Esther Mountain

Esther Mountain is the 28th highest mountain in New York State, with an elevation of 4,240 ft.  Esther Mountain is 9.4 miles long and will take about 7.5 miles to hike. 

Esther Mountain is named after Esther McComb, who discovered the mountain by accident!  At the age of 15, in 1839, Esther became lost while trying to climb Whiteface from the north.  Instead of hiking Whiteface, she hiked Esther Mountain and made the first recorded ascent.  The Adirondack 46ers placed a atablet to her memory on the summit in 1939.  Now, the tablet is on display at the Adirondack Museum and there is a replica on the mountain.  Make sure you look for it!

Take Whiteface Mountain via the Wilmington Trail to the junction marked with a cairn at 3.5 miles.  Leaving the red-marked trail, the path climbs steeply for 100 yards before joining the old path and continuing to the summit of Lookout Mountain at 0.3 miles where there was once a ski lodge.  From here, the trail to Esther Mountain descends to a col, 0.6 miles and continues north along the ridge to Esther's summit at 1.2 miles from Whiteface Trail.