Doing a little catching up on previous hikes I had done earlier this spring in the Adirondacks. My first stop was a short bushwhack hike to 1890 foot Peaked Hill, a small peak in the Hammond Pond Wild Forest. Peaked Hill can be reached via a trail on the south side of the mountain, but the trail itself is only accessible from the north shore of Paradox Lake. It is also possible to reach the summit by bushwhacking up the north slopes of the mountain from a small area of state land on Johnson Pond Road, which would be my route today. Parked on the shoulder of the road, elevation 1250 feet, and set out with bugs swarming me almost immediately, meaning I'd need to throw on the bug net.
From the car, I crossed the road and began climbing immediately through open woods.
The ascent was straightforward and steep, but never anything too crazy. A last push up over a band of ledges brought me to the summit, which sits in a small clearing.
Once atop the hill, I found my way over to the trail, which drops down to a spectacular area of rock ledges. Southwest views stretching all the way to Schroon Lake, with Crane, Eleventh, and Gore Mountains on the distant horizon.
West views towards Hoffman and Blue Ridge Mountain's across the Northway.
South views towards Pharaoh Mountain, with Paradox Lake below.
From the bottom of the ledges looking up.
One more zoom view towards Paradox Lake and Pharaoh Mountain.
I retraced my steps back up the hill on the trail, then an easy bushwhack brought me back down to my car. Covered just over 1 mile total, with over 700 feet of climbing. An easy, short off trail adventure.
Map below. P=Parking. Blue Dot=Views
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