Enjoyed a weekend backpacking trip through the ADKs where we hiked Gray, Skylight, Marcy, Haystack, Redfield and Cliff. The hike in from Tahawus was low, steady gain until the Flowed Lands with intermittent mud areas. The next 3 or so miles to Uphill L2 has some gain to it :) The junction for Gray is about 1.6 miles from the L2 area and is a slab type hike that is short and steep but it is not too difficult. After this we continued past Lake tear of the Clouds towards 4 corners and crossed over to climb Skylight. This trail was a bit longer and more of a rubble stream hike. The last part of the approach is a massive open rock summit and was awesome! We had the windy summit to ourselves and enjoyed a snack while we watched all of the people on Marcy. After that we hiked back down to 4 corners and started the ascent to Marcy. This approach to Marcy is a steep slab hike that leads to a very steep open rock scramble which was a bit tough but fantastic. After enjoying the crowded summit we went over and down the VH trail side towards Haystack. This route to Haystack is about 2.2 miles and is very steep but it is well worth the views - amazing. We returned to Marcy and back to the L2 area. All together this was ~16 miles RT for the day. The next day was Red and Cliff - the junction for the herdpath is right across from the uphill L2 so that was easy. Red is about 1.5 miles or so and is very rooty at the bottom but turns to a rocky trail that often uses the stream on the way. Cliff is loaded with mud at the base and eventually dries out and you get to climb a few fun scrambles. After this it was a nice 8 mile hike out to the car.