Mount Marcy – Theodore Roosevelt’s Legendary Hike
An integral part of the Great Range, and a fixture in the Adirondacks, Mt. Marcy is the place of American myth and legend due to its ties with the great American conservationist and President Theodore Roosevelt. The highest point in the State of New York, this long hike is a challenge taken up by many every year. Welcome to the heart of the Adirondacks!
Table of Contents
- The Man Who Would be King (Well… President!)
- The Midnight Ride to the Presidency
- The Climb
- Conclusion
The Man Who Would be King (Well… President!)
Everyone knows Theodore Roosevelt. The 26th President of the United States was a wild man that waged war, spouted endless quotable bits and created the National Park Service. Who doesent like the quote “Speak softly and carry a big stick, and you will go far.”.
What is less known is his deep attachment to the Adirondack mountains starting with his time as the 33rd Governor of New York (1899-1900). A reformer, he pushed back against “the depredations of man,” and made the forests his priority in particular he Adirondack Park, introducing the idea of sustainability to one of the last true “untamed” parts of New York. Not only did he strengthen Fish and game laws but he improved the bureaucracy, replacing corrupts or untrained individuals with “independent-minded biologists, zoologists, entomologists, foresters, sportsman hunters, algae specialists, trail guides, botanists, and activists for clean rivers.”. This love for the park would endure culminating in his famous “Midnight Ride”.
A visit to the park, particularly Marcy, is a journey to where the conservation movement began, and how a President helped shape America’s attitudes towards its wilderness preserves.
The Midnight Ride to the Presidency
As previously mentioned, story of the Grand Poobah “Teddy” Roosevelt’s climb to the top of this Mountain is the stuff of legend! A man climbed a mountain, the president was shot in Buffalo, he returns to find a whole new world awaits him. This is the story of the Midnight Ride to the Presidency
To put the story into context, the year is 1901. Teddy is Vice President is having a nice lunch with the Vermont Fish and Game commission on Lake Champlain when he hears that the President William McKinley was shot by Leon Czolgosz, a member of an anarchist organization while visiting the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo. Teddy then visits the president in Buffalo and is informed that he is doing well. After a few days of waiting, the president is on the mend according to doctors so he takes off to the Tahawus Club, as he though that staying in town would cause speculation about the president’s health.
The park at this time was in some ways even more remote then it is now. The club was (and still is) located near the town of Newcomb, a totally different route then the one you will do today. Today you would be hiking up the north face rather the lenghtier south face, such as Teddy did. In the context of that era the stagecoach was still the method of transportation most used in the Adirondacks and cell phones did not exist so you could only call from whatever facility had a telephone, a phone being available at the Tahawus Club. He was climbing the mountain when the president’s health took a precipitous turn and a messenger was dispatched from the club to get the president.
Now picture what would happen today if the president passed and the Vice President, who likes to disappear in the wilderness could not be located. In the media, the talking heads would be going wild, speculation and misinformation would be perpetuated on the web and helicopters would break the serene sanctity of the park to find this man! But in 1901, this process was a little different. Upon hearing the news Teddy hurried back to camp. Against the advice of others, he took a midnight stagecoach to the closest train station at North Creek where he found out the president had passed. This was an arduous 35 mile trip, that would take at least 7 hours in daylight but somehow the president did it in 4:45 by switching drivers several times. He then boarded the fastest train to Buffalo stopping by the house of Ainsley Wilcox to freshen up.
The inauguration was to take place at nearby Milburn House, where President’s body lay, but Roosevelt refused out of respect for him. He stopped at Milburn House to pay his respects and then returned Wilcox Mansion for his inauguration. This took place in a small library of Wilcox Mansion with approximately 40 people in attendance. No actual photographs of the occasion exist… it was a different time!
The Climb
Marcy stands at the highest point in the High Peak, surrounded by ancient forested giants, not quite as tall of Marcy but eying her crown. To climb it you can take several routes but today we will b covering the north route via the Marcy Dam.
Parking Lot at Heart Lake and Journey to the Marcy Dam
Arriving heart lake, you will find multiple trailheads including that going to the stunning Mt. Jo, ignore them for today and proceed to the one marked for Marcy Dam. If you need a map, a ranger station at Heart Lake will provide them at a price. The parking lot at heart lake fills up fast so make it out as early as possible. If you don’t you will have to park further up the road and walk kilometers in. There will still be parking, but you will already be walking over 26 kilometers so you don’t want to add more miles if you don’t want to (as I learned upon my first visit!).
It is seven kilometer hike to the dam on mostly flat forested terrain. Here you will find the ruined Marcy dam that once held back flows from the mountain creating a beautiful pond. An early version of the dam was constructed by the Conservation Corps during the 1930s, and rebuilt during the early 1970s. Unfortunately it was damage during Hurricane Irene, and the pond drained. The bridge that used to go over the dam has been rerouted downstream and will not be repaired due to he conservation departments new philosophy of naturalization of rivers (Environmentally this may not be the worst move but lets be honest, they are probably too cheap to build it, New York State is poorly run).
This is the main rally point for the High Peaks in this region. There are a many campsites in the area, and people will set up camp at this location to prepare for their hikes. Furthermore it is an important hiking crossroads with trails lead from the dam to most of the high peaks.
Up, Up, Up (from the Marcy Dam)
From where the pond once stood you will be able to take the east trail across the dam and up the mountain.
This trail follows a cascade with a fairly heavy flow.
Indian Falls Overlook
Eventually you will hit this waterfall overlook with views of the Algonquin Peak.
From here you will find a ridge extending up towards the peak of Marcy, and a turn off for Tabletop Mountain if you wish to do a two in one.
The Ridge
Once you make it up on the ridge you will be once gain doing some steeper climbing and the ground will now be rock. You are now high enough to get nice views of the landscape.
The Bald Spot (Almost at the Peak!)
As you approach the peak you may have notice the vegetation get shorter and shorter you are now entering the… Alpine Zone!
Finally you will actually see the peak! Which is disheartening if you tough you were already there. Not to worry though one more solid push and you will be up.
I hope you brought good shoes as you will now be climbing rock! To guide you you will notice stone cairns, and rocks delineating the path.
As you get higher the views of the surrounding high peaks will only get better.
Eventually you will reach the peak, rocky outcrops, lichens, and alpine shrubs.
This area is completely bald and the winds are quite high, so be prepared if its a little chilly!
At he top of the mountain you will find a plaque, with the first nations name for the mountain, Tahawus (like the club), meaning cloud splitter. A plaque also commemorated the centennial of the first climb.
Looking south you will be able to see the still damned Lake Cauldon and Avalanche lake.
Not only can you see all the surrounding peaks on a clear day but sometimes you can see as far as the province of Quebec to the north. You can sometime see Lake Champlain and the Green Mountains as well as Lake Tear in the Cloud on the side of the mountain. This uppermost source of the Hudson River, making Marcy the source of the Hudson!
As you make your way down take the time to take in your journey up! It was surely not easy and its a long way down to Heart Lake. For those super trooper you can continue along and complete the Great Range.
Conclusion
I hope that my stories about President Roosevelt and the conservation movement did not bore you to death, as they were one of the driving forces that compelled me to climb Marcy. From its summit it is a long walk down that will give you plenty of time to reflect on some of the themes brought up by this post.
Whether hiking solo or with friends the Adirondacks have something to offer generation after generation of outdoorsmen (and lady outdoorsmen), a legacy that the park will offer long after we die off and a new crop replaces us.
