Mount Jo

Henry Van Hoevenberg named this peak for his fiancee Josephine, who tragically died within a year and never saw their home, Adirondack Lodge, completed. Lake Placid Club and Adirondack Mountain Club have owned it successively. Today the complex is the Adirondack Loj, from which numerous High Peaks climbs originate, as well as the popular little peak called Mt. Jo.
The Long Trail and Short Trail make for an interesting loop.

Routes

Short Trail

43 summits • 2.9 mi • 873 ft gain • 1 hr 51 min

Rock Garden trail

4 summits • 5.7 mi • 919 ft gain • 3 hr 29 min

Mount Jo 13.5 mi route

1 summit • 13.5 mi • 5,092 ft gain • 6 hr 39 min

Latest summits

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"With Christian and Bruno, a last hike before going back home. We took the loop (long trail at first, coming back via short trail). Fantastic view of the High Peaks. Around zero celcius on the summit, no wind. " — hiking-Brigitte • Mar 13, 2019

"Really great day climbing #7 of my LP9er challenge Mt. Jo With Matt Topgun Peacock,, Weather was perfect for a climb with light clouds and no wind,, Trails were well packed and great condition,, Micro spikes all the way to the summit which offered amazing views for such a smaller peak,, Well worth the climb and highly recommend. Enjoy" — ramjet1963 • Feb 23, 2019

"This is what I wrote on facebook that day: A Christmas day hike up Mt. Jo! It was so beautiful, with not a cloud in the sky. I was the first person to summit today so the trails were covered with sparkly fluffy unbroken snow. Which made it a bit hard to know if I was still on the trail at times. It's about a 2 mile loop, shorter/steeper trail up and longer/less steep trail down and peaks at 2868'. I wore my snowshoes on the way up, which may have been a mistake but was a fun challenge and did help with some of the climbing over snow/ice covered rocks. I had to go really slowly though. At the top, there are 3 sets of ladder-like stairs to climb up and the view was amazing - you could see many of the surrounding high peaks. I traded out my snowshoes for boots with yak traks for the way down (spikes would have been much better) to make it easier to get down the stairs. I met a couple of people as I was heading down who had just come up the long trail so following their footsteps back made it much easier to know where the trail was for the descent.This trail was quite a bit easier but slippery with ice in a lot of places. I'm not ready to take on the high peaks to become a 46er ..." — kvander • Dec 25, 2018

"This was October, but had a winter feel. The road to Heart Lake center was icy. On a weekday there was no one else there, seriously like one or 2 other cars. It was cold and a bit icy, but I carried the microspikes. At the top there is a nice view of Marcy, and I think Colden in front of it. That's Street and Nye in my other picture. It was sunny and calm at the top. I took my jacket off and had lunch. Got a chill on the way down. This is a short easy hike. " — bethmorgan • Oct 18, 2018

"Started off the day with a hike in the woods because of low cloud cover. Then as the cloud cover lifted, I went over and started on the Lake Placid 9er. Hiked up Cobble Hill. Nice view overlooking Lake Placid. I then drove over and did Mt Jo. Some really nice views up there looking at the High Peaks. I took my time up there before heading back down. " — newenglandwarrior • Oct 12, 2018

"Beast of the East and I brought our nephew Brady here for his first Adirondack peak hike. He did a great job on the hike and enjoyed looking at all the mushrooms growing along the trail. The summit steward pointed out the high peaks in view at the top. We also learned some interesting geology of the mountain. This was the last day of our Adirondack trip." — mrs-beast-of-the-east • Jul 27, 2018

"Sunrise summit the next day after summiting the first time the day before. It took about 45 minutes to reach the summit via the long trail. The long trail was easier with a brisk morning. No clouds in the sky as the sun hit Algonquin with pretty pinks then the sun hit Marcy along with Colvin. " — amandagomez • Mar 5, 2017

"My first summit after turning back from Haystack/Mackenzie because of the weather, It was too cold and windy. Via the short trail I reached the summit with little to no wind and a blazing sun. Fantastic views of Algonquin straight ahead with Colvin and Marcy to the right." — amandagomez • Mar 4, 2017

"This was Andrea and Jim's first winter hike in the ADKs. It was overcast and unfortunately there were limited views from the summit. The short trail had lots of places for butt-sliding on the way down and some interesting ice formations. " — mrs-beast-of-the-east • Feb 11, 2017

"Planned to do this as an add on to other hikes a few times. Shorter days meant we had to abandon our plans due to fading light. Finally Today we did Mt Jo by itself, and not as an add on. Great little mountain, terrible conditions !! But, loved this hike." — UK-Ranger • Dec 3, 2016

"Climbed this peak that was originally meant to be an "extra" to some longer hikes, but ended up being part of a dedicated hike along with Van Hoevenberg and Cobble Hill. Great views.. at least I would assume they would be if it wasn't cloudy and snowing. Overall an enjoyable hike." — RangersApprentice • Dec 3, 2016

"Beautiful Day at the Loj! After my Wilderness First Aid class finished for the day there was time to climb this little gem. A beautiful summit, great views, short hike with some scrambles - what more can you ask for? I had the summit of this usually busy little peak all to myself." — PJSelmer • Apr 2, 2016

"My brother & I originally intended to summit Street & Nye for my 3 year hiking anniversary, however when we made it to the crossing on Indian Pass Brook, we were heartbroken to find that it was impossible to cross due to high waters and no ice spanning it. Not wanting to go home with no peak under our belts & our tails between our legs, we decided to back track and hit Mt Jo as neither of us had done it before. The hike was extremely icy, and I was very grateful my microspikes had been sharpened recently. It was an overcast day, but the views were OK, and overall it was a decent consolation prize though it was a short hike. " — kellieirene • Feb 17, 2016

"Kellie and I pulled up to the Loj with the intention of heading out to Street and Nye. Icy conditions on the trail around Heart Lake. When we arrived at Indian Pass Brook we were unable to find a safe way to cross. There was no spot with an ice bridge or a place to rock hop. Water was high due to the recent rain and the mild temperatures meant there was very little ice as well. We decided to turn around and on our way back we headed up to Mount Jo as a consolation prize. " — LGH-Tom • Feb 17, 2016

"This trail was very easy, short and a great view! Rocky and a ladder but not too steep. The mileage on the app and some of the reported tracks are a little misleading. We did the loop up the short and down the long and it was only 2.2 miles not 4. It took 1 hour and 45 minutes with time at the summit" — kathyrowney • Oct 2, 2015

"We started our day with the intent on hiking Street and Nye. Unfortunately when we got to Indian pass brook the water was too high and there was no way to cross. After searching along the riverbank for about 0.3 miles for an alternate crossing we finally decided to bushwhack back to the trail and hike Mt. Jo instead. We started up the Long Trail via the Rock Garden and enjoyed a fun icy climb up the trail. The skies were a mix of sun and clouds with some fairly strong winds on this very chilly day but we had some great views from the summit. We descended via the short trail and overall had a great day in the woods." — deb-and-rob • Dec 31, 2014

"Woke up early for a solo sunrise hike. Quick 2 mile loop taking the short trail from the ADK Loj. Trail is amazingly well-maintained. Views were a little obscured at the summit with the morning clouds, but was still a nice experience. " — MooseHiker • May 17, 2013

"I was leaving for home after a weekend hiking trip to Owl's Head in Keene and Tabletop with my friend Pru. Before facing the long drive home, I did a short hike to the summit of Mt Jo." — hikerchik46 • Oct 28, 2012

"Still a bit lame from Sunday's ankle "roll", I tried a shorter summit. I also has my trusty companion, Caoimhe along for the hike. Another sunny day, mid-70's. The Loj parking lot was full before 8am. Needed to park about a mile or two down the Loj Road and hike it in. I'm surprised that being a smaller summit amongst, that the trails on Mt. Jo weren't marked better. There are a LOT of families that hike this, and it may be a first summit and taste of what's in store if one were to consider trying out one of the many high peaks that are laid out in front of them. Overall, it was a nice short hike with a beautiful summit view. " — johngilligan • May 26, 2012

"Tried to climb Street and Nye, but couldn't cross Indian Pass Brook, so we went up Mount Jo. What a pleasant surprise with great views from an open summit. See my trip report at: http://www.offonadventure.com/2011/12/street-and-nye-mountainsor-mount-jo.html" — Telemarkmike • Dec 26, 2011