The Best Beginner's Guide to Easy Hiking in NY

Beginner Hikes in the Adirondacks, New York

If you are new to hiking, or want to ease back into it, here are some great beginner/easier hikes within the Adirondack Mountains of New York State. There are many peaks spread all throughout the Adirondacks, which is the biggest hiking area within NY state parks. Some trails are smaller and great for beginners, there’s also great moderate/intermediate trails, and also great advanced/difficult hikes for more experienced/advanced hikers.

Once you cover easier ones and feel ready for more difficult terrain, here, here, and here are lists of more hikes to tackle on. As you will see, this article is split up into different sections based on the hikes location. The Adirondacks is a HUGE area, thus many towns and mountains encompass it. So, here are some great trails to introduce you into hiking.

In addition, in this post, you will learn about the best hiking in NY, hiking in upstate NY, the best hiking trails in New York with waterfalls, and the different hiking trails in upstate NY.

This post is all about hiking in NY.

Hiking in NY:

Lake George, NY

Lake George has some great hikes to explore. They have a lot of smaller mountains with great views of Lake George. Some great hikes that are a little more difficult are Buck Mountain and the Tongue Mountain Range. The Tongue Mountain Range is BEAUTIFUL! I have not done the whole loop but a good portion of it and it’s seriously amazing, once you get past some of the first peaks (Brown & Five Mile), the ones after that are STUNNING.

I did a portion of this loop one day after canceling on a high peak and was PLEASANTLY surprised with how WONDERFUL the views of the lake and the topography was. It’s really really cool, you feel like you’re on an African Safari or something, again, it’s super neat. However, if you wish to do this whole loop, you will need two cars to complete it, because you will start at one parking lot/trail head and end up at a completely different parking area. Anyways, below are some great beginner hikes in the area (listed in order of difficulty).

Stewart’s Ledge: a very doable hike with LOW elevation gain, under 2 miles (round trip), good for all ages.
The Pinnacle: a very doable hike, with a little more elevation gain, but not too much, just over 2 miles (round trip), again is good for all ages.
Hackensack: a very doable hike, just beware it is VERY easy to get lost coming down. It is not well marked and is about 2.7 miles round trip, with a very manageable elevation gain.
French Mountain: about 3 miles round trip with about an 800ft elevation gain.
Potash: Much like French Mountain but with a higher elevation gain.
Pilot Knob Ridge : about 4 miles round trip, with an elevation gain of about 1300ft with a nice summit area. It is not one of the best views in my opinion but it is good for training for more difficult hikes.
Sleeping Beauty: park in the farthest parking lot, NOT the first one you see, total, this mountain is about 3-4 miles long, with a manageable elevation gain. However, if you park in the first parking area, you add on about 2.5 miles to your hike, making it about a 6.5 mile hike. That being said, from the farthest parking lot, this hike does have a little over a 1,300ft elevation gain. Also, the road to the 2nd parking lot is rough.
Sunrise Peak (From Jabe Pond): about 5 miles, you start by climbing to Sunrise Peak, which has a pretty good elevation gain, but is not too far of a climb. Then follow the Bob James loop, it will take you along Jabe Pond which is beautiful.
Prospect Mountain: Again, this is not a super long trail, but has a high elevation gain in a short amount of distance. It is a total of 3 miles with an elevation gain of about 1,500ft. Thus, I would hike this trail later once you get more use to difficult elevation gains.

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Keene & Keene Valley, NY

I LOVE hiking here. Keene/Keene Valley and Lake Placid are my FAVORITE hiking trails in upstate NY and throughout all the Adirondacks. They have the best hiking in NY in my and many other people’s opinion. Some great more advanced (moderate) hikes, are Owl’s Head Lookout, Hurricane, Hopkins, Noonmark (HIGH elevation gain), and Round Mountain (can pair with Noonmark). These mountains are longer and have more elevation gain, but if you hike some of the beginner peaks, and get use to them, you will be good to hike the ones listed above.

If you want really advanced hikes, any of the 46ers are AMAZING, DIFFICULT but BEAUTIFUL hikes. Cascade and Porter, Big Slide, Phelps, and Gothics (need reservation), are great ones to start with. But again they are MUCH longer than the hikes listed below and have A LOT more elevation gain. So again, I would only hike these after MUCH more experience with moderate to difficult trails. Anyways, here are some nice beginner trails to get started with.

Baxter Mountain: in Keene Valley, about 3 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 800ft. This is a great one for all ages and does have a false summit at the top. The trail will go to the left to an open space with a view, this is not the summit, keep following the yellow signs and you will shortly arrive at the actual summit.
Giant’s Nubble: This has one of the BEST views in the Adirondacks, even better than some high peaks. It has a HIGH elevation gain, but is shorter than Baxter (2.6 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 1,167ft). So, just be careful on the up part, otherwise, this is an awesome first hike!
Little & Big Crow: Little crow on this trail is about 2 miles round trip, not very long at all, with not bad elevation gain. And the summit is very pretty, however, to get to Big Crow, use AllTrails or some kind of map, because it is very tricky to get to.

Lake Placid, NY

Like I previously said, I love hiking in Lake Placid, specifically, at the Adirondack Lodge. Some great moderate to advanced hikes in Lake Placid are Catamount, St. Regis, Jay Mountain, and Whiteface (and Ester if you’re doing the 46ers). Many of the Adirondacks 46ers are located at the Adirondacks Lodge in Lake Placid as well.

Also, Mount Van Hoevenberg is literally right before the Adirondack Lodge, it’s down the same road, just one turn/parking lot before the attendant window of the Adirondack Lodge and is also a great moderate-smaller hike. In addition, Bear Den is also a great beginner to moderate hike, but is hard to follow at times, so I would use AllTrails or a paper map. It gets crowded in Lake Placid and Keene/Keene Valley regions ESPECIALLY on weekends. I would get to places or book campsites/hotels EARLY. If hiking on a Saturday, I would get to the lodge and or popular peaks no later than 6-7am between late May to early September.

Mount Jo: This is probably one of the easiest trails to hike in the Adirondacks, especially in Lake Placid and the High Peaks region. For the little mileage and elevation gain (just under 2 miles round trip with about a 700 foot elevation gain), it has a BEAUTIFUL summit.
Silver Lake Mountain: This is a gorgeous hike! It is a little longer of a hike and has more elevation gain, but is super beautiful.

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Indian Lake, NY

The next couple of regions are all kind of located in a horseshoe shape together. Indian Lake, Long Lake, Blue Mountain Lake, Tupper Lake, and Saranac Lakes, are all interconnected via route NY-28 & 30. For more difficult trails Peaked Mountain, Blue Mountain, and Snowy Mountains (further down on the linked list) are all BEAUTIFUL. Personally, Peaked Mountain is my favorite, it’s so pretty, and has the least amount of people. The Indian lake region and the surrounding areas, do NOT get the crowds that Keene Valley and Lake Placid do. So, you don’t have to get to the trailheads nearly as early.

Sawyer Mountain: a very doable hike being about 2 miles and under 700ft of elevation gain, good for all ages.
Watch Hill Trail: This is a very straight forward hike, well marked, and easy to follow. The summit is a bit small, but it does have a good view. I think this is a great trail for an introduction to hiking.
Chimney Mountain: This is a GREAT hike! I recommend hiking this during the fall, because the changing colors of the leaves are beautiful. I will say the actual summit is okay but when I hiked it with my friend, we went through a little bit of a bushwhack to get to a truly BEAUTIFUL summit.
Baldface Mountain: Is also a great hike being about 2.2 miles round trip, with a big elevation gain of just over 1,000ft. The mileage is not bad but the elevation gain is HUGE for only 2.2 miles, just be aware of that.

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Blue Mountain Lake

Blue Mountain Lake is a beautiful area with surrounding mountains and lakes nearby. A hard climb, that’s also a fire tower, is Owl’s Head. Now, there is about 3 different Owl’s Heads in the Adirondacks, thus, just make sure you get directions/map/AllTrails for the right one. This link, is for the Owl’s Head in Long Lake, NY.

Buttermilk Falls: this is one of the hiking trails in New York with waterfalls. It is VERY EASY, it’s not even really a hike. You park and walk a little bit and then you see the falls. The falls are really pretty, which is why I recommend this trail if it’s not too far from you.
Castle Rock: This is a nice hike with a good view. You do have to park on what looks like private property, but you can park there. This is a pretty moderate trail.
Wakely Mountain: This is also a personal favorite. It’s the longest out of the three with the highest elevation gain, but I hiked it early in the morning one day when one of the first frosts happened and it was just beautiful. It doesn’t have the best view, you’ll have to climb up the fire tower to see something, but again I really liked it because of the frost and calmness.

Long Lake

Long Lake is much like Indian and Blue Mountain lakes, it’s a beautiful smaller lake in the Adirondacks. Pharaoh Mountain Wilderness is a BEAUTIFUL area. Seriously, when my friends and I camped in the Pharaoh Mountain Wilderness, we were pleasantly surprised at how gorgeous the place was. They also have Pharaoh Mountain, which again is a LONG but pretty peak. Also, Mount Adams Fire Tower is a nice hike located on the same trail as the infamous Allen Mountain (a grueling 46er). Mount Adams has a HIGH elevation gain, but the view is really pretty. Again, you will have to climb up the fire tower for a view, but I thought it was nice.

Goodnow Mountain Fire Tower: very well marked, easy to follow, is about 4 miles round trip. You do have to climb up the fire tower to see the view, but it is really nice.
Mud Pond Mountain: is about 5.6 total miles with an elevation gain of about 800ft, the trailhead and parking lot are difficult to find.

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Tupper Lake

Tupper Lake has its own hiking challenge, the Tupper Lake Triad, which is a great beginner challenge. None of these peaks are longer than 3 miles and have kind elevation gains. Not too far from Tupper Lake is Saranac Lake, which has one heck of a mountain, Ampersand. Almost a high peak, this trail has almost a 2,000ft elevation gain in 2.2 miles (4.4 round trip).

For reference, hiking a 1,000ft is about equal to climbing 100 flights of stairs. Thus, anything with over a 1,000ft of elevation per mile, is A LOT. You are HUFFING and PUFFING or breaking frequently. Here are all the Tupper Lake Triad hikes.

Coney Mountain: a GREAT beginner hike, only 2.1 miles round trip with an elevation gain of about 550ft and is very well marked and easy to follow, good for all ages.
Arab Fire Tower: very doable, just under 2 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 738ft.
Goodman: about 3 miles round trip, with an elevation gain of about 577ft, which is very doable.

As you can see, hiking in upstate NY, covers a wide range of land. The Adirondacks are a VAST area with MANY different trails, towns, and mountains/peaks to climb. I hope this article helps you get into hiking if you are interested. Since high school, I have been an avid hiker, and have completed the 46 High Peaks. So, obviously I really enjoy it and recommend it to anyone else who is willing and able. Thank you so much for reading, take care, and get out there!

In this post, you learned about the best hiking in NY, hiking in upstate NY, the best hiking trails in New York with waterfalls, and the different hiking trails in upstate NY.

The Best Beginner’s Guide to Easy Hiking in NY