Tongue Mountain Range

"There have been joys too great to be described in words, and there have been griefs upon which I have not dared to dwell, and with these in mind I say, climb if you will, but remember that courage and strength are naught without prudence, and that a momentary negligence may destroy the happiness of a lifetime.  Do nothing in haste, look well to each step, and from the beginning think what may be the end."

- Edward Whymper

The Tongue Mountain Range is one of the wildest places in the Lake George Park.  Many have mistakenly called it simply "Tongue Mountain", but it is in fact a range.  The range derives its name from its appearance - the peninsula appears to jut out into Lake George like a tongue, separating Lake George on the East from four-mile-long Northwest Bay to the West.  The Tongue Mountain Range consists of six peaks along a ridge: First Peak, French Point Peak, Fifth Peak, Five Mile Mountain, Huckleberry Mountain, and Brown Mountain.

The majority of hikers in the Tongue Mountain Range Wilderness begin their treks at Clay Meadows, about five miles North of the town of Bolton Landing.  Fifth Peak and Five Mile Mountain are the most popular destinations from this trailhead, with relatively little traffic seen South of there.  Fifth Peak is a relatively easy 2.5 miles from the trailhead and has a leanto on top.  It has a field behind it that is fantastic for stargazing (it's my favorite spot to go in August for the Perseid Meteor Shower), but there is no water nearby, so you will have to carry in all your drinking and cooking water.

There's a great loop trip I did while working at Camp Pack Forest that uses this campsite as your first night's stop on a 3 day/2 night backpacking trip.  The second day is somewhat grueling, traversing the spine of the ridge, including three peaks, and then descending to the lake at Montcalm Point, or what some call "Point of Tongue".  It is seldom visited by dayhikers and provides a rarely-viewed perspective of Lake George, the islands of The Narrows, and The Sagamore Resort.

My favorite view from the Tongue Range is from French Point Mountain, which is 1.5 miles past Fifth Peak, making for an 8 mile roundtrip from Clay Meadows.  The terrain between Fifth and French Point Peaks is probably the most rugged of the peninsula, as well.  Lake George was part of a pivotal corridor between Montreal and New York City during the French and Indian War in the mid-18th century.  The lake is 32 miles long and anywhere from 1-3 miles wide.  At the northern end sits the town of Ticonderoga, home to Fort Ticonderoga (which is actually on nearby Lake Champlain), and the southern end is home to Fort William Henry, immortalized in the film adaptation of James Fenimore Cooper's Last of the Mohicans.  Lake George was a powderkeg of conflict during the French and Indian War, and the name of French Point Peak harkens to this colonial era.  From this peak, one can almost imagine the warships and batteaus making their way down the lake.  And, at an elevation of 1,756 feet, the view looks almost straight down on the state camping islands of The Narrows approximately 1,400 feet below.

The Tongue Mountain Range is also one of the only places in the Northeast that is home to the Timber Rattlesnake.  These snakes are striped tan and brown and blend in well with the undergrowth, pine needles dusting the forest floor, and pine cones.  They will sometimes come out on the trails to sun themselves, and more than once I have come close to absentmindedly stepping on one!  As such, the Tongue Mountain Range requires an added measure of prudence ;-)