JONES HILL hiking in the Hoffman Notch Wilderness

 


September 14, 2026 - JONES HILL hike from Hoffman Road west of Schroon Lake. Hoffman Notch Wilderness. Big Pond trail for 1+ miles then R on newish red trail. Some ups and downs. 100 yard side-trip on path with paint blazes to North Pond (1250'), 3 guys fishing. Uphill for a while, found some edible lobsters! Down a bit then steep climb with some rock, blueberry, and lichens. View SE including Pharaoh Mountain. View of Schroon Lake from false summit. Down a bit then gentle climb to actual summit (1882'). Views of Hoffman Mountain (3693'), Peaked Hills and the Dixes in the distance to the north. Very nice trail. 8+ miles, 5.7 hours. Mostly sunny, 60-65°F, some wind gusts, dewpoint low 40s. Minimal mosquito activity. Quite a few colorful sugar maple leaves on the ground. 

Aug, 2022 -  NCT hard working volunteers spent a four-day weekend benching new tread on the east side of Jones Hill in Hoffman Notch Wilderness in New York’s Adirondack Park. The route yet to be benched is flagged from the brook to the summit. The west side from the Big Pond Trail is complete.This is part of the 3800-mile North Country National Scenic Trail: ND to VT
 
Dec 31, 2021 - New Year's Eve hike to JONES HILL in the Hoffman Notch Wilderness. Part woods road, lots of bushwhacking & future NCNST trail. Up to 5" of heavy wet snow - used spikes but not absolutely necessary. Temp in the mid-30s. Fog in the valleys made the hilltops look like islands. Started from Dirgylot trailhead on old woods roads, L at the T, then R on a lesser woods road. Whacked around N side of Smith Hill, crossed Platt Brook & whacked up Jones Hill, picking up some flagging before the top. Ethereal view. Down following flagging which may eventually be the route of the NCNST. Crossed Platt Brook & lost flagging, walked along a property line & refound the flagging which, going around S side of Smith Hill, eventually brought us to the old woods road, then R at the T. Our down route was much better than our up route. 7.3 miles, 1,398' gross elevation, 6 hours.
Minor negatives: Did hear some distant highway noise. Glasses kept on fogging - used Zeiss Fog Defender Spray which just does not seem to work - going back to using Cat Crap.










Happy New Year!

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