I don’t just like cold temperatures, I prefer them — so anytime the mountaintops are relatively “chilly” in the summer then that’s somewhere I want to be. And that was the case today in the Adirondacks of New York.

I should preface this story by letting you know that I spend the fall months chasing snow up in the high elevations of the Adirondacks. Basically, I’ll take a look at the weather after work and then try and find a mountain to hike where there’s a good chance I could find some snow in the air. It’s fun. I love doing it and it gets me excited for ski season.

From one of my ‘snow chases’ in November of 2022

Anyways, it was around 12 p.m. today, Aug. 12, when I checked Whiteface Mountain’s summit temperature and saw it was in the mid-40s, with a wind chill in the mid-30s. I haven’t experienced a cool breeze like that in months, so I made the decision to drive up Whiteface Veterans Memorial Highway. This is the fastest way to get up the mountain. It’s a several mile drive up a paved road that eventually brings you to around 4,600 ft. elevation. From there, you can do the quick hike to the summit of Whiteface Mountain or take an elevator to the summit. (Yes, there’s actually an elevator that goes to the summit, although it was closed today.)

When I got to the gate for the road they informed me that it was cool at the summit and visibility was low. I paid my $20 to drive up the road and went on my way. I’ve driven this road many times and it’s always nice taking in the views, but today there was no view so I only stopped a few times to grab some pictures.

After 5 miles of driving I had made it to the top of the road. There was no view, but I didn’t care. That’s not why I drove up there. I put my jacket on and headed to the castle. (Yes, there’s a castle at the top of the road, at 4,600 ft. elevation.) I checked out the gift shop and the cafe in the castle, before heading to the hiking trail that leads to the summit of Whiteface Mountain.

The hike from the castle to the summit is only about 0.2 miles, but it’s fairly rugged and proper footwear is a good idea. When visibility isn’t low this hike has a fantastic view. If you’re visiting the area and you don’t want to do a full-on hike up a High Peak, this is a great way to experience one of the tallest mountains in New York.

I had on trail runners so I got to the summit pretty quickly. Though I had only gone up several hundred feet in elevation from the castle, the temperature at the summit was a little cooler and the wind was stronger. It felt amazing and it was exactly what I was hoping to experience. I recognize most people want to see a view when they pay to do something like this, but I ski at Whiteface Mountain nearly every day during the winter and know the view well. Today was all about feeling some cool air in the middle of August and I got that.

I know a lot of people out there love summer, but I’m ready for it to end. After experiencing that cool air today, I have fall fever. I’m ready for cool days, chilly nights, Halloween, snow and skiing. The good news is, it’s coming and it will be here before we know it, but until then, I’m going to keep searching for cooler temperatures on mountain summits.

SEARCHING FOR COLD IN MID-AUGUST

LIFE’S TOO SHORT NOT TO SKI AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE