Shelving Rock Ramble - Lake George Wild Forest - 7/27/14

 

 After we had a rain deluge this morning, skies cleared and it became rather nice outside.  It was about 70 degrees, and was rather muggy, but that was OK.  It took the opportunity to drive over to the east side of Lake George and the Shelving Rock trailhead for an afternoon ramble.  There are lots of trails there; more so than anywhere else in the southern Adirondacks.  I haven't hiked them all so I keep picking away at the ones I haven't done.

 

Trailhead sign

 

This time I took a trail known as the Red Rock Bay Trail which runs mid-mountain and passes over one portion of a un-named ridge that has a viewpoint looking south.  The south side of this trail in the Shelving Rock area is used very little.  It is marked as a horse trail, but it was obvious that no horses have been on this trail in a long time.  The trail is close to being overgrown and looks more like an animal herd path.



Starting out on the Red Rock Bay trail from Shelving Rock

 

The trail hooks around the bottom of a south facing ledge and through some switchbacks before working its way to a viewpoint.  After the viewpoint, the trail continues to hook around the ridge and then it begins to work its way down the slope towards Lake George at Red Rock Bay.  

 

 

 

 

The best view of the day came from a viewpoint about a half mile before I reached Red Rock Bay.  There is a vista at an elevation of about 700' that looks out over the Narrows from a great perspective.  Most of the remaining pictures were taken from this point. 

 

 

Shelving Rock Mtn. (L), Tongue Range (R) and the islands of the Narrows 

  

The ledge that provides the vista 

  

 

 

 

 

Fork Island

  

 

 

Rev waiting for me to continue

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the fantastic vista, I continued down to Red Rock Bay and walked North past Paradise Bay a short distance before turning back to head south.  On the way back I wanted to find an un-named open rock vista point that I had been from the 1st viewpoint of the day.  I had determined on my map where that point was so on the way back  I began a bushwhack to reach that spot. 

 

It turned out to be a decent spot, with a great view, but most of the islands could not be seen from this spot.  Still, it was worth going to.  Bushwhacking in the Shelving Rock area is very easy.  The woods are open and the only difficulties encountered are occasional ledges that need to be worked around.  

  

The destination of my bushwhack

 

The view was great, but not many islands could be seen from this point

From this spot I worked my way over to the Shelving Rock Ridge Trail and back to the Shelving Rock Mountain Trail.  I didn't climb the .6 miles remaining to Shelving Rock Mountain since it was time to get home for dinner.  On the final descent I saw a couple heading up the mountain.  They were the only people I saw on the trail all day.  Not bad for a Sunday in July in Lake George.  People were out on their boats and not on the trail.

 

Hike Stats:

Hike Distance:  8.1 miles

Hike Time:  3 hours, 45 minutes

Total Vertical Gain:  ~ 1500'     

 

 

The route (done counter-clockwise)