"This was my 3rd Adirondack High Peak. Why not jump from the two easiest peaks to one of the hardest/longest? We left home at 2 am (after maybe 3 hours of sleep) and drove the 3.5 hours to the trailhead. Started at 6 am and it had just stopped raining so everything was very wet. Pants were soaked from walking through the narrow trails and my goretex shoes could only do so much against the water and mud. The first 8 miles are not hard, but there are a couple of water crossings that were a bit scary going across slippery rocks. Then about 2 miles from the summit things got real. Wet and slimy rock face, pulling yourself up by hanging onto any nearby tree, and constant climbing. We thought it was 9 miles to the summit but it was really a little over 10 so it just kept going. I was fatigued and starving when we finally made it. The view, once we found a clearing, was amazing and worth it. On the way down we saw other great views we hadn't been able to see because of cloud cover on the way up but things were cleared up and dried up on the long trip back down. I was kind of scared about negotiating those slippery rocks on the way down, but things were much improved and it was not so bad. ..." — kvander • Jun 24, 2020

"What a day! It was long very scenic and wet muddy kinda day with my newest hiking partner Laurie Sargent. Beautiful suspension bridges and amazing water crossing made for an all out great hike which took us about 11hrs from the Upper Works Trailhead back to the car and only one other on the trail that day which we met at the summit,, A 22 yr old male in a shirt and tie! Imagine that! With over 3300 Ft. of accent for the last mile with wet rocks and some steep sketchy areas made for a very interesting decent, Be careful on this one! The wet rocks as well as a wet red slime film made for many slippery areas on the decent,, my butt is still feeling it this morning lol Love what you do!" — ramjet1963 • Jun 2, 2019

"Tom and I left Lower Works trailhead @ 6:10 @ 57 degrees and clear skies. Long gentle trail to base of mtn. The final climb was not too bad but very slippery with moss and red slime. Summited at 10:40 am. Left summit at 11:15 with 3 guys we met at summit. They knew of a different old logging road that we bushwacked to that saved 1 mile on the way out. Returned to trailhead at 3:40 pm. Beautiful, clear and cool day." — garyogden • Sep 8, 2018

"Cloudy damp and muddy day. The climb up the Allen brook was fogged in and created an awesome scene. While I did not have a view from a summit, it did not take away from my enjoyment of the hike. Only one hike left to finish the 46." — Right-On • Oct 14, 2017

"Finally got a great day to take on Allen. We attempted this after a heavy rain storm in June but due to the flooding had to turn back. This had to be my favorite High Peak so far. A bit of everything is on this hike. A long 5.2 mile walk through the woods to the herd path following for a bit the Opalescent River, across many water crossings, heavy woods and open fields. The trek to the summit was steep, steady, very wet and slippery especially following the Allen Brook and the slide. Views to the North at Marcy, Skylight were great. This hike is well worth the trip." — hbotc • Jul 29, 2017

"Number 40/46! What a feeling! Solo. Started out at the trailhead just before Upper Works at 0500. With the brightest Super Moon since the 70's helping light my way, I followed the Lake Jimmy divert trail, which I took when I did Mt Adams. I still love that crazy suspension bridge over the Hudson. Continued onto the gravel road for quite some time after the watchmans cabins, and then hung a left to the trail around Lake Sally, which I really didn't like at all. Huge mud bogs that could really use some planks. Temperatures were in the 20's, so it was crunchy black mud for awhile. This led out to left turn onto gravel again, where upon entering this trail I smelled a skunk. Like. Really close by. For the first time in any of my hikes I was actually afraid of the wildlife. Thankfully only its scent made an appearance! The sun was coming up and when I hit the Opalescent "wade spot" it was full sunlight. As I grieved the fact that I had forgotten garbage bags, I prepared to wade barefoot. Not an idea I was hugely excited for. I scoped along the river banks looking for a nice spot, and actually thought I was hallucinating when I saw the new bridge up stream a few hundred feet away! I was..." — kellieirene • Nov 14, 2016

"Began our journey around 9 AM. Unlike most of the other people on the trail, we had opted to do this as a two day camping trip. We made decent headway down the flat road part of the trip. Enjoyed the water crossing. And eventually ended up at the base of Mount Allen where we established the tents nice and early. It was a good night, warn and the moon was in full glow. We were able to hit the trail head again at 530 the next morning. Three hours up the steepest muddiest path I have encountered so far. We reached the summit (832 AM). The summit itself is wooded, but there are several clear overlooks easily located which lead to some great views on a near perfect day. The decent was not as bad, passing several larger groups of day hikers heading up. We made great headway and manged to return to camp and get it packed up. Before the long almost flat march back to the car. Since we had plenty of time we stopped to lounge in the river for and hour, enjoying the refreshing waters versus the sun which beats down on you for a lot of that road journey. " — Kazmuglin • Jul 17, 2016

"A long hike along a herd path. Met only 1 person on this hike. There was muddy water on the rock slab that was super slippery. Don't step in it. Crazy Hazy kind of day. Could see Marcy and Haystack just beyond the summit. Looking towards Panther, etc, the haze just destroyed the visibility. Didn't bother taking many pics." — newenglandwarrior • Sep 2, 2015

"this trail had pretty good tread for the most part. of course, there are the occasional mudpits. however, the slide towards the summit is covered in a red slime which is very slippery. " — Hillary • Aug 13, 2015

"Solo Hike. Abruptly took day off of work (before quitting stressful job). Only 5 others on trail that day. Summited easily, even with all the the red slime. Rainstorm & Fog on the way down, missed crossing for Skylight Brook and ended up in swamp. Got bearings from Cheney Cobble once fog cleared. Retraced steps and still got out before nightfall." — ndru-virus • Jul 23, 2015