May 16 2016

Get your kicks on Nun-Da-Ga-O Ridge Trail

Another beautiful day, this month, and as habits go (see the few previous posts), we picked a not-too-hard hike, to get us in shape for the season.

The Nun-Da-Ga-O Ridge hike (in the hills above the hamlet of Keene) features a loop hike, something that you usually don’t find in the Adirondacks.  Since it’s a hike along a trail that has no markers but that is well worn and easy to follow, we headed there mid-morning.  There are many views to enjoy along this 5.6 mile moderate loop hike with a 1500 foot elevation gain/loss.

Soon we began a slow climb up the Nun-Da-Ga-O ridge.  The early part, and late part are in the woods, but the middle part follows a partially open ridge with lots of views, especially of the High Peaks in the South. The views continued as we worked our way up and down rock outcroppings and progressed eastward along the ridge.
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South views from Weston Mountain

At 3.5 miles, we reached the summit of Weston Mountain (the “peak” of the hike at 3186 feet).  From here, we descended a half-mile to Lost Pond, and a nice view of Hurricane Mountain and its fire tower across the pond.  At 4.5 miles, we reached the junction of the Hurricane Mountain Trail that we followed for the last 1.1 miles back to the parking area and the end of this 5.6 mile loop hike.

As expected, we didn’t see many people on this trail but found a lost hiker who had been hiking in circles for the last hour. Lucky for her, we brought her back to her car and a safe trip home.