Potash Mountain

Jun 8

Region: Southern Adirondacks

June 1, 2021 | Lake Luzerne, NY

The background: My boyfriend and I had stayed in the Lake George area for Memorial Day weekend and were supposed to drive back home this evening - except we didn’t. The weather finally cleared up and I had no desire to leave yet (I work remotely so can be anywhere.) We decided to extend our trip and complete this as an after-work hike; and I am so thankful we did. It was unbelievable!

Getting there: From Lake George Village, it’s about 15 minutes west. Hop on to NY 9N south for about 7 miles, until you get to Potash Road. Make a right and drive for about 0.6 miles until you see a parking lot on your right, with picnic tables and a sign. Your vehicle should make it just fine, and you may have spotty cell service until you reach the summit. Dogs are permitted; overnight camping and fires are not.

The hike: about 3 miles out-and-back.
We headed out on the trail at 6PM sharp, with the goal to be back at the car before the sun set (8:15-ish these days.) Given the mileage and the level of difficulty, this seemed very achievable – but we were prepared with headlamps, just in case.

The trail starts behind the parking lot picnic area with posters on the trees (there is no trail register.) You start out in the Harris Land Preserve, following the blue discs on the well-marked trail. After a gentle walk in the woods, you’ll come upon red discs for a “nature trail.” This is simply a small detour and will loop you back to the main trail – we did not detour this time. Further on in the hike, you will be entering state land, with a sign indicating so – the blue preserve discs will turn into the familiar DEC blue discs, which you will follow (along with blue blazes) until the summit. You’ll start to gently gain elevation, still surrounded by beautiful trees and rocks, winding through a serene forest. But then you’ll start climbing – while none of this trail is technical nor difficult, watch your footing with all the rocks as you approach the summit area. The trail is not difficult to follow, and you will have the markers and arrow signs helping you along the way.

Before we knew it, we had made it to the open summit, very sweaty and swatting away the bugs now – but WOW. I could not get over the phenomenal views all around; however, I did recall that there IS a summit sign from my research, so we kept following the blue blazes until we found it – tucked in the trees, past the main viewing area, you’ll find it. You can also loop back down to the main trail this way, but we simply did the out-and-back this trip. We spent at least 30 minutes soaking in the late afternoon sunshine and taking in the Southern ADK views. After a snack and some photos, we bid farewell to this beloved mountain and started our descent, passing two separate couples heading up for (presumably) sunset. After an uneventful but peaceful hike down, we were back at the car by 8PM, ready to say goodbye to the bugs and venture back to town for dinner.

Concluding notes: This is a newer trail (created within the past few years) and might be one of my new favorites in the area. Only a few miles down the road from popular Lake George, you get everything you could ask for in a short hike – a beautiful marked trail, pristine nature, and a large summit with views. This is a true gem that I will now recommend to anyone (and everyone!)

As a side note, my boyfriend does not hike as often as I do and found this hike to be on the easier side – so this would be a good beginner or family / group hike option that is incredibly rewarding and enjoyable.

What you can pair this hike with:

If you’re staying in the area and looking for a day filled with hiking (yay!), you could check out Hadley Mountain Fire Tower trail (20 minutes west) or Spruce Mountain Fire Tower trail (20 minutes south.) Both are about a little more than 3-mile hikes round trip.
Lake George Village is 15 minutes away, where there are plenty of different places to eat, drink or walk around the lake.