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The route

160 miles.
One line north.

2026 Melvil Dewey Challenge route map — Schenectady up through the Adirondacks to Lake Placid in the High Peaks Wilderness Area.View on Strava ↗
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Numbers
Distance
160 miles
Climbing
≈9,000 ft

Projected for the 2026 route; historical editions logged 6,200–8,600 ft.

Surface
100% paved · the quietest, most scenic roads between Albany and Lake Placid
Key climbs · both inside the last 30 miles
Hurricane Pass · mile 130–137
7 mi · ~900 ft

Leaves Elizabethtown. The shorter of the two.

NY 73 to Lake Placid · mile 143–150
6.5 mi · ~1,300 ft

Out of Keene. The biggest climb. Reverse of the Ironman descent.

Stops
  1. Mile 0
    AlbanyStart. Northwest out of the capital before sunrise.
  2. Mile 17
    SchenectadyFirst town. Onto backcountry roads from here.
  3. Mile 30
    MiltonQuiet roads west of Saratoga. Skip the racetrack crowds.
  4. Mile 48
    CorinthHudson catches up. Follow the river north toward Warrensburg.
  5. Mile 73
    WarrensburgLast good resupply. The lakes are next.
  6. Mile 100
    Schroon LakeFirst of the lakes. Route 9 along the water. The road tilts up.
  7. Mile 130
    ElizabethtownTurn off Route 9. Hurricane Pass next — 7 mi, ~900 ft.
  8. Mile 143
    KeeneReverse the Ironman descent up NY 73 — 6.5 mi, ~1,300 ft. The biggest climb of the day.
  9. Mile 157
    Lake PlacidMirror Lake. The High Peaks. You're done.
The pitch

There are easier centuries. There are flatter ones, faster ones, ones with rest stops every fifteen miles and a tent at the finish. This isn't that.

You ride northwest out of Albany at sunrise, roll quiet backcountry roads through Schenectady and Ballston, and meet the Hudson around Corinth. Follow the river north to Warrensburg. Bear up to Chestertown and the lakes.

The last forty are where the road tilts up. Route 9 along Schroon Lake. A detour over Hurricane Mountain through Elizabethtown to dodge the sketchier stretch of Route 73. Then you drop to 9N and reverse the Ironman descent through Keene, climbing into Lake Placid. Some of the hardest and most beautiful riding you'll do this time of year. By the time you roll into the village your legs are tired and you don't care.

That's the pitch.

The day

Saturday, September 5, 2026. Ride it with us.

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