Hiking - Falls on Johnson Pond Brook

Yesterday, I joined a Schenectady ADK trip to explore the location for another section of the North Country National Scenic Trail through the Adirondacks. Leaders Walt and Norm have been scouting several areas of the Adirondacks where this trail is slated to pass, and today was another one of these bushwhack trips. We started at the end of the plowed section of Johnson Pond Road, north of Paradox Lake, with our destination being a series of waterfalls on the outlet of Johnson Pond. Temps were in the mid-teens, with much colder temperatures expected later in the day.



The first half-mile down Johnson Pond Road was very scenic, with 6-8" of snow hanging from the trees. Though snowshoes were probably not strictly necessary for this trip, they made for smoother walking once we left the road and got into the rougher terrain.



The other kids also enjoyed the winter scenery, some of the first we've had all year.



We wound our way around blowdown and along a property line before turning south and downhill through a valley that would eventually join the Johnson Pond outlet. When we reached the falls, they were hardly recognizable under the snow and ice. Water was flowing underneath, but these would be much more scenic in the spring or summer when the cascades are visible. We stopped here for lunch before turning around and retracing our steps back to the car.



The trip back to the car was much easier, as we had our earlier tracks to follow. There was an option to climb Peaked Hill from the gentler north side on our way out, but nobody seemed especially interested in that extension of the day. So we were back to the car and home early in time for dinner after a nice day out in the winter woods.