593. "Pokey Moosey"
Another short sweet Adirondack fire tower climb with nearly 1400 feet elevation gain, so it's advisable to allot a couple of hours, even though it's only about 2-3 miles round trip!

The name for this mountain has quite a few different spellings, apparently based on the Algonquin for "broken smooth", which well befits the rock climbing cliff visible along its eastern side along route 9 between exits 32 and 33 of the Northway. You may, however, be more reminded of that very early movie clip wherein a rocket gives the moon a black eye, or perhaps of a shot of homemade liquor distilled during Prohibition in the Great Smokies. That is the spelling you will see at the trailhead on the south side of the former campground (shorter steeper trail) or at the newer trailhead parking lot about a mile further south on route 9 (longer gentler trail).

Either way you go, pass the old cabin foundations with a nearby lean-to when most of the way up, and then continue another 1/4 mile or so for wonderful views at the top. Since there are frequently rangers or other visitors at the open summit rocks, however, we decided to make a short stop in the shade at a somewhat more protected spot just 20 steps before the fire tower itself. There is a leaning white birch with a red trail marker trail a few feet off on the left side of the trail there, and a couple-foot-high rotting multi-trunk stump immediately off trail left. The left side of the rightmost trunk of the multi-stump has a nice curving protrusion to hide a small flat 2x3" gray stone under a bit of bark nicely camouflaged by the leaves of a low-growing bush in front of it. On the underside of this small stone is a stamp with the spelling for this mountain's name that is used in our old "50 Hikes" book. This spot is literally just a couple of inches off the trail, so please be very discreet in retrieving and replacing this little "mountain memento"!

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