Allen mt. dayhike

[wayward son]

I would like to climb Allen mt. this summer in the form of a day hike. I'll be starting from the Hanging Spear Falls parking lot. I'm thinking the hike is around 20 miles round trip. Is this accurate? Is it realistic to do this in one long day? Also, once I leave the trail and start on the herd path, are there any tricky spots I need to navigate or is the path fairly self explanatory?

[slamdog]

Correct on all accounts. About 20 miles, and the trail is fairly straightforward. We caught it during a downpour in last summer. Soaked about a mile in secondary to all the tall grass and berry bushes you head through. We left the trailhead as the sun was coming up and got back as it was setting, about 6:00PM.

[Dick]

Correct on all accounts. About 20 miles, and the trail is fairly straightforward. We caught it during a downpour in last summer. Soaked about a mile in secondary to all the tall grass and berry bushes you head through. We left the trailhead as the sun was coming up and got back as it was setting, about 6:00PM.

I think it was one of the easier herdpaths to follow, given the worn paths, signs and orange paint telling you where and where not to go, and gravel roads. We found the path a mile or so before Skylight Brook to be a little sketchy here and there, but not a huge problem. Though we did it as an overnight, my guess is that most do it in a long day.

Dick

[Hikerdad]

We did it in about 10 1/2 to 11 hours with a good stay on top. You can make pretty good time to Skylight Brook since it's pretty level until then. Then it's UP...constantly up and slippery. Allen's aglae on the rocks is famous for being slippery even when it doesn't look like it would be, so be careful. I thought it was about 18 miles or so....and it is pretty straight forward...I wonder if the big "Allen" sign still marks the herdpath start...

[masshysteria]

I think it was one of the easier herdpaths to follow, given the worn paths, signs and orange paint telling you where and where not to go, and gravel roads. We found the path a mile or so before Skylight Brook to be a little sketchy here and there, but not a huge problem. Though we did it as an overnight, my guess is that most do it in a long day.

Dick

Dick is correct about the overabundance of signage, however WE did tack an extra 3 miles onto our trip by missing one of the signs. The algae mentioned by Pat is very, very slippery, so be careful!

[timmus]

...I wonder if the big "Allen" sign still marks the herdpath start...

It was there last dec 30th.

[daxs]

I did Allen as a dayhike by myself in mid week. I say only 1 other person all day long. I also slept in my car at the trail head so I could get an early start. I did not have any problems finding the trail; it was pretty easy to follow. As others have said, the slide can be very slippery. it's covered with some sort of beige slime. It is a long day and alot of the trail is fairly boring. On the way out I was questioning why I did not bring my MP3 player

[wayward son]

Thanks one and all for your responses and information. I'm thinking about doing it in July when there is still a lot of daylight and the blackflies are on the way out. I've been stuck on 37 high peaks for quite a few years, so maybe this will jumpstart me towards reaching the 46.

[AlpineSummit]

I've dayhiked Allen quite a few times now. Why? I'm strange.
In summer, be ready to walk out w/the sun in your face. And it can be very hot & dusty on those roads back in there. Horseflies? UGH I usually stash ice water on the way in, about an hours walk from the parking area. It makes a really nice boost 10 hrs later when you've had about enough walking............



And yea, I've been known to walk a few extra miles along the way. :shock: Sure is a lot funnier to think of it now, wearing slippers.

[timmus]

In summer, be ready to walk out w/the sun in your face. And it can be very hot & dusty on those roads back in there. Horseflies?




Beurrrk. You are making me very happy that I did it in winter.

[Mavs00]

And yea, I've been known to walk a few extra miles along the way. :shock: Sure is a lot funnier to think of it now, wearing slippers.

REALLY? How very odd of you. I can't imagine why anyone would do such a thing. I sure hope you were solo and not leading a group of, oh I don't know........... perhaps like a neophyte family of 46er hopeful's or even a someone striving to reach that FINAL 46th summit celebration with his 12 y/o son.

If that were the case, one could only hope that you were just leading them to a illicet picture spot for them to capture the magic that is Allen Mt. through the hazy summer sun. Sorta like this for example. :roll:

http://www.adkhighpeaks.com/albums1/allen/DCP_3798.sized.jpg

[AlpineSummit]

Yes Tim, it was all that.
And less, much much less.

But it's still Katie's fault - and hers alone.

[masshysteria]

21+ miles, 14 hrs of hiking, falling on our keesters on that red algae, and yet, we still had a great time!

[stoopid]

Horseflies? UGH

Ugh is right. The last 4 miles out last summer were torture. I moved from one horse fly to the next, like I was the feeder line for the day. :p

Horseflies are easy to defeat, though... just run! lol