How to Hike Noonmark Mountain And Round Mountain Together
If you are unfamiliar with Noonmark Mountain and Round, they are located in Keene, New York. They are apart of the Adirondack Mountains, specifically, located in the Dix Mountain Range and the High Peaks Wilderness. Noonmark is not a High Peak, however, it is pretty close, being 3,556ft in stance.
It is only 444ft away from being considered a High Peak (almost all High Peaks are 4,000ft and above). However, there are some High Peaks on the 46er challenge list, that are below the 4,000ft requirement, so technically, Noonmark could be a High Peak, and TRUST ME the trail FEELS like it.
In this post you will learn, about the Noonmark mountain hike (including Round Mountain), Noonmark mountain trail, Noonmark Mountain from Round Pond, Round Mountain loop, and more.
This post is all about Noonmark Mountain.
Noonmark Mountain from Round Pond + Round Mountain Loop
To get to the trailhead for these two mountains, you can either hike them via the Round Pond parking area (which is what I did, and is a little longer), or you can hike them from the Ausable Club entrance. For both, you will start on Interstate 87 North or South (depending on where you are driving from), you will take Exit 30 from the highway. Then, you will take a left towards Whiteface and Lake Placid, onto Route 73 (you will take a right if coming southbound). In about 2.3 miles you will come to an intersection, and stay to your left to Whiteface and Lake Placid.
Now to go to Noonmark and Round via Round Pond you will continue on this road (Route 73) for another 3 miles, then you will see, on your left, the Round Pond parking area. You will park here, then backtrack, and walk to the Dix Mountain Range sign (you will also see this sign on your left while driving, but the Round Pond parking is a little further down). I will warn you, you will probably miss the Dix Mountain Range sign while driving, but after you park, just walk “backwards” or south on Route 73, and you will see the sign. And that will be your trailhead.
Once you get on the trail, you will walk towards Round Pond. Round Pond is about .7 miles away, and it’s really pretty. I always stop and take a picture of Round Pond before I continue to Noonmark and Round Mountains. On your way back, you can stop here for a swim in the summertime, if you have time. Okay, after Round Pond, you will continue to follow the trail (blue trail markers) for about 1.6 miles and come to an intersection with Noonmark, Round, and Dix Mountain cutoffs. You will follow the sign and continue straight for Noonmark or follow the red trail markers.
After about .9 of a mile and about 1,300ft of elevation gain (this is A LOT) you will finally arrive to the summit of Noonmark! Now, I would stay here for awhile, to take in the views because they are spectacular. Then once you’ve gotten your fill of beauty, you will continue back down the red trail, to the intersection with Dix and Round Mountain trails, then follow the yellow trail markers to Round Mountain.
You will follow this trail for about 1.4 miles to the summit, with a MUCH smaller elevation gain than Noonmark (only about 600-700ft). Thus, it will only be about 3 miles more to tackle on Round Mountain. Then to get back to your car, you will follow the yellow trail markers back to the intersection with Noonmark and Dix Mountains, then follow the blue trail markers back to Round Pond, and the Round Pond parking lot.
Together, in total, these mountains are about 9.2 miles long with an elevation gain of about 3,000ft. Hiking both these mountains together is a great way to get in shape for hiking the Adirondack 46er Challenge or all the High Peaks.
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Round Mountain & Noonmark via Ausable Club
Now to hike Noonmark and Round Mountain via the Ausable Club, you will continue onto Route 73, for a little longer, for about 5 miles instead of 3 miles. Then you will see on your left, Ausable Road, and you will turn left onto this road, and take another left, into the parking area (the AMR, Adirondack Mountain Club, parking lot). DO NOT drive up the Ausable Road, because that is for MEMBERS ONLY, you will NOT be able to park anywhere in the Ausable Club if you are not a member.
P.S. You will need a hiking reservation to hike in the Ausable Club. You can make one here and they are free. Just be sure to bring a copy or photo on your phone of your reservation when you hike these peaks to show to the parking lot attendant.
After you park, you will walk up the road that you are not allowed to drive on. You will walk for about half a mile, then you will come upon a sign for the Dix Mountain Wilderness. This is your Noonmark trailhead. The sign will say the mileage for Dix and Noonmark Mountains. You want to take a left here and start your hike towards Noonmark Mountain. On this trail, you will come upon the Round Mountain hiking Trail cutoff (in about mile). You will want to continue straight towards Noonmark. You will want to get Noonmark out of the way first because you will need as MUCH energy as you can get for Noonmark!
{Related Post: Indian Head Mountain}
In about .6 of a mile you will come upon that same intersection from Round Pond, where Dix, Noonmark, and Round Mountains all come together. And you will want to take a right towards Noonmark and follow the red trail markers. In about .9 of a mile you will arrive at the summit of Noonmark.
After the summit of Noonmark, you will hike the .9 of a mile back down to that intersection with Round and Dix mountain, and take a left back towards Round Mountain and the Ausable Club. In about .6 of a mile, you will come upon the Round Mountain hikingTrail intersection. You will take a right onto the Round Mountain hiking Trail and in about .8 of a mile you will be at the summit of Round Mountain.
Then, to get back down, you will will retrace your steps on the Round Mountain Trail. In about .8 of a mile you will come upon that same trail to get back to the Ausable Club, you will want to take a right back down. Then in about a mile you will be back at the trailhead for Noonmark, then in about half a mile, you will be back at the AMR (Ausable Club) parking lot.
And that wraps this post about hiking Round Mountain and Noonmark peaks. I really enjoyed hiking Round Mountain NY and Noonmark of the Adirondacks, when I hiked them and I hope you do as well. Also, I hope this article was helpful for you to find the best way for you to hike these mountains. Thank you so much for reading and get hiking!
Also, a great place to eat after this hike is the Noonmark Diner. Noonmark Diner is in Keene Valley, NY, and and has delicious food. It is located right in the town of Keene, it’s pretty hard to miss!
