Cat and Thomas Mountains Loop

Cat and Thomas Mountains Loop is a 7.2-mile lollipop route from Valley Woods Road that links the Thomas and Cat summits before returning on a different trail. It takes about five hours and makes a hard half-day: the approach is manageable, but the long, rocky ridge between the peaks is what earns the extra effort. The preserve is open to the public from dawn to dusk year-round. Do this one if you want both Lake George viewpoints in one outing. It is a lollipop loop: the first stretch near the trailhead is shared, and the Cat summit spur is briefly retraced.

From the Valley Woods Road lot, follow the Blue Trail along a wide, fairly level old roadbed to the junction with the Yellow Trail. Turn toward Thomas. That trail climbs more steadily to a clearing and overlook by the old cabin site, where the view opens over the southern part of Lake George. The clearing is the practical summit stop for this route.

Continue along the yellow-marked ridge toward Cat, then take the short Blue Trail spur to the summit. Come back to that junction and follow Blue downhill to Valley Woods Road. Read the map at the lower intersections: a wrong turn can send you toward the separate Edgecomb Pond access instead of back to your car.

The connecting trail is rougher than either approach, with repeated short climbs across rocky knobs, ledges and rooty tread. Views appear through occasional openings, but the path stays mostly in the woods between the two summits. Wet rock can be slick, and route-finding takes more attention where marked trails meet. The steep, rough middle section is the part that takes the most care.

Thomas gives you a broad view across the southern lake. Cat opens wider, with Lake George, its Narrows islands and a long sweep of Adirondack peaks in view. This is the place to stop for the panorama: frame the lake and islands together rather than pointing straight at a single peak.

The Lake George Land Conservancy acquired the preserve in 2003 and sold it to New York State in 2013, bringing it into the Adirondack Forest Preserve. Thomas's overlook is beside the site of a one-room cabin built by a former owner to attract hunters. Its present condition is unclear, but the cabin story explains why the clearing is there.

For a shorter outing, turn around at Thomas: the Valley Woods approach is 1.4 miles each way, or about 2.8 miles round trip. You still get the Lake George overlook and skip the harder ridge traverse. The full loop is the better choice when you specifically want both summit views and have time for the rougher middle section.