High Peaks

The unique geological history of the Adirondacks can be found in a pebble. So discovers humorist and outdoorsman Tim Rowland as he chronicles the evolution of hiking in the howling wilderness of the High Peaks. From nineteenth-century guides’ “random scoots” to Melville Dewey’s “Adirondaks Loj” to today’s technologically enhanced weekenders, Rowland, who has climbed the forty-six himself, incorporates personal anecdotes and laugh-out-loud wit to capture the appeal and beauty of this beloved region, all the while reminding us of the importance of keeping these stunning mountains, and their attendant “neat rocks,” “Forever Wild.”

Guidebook to hiking trails of the Adirondack High Peaks region

Photographer-author Mike Butterfield has spent forty years hiking New Mexico's high mountains, and his magnificent images are paired here with the chronicle of his adventures.

Hiking the Adirondack 46 High Peaks is the guide to everything hikers need to know about summiting each of the 46 high peaks of the Adirondack Mountains. Whether you are a veteran hiker looking to register as an official “46er” by checking all the summits off your list, or a more casual hiker looking to sample some of the most impressive summits in the Adirondack high peaks, this guide will deliver valuable information. Look inside to find full-color photography, mile-by-mile directional cues, detailed maps, complete route information to summit each of the region’s 46 high peaks, and much more.

Building transportation routes through the Rockies is dangerous. It always has been. It is also expensive, labour-intensive, and highly political. But railway and highway construction through the western cordillera succeeded thanks to scientific innovation and sheer human grit. In the nineteenth century, steam locomotives, railways, tunnels, trestles, and telegraphy represented the hi-tech advances of the day. A vast country with a small population raised money (and more and more money) and overcame mountain summits, foul weather, and scandal to build the longest railway of its time that would unify the young nation of Canada from east to west. To offset operating costs and increase passenger traffic, the three architectural wonders of the Banff, Jasper, and Lake Louise Resorts were created amid snowy heights, glaciers, and the headwaters of four river systems—Athabasca, Columbia, Fraser, and the North Saskatchewan. Natural marvels like Cave and Basin, Radium, Miette, and other mineral hot springs were also developed. In the twentieth century, the construction of the Trans-Canada Highway accelerated the appeal of the peaks. Today, oil and gas pipelines are pushing new routes through the Rocky Mountains. The physical challenges are similar to earlier eras, but high peaks engineering must also address the ecological impacts of pipeline corridors moving oil and gas through Rocky Mountain passages. It will be another test of Canadian resourcefulness.