Mount Haystack
More photographs at the Wikimedia Commons category.
Mount Haystack rises to 1,498 m in New York. Mount Marcy stands 1,629 m to the west-northwest, 1.3 miles off. The nearest named place is Little Haystack, a peak 0.3 miles away. High Peaks Scenic Byway (NYS Route 73) passes 7.2 miles off.
The story
Mount Haystack is a mountain in the Great Range of the Adirondack Mountains of New York. With an elevation of 4,960 feet (1,510 m), it is the third-highest mountain in New York and one of the 46 High Peaks in Adirondack Park. It is located in the town of Keene in Essex County. The first recorded ascent of the mountain was made by mountain guide Orson Schofield Phelps in 1849, accompanied by Almeron Oliver and George Etsy. Phelps gave the mountain its current name based on its appearance to a haystack, and later cut the first trail to the summit in 1873. The summit is an alpine zone above the treeline, which offers a view of nearby Mount Marcy and Panther Gorge. Two trails can be used to access the summit of Haystack. The mountain can be approached from the north by following the Johns Brook Trail from the Garden parking area in Keene Valley to the Phelps Trail, passing the DEC Interior Outpost and Johns Brook Lodge, and then following the State Range Trail from a junction between the two. The northern trail to Haystack branches from the State Range Trail 0.6 miles (0.97 km) from the summit. The distance from Keene Valley to the DEC Interior Outpost is 3.5 miles (5.6 km) and Haystack is an additional 5.8 miles (9.3 km), for a total distance of 9.3 miles (15.0 km). It can also be approached from the south, starting at the privately owned Ausable Club. This approach involves steep, rough terrain, and is not recommended for backpackers due to the risk of falls. This route is 3.5 miles (5.6 km) from Upper Ausable Lake to the summit, with an elevation gain of 3,070 feet (940 m). Ascents of Haystack are sometimes combined with several other peaks, including Marcy, Basin, Saddleback, or the Great Range.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q6921097, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Elevation
- 1498 m
How to reach it
- 7.2 mi off the High Peaks Scenic Byway (NYS Route 73)
- 13.5 mi off the Roosevelt-Marcy Trail
- 12.5 mi off the Olympic Trail
- 24.1 mi off the Adirondack Trail
Overlooks nearby
- Snow Mountain Lookout · 7 mi
- Roaring Brook Falls Lower Lookout · 8 mi
- Roaring Brook Falls Upper Lookout · 8 mi
- Cascade Mountain · 8 mi
Named places within 25 miles
- Little Haystack: 0.3 mi
- Little Marcy: 1.1 mi
- Mount Marcy: 1.3 mi
- Basin Mountain: 1.3 mi
- Schofield Cobble: 1.3 mi
- Panorama Bluff: 3.6 mi
- Fish Hawk Cliffs: 3.8 mi
- Lost Lookout: 4.1 mi
- The Courthouse: 5.6 mi
- Wallface: 7.1 mi
- Indian Head Trailhead: 7.2 mi
- Mid's Park: 13.4 mi
- Kiwanis Teddy Bear Park: 13.5 mi
- Brewster Park: 13.5 mi
- Frontier Town Campground, Equestrian and Day Use Area: 14.1 mi
- Indian Falls: 2.8 mi
- Indian Falls: 2.8 mi
- Bushnell Falls: 2.9 mi
- Rainbow Falls: 3.6 mi
- The Falls: 3.9 mi
- Mount Marcy First Ascent: 1.3 mi
- Lower Ausable Lake Dam: 3.8 mi
- David Henderson Memorial: 4.9 mi
- Strategic Air Command Memorial: 5.1 mi
- Canyon Bridge Memorial: 5.6 mi
- Airplane Wreckage: 5.3 mi
- Mountain Pass Lodge: 7.9 mi
- Cliffside Coaster: 7.9 mi
- Lake Placid Bobsled Experience at Mt. Van Hoevenberg: 7.9 mi
- John Brown Farm State Historic Site: 10.8 mi
- Johns Brook Primitive Area: 5.7 mi
- Tahawas Primitive Area: 7.9 mi
- Heaven Hill Trails: 10.6 mi
- Henry's Woods: 11.7 mi
- Boquet River Primitive Area: 11.8 mi
- Lake Placid Hall of Fame: 13.0 mi
- Lake Placid Olympic Museum: 13.0 mi
- Adirondack History Museum: 17.1 mi
- Adirondack history center museum: 17.1 mi
- Historic Saranac Lake / Laboratory Museum: 19.0 mi
- Lake Placid Public Beach: 13.0 mi
- Park beach: 20.0 mi
- Port Henry Village Beach: 22.5 mi
- Bulwagga Bay Beach: 22.6 mi
- Westport Beach: 23.8 mi
- Footbridge Park: 16.8 mi
- Witherbee Park and Bandstand: 22.4 mi
- Bulwagga Bay Pavillion: 22.5 mi
- Powerhouse Park: 22.6 mi
- Schroon Community Garden: 19.9 mi
- Common Ground Garden: 20.3 mi
- Tahawus: 8.4 mi
- High Peaks Welcome Center: 11.6 mi
- Big Wooden Bear (8'): 17.8 mi
Other summits around it
The highest named summits within 6.5 miles of Mount Haystack. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Marcy | WNW 293° | 1,629 m | 1.3 mi |
| Algonquin Peak | WNW 301° | 1,555 m | 5.0 mi |
| Schofield Cobble | WNW 284° | 1,515 m | 1.3 mi |
| Mount Skylight | WSW 254° | 1,495 m | 1.6 mi |
| Dix Mountain | ESE 106° | 1,473 m | 5.9 mi |
| Iroquois Peak | WNW 294° | 1,472 m | 5.3 mi |
| Boundary Peak | WNW 297° | 1,471 m | 5.2 mi |
| Basin Mountain | NNE 33° | 1,468 m | 1.3 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:00 | 18:30 | 19:08 |
| June solstice | 05:13 | 19:59 | 20:43 |
| September equinox | 06:43 | 18:17 | 18:55 |
| December solstice | 07:28 | 15:33 | 16:21 |
Local time (America/New_York).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Sep.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 15 | 18 | 26 | 39 | 51 | 60 | 64 | 63 | 56 | 44 | 32 | 21 |
| Precip in | 3.1 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 3.4 | 3.9 | 4.8 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 3.5 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Lake Placid 2 S, 14 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikidata- USGS Geographic Names Information System feature 973353 — Mount Haystack, Essex County, New York.
OpenStreetMap element node/357598534
Day trips start here
- Elizabethtown · 16 mi
- Westport · 24 mi
- Crown Point · 25 mi
Take the scenic way to Mount Haystack.
Byway plans around your taste, verified places, real weather and opening hours — then opens every leg in Google Maps with one tap.