January 09, 2013
It was good in the woods; the conditions were grand and the snow plentiful. We decided to check out Wilmington Peak, but we were unsure if we would attempt the slide or not. We drove over to the southern trailhead for Copper Kiln Pond to drop off our second car to complete a unique traverse. We the hopped into the other vehicle and started our way to the other side of the Stevenson Range at the other trailhead for Copper Kiln Pond.

Once we got our snowshoes strapped to our feet we started our way up the snowmobile trail. The snow conditions were nice and we didn't have to work too hard at all to get a forward motion going. We only wished we had thought about skis, but that could be very tough, especially bushwhacking Wilmington Peak – probably all for the best.

Trail to Wilmington Slide

We moved along quite quickly in the beginning and then the trail began to increase in grade, not too steep but steep enough to slow us up a little. Once we got to the flat area at the height-of-land where I knew an old woods road was located we started our bushwhack. We could see the slide scar from the trail and were very excited to check it out for the first time in winter, it looked great. However we decided not to climb it again and find a different route to the summit.

Since we were in the mood for punishment we crossed the slide track and hit the open hardwoods. The terrain was very nice but the snow was pretty deep. Fortunately for us we had a bit of a warm spell to consolidate the snow a bit. The terrain on this side got very steep and we never really got too far from the slide.

We came to a very steep but short section, of what looked to be open slab rock, it was a tough area to hike through, and there was ice under it making it very slippery.

Steep section of Slab Rock

View of Wilmington Peak

As we topped out on a lower ridge – north of Wilmington Peak we started to get outstanding views back toward the Jay Range and after a few pictures we needed to make a choice on our route. We also got our first view of the pointed knob of Wilmington Peak. Eventually we decided to push right through the tangled brush and drop down a bit into a small col before we started our final steep push to the summit. I made the error of heading right at the summit and that proved to be a bad idea. The grade was super-steep and we had to circumnavigate a bit to avoid it. Small lips of rock slowed us down quite a bit before we were back along the ridge. The summit wasn't far from here and the trees opened up to let us through a bit easier.

View along Ridge

We eventually summited to the wooded view of a pink flag on a tree.

Summit Tree

It was nice to have that labeling of the summit, because it can be very hard find without some kind of clue, especially under snow cover. From here we needed to finish our traverse. Well need is a loaded word, but wanted would be more like it. In winter it's near impossible to find the herd-path down to Cooper Kiln Pond. Remnants were all we found, in the form of a clipped branch or broken stem. It's a short close hike to the pond and once we started downhill it was all over but the panting.

The descent was even steeper than I remember during the summer, but we used what God gave us and butt slid as much as we could. We were down to the Shore of Copper Kiln Pond before we knew it and looking across at the lean-to. The going along the pond to the trail was a bit of a mess and hard to walk but we fought through it and eventually stepped out on the trail. We could have at this point taken a left and headed back down to the car to make a loop but we decided to head out to the other car along Franklin Falls Road. This section of trail was not quite as nice to walk, it seemed much less consolidated. We found the climb up the shoulder of Morgan to be a bit steadier that expected. I had only been here twice before and not within the past couple years. Once we topped the shoulder of Morgan it was all downhill and again we moved very quickly to get as close as we could and as fast as we could to the hot coffee waiting for us in town. When doing a traverse like this with two cars, I always have a moment of panic – did I leave the keys in the other car!!! It's never happened to me, but what a horrible day that would be.

Interested in the Adirondack 100 Highest, hire a guide to get you started. Need a

warm, cozy place to dry your boots, Lake Placid has it all. Also want a hot cup of coffee?

For more information on Wilmington Peak and the Adirondack 100 Highest pick up a copy of The Other 54 by Spencer Morrissey at the Lake Placid Visitors Center or at a book store or gear shop near you. Spencer Morrissey is a NYS Licensed Guide you can find him at High Peaks Mountin Guides to set up a guided trip.

Map of Traverse
Trail to Wilmington Slide
Steep section of Slab Rock
View of Wilmington Peak
View along Ridge
Summit Tree
Map of Traverse

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