Fall Views

Rooster Comb and Three More

By Barbara McMartin

This article was originally published in our September 2000 issue and is updated for 2025.

The best views of the Adirondack High Peaks are not from its interior summits, but from some of the middle-sized mountains that ring the area. Of the many peaks around the periphery of the High Peaks, few have as lovely a view as Rooster Comb, our featured hike. Three other hikes with views of the High Peaks are briefly mentioned: Vanderwhacker Mountain, Goodnow Mountain, and Mount Van Hoevenberg. They range in length but are suitable for hikers of any age or ability level, including children. 

The Rooster Comb Mountain view, combined with the excellent trail and trailhead make it most desirable for a fall trip. The 2.5-mile trail covers a 1,750-foot vertical rise to the 2,762-foot summit. Take the time to enjoy the panoramas from two outlooks, adding up to about a five-hour round trip outing. So start early enough, remembering that fall days are getting shorter.

The trail begins from a new parking lot on the west side of NY Route 73, just as you enter Keene Valley from the south and before you get to the NYS DEC High Peaks sign in the middle of the hamlet. The first part of the trail avoids private land and crosses easement lands to circle around a pond that is behind the Keene Central School. Beyond boardwalks through a wet section, the climb begins as the trail zigzags up over a hemlock knoll. At 0.7-mile you reach an intersection, left leads 1.8-miles to Snow Mountain and right leads to Rooster Comb. (If you want, you can make a loop visiting both summits, using the connector trail.)

The climb becomes fairly steep and continues that way to the summit, but the trail has many switchbacks to avoid erosion so the ascent is about as gentle as it can be. It is an excellent example of the way trails on steep slopes ought to be constructed. 

The “new” trail that opened around 2000 is the result of work by Tony Goodwin and DEC, with help from volunteers, Adirondack Mountain Club trail crews, and inmates from the Moriah Correctional Facility. It was funded as a Centennial project by the Adirondack Trail Improvement Society. The ATIS takes care of all the trails leading out from the Ausable Club, many others in the eastern High Peaks, and the Keene Valley area. The trail has been dedicated to Tony Goodwin’s father, Jim, who has for many years headed up ATIS trail work.

The trail passes from tall forest into second growth just past a small brook at 1.5 miles. This smaller forest is the result of a 1903 fire, which burned over Rooster Comb and Snow mountains and the lower flanks of Hedgehog. A 1998 ice storm severely damaged the forest here.

At two miles you reach a four-way intersection. A left turn here would take you to the Flume Brook Trail and back to the first intersection. (Snow Mountain is a 1.1-mile detour from the continuation of this trail.) Straight ahead leads to Hedgehog and Lower Wolf Jaws. You want to make a sharp right turn to continue on for the last 0.5-mile to Rooster Comb.

The trail passes below cliffs and through a draw with big boulders. Extensive trail work and rock walls here help prevent landslides. Several sets of stairs stop erosion. Shortly you reach another intersection. The summit is 0.3-mile to the left. Before you climb it, turn right for 0.1-mile to a loop to Valley View Ledge. From it you can see Johns Brook Valley, Keene Central School, Giant Mountain, Big Slide Mountain rising beyond The Brothers, Little Porter, Porter, and Blueberry mountains, Marcy Field airstrip, Hurricane Mountain with its fire tower, and Jay Mountain to the left of Hurricane. 

Now head back to the fork where you begin the final climb to the Rooster Comb summit along the old trail. The summit has a lovely view of Giant and Round mountains. You can see some of the peaks of the Range Trail, including Mount Marcy, Basin and Armstrong mountains, and Upper and Lower Wolfjaw mountains. Watch the time if you decide to detour to Snow Mountain on your way back, that will add as much as an hour to your trek.

For great views in the Central Adirondacks, the Goodnow Mountain trail is located 1.5-miles west of the Adirondack Interpretive Center, near Newcomb. The round-trip distance is 3.4 miles, with a vertical rise over 1,030 feet, for an approximate hiking time of 2½ hours. Part of the trail is designed to a current standard, and the fire tower and its support buildings have been restored and maintained. From the tower you can enjoy one of the Adirondack Park’s finest views of the High Peaks. The fire tower has the traditional circular map that will help you identify the spectacular High Peaks and many other mountains in the surrounding panorama. 

Also in the Central Adirondacks, enormous Vanderwhacker Mountain sits in isolated splendor, offering commanding views of distant summits in all directions. The round-trip hike is 5.8-miles, taking an estimated five hours to complete. The strenuous trek is steep, rising 1,700 feet from the surrounding valleys to the 3,385-elevation. The trail generally follows a long, narrow ridge that leads to the small summit. The mountain’s fire tower has been restored and is open to the public. From the summit or tower, you can enjoy the spectacular panorama of the High Peaks to the north, framed by stunted spruce trees.

In the High Peaks, the Mount Van Hoevenberg East Trail, opened in 2022, is a 4.7-mile round-trip hike on the relatively gentle north side of the mountain, home of the ORDA’s Nordic ski center and mountain biking trails, and bobsled/luge sliding tracks. From the summit, facing south down the steep side of the mountain overlooks the South Meadow Valley, where by coincidence the main ranges of the High Peaks rise, so the views of Big Slide, Gothics, Marcy, and Colden mountains, and MacIntyre Range are simply superb.

With the oversight of the DEC, it was built by hand in some places and machines in others, hand pulleys and levers near the top, and includes extensive stone staircases and monolithic-stone bridges. All of this combines to create an interesting hike on a sustainable trail design that should be able to withstand generations of use. The new trail improved upon an existing hiking path to lead hikers from MVH’s Mountain Pass Lodge to the top of Mount Van Hoevenberg – 2,940 feet above sea level. It meanders along a series of switchbacks and doesn’t exceed a 12% incline. While it’s not a 4,000-foot High Peak, the panoramic summit view is one of the best in the Adirondacks. 

The East Trail is a family-friendly hike that’s designed for all levels. The fastest time to the top is around 26 minutes (set by a local trail runner) but allow 2.5 hours to complete the out-and-back. Newcomers to MVH should check-in with a staff member at the lodge for directions on where to begin and what to expect. There are 24-hour restrooms available, lockers for storing valuables, on-site food/beverage options, and retail shops. Additional activities include the Cliffside Coaster, wheeled bobsled rides, luge, and mountain biking. (The UCI Mountain Bike World Cup will take place Oct. 3-5, 2025 at MVH (cross country/short track) and Whiteface (downhill).)

Don’t be deterred by the initial steep climb from behind the lodge up to the trail kiosk; the grade gets easier after that. After reaching the summit, follow the same trail back down. The West Trail on the other side of the summit clearing does not return to the same start of the East Trail. –Alex Kochon

These four hikes demonstrate that the best views of the Adirondack High Peaks are not from its interior summits, but from some of the middle-sized mountains that ring the area. The hikes vary in length but are suitable for hikers of any age or ability level, including children. 

Enjoy the spectacular fall scenery!

Barbara McMartin (1931-2005) was an author of many guides to the Adirondacks and several histories. If you want more info on hiking, consult the Discover the Adirondacks book series, authored and updated by Bill Ingersoll. To learn more about the park, read Barbara’s book Adirondack Park: A Wildlands Quilt. Both are available at your local bookseller.