Stewart Mountain
Location: Chester, New York
Mileage: 0.8 Miles
Elevation Gain: 218 Feet
Trails Used: Stewart Mountain Trail
Views: Ledge View
Difficulty: Easy
Hiking Lists: Chester Challenge - Adirondack 29er Junior Peaks
We drove to Schroon Lake, in the Adirondacks, to stay the night and do a few hikes on Sunday before we headed home. We made a pit stop at our favorite place in New York: Stewarts to refuel and get drinks before we headed to the motel down the road. Sunday, we headed out early to begin the easy drive to the trailhead off of White Schoolhouse Road, which has room for maybe 4 to 5 cars depending on how you park. Since this was a short hike, we decided against using backpacks.
Stewart Mountain is part of the Chester Challenge, which requires you to hike six of eleven trails listed on their website to obtain a pin for finishing, or patch if finished in winter between December 20th to March 20th. Stewart Mountain is also #36 on the Adirondack 29er Junior Peaks list.
The parking area is located off White Schoolhouse Road, where a map points out the trail leading to the view ledge on Stewart Mountain.
We start up the Stewart Mountain Trail, climbing at an easy to moderate incline for the first 0.2 miles.
The one brief, steep stretch of the Stewart Mountain Trail.
The final stretch of the Stewart Mountain Trail just before reaching the main ledge views on Stewart Mountain lower summit.
The ledge overlook on Stewart Mountain offers stunning views of Loon Lake and the Gore Mountain Ski Area.
A few pictures and then a quick return hike back to the car. We passed a woman and her dog going to the summit and then a couple heading up as we made it back to the car. A quick half hour hike to stretch the legs as we headed to hike number 2.
Bartonville Mountain
Location: Horicon/Brant Lake, New York
Mileage: 1.8 Miles
Elevation Gain: 546 Feet
Trails Used: Jack and Jill Trail, Ricks Run MB Trail
Views: Ledge Views below summit of Bartonville Mountain
Difficulty: Moderate
Hiking Lists: ADK-9 Challenge
Our second and final hike of the day was near Stewart Mountain, and finding it turned into a bit of an adventure. I actually drove right past it at first, but we eventually backtracked to the big parking lot next to The Hub, a mountain bike repair shop, restaurant, and bar. Unfortunately, it was closed when we arrived since it was early, so we didn’t get the chance to check it out. The Hub is also responsible for building the hiking and mountain biking trails on Bartonville Mountain. Please remember to respect this private property that we’re fortunate to be able to enjoy.
The Jack and Jill Trail sits beside the Mountain Biking Trail, starting just behind The Hub, where you can grab a bite or a drink. From there, it veers right and makes its way toward the ledge view.
The red-blazed Jack and Jill Trail features several switchbacks as it winds its way 0.67 miles to the scenic ledge views atop Bartonville Mountain.
Stretches of bedrock along the Jack and Jill Trail add variety and break up the monotony of rocks and roots.
The ledge on Bartonville Mountain offers stunning views, overlooking Brant Lake and the vast beauty of the Pharaoh Lake Wilderness.
The Jack and Jill Trail links up with Rick’s Run, a mountain biking path, which I followed to reach the summit of Bartonville Mountain.
The wooded summit of Bartonville Mountain was just a short bushwhack from the Rick Run Trail.
We turned around and made our way back down the trail at a relaxed pace. It was fortunate we did both hikes early, as the day’s heat was starting to build and would have made things uncomfortable later on. Though both hikes were on the shorter side mileage-wise, I felt they fell short in the views department compared to what the Adirondacks usually deliver. Now it’s time for the four-hour drive back to New Hampshire.
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