Thea McElwaine becomes youngest 46er on record with her father Colt by her side. This photo was taken by photographer Joe Wagner who stumbled upon the two at a campsite the night before they finished Mount Marcy, the highest and their final peak in the park. Joseph Wagner: Excellence in Photography | Provided photo
Adirondack Park’s biggest mountains can be climbed one step at a time, and for little 4-year-old Althea “Thea” McElwaine, she’s conquered all 46 of them with her father, Colt.
It started with a single hike. Colt had taken Thea to the mountains for a father-daughter trip while his wife, Debbie, was studying for the bar exam after finishing law school at Cornell University.
The Adirondacks had always felt like “home” for Colt, a former professional cyclist and coach who first met his wife when they were young children at a summer camp in Old Forge. The two had spent their lives making trips to the mountains, him from Boston and her from Rochester, first with their families and then as they were dating. They kept that tradition going when they started a family of their own.
Colt and his daughter’s first high peak hike was on Cascade Mountain, followed by Porter in the summer of 2020 when Thea was not quite 3 years old.
Thea McElwaine at the age of two, at the summit of Porter Mountain, her second Adirondack High Peak. She completed the hiking challenge at age four with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
“We weren’t embarking on a journey, we were just going for a hike that day. My wife and I said, she loves to hike, she loves to climb, and she’s done some pretty long walks back home, I wonder if she could make it up to the top of this mountain,” Colt said.
Little by little, they made their way to the summit. And after that, her passion for the high peaks caught on like wildfire. She always asked when they would get to go back.
There was just one problem: Those small legs could only go so far, and so fast.
Thea McElwaine, the youngest Adirondack 46er on record, completed the challenge at four years old. Left: climbing up a rock slab near the top of Wright Mountain in 2020 at age two. Right: Climbing the Mount Marcy Trail in 2021 at the age of three. Provided photos | nyup.com
“We probably set the record for the longest time to complete that first hike,” Colt said. “She is strong, she is brave, she is not quick.”
By their third hike on Big Slide, they had figured out a solution: make the peaks into multi-day backpack camping trips.
At the end of the 2021 summer hiking season, the pair had completed about 20 High Peaks and Thea had earned her first hiking patch: the 125-Mile Club badge from walking the trails of the Blue Hills of Massachusetts.
Winter rolled in and hiking was all Thea could talk about. By the time she reached her fourth birthday in March, her parents made the decision to complete all 46 of the Adirondack High Peaks.
“She could name all of the High Peaks before she could count to 46,” Colt said.
It was also around this time that the McElwaines had moved from their home in Ithaca to Boston. The drive to the Adirondacks took about the same time as it had from the Finger Lakes. They stayed just about wherever they could find a spot when they weren’t on the trails, from cabins to KOA campgrounds to what Colt calls “car camping.”
Any parent will tell you that packing a little one up for even just a trip to the store can involve lots of bags and supplies. Colt said he initially carried close to a 40-pound backpack as he figured out what he and Thea needed. After trading in some bulkier supplies for lighter equipment, he carried a more manageable 20 pounds.
Thea McElwaine becomes the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She celebrates on the summit of her final peak, and the highest, Mount Marcy. Provided photo | nyup.com
That 20-pound-pack included Thea’s favorite trail snacks: Chewy granola bars, Oreo cookies and a special treat for the summit, Fritos BBQ Flavor Twists.
The father-daughter duo would spend days on the trails, sometimes talking non-stop, Colt said. Conversations varied from practicing for preschool to an eight-hour imaginary phone call with her toy rabbit back home and recounting every single second of every single movie they’d ever seen, like “Encanto” and “Lion King,” he said.
And yes, at Thea’s request, he does the cartoon voices.
Thea McElwaine is the youngest Adirondack 46er on record, completing the challenge at the age of 4, with her dad. Provided photo | nyup.com
They also learned new ways to communicate because for a hiker under 5 feet, the hikes were no cakewalk in the woods. Even small rock scrambles could become rock climbing in some of the more exposed areas of the trails. Her dad would help guide her by telling her where to put her hands and feet to get up the boulders.
Though he may have been nervous on the inside, Colt stayed smiling on the outside as they navigated the wilderness, especially as Thea rappelled down the steep cliffs of Saddleback Mountain. He set up the anchor and ropes and watched his little girl tackle the obstacle fearlessly.
Thea McElwaine, youngest Adirondack 46er on record, rappels down the cliffs of Saddleback Mountain with ropes set up by her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
“It went from being the thing I was so nervous about to ultimately being the most favorite mountain that we did. To watch her conquer this thing that I was so nervous about and watch her love it and do it with no fear; even asking if she could do it again. She was so into it and is such a badass,” he said.
Thea’s tenacity carried her in a similar fashion up the cables of Gothics Mountain, using what she calls her “sticky feet” to traverse open rock faces with steep climbs and descents.
The little hiker’s favorite part of walking through the woods was looking at all of the trees, daisies and little mushrooms.
“I love the soft, wet, white ones,” she said.
She also loved playing with the plane which sits atop Mount Marshall. The passenger plane went down in the summer of 1969 and its pilot and sole passenger survived the crash.
Thea McElwaine, youngest Adirondack 46er on record, plays in the plane wreckage atop Mount Marshall. Provided photo | nyup.com
What mountain was her least favorite? Cliff Mountain, because the rain that day turned the bottom of the mountain into what Thea called a “big slurpy bog.”
They’ve made summers full of memories with inside jokes, swam in mountain lakes, ate mac and cheese over a campfire, slept in hammocks, drank many Stewart’s milkshakes, got to know all of the Lake Placid toy store employees by name and witnessed some of the most beautiful views Upstate New York has to offer.
When they finished their final summit on Mount Marcy, Thea’s mom hiked to Marcy Dam with little brother Colby strapped to her back, carrying a homemade 46er cookie cake to celebrate.
Thea McElwaine, age 4, is the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. After finishing Mount Marcy her final High Peak her mom, Debbie, and younger brother Colby hiked in to Marcy Dam to meet Thea and her dad Colt with a homemade 46er cookie cake. Provided photos | nyup.com
After all that, Thea’s dad revealed that the best part of this journey wasn’t any one hike or mountain or moment.
“The biggest takeaway has been watching her mature and develop into a person that you can tell has been so shaped by those mountains and those experiences. She’s so confident, so courageous, and she thinks of herself that way too,” Colt said. “Climbing these mountains is fun and getting the sticker and the patch is cool, but it’s so hard and so much work that that in itself is not reason enough to do it with a kid. Seeing how she was developing throughout is what spurred us to keep going.”
With one more weekend before preschool started, Thea and her dad traveled south to the Catskills to climb Hunter and Slide Mountain, the highest peaks in that area and the only other mountains in New York that reach 4,000 feet.
Thea McElwaine, youngest Adirondack 46er on record, descends the Hunter Mountain Fire Tower in the Catskills. She recently completed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks and climbed the two tallest peaks in the Catskill Mountains. Colt McElwaine | Provided photo
“Kids are very capable, more capable than we give them credit for. I learned that many times throughout this process. They really thrive when you give them the chance to surprise you,” Colt said.
Along their path to becoming 46ers, the pair met the girl who had previously held the title of being the youngest hiker on record to hike all of the High Peaks, Maebh Nesbitt, who also completed the challenge at the age of 4 in 2019. Thea now has the distinction because of the way their birthdays fall.
“I think it’s really cool that the youngest people who have completed this is a pair of 4-year-old girls. More than 50 percent of people who would pass Thea on the trails would say, ‘Good job buddy! How old is your son?’,” Colt said.
“There’s no shortage of people telling a 4-year-old girl that she’s a beautiful princess, but almost nobody tells her how strong she is, how capable she is, and how brave she is. Getting your kids outside, especially your girls, and being able to instill those qualities and those beliefs in them is so valuable and important.”
See more photos of Thea and Colt’s hiking adventures below:
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, MA, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks with her father, Colt. Provided photo | nyup.com
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She hiked all 46 High Peaks alongside her dad, Colt. On the eve of their final hike to the summit of Mount Marcy, photographer Joe Wagner stumbled upon the pair at their campsite on Snowbird and made for an impromptu photoshoot. Joe Wagner | Excellence in Photography
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She hiked all 46 High Peaks alongside her dad, Colt. On the eve of their final hike to the summit of Mount Marcy, photographer Joe Wagner stumbled upon the pair at their campsite on Snowbird and made for an impromptu photoshoot. Joe Wagner | Excellence in Photography
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She hiked all 46 High Peaks alongside her dad, Colt. On the eve of their final hike to the summit of Mount Marcy, photographer Joe Wagner stumbled upon the pair at their campsite on Snowbird and made for an impromptu photoshoot. Joe Wagner | Excellence in Photography
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She hiked all 46 High Peaks alongside her dad, Colt. On the eve of their final hike to the summit of Mount Marcy, photographer Joe Wagner stumbled upon the pair at their campsite on Snowbird and made for an impromptu photoshoot. Joe Wagner | Excellence in Photography
Thea McElwaine, age 4, of Boston, has become the youngest Adirondack 46er on record. She hiked all 46 High Peaks alongside her dad, Colt. On the eve of their final hike to the summit of Mount Marcy, photographer Joe Wagner stumbled upon the pair at their campsite on Snowbird and made for an impromptu photoshoot. Joe Wagner | Excellence in Photography
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