It’s Complicated

Pitchoff Mountain, nine miles east of Lake Placid, has two distinct personalities. Between the trailhead for the West trail and the summit, it’s a steady ascent up a well-trodden path. Then this trek turns ledgy and downright dastardly, at least in one spot, as you scramble over successive subpeaks, heading toward the bottom of the East trail. But just when you want to abandon it, inspirational views entice you onward.

Pitchoff (3,600 feet) is a sizeable mountain, but because it’s in the High Peaks, separated from Cascade and Porter Mountains—both 4,000-footers—by Route 73, it’s far down most intrepid hikers’ to-do lists. It shouldn’t be, especially for the first 1.7 miles to the Balanced Rocks.