come to find out, you will climb several others, maybe three or four. They are steep and I was a bit worried about the condition, but my 200 pound frame managed them well.
Sometimes we’re just not sure how to turn around on these things
THIRD:
Toward the top, Gothics comes into view. You can bang out Armstrong to the right in short order. We did not. We hit Pyramid to the left
But lots of other hurdles abound making our way to the summit. They seem endless, one obstacle after the other.
But as we get to the top, the best views in the Adirondacks come into focus.
The Summit
And as 5 pm approaches, onto Pyramid…..
The trip to Pyramid is actually short, but steep. It’s steep going down with great views.
And steep going back up
One view from the summit of Pyramid, and then home.
Summit of Pyramid from Gothics
The beautiful Ausable Lake. Last great view before the car.
