January 3rd, 1998, just before the great ice storm hit, I headed for the Adirondacks to try a bit of snowshoe climbing.

We hit the trail at Adirondack Loj around 3 P.M. and hiked till it started to get dark. I had hoped to get a lean-to at Marcy Dam, but heard from someone hiking out that it was quite crowded there, so I just walked off the trail about 100 feet or so, stomped down some snow and pitched my tent.  That night the wind howled overhead and it rained off and on. My tent is now officially retired after 20 years of service after that night of misery.  Sam, the wolf-dog, preferred sleeping outside on the snow to the puddle on the floor of the tent.

 Icy trees on way to summit
 
Algonquin Peak that-a-way The next morning I was on the trail by 7:30. At the sign shown on the left I saw my first people of the day. A couple from Quebec were getting ready to try Algonquin. They said they would follow me after a few minutes.

The wind howled high overhead, but since it was coming from the South West it didn't reach us coming from the North--Algonquin Peak blocked it.

Once above the tree line it began to get very intense and visibility dropped to about 30 feet.

Although I struggled up to the summit on rocks sheeted with ice, the spikes on my snowshoes were adequate for the job. Sam was in his element. When I reached the summit rock I crouched down out of the wind at first, then with a soulful, bounding leap I alighted the summit and faced the blast of winds in excess of 50 MPH. I called Sam to my side, so he would get credit for the peak, and then immediately dropped behind the rock and out of the wind. Sam on Algonquin Peak
After returning to the Wright Peak cutoff I strapped on my crampons and we headed up Wright Peak. Although lower in elevation than Algonquin, it had a lower timberline and was more exposed. The winds seemed even worse. Once we reached the summit Sam didn't wait around for me but bolted down to the tree line. I had to be careful to keep to the right course as visibility was neglible.

All in all a great day to be in the mountains! A little weather on things makes it interesting.
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