Winter Camping with a Pulk Sled – Adirondacks Deep Snow & Icy Summits

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Join us for 2 days of winter camping, backpacking & snowshoeing with a pulk sled in the deep snow of the Adirondack mountains.

For this winter camping adventure, we’ll be using a DIY pulk sled to setup up a base camp in the Giant Mountain Wilderness.  Day one will be dedicated to building camp and settling in, followed by a summit attempt of Giant Mountain on day two.

Our winter pulk sled will be used for group items such as campfire cooking gear, stoves, steaks and other food, additional firewood, our tent, etc.  In addition to the sled, Mike, Frank and myself each have a backpack for personal items such as cold weather clothing options and other gear. A list of notable gear can be found at the end of this post.

Route Overview – Roaring Brook to Giant Mt – Sintax77

No permit is required to camp in the Giant mountain wilderness, but there are rules and regulations regarding backcountry camping. You can find more information on the Adirondacks Park Giant Mountain Wilderness website here.

Full GPS track data, including campsites, water sources, etc, for this trip and many others can be downloaded on my Trip Data Page.

Trailhead Used: Roaring Brook Trailhead,  N44° 09.025′ W73° 46.064′
16 Roaring Brook Trail, Keene Valley, NY 12943

The Roaring Brook trailhead parking area has room for a half dozen vehicles or so. 

Trails Used, Day 1

  • Begin at the Roaring Brook Trailhead Parking Lot
  • Roaring Brook Trail
  • At the intersection for the Roaring Brook Falls upper & lower spur trails, continue straight on Roaring Brook Tail.
    • Note: There is a large campsite at the top of Roaring Brook Falls. This is a popular ice climbing location, and known campsite, so seclusion may be less so than where we chose to camp.
  • Setup camp about one mile in on the Roaring Brook Trail.
    • The site we selected was an unofficial, but legal, spot that we found along a shelf that we identified on the topo map. There was no immediate access to water, but due to the surrounding four foot snow, we were able to melt snow for our water needs.  If you continue along the trail a short bit, you will see a yellow camp here disc right were the trail intersects the brook.  This would be a good option for warmer trips, but we preferred the view at our earlier camping location.

Day 1 Mileage: 1.1 miles
Day 1 Gross Elevation Gain: 991 feet

Route to Camp Day 1 – Giant Mountain Wilderness – Sintax77

Trails Used, Day 2

  • Continue north on the Roaring Brook Trail
  • Cross over Roaring Brook
    • This and the second crossing, about 1/4 mile later, are the last reliable water sources before hitting the summit.
  • At the intersection, head left (north) on the Ridge Trail to Giant Mountain.
  • Arrive at summit of Giant Mountain, 12th tallest peak in New York, and tallest in the Giant Mountain Wilderness.
  • Head back out the same way.
  • Return to Roaring Brook Trailhead Parking Lot.

Day 2 Mileage: 7 Miles (3 each way to summit, 1 back to the car)
Day 2 Gross Elevation Gain: 3,100 feet

Route to Summit Day 2 – Giant Mountain Wilderness – Sintax77

Grand Total Mileage: 8 Miles
Grand Total Gross Elevation Gain: 4,090′

Notable Winter Backpacking Gear Seen

Disclosure: A commission may be earned on some of the links on this post.

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