Seventy Mountain, Bald Peak and Slip Mountain(Jay Mountain Wilderness-Adirondacks)

Headed up into the northern Adirondacks to do some off trail exploring to a trio of beautiful peaks in the Jay Mountain Wilderness.  On a previous visit to this area, I had bushwhacked the spectacular peaks east of Seventy Road, which had provided great views and had left me wanting more.  Lucky for me, there are a series of peaks that rise west of Seventy Road as well, that all thankfully sit on state land.  My itinerary for the day was to hit the peaks north to south, starting from 2220 foot Seventy Mountan, then on to 2325 foot Bald Peak and finally 3330 foot Slip Mountain(MacDonough).

Parked at the very end of driveable Seventy Road, in a small DEC parking area(Elevation 1540 feet) and headed west into the woods, hugging a small, pretty brook on my ascent.

Spring wildflowers are blooming and abundant, including this painted trillium.

The ascent was pretty straightforward as I headed high up into the deep notch between Bald Peak and Seventy Mountain. Once in the top of the notch, it was an easy stroll through open hardwoods to Seventy's summit, which sits unassumingly in the only patch of spruce on the summit ridge.

While the summit of Seventy Mountain is nothing to write home about, its SE facing ledges are nothing short of awesome.  Great views to be enjoyed from a long set of open rock towards nearby Fay Mountain to the east.

To the south, my route for the day can be almost made out, with Bald Peak in the foreground and a shoulder of Slip Mountain beyond.

 

Most of the woods are open and deciduous, making navigation pretty easy.  This is a small drainage crossing on my way up towards Bald Peak.

 

Bald Peak was certainly the highlight of this day, with numerous open rock slab views along much of the way.  Here is a great look back NE towards Seventy Mountain(left) and Mount Fay(right).

South facing views stretch far and wide!

Arriving at the summit of Bald Peak, which is really just a  rocky knob along the way.

Just off the summit of Bald is an area of cliff bands and open rock, with more great views.

While not 100% open, it's pretty darn close-and the views are hard to beat.  Here's a look west towards Jay and Death Mountain, both part of the Jay Mountain Wilderness.

The million dollar view of Slip Mountain's ridge, rising above to the south.

After a careful descent around Bald Peak's cliff bands, I slowly made my way up Slip Mountain, garnering this spectacular view back at the rocky knob summit of Bald Peak.

Further up the ridge, the views open up more and more, once again towards Mount Fay, but now with Lake Champlain in the distance beyond.

There were several different spots to enjoy a view of Slip Mountain's summit along the ascent, such as this one from less than half a mile away.

The climb was steadily steep, but nothing relentless with incredible views all around.

A final steep climb up through a dark conifer forest brought me to the summit, which sits in a moss covered rocky clearing.

A short distance south from the summit is a nice view SW towards the High Peaks, complete with a fire pit.

After enjoying the abundant views, I finally headed back towards the car, following the ridge north to a spot where the slopes ease up just a bit, allowing for a nice descent through an open hardwood forest.

Another spectacular day in the Adirondack wilds, covering 5.7 miles RT, and 2000 feet of combined ascent(all bushwhack).  

Map below.  Red P=Parking   Red X's=Summits Hit