Embark June-July 2017 by Adirondack Daily Enterprise

Backcountry adventure, page 3

Buyer’s guide, page 4

Historic canoe route, page 8

Hiking challenge, page 11

Your guide to Adirondack adventure

June-July 2017

Short and sweet ■ Hikes that require

Recommended reading

Back in time with a contemporary Boat Builder

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

ohn McPhee is a name many people may be familiar with. The staff writer for the New Yorker has published dozens of books on a wide range of topics from the geology of the New World to what it’s like to work as a deck hand. I ventured back to one of my favorite McPhee books for another read this spring while the water was cold and snow was still on the ground. “The Survival of the Bark Canoe” is a book I’ve now read three times, and each time it’s just as filled with pleasure as the last. Bark Canoe follows the path of Henri Vaillancourt, a New Hampshire native who ventures deep into the Maine woods to look for trees with which he will build traditional bark canoes. While this book isn’t strictly related to the Adirondacks, paddling in the Northeast is pretty similar across state lines. The story starts with McPhee recounting the paddling history of the thenyoung Vaillancourt. “The fist canoe I ever got into was one of my own,” Vaillancourt told McPhee. Soon after, the novice paddler destroyed that canoe because it simply didn’t live up to his standards. “It was a piece of junk. I didn’t want it around to embarrass me,” he said in the book. From there, a passion of precision was born in

The Survival of the Bark Canoe AUThoR: John mcphee PAGES: 114 CoPYRIGhT: 1975 Vaillancourt that makes for a compelling tale even 40 years later. “He had his initial thrill, and it had felt good, but his standards had gone shooting skyward, and that first canoe would never do,” McPhee writes. Vaillancourt dived into the writings of explorers and boat builders, finding tomes on the craft that he absorbed with a ravenous hunger. After graduating high school, he went to college for a spell, but was soon back home, living with his mom and dad, and working out of a small shack in their yard. At the time, McPhee noted that Vaillancourt’s shack was decorated with a picture of

hunters in a birch-bark canoe on Long Lake in the Adirondacks from 1880. Much like his forebears in the boat-building business, Vaillancourt swore off modern tools and used only what the earliest builders used. “He never uses power tools,” McPhee writes. “He uses a froe, an axe, an awl, a crooked knife — and with the last three alone could build a canoe.” Vaillancourt is the type of builder who doesn’t care about churning out boats to sell, and in fact was only building several each year. Most of them were about 16 feet long, and he was charging $850. That’s just shy of $3,900 in today’s money. Vaillancourt’s craft was honed and the notoriety of his canoes spread. But, like many artists of his ilk, Vaillancourt reserved the right to be picky with who his customers are. “But they’re so rare today, you know, I wouldn’t sell them to people who do white water,” he told McPhee. “It’s not the canoes I don’t trust. I fully trust the canoes to go down white water. I don’t trust the people who are paddling them. “Bark canoes are so rare. There’s no sense in wrecking even one.” McPhee goes on to recount a canoe trip he and Vaillancourt, along with three others, took in the Maine woods. McPhee’s writing style is that of an

easy conversation, sort of like listening to a kindly professor who is telling you about a recent adventure he had. “I had been yearning to make a trip into that region for what was now most of my life,” he says of the trip. “Just the thought of making a journey there in a birchbark canoe was enough to make me sway like a drunk. I thought of little else through the winter and spring.” From that trip, McPhee then guides the reader through a history of canoes in North America, how they

were and are built and continues to follow the slightly eccentric Vaillancourt. Whether you’re an avid paddler or simply enjoy a fascinating story, The Survival of the Bark Canoe will be a pleasure to read. The book goes quickly, and includes a section of old drawings on how to build a birch-bark canoe. While this is certainly not a how-to manual, the breezy read will leave you in awe of Vaillancourt’s art, and probably with an itch to build a boat, or at least a paddle, of your own.

‘(Vaillancourt) uses a froe, an axe, an awl, a crooked knife — and with the last three alone could build a canoe.’ John McPhee

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June-July 2017

Muggy, bu ggy M e tc a l f

PHOTOS BY SPENCER MORRISSEY

oﬀ the beaten path

The trip into Metcalf Mountain included plenty of overgrowth, and more than a few beaver dams along the way.

By SPENCER MORRISSEY

here is a small group of hiking enthusiasts out there whose goal is to climb all the peaks over 3,000 feet in Hamilton County, and I just so happen to hike with one of those guys on this trip. I wouldn’t go as far as to say it’s an official list, maybe more like an addiction or sickness. It was an iffy weather day when we set off to Indian Lake. There was a slight chance of rain in the forecast, but the probability of that depended on what source you relied upon. One thing we knew for sure was that it was going to be hot, humid and deer-fly infested. In all actuality, it ended up being the relentless and fierce deer flies that hindered our utmost enjoyment of the day, and not precipitation. Parking at the small area near Wakely Pond, we were amped to get rolling. Our start to the day brought us to the Northville-Placid Trail, which accessed the base of Metcalf Mountain, making our tour a bit easier. We could see the mountain in front of us as we approached the base; it was in plain view from the

trail. We remained on the NPT for just over a mile to where an old, now abandoned trail to Wakley Mountain split off to the left. We followed this old trail, which was still in OK condition, but also bat-

tling the forces of nature with littered deadfall and deep grasses growing up. A beaver pond soon came in on our right, and we, of course, had to investigate its vistas and calm wa-

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Continued on page 7

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ters. We returned to the “trail” and pushed on. It wasn’t long before we passed by a pond and located an old forest road that “seemed” to head in the right direction. The condition was

about as good as the old Wakely Trail, so we used it to our benefit. As it weaved through the hardwood forest it brought us to a beaver dam crossing at the back side of the pond. With a bit of white-knuckle hiking, we accessed the opposite side of the beaver pond and attempted to locate the other end of the forest road. We couldn’t find much of anything at this point, so all we could do was suck it up and start a bushwhack heading toward the summit. The open forest was very inviting, but soon enough we were on another old logging road, which we elected to follow. Heavily grown up with beech whips and cluttered with dead trees, we were about to leave the this path when right over a small berm was another old logging road, this one much kinder. Following this old forest road we soon came to a wetland/beaver swamp, now dried to deep mud and dead tree totems. The mountain was in perfect view once again and this road might have been the ticket to quicker access.

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Buyer’s Guide

FInD ThE RIGhT PADDLE

Basic canoe strokes

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

addling a canoe is not rocket science, but there are some basic strokes to keep in mind that can make your paddle much more relaxing and enjoyable.

Terminology

The handle is the top of the paddle, where your top hand will rest. The shaft is where your bottom hand grips the paddle, and the blade is the wide part that goes into the water. A paddle stroke is the act of putting the blade in the water and in order to propel the boat forward. The stroke ends when the blade of the paddle reenters the water. The catch is when the paddle enters the water. That is followed by the power phase, when you use your core muscles to pull on the paddle and move the boat forward. Then is the recovery, when the paddle exits the water and swings forward to the catch position again.

PHOTOS BY JUSTIN A. LEVINE

These three paddles have variations of a “palm-grip” which most people find comfortable. For flatwater, this shape oﬀers a non-fatigue grip, but may not be the best option for moving water paddlers.

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

ow hard could it be to choose a paddle for a traditional canoe? You grab the cheapest one that looks kind of cool, stick it in the water over and over and over and then complain about how sore your shoulder is for the next week. But a Saranac Lake expert says there’s a lot more that can go into your decision, and says that with a little help and knowledge, you can buy a paddle that will last you the rest of your life. Oh, and it probably won’t make your shoulders sore at all. Jason Smith, who works at Adirondack Lakes and Trails Outfitters in Saranac Lake, said many people, especially when they’re first starting out canoeing, will go the inexpensive route — often for a variety of reasons. But Smith says that even if you start out with an inexpensive canoe, putting a bit of money into the right paddle can make a world of difference.

Bent vs. straight

Smith said in an interview at his store that paddles can be broken down by length, material, weight and whether the shaft is straight or the blade is at an angle. “When choosing a paddle, whether it be straight or bent, a lot of times you’re taking into consideration the boat that you’re paddling,” Smith said. “The main idea behind moving into a bent shaft paddle is efficiency.” He said the longer the canoe, the better it will “track,” or go straight, in the water. With a longer boat, Smith said a bent shaft can increase the efficiency of your paddle stroke. “I typically describe it as a stroke that is made in front of your body the whole time,” he said. “So that perpendicular (angle) to the surface of the water is pulling me through the water in a straighter line more efficiently.” Smith said most canoeists who participate in canoe races, whether recreationally or competitively, use bent shaft paddles. But he noted that any canoeist who is looking for a high degree of efficiency should consider a bent shaft. With a shorter boat, such as a 15- or 16-foot canoe, the boat is more maneuverable, and may need more correction with each paddle than a better tracking long canoe. For these types of boats, Smith says a straight shaft paddle can be beneficial as it makes correction strokes, such as the “J-stroke,” more effective. “So the straight shaft stroke puts the shaft inline with the blade,” he said. “It makes Jstrokes, it makes draw-strokes, it makes correction strokes a little more easy. “So that’s a little more traditional, a little more efficient for the correction strokes. So if you look at someone that likes pad-

dling rivers and moving water, they’re definitely doing bow draws, manuevering, sweeps.” Smith also recommends that kids be started out on a straight paddle, especially if they’re learning some of the common canoe strokes. But all of this doesn’t mean that the bent versus straight debate is clear-cut. Smith says the paddles cross over to different realms just fine, but choosing a bent or straight shaft really boils down to the efficiency based on your boat and what type of paddling you are likely to do.

Forward/backward paddle

Materials

You may be overwhelmed when looking at the racks upon racks of paddles. There are black, brown and tan, some that look like the same paddle your grandparents had and others that look like they belong to Darth Vader. “A simple wood paddle has limited laminates in it,” Smith said. “It’s going to be a heavier paddle. As we move up into slightly lighter wood paddles, we have more laminates in it, different types of foam in the laminates, they start using different woods to make it lighter.” Smith said even with the wood paddles, there will be other amenities like a fiberglass wrap for strength and stability or what most people call a “rock guard,” which is a protective tip so the wood doesn’t splinter when the paddle is used to push off. Another key part of your decision will be what’s called the swing weight. This is the weight of the blade, which matters because your “swing” is when you pull the paddle out of the water and swing it forward to make another stroke. “I’d say the main thing that starts to happen as the price goes up, is that swing weight gets lighter,” he said of wooden paddles. “You have price, durability and weight. Pick two,” he laughed. Smith also said there are paddles with plastic blades, something Lakes and Trails, and most outfitters, use for rentals. Smith said the plastic paddles have their place, but they can become brittle, chip and don’t have the rigidity that more expensive paddles provide. Moving on from wooden paddles, there are composite paddles. Sometimes you see fiberglass paddles, carbon fiber paddles, or a mix where the shaft may be wood and the blade is carbon fiber. “Carbon fiber is giving you a lightweight paddle and it’s giving you a rigidity in the blade,” he said. “Carbon fiber blades are real rigid, so as soon as you pull you’re getting instant action.” He added that most carbon fiber blades are filled with foam, making them buoyant, which can be a nice feature if you drop it midstroke. Lakes and Trails also offers a selection of mixed paddles, with

Wooden paddles can be breathtakingly beautiful. Jason Smith of Adirondack Lakes and Trails outfitters in Saranac Lake said that sometimes people who own seasonal camps in the area will come in to buy paddles for decoration, like this Sawyer paddle. This particular paddle is also an excellent option for deep-water paddlers.

wood handles and carbon fiber blades that typically cost less than an all-carbon fiber paddle. “There’s a lot of people who combine the two,” he said. “Some people just really love the feel of wood. (But) you go back to swing weight. By adding a lightweight blade to a wood shaft it starts to lighten the swing weight of the paddle.

Design

In addition to all of the above, there are actually quite a few variations on design for grip, blade and shaft. Some people are more comfortable holding a round shaft, while others like it to be more egg-shaped. The top of the shaft can also vary. Many paddles come with a palm grip, which fits nicely in your hand and gives a more comfortable feel since the pressure of your grip is spread out over a larger area. There are also “t-handles” where the handle is a smaller diameter piece perpendicular to the shaft. Smith said some people find this more comfortable, but it is also used for people who like a lot of maneuverability from their paddle. The t-handle allows the paddler to more effectively execute specialized strokes by offering more torque. For whitewater paddlers, the t-shape offers a much more secure hold on the paddle. There are also various shapes to the blade of a paddle, although many more modern paddles, especially the carbon fiber ones, have settled on a standard blade style. There will be more options, typically, in the blade style of wooden paddles than in fiberglass or carbon fiber. “Traditional shapes of wood paddles people think of beaver tail and otter tail,” Smith said. “They’re typically deep-water paddles. There’s a lot more length to the blade on a traditional paddle versus a more modern shape.”

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Sizing

Smith said a paddle should probably come up to about your armpit/chin area, but a paddle should be sized based on your height, the width of the canoe and how high you sit off the water in your boat. “A good thing to think about is when you have a fully immersed blade, in the catch position (start of stroke), to have your high hand about shoulder to mouth height is perfect,” he said. “I don’t want my high hand, when my blade is fully immersed and I’m pulling on it, to be above my head. I don’t want in front of my face. I want to be able to look over the top of my hand. “The other side of that story is that you don’t want it to be so small that it’s kind of forcing you to hunch over a little bit to get it in the water. “The whole mechanics of paddling is being able to kind of paddle with your core with some rotation and sitting up nice and straight with your chest out is the way to go.” While this all may seem like a lot, it really boils down to how the paddle feels in your hands. Any reputable shop or outfitter can help guide you on your way, but no matter what, be sure to take each and every paddle in your hands and see how it feels. And hopefully the one that feels the best is also one that fits your wallet. “We want you to be a lifelong paddler, so we always talk about making the investment in getting a decent paddle so your user experience is enjoyable,” Smith said. “We don’t even sell the aluminum shaft plastic blades. We bump it right up to wood, which gives you a lighter swing weight, (plus) it’s just less wear and tear on you and it feels good in your hands. “If you buy a good paddle and you continue to paddle throughout your life, it could potentially be the last paddle — if well taken care of — that you ever have to buy.”

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You probably don’t need these explained to you. The forward paddle is what you will use the vast majority of the time. Try to keep the blade of the paddle perpendicular to your direction of travel and remember that you are pulling the canoe through the water with your stroke. The backward paddle is the same, but it moves you in the opposite direction. If you need further explanation... well, there isn’t any. It just moves you backward.

J-stroke

The J-stroke is one of the essentials, and be should practiced regularly. Basically, what happens when paddling a canoe from the rear seat, is that the boat tends to turn away from the stroke. This means that if you’re paddling on the right, the canoe will tend to go left. This can be corrected with a flick of the wrist at the end of the stroke. For the J-stroke, the catch is the same as normal, as is the first part of the power phase. But toward the end of the power, you turn your wrist to force the blade away from the boat. This allows you to power through most of the stroke as normal, but as the boat turns away from the stroke, flicking the blade will correct that turn. Your wrist flick should turn the blade out away from the stern of the canoe, which will straighten out your line in the water.

Draw stroke

The draw stroke can help you make a relatively quick turn by using the paddle to pull the canoe to side of its direction of travel. The draw stroke is completed by reaching out away from the boat, with the blade parallel to the side of the canoe. From there, you pull the paddle toward the canoe, which will turn the boat.

Stern pry stroke

This is sort of the classic way to steer a canoe, where the rear paddler puts the blade in the water parallel to and up against the rear of the boat. By pulling the handle of the paddle across your body, you can quickly turn the canoe toward the side of the boat that the blade is on. Done by itself, this stroke can really sap the momentum of the canoe, so it’s best to do this stroke quickly at the end of a forward stroke.

June-July 2017

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE here are dozens of options when it comes to buying a paddle for a traditional canoe — from material and design to length and weight. Outfitters, like Adirondack Lakes and Trails Outfitters in Saranac Lake, will have a wide range of paddle designs and prices to choose from. In general, wooden paddles will be less expensive than carbon fiber, and the paddles that have wood handles and carbon blades will be somewhere in between. However, there is a wide range of price points in each category. The above lineup, for instance, runs the gamut from less than $100 to $300.

June-July 2017

An aluminum shaft, plastic blade paddle. Often used for rentals, this paddle may have its place but most shops will steer you toward something more comfortable and efficient. (less than $50)

A Bending Branches brand Loon paddle is a wooden paddle that won’t break the bank. This straight shaft paddle has a few layers of laminates, along with a rock guard tip, that offers a mix of reliability and comfort. ($74.95)

This Fox Worx Xlight straight shaft paddle is lighter than the Bending Branches, and offers a more modern blade design. This particular paddle has a comfortable palmgrip handle. This paddle has several

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laminate layers, and includes rigid foam to decrease swing weight. ($119)

Hailing from Oregon, this Sawyer paddle is one of the most traditional designs offered at Lakes and Trails. It is lightweight and would be an excellent option for someone who paddles deep, calm water. Made from cedar and other woods, this is an excellent and efficient paddle. ($129.99)

Fox Worx paddles are made in New York, and this Microlite 2 offers a bent shaft for more efficient paddling, along with a palm grip and rock guard. Made from a couple kinds of wood, this paddle also includes several sections of rigid foam

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PHOTO BY JUSTIN A. LEVINE

P a dd le li ne u p

Buyer’s Guide

in the blade that keeps the swing weight down. ($125)

Fox Worx also offers paddles that are a mix of wood and carbon fiber, like this Foxfire bent shaft paddle. The wooden handle is very comfortable and classic, while the lighter, stiff blade makes for a light swing weight and high paddling efficiency. ($149)

Zaveral Racing Equipment (ZRE) has been building carbon fiber paddles and ski poles for decades. While all-carbon fiber paddles, like this Power Surge, will be on the high end of the price scale, the weight, stiffness and efficiency of the paddles is hard to beat. ($299.95)

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

ith a fresh dusting of snow on the ground in early May, most people weren’t thinking about swimming. But somehow I managed to drag myself out of bed early on a Sunday morning, donned some long johns and drove to Indian Lake, where I was pretty much guaranteed to spend the day soaking wet. With a light rain falling, Adirondac Rafting Co., based out of Lake Placid, geared me up with a wetsuit, booties and mittens in an effort to keep me warm. It was made clear that there was no way to stay dry, especially since the river was flowing at a high rate due to an unusually wet spring. As I got dressed, about 40 other people filtered in for what was sure to be a cold and wet day. The other folks were groups from the Northwood School in Lake Placid and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry Ranger School in Wanakena. Once everyone was dressed in wetsuits and fitted with helmets, paddles and life jackets, the staff gave us a safety talk about what to do if we fell in the river. The students nervously laughed as they thought about taking a dunk in the cold water. But that hesitancy, I was to learn, would be short-lived. We all loaded up onto a bus with a few rafts strapped to the top and proceeded about five minutes down the road to the launching point. Once there, we were divided into groups and were assigned a raft. Everyone pitched in to move the rafts as we looked down the hill to the roiling water below. The joking that was happening on the bus was diminished as we all got our first look at the river. Adirondac Rafting, along with several other companies that offer rafting trips, launch into the Indian River for what is about a 16-mile trip in total. Just below a small set of falls that were absolutely raging, we launched the rafts and took a few practice strokes to make sure everyone would be on the same page, paddling-wise. From the calm of the eddy we launched into, the fleet of a halfdozen rafts started its way down the Indian, bouncing over some small riffles and avoiding major rocks, but otherwise just taking in the view and enjoying each others’ company. The guides said this trip usually spans more than four hours, including a stop for a picnic lunch. But that’s when the river is flowing at its normal rate of about 1,000 cubic feet of water per sec-

Hi gh-wa ter adventure PHOTOS BY JUSTIN A. LEVINE

Whitewater rafting

Melody Blackmore, right, of Adirondac Rafting Company was one of the guides leading groups down the hudson River on a cold day in early May.

ond. On this day, the river was flowing at more than 6,000. Due to the high flows and cold weather, this would be an abbreviated trip that would take just a little over three hours since we were going to skip lunch on the river. As we made our way down the Indian to the Hudson River, we made a quick stop at the swimming rock, something the people in my raft couldn’t believe. But as we watched in amazement, a couple of high school kids jumped out of their raft, climbed the rock and then jumped back into the water, which was somewhere in the 40-degree range. They seemed none the worse for wear, and our group was soon on its way back down the river. After encountering a few rapids, we all pulled into the side of the river to take a quick break and consume some much-needed hot chocolate. Everyone was in a good mood, and despite the occasional rain and cold, all were having a good time.

And that’s when the fun really started. After our quick break, we soon came upon some serious rapids. In the summer, this stretch of river usually carries Class III rapids, sort of in the middle of the spectrum. Think of flat water as Class

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I, and seriously scary rapids as Class V. We were facing consistent Class IV water, and even some that went up to a Class IV-plus level. The rest of the trip was an absolute blast. Between hooting and hollering as our boat went straight

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up, crashing through standing water that thoroughly soaked all of us to the bone. Although we got tossed around a little bit, no one in our raft was thrown out of the boat. But the younger kids, once we were out of the serious rapids, made a game of shoving each other into the water or using their paddles to yank boat-mates by the life jacket into the river. Once we reached the take-out point, it got cold pretty quickly. Most people hopped into the bus, and as the warmth generated by paddling and the excitement of the trip wore off, fingers and toes got cold. We took the bus back to the company’s base and ate lunch while the staff washed all the wetsuits. I talked to Bob Rafferty, the owner of Adirondac Rafting and thanked him for a wonderful trip. He smiled a sly smile and said “You’ll be back.” He’s probably right.

June-July 2017

Metcalf Mountain

PHOTO BY SPENCER MORRISSEY

Continued from page 3

The route included several old logging roads that were in diﬀerent states of passability.

June-July 2017

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The road didn’t last too long, but another soon came in. This one crossed an old culvert and continued a steady climb right toward the summit area. This old road was in reasonable condition at best. Again overgrown and at times hard to follow, we remained upon it to its end, which was the end of the logging roads. We stood at the base of a boulderstrewn brook that drained the face of Metcalf and the shoulder of Wakely Mountain. As much as we wanted to follow it and rock hop its course, the conditions were way too slippery and we didn’t need any broken bones or deep bruising either (the deer flies were bad enough for leaving marks). We remained high and dry and meandered our way through the semiopen forest. The forest was a mix of hardwoods and red spruce. Enough red spruce, I might add, to slow progress a bit. The slopes then became very steep and — here’s that word again — relentless, to the tune of nearly 1,300 feet in a half-mile. The heat was now to a boiling point and well over 80 degrees, almost too hot for hiking but we kept hydrated. Steeper slopes awaited us yet and several cliffs as well. Cliffs large enough that we had to circumnavigate them to find a practical route up and over. They looked to have been good enough to provide nice views, but we came up a bit empty. Beyond the crags was a wall of balsam trees. While much softer than red spruce, they still grew in a thick entangled mess we had to swim through. Atop these thickets was a view, a small one, but a nice one of Cedar River Flow and Buck Mountain in the distance. At least we got something for all the work accomplished — kind of like waiting for that bi-weekly paycheck you think will never come. A secondary rock shelf blocked us from the top, which with my initial effort I was able to aid Corenne and Jim up and over. I used my leg as a

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handrail for them to pull themselves up on. I feel fortunate it’s still intact. The summit shortly beyond gave us no views, but we were confident we would find something atop the steep cliffs on the way down. We could now relax and maybe have a snack before we made our exit off this peak. We chose to NOT go back through the thicket and over the steep cliffs but to contour along the top of the cliffs to take in some views. This contour gave us a few peekaboo views out over toward the Little High Peaks of Indian Lake, but not the grandiose vista we were hoping for. Soon we found a steep but safe descent off the cliff band, which made our backsides a bit of a muddy mess, but nothing more than that. Below, we were in a wide open field and below that more fields of tall ferns which continued on for quite some time. Paradise. We made a heading for Waterbarrel Mountain which we knew would bring us right back down to the NPT, but yet another old logging road gained our attention. This old road was in fantastic condition and only overgrown in a couple locations, so we stayed on it. Not heading in the perfect direction for a quick exit to the car, we decided it would eventually bring us back to the old Wakely Trail we started on earlier. Sure enough it did, but first to that old beaver pond. The western side of the pond had become deep in rich grassland, which we all wanted to explore. We walked the grassland, hopped the many meandering tributaries and finally reached the massive beaver dam that created the pond. We thought the flies were bad in the woods, but in the wetland area they were an unforgiving army of hundreds armed with feasting bayonets. Once we explored the pond to our satisfaction we headed right to the trail and a very fast exit back to the car. The cool wind in our hair on the car ride washed the dead bugs out of our scalps and refreshed our slightly reddened faces. Now what would we do about that hole in our bellies?

P a dd l e th r ou g h histor y

on the water

Seven Carries Route takes travelers back to the old days

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

t was cool and overcast, with a little mist falling as we launched the canoe on Little Green Pond near the state fish hatchery in Lake Clear. The weather was quintessential fall, and with more than 9 miles to paddle and short days upon us, my uncle and I set out to paddle back to my car at Paul Smith’s College, following the historic Seven Carries canoe route. Tracing the route that people have been using for generations, we glided through the water to our first carry of the day, from Little Green Pond to Little Clear Pond, after just a couple minutes of paddling. We had considered launching on Little Clear, but that would have deprived us of one of the

The Seven Carries canoe route has a long history, and is quite fabled among paddlers. carries, and no one is impressed if you do a non-existent route called the Six Carries. The Seven Carries canoe route has a long history, and is quite fabled among paddlers. Originally, the route was a way for guests to go between two of the most popular hotels of the area, Paul Smith’s and Saranac Inn.

The Seven Carries was so well known during the heyday of the great Adirondack hotels that the New York Times provided updates on who was at the hotels and whether or not they had paddled the route. “Delightful weather and picnic parties have been the features of the closing days of July at Saranac Lake Inn on Upper Saranac Lake, where formal modes of entertainment are tabooed, and one leads the simple life,” an article in the Times from August 1906 opens. “Mr. and Mrs. William Barnum, accompanied by their guests, Mr. and Mrs. Julian W. Curtis, Mr. and Mrs. Richmond Levering, and Phelps Barnum made the trip from Upper St. Regis Lake to Saranac Inn by way of the seven carries and returned

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by the two-carry route.” That same article mentioned a rather famous guest, Mrs. W. Sheffield Cowles, “a sister of President (Theodore) Roosevelt, and an expert fisherwoman,” noting that she was scheduled to spend August at the hotel. Although neither hotel exists anymore, the canoe route is still an enjoyable paddle. Paul Smith’s hotel burned down in 1930, but has been replaced by the college that bears his name. Saranac Inn is no longer a hotel and casino, but now sports a public golf course and restaurant. Despite the number of carries, only one of them is on the longish side, while most are only a few hundred feet. The same goes for Continued on page 9

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Seven Carries ACTIVITY: canoeing, kayaking DISTAnCE: 9 miles DIFFICULTY: moderate to difficult TRAILhEAD: From Saranac lake, take state route 86 toward paul Smiths. From adirondack medical center, go 3.1 miles and turn left on state route 186. continue 6.3 miles and turn right onto Fish hatchery rd. the dirt road to the launch on little Green or little clear is 0.5 miles down Fish hatchery rd. to start at paul Smith’s college, take state route 86 from Saranac lake to the college. the launch is on the other side of the library from the main entrance to campus.

June-July 2017

PHOTOS BY JUSTIN A. LEVINE

on the water

Continued from page 8

some of the ponds. For instance, Bog Pond, right in the middle of the route, took us just about five minutes to paddle across. And from the boat, we could see Upper St. Regis Lake. You can also shorten your route just a bit by skipping the launch on Little Green Pond, as Little Clear is pretty much just across the dirt road. But frankly, it won’t take much off the trip and if you decide to skip Little Green, then you haven’t truly done the Seven Carries. After much discussion, my uncle Brad and I decided to tackle the longest carry earlier rather than later, so after paddling Little Clear Pond, we made the longest land trek of the day to St. Regis Pond. There is no fishing on Little Clear Pond, since the state Department of Environmental Conservation uses the pond to raise fish stock, but after Little Clear, you’re free to fish until your heart’s content. Provided you don’t break any special regulations or exceed the catch limit, of course. St. Regis Pond is the longest pond of the route, and there was a little wind kicking up some ripples, but nothing serious. From St. Regis Pond, we hopped to Green Pond, then on to Little Long Pond. All this time, we were paddling through the St. Regis Canoe Area, the only one of its kind in New York. The canoe area is a land-use designation — like a hamlet or wilderness area — and the canoe area is essentially

June-July 2017

managed as wilderness, as far as the DEC is concerned. “The Saint Regis Canoe Area is an area where the number and proximity of Continued on page 16

Above left, Bog Pond, the smallest body of water of the route. Top right, the route is clearly marked with signage that includes the trademark white “Canoe Carry” signs that can be seen throughout. Top right, a plaque commemorating the tuberculosis experiment that Dr. Trudeau performed on this small island in the middle of Spitfire Lake.

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Bang for you r buc k

hiking

Audrey Levine takes in the views from owls head Mountain in Keene. Below, Whiteface Mountain, Taylor Pond, Silver Lake and Union Falls Pond are all visible from the top of Silver Lake Mountain.

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

ot everyone has the time or energy to take on one of the High Peaks in order to get a bird’s-eye view of the Adirondack landscape. Anything over 4,000 feet will take at least half a day of intense climbing to reach the top. Luckily, there are plenty of other options to choose from. With outstanding views and relatively easy approaches, Silver Lake Mountain and Owls Head Mountain are the perfect alternatives. Both can easily be done in a couple hours or less and both are suitable for all ages, kids included.

PHOTOS BY JUSTIN A. LEVINE

Silver Lake Mountain

Silver Lake Mountain is a hike that people tend to do year after year since it’s such a pleasant walk. Starting out from the trailhead, you walk through a stand of open hardwoods that is an enjoyable piece of woods, to say the least. The trail starts out relatively flat, but quickly starts to go up at a gentle grade. The trail is marked with old metal markers, which are sort of a maroon color and can be difficult to see. ACTIVITY: hiking But the trail is easy to folDISTAnCE: 2 miles round low anyway. One cool note trip is that what is now the DeDIFFICULTY: easy to modpartment of Environmental erate Conservation used to have DIRECTIonS: From lake new trail markers made placid and Saranac lake: each year so that trails take state route 86 east toward wilmington. at the showed what year they four corners in wilmington, were built. So see if you go straight onto Boncan figure out which year nieview road. take that all the Silver Lake Mountain the way to the end, and trail was first in use. turn left on Silver lake At about one-third of a road. From there, go 5.6 mile, you will come to the miles to the trailhead on first of several nice views. the right. Stepping off the trail just a few feet to a rock outcrop, you can start to see the woods surrounding nearby Taylor Pond and you can catch a glimpse of the small but pretty Mud Pond, which sits at the base of ACTIVITY: hiking the mountain. DISTAnCE: 1.06 miles Continuously moving round trip upward, the trail follows a DIFFICULTY: easy rocky spine that escorts DIRECTIonS: From lake you from the hardwood placid, take state route 73 forest into a canopy of east toward keene. From short evergreens. This can the entrance to mount Van be an especially nice hoevenberg, go 4.6 miles to change in the summer, owl's head lane on the when the temperature in right. the parking area is 0.2 the evergreen woods is miles up the dirt road on considerably lower than the left. out on the rocks. At about seven-tenths of a mile, the trail bears right and starts going up a rocky pitch. While this is far from rock climbing, this portion of the trail may necessitate a bit of hands and feet scrambling. Kids should have no problem, but

Silver Lake Mountain

owls head Mountain

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Continued on page 15

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June-July 2017

hiking

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

he trend of earning hiking patches by completing challenges continues, with the newly formed Lake George 12ster challenge. The latest Adirondack hiking challenge, in the same vein as the 46ers, the Saranac Lake 6ers and the Tupper Triad, offers more of a challenge than the latter two, but still less than the grueling requirements hiking all the High Peaks. This new challenge was created last summer, and any hikes of the mountains completed prior to Aug. 20, 2016 don’t count toward the challenge. The Lake George 12ster requires people to climb a dozen mountains in the Lake George region, and much like the Saranac Lake 6er program, hikers can earn an “ultra” patch by doing all the hikes in 24 hours or less. And much like the other Adirondack hiking challenges, separate patches can be earned for hiking the mountains in the winter — from Dec. 21 to March 21. While the Lake George challenge isn’t as demanding as becoming a 46er, this is still no joke. The 12 mountains require almost 40 miles of hiking and about 9,000 total feet of elevation gain. For comparison, the Saranac Lake 6 are just a few miles shorter in total distance. The mountains that make up the Lake George 12ster are located on both the east and west sides of the lake. They are: Thomas and Cat mountains, as well as the Tongue Mountain range, which is made up of Brown, Huckleberry, Five Mile, Fifth Peak, French Point and First Peak. On the east side of the lake, Black, Erebus, Buck and Sleeping Beauty mountains round out the dozen peaks. If you’re not in the market for an ultra patch and have the time, visiting Bumps Pond near the summit of Sleeping Beauty will add just a little extra to your hike. Going to the pond will make the trail a loop, but several trip reports said the hike can be done in about four hours, including stops at the summit of Sleeping Beauty and the pond. The Tongue Mountain range is one of the most recognizable in the Adirondacks. Named as such due to the fact that the range is part of a large peninsula that juts into the lake, this part of the challenge will offer great views of the lake and

The majority of hikes in the Lake George 12ster program provide sweeping views of the region.

the mountains across the water. While 12 mountains may sound like a lot to accomplish, half of them are in this one range, meaning that a traverse of the range will go a long way toward earning your 12ster patch. The range also offers lean-tos and camping sites along the way, as well as the pleasure of reaching the highest point in the town of Bolton when you summit the 2,256-foot tall Five Mile Mountain. Backpacker Magazine has featured the Tongue range several

times, saying in a July 2000 article that “the Tongue is a wild, mountainous peninsula that juts into Lake George. It’s a world apart from the frenzied resorts and theme park atmosphere that draws millions of tourists to the southern edge of the lake.” It should also be noted that the Tongue Mountain range is home to timber rattlers, which are poisonous snakes that can pose a serious threat to hikers. Timber rattlesnakes can grow up to 4-and-ahalf feet in length. While the

snakes are listed as threatened in New York, there can be dense populations in local areas, such as along the mountain range. The snakes, like other pitvipers, are temperature-sensitive and may be found basking on the bare-rock cliffs that dot the range. Hikers should avoid the snakes and use caution if any are spotted. The 12ster challenge is family friendly, but a special eye should be kept on kids when in rattlesnake territory. Despite Backpacker’s analysis,

PHOTO COURTESY OF VISITLAKEGEORGE.COM

LAKE GEoRGE JoInS hIKInG TREnD

one of the perks of the 12ster is certainly its proximity to the attractions, lodging and, of course, food and beverages that the village offers. There are several state Department of Environmental Conservation-run campgrounds that offer an affordable and stay and hot showers in the area, as well as thousands of hotel rooms of all price ranges. For more information on the Lake George 12ster, including maps and registration information, visit www.lakegeorge12ster.com.

champlain Valley on diSplay with moriah challenGe

By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

PHOTO PROVIDED

A group of hikers stands at the top of Big hollow/Coot hill, one of four hikes that make up the Moriah Challenge.

June-July 2017

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hamplain Area Trails and the Port Henry/Moriah Chamber of Commerce have teamed up to create a new hiking challenge that will kick off on National Trails Day, Saturday, June 3. The Moriah Challenge includes four hikes in that area: Belfry Mountain, Big Hollow/Coot Hill, Cheney Mountain and the Crowfoot Pond Trail. While the official celebration starts at 10 a.m., hikers are welcome to participate at any time. Anyone completing the four hikes can stop by the Moriah Chamber of Commerce office at 4317 Main St. in Port Henry to pick up their free embroidered patch. Belfry Mountain is a quick, 0.35-mile hike up a gravel road that leads to an open fire tower and views of the Champlain Valley, the Green Mountains and the Adirondacks. Big Hollow/Coot Hill is just a half-mile round trip but is known as a popular spot watch raptors such as migrating hawks. The Cheney Mountain trail is a 2-mile round trip hike on land owned by the town of Moriah. The 1,347-foot summit provides views of the Green and Adirondack mountains.

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The final hike is the longest, but the 5-mile round trip reportedly offers excellent views of Crowfoot Pond. “We are so pleased that the chamber reached out to us,” CATS Executive Director Chris Maron said in a press release. “These trails offer a variety of hiking experiences people of all ages can enjoy. Crowfoot Pond is a pleasant walk through woods to a lake and the other three provide spectacular views. The Moriah Challenge will inspire people to hike in the Champlain Valley and increase the economic effects of outdoor recreation.” Kyle Miller, who works for the chamber, said in an email that the group has enough funding for a few runs of patches. “There is no deadline; we just thought it would be good to have an official starting date,” Miller wrote in an email. “The Moriah Challenge will go on until we run out of patches. So it will go on all summer and into the fall unless there is a massive response before then.” There will also be tables and volunteers at each trailhead to answer questions and sell patches for each individual trail to anyone who would like to commemorate their hikes.

Hikes to fire towers of the Hamilton County Challenge

Blue Mountain

ACTIVITY: hiking DIFFICULTY: moderage DISTAnCE: 4.0 miles round trip PERKS: you can be up, hiking and on the summit for a nice sunrise then be back down in time for Sunday brunch. this is a short, quick hike, but still gives the feeling of accomplishment. oBSTACLES: the upper portions of this hike are very steep, and most days can be very wet and slippery. while not necessarily an obstacle, don’t plan to be alone on this hike; it’s very busy, especially on weekends. QUoTE: “the Blue mountain fire tower may be the best known and most visited fire tower in the adirondacks. the tower was originally built from wood in 1911 and was replaced with the current tower by the nyS dec in 1917. the dec closed the tower in 1990 and was one of the last operating fire towers in new york State. a group of local volunteers adopted and restored the tower.” — www.visitadirondacks.com DIRECTIonS: From the adirondack experience museum in Blue mountain lake, follow state route 28n/30 toward long lake for 0.2 miles to the trailhead on the right.

Owls Head (Long Lake)

ACTIVITY: hiking DIFFICULTY: moderate DISTAnCE: 6.2 miles round trip PERKS: this trail can be found off the beaten path and even on busy weekends it’s not overwhelmingly crowded. climb atop the fire tower to look out over long lake and far beyond. the climb is mostly moderate with only one steep section. if you don’t like heights you can still have a great view from the summit rock. oBSTACLES: the distance is a bit longer than some other hikes in the region, so allow yourself enough time and daylight. QUoTE: “From the partially open summit, long lake can be seen below with Blue mountain in the background. From the tower, a 360-degree view is afforded with mindblowing views of the central adirondacks and high peaks region off in the distance. the Seward mountains stand tall over everything in the area. the large dome of kempshall mountain (a former firetower peak) sits along the shore of long lake. in the distance, the towers of Blue mountain, wakely mountain, Snowy mountain, Goodnow mountain and arab mountain can be faintly determined.” — Adirondack Experience DIRECTIonS: From the hamlet of long lake follow state route 30 toward tupper lake and just on the outside of town find endion road on the left and drive this for 1.6 miles to the trailhead on the right.

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By SPENCER MORRISSEY View from the summit of Snowy Mountain.

Pillsbury Mountain

Snowy Mountain

ACTIVITY: hiking DIFFICULTY: moderate DISTAnCE: 3.2 miles round trip PERKS: the least visited fire tower on this list will bring you to a quiet summit overlooking the west canada lake wilderness, and place you in a moment of awe and wonder. oBSTACLES: navigating the road system to the secluded trailhead can be quite a challenge. QUoTE: “pillsbury is one of the adirondacks 100 highest mountains. the main reason people climb this mountain is for the views from the fire tower. on clear days you cans see the high peaks, Vermont and all of the central adirondacks. the views really are quite inspiring. the trail to the top is short and steep.” — www.summitpost.org DIRECTIonS: From the intersection of stae route 30 and route 28 in indian lake, follow route 30 toward Speculator. continue to perkins clearing road on the right. Follow this for 3.3 miles to a junction with a sign post, turn right here. Go another 1.8 miles and turn right once more. now drive 1.2 miles to the end of the road and the trailhead.

ACTIVITY: hiking DIFFICULTY: Strenuous DISTAnCE: 7.8 miles round trip PERKS: not only do you get a world class view from the summit’s fire tower but you also get outstanding views from the cliﬀs just below the summit. oBSTACLES: portions of this trail are very steep with eroded and rocky footing. the distance could also be an obstacle for unprepared hikers. QUoTE: “Snowy mountain is the tallest mountain in the southern adirondacks and the trail to its top, especially the final climb, is very steep and demanding. you'll enjoy outstanding views of indian lake, the distant high peaks and unbroken wilderness from the rocky summit ledges, which are dangerous and should be approached with caution. the fire tower on the summit was recently restored for safe public use.” — www.adirondackscenicbyways.com DIRECTIonS: From the intersection of state route 30 and route 28 in indian lake, follow route 30 toward Speculator. continue for 7 miles to the trailhead parking on the left, the trail is on the right.

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PHOTO BY SPENCER MORRISSEY

Five trips

Wakely Mountain (trail closed) ACTIVITY: hiking DIFFICULTY: Strenuous DISTAnCE: 6.0 miles roundtrip PERKS: this peak is one of the finest in the park in the way of views, and its massive fire tower — when open — will get you well above the trees for a 360-degree view. oBSTACLES: as of may 11 new york oﬃcials closed this trail because of safey concerns with the fire tower. the 92-foot tower was closed to public access in december because of structural problems and has since worsened. the department of envornmental conservation said there is a chance the tower could collapse in heavy winds. dec planned to make repairs to prevent collapse. QUoTE: “the 92-foot tower is one of the highest in new york State. this allows an excellent view of the west canada lakes wilderness area to the south, and great views of the high peaks to the north on clear days. you normally won't find any crowds on wakely mountain. it's a great place for peace and solitude.” — www.cnyhiking .com DIRECTIonS: From the intersection of state route 30 and route 28 in indian lake follow route 28/30 toward Blue mountain lake. continue to cedar river road on the left and turn. in 11.5 miles you will come to the trailhead on the right.

June-July 2017

Adirondack names

WhAT’S In A nAME: hAMILTon CoUnTY By SPENCER MORRISSEY

lace names in the Adirondack Park have always intrigued me, and with that comes the love of Adirondack history, legends, lore, old tales and, at times, some big fish stories. However, through a vast amount of exploring in the wilds, on the internet and in books, I have come to some conclusions on some local names and why they might be named as they are, with a few other neat tidbits thrown in for good measure.

Kenwells

If you are out hiking in the Moose River Plains, you might notice on a map that one of the roads leads to and continues through what is called Kenwells. This is not a small village and never really was, but merely named after Gerald Kenwell. Mr. Kenwell owned and operated a guest house for hunters which was located here on Otter Brook. The establishment no longer exists, but if you were to poke around long enough remnants would surely be seen.

Stink Lake

You really can’t get any better than that for a name of a body of water or for the nearby mountain named after it, but where on earth did that name come from? Some speculate that it has to do with the odor it gives off after the ice melts, when the trapping of methane gas is released. But the more likely story might fall from a fisherman’s tale. It has always had a reputation for excellent trout fishing and surely it was better back in the day before the lake was so oddly named. It is said that the name derived from the foul smell of fish abandoned by a novice sport, who French Louis was guiding. French Louis may in fact be the father of the naming.

Ha-de-ron-dah

PHOTO BY SPENCER MORRISSEY

It kind of rolls off the tongue doesn’t it. Well this one is actually quite interesting as it is the Algonquin phrase for “Bark Eaters” which is what the “white man” corrupted into Adirondacks, the land for which this 26,600-acre wilderness resides. So essentially, Ha-de-ron-dah is the

Adirondack wilderness within the Adirondack Park. Kind of like the hamlet of Adirondack in the Adirondacks. I know it’s confusing, just go with it.

Bald/Rondaxe

This is the mountain with two names. Originally it was called Pond Mountain after the pond below it now called Mountain Pond. It was later renamed Bald Mountain due to its rocky open summit. Once the state Department of Environmental Conservation started erecting fire towers on the summits in the early 1900s, they realized they had two mountains named Bald with fire towers. So to avoid confusion, they referred to it as Rondaxe Mountain. Bald Mountain is the official name today but the name Rondaxe still shines through now and again and is even depicted on a road sign pointing to the Bald/Rondaxe Trailhead.

Bottle/Cork

Now here is a unique name for a couple peaks. Bottle is currently the only one officially named on any map, but Cork Mountain is the one right next to it. Cork is named as such because when viewed from the west it rises slightly above Bottle Mountain, hence resembling the cork to the bottle. Cork is a local name. It is also referred to as Scenic Mountain, but Cork just seems so much more … fun. There is even a DEC trail sign pointing to the summit of Cork Mountain as they call it, of course the views are long since gone and the trail sees much less traffic.

Hedgehog

The following is simply speculation and a guessing game for which yours could be just as true. This name pops up all over the Adirondack Park and believe it or not we don’t have hedgehogs running around wild, in the sense that you might think. However, a groundhog has been referred to as a hedgehog, and even today the names get used interchangeably. A hedgehog is a spiny creature with a rounded back, so it could very well be that a rounded mountain with spiny trees, like red spruce, and is said to be as “course as a hedgehog.” What do you think?

An old trail near Kenwells.

June-July 2017

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Department of Environmental Conservation

REMEMBERInG A FALLEn FoREST RAnGER T By JUSTIN A. LEVINE

he steady rain stopped just as a forest ranger honor guard started up the rocky path that runs through the middle of Pine Ridge Cemetery in Saranac Lake on the afternoon of Sunday, April 30. The guard, complete with bagpiper, stood watch as a small crowd gathered on a stone-walldotted hillside to mark an important milestone in Adirondack history. The subject of the ceremony was Forest Ranger James Ahern, who died on April 30, 1917 — several days after suffering grievous injuries while on patrol near Ray Brook. It was the first in-the-lineof-duty death recorded for the rangers, and it spawned changes that still reverberate today. The accident Forest Ranger Scott van Laer, a Ray Brook resident, said Ahern was working on state property boundary lines with a surveyor when he fell and got injured. Van Laer admits he doesn’t know exactly where the fall occurred or how high a fall it was, but Ahern and the surveyor were able to make their way 5 miles, on foot, to the hospital in Ray Brook. Ahern was in the hospital for several days with serious internal injuries and then was sent home for the last hours of his life. Van Laer said newspaper accounts at the time said he died in the early hours of April 30. “I can’t remember if I was searching his name in the newspaper archives, (but) I read the newspaper accounts, both in the Saranac Lake paper and the Plattsburgh paper,” van Laer said after the service. “But I had never heard the oral history of this. “Then I found what really was the kicker, if you will: (The) documentation was the state law of 1918. They passed a state law signed by the governor, and it said the year he died, his kids and stuff, so that’s the best story I have. He doesn’t have any direct-line descendants; the family was not even aware of this when I reached out to them.” James Ahern’s great-grandnephew was at the ceremony with his own wife; they now live in Clayburg. Michael Ahern said he was surprised when he saw a ranger parked on the side of the road waiting to talk to him about his great-granduncle, but he was also touched by the ceremony. “It was very nice, very special,” Michael Ahern said. Forest Ranger Capt. John Streiff was master of ceremonies April 30 and said in a speech that the spirit of the forest rangers began with the creation of the Adirondack Forest Preserve in 1885. But it took a tragedy of monstrous proportions to bring about the profes-

sional organization we know today. After a fire in 1908 wiped out much of the hamlet of Long Lake West — maybe the largest fire in Adirondack history — the state created the first full-time forest protection unit in 1909. “A paid professional source was created to not only fight fires but to patrol the vast Forest Preserve as well,” Streiff said. Prior to this, fire wardens — the forerunners of forest rangers — were only paid when there was a fire, but after the 1908 fire, a full-time crew was put in place. “In 1912, the title ‘forest ranger’ was bestowed upon this new force and has remained unchanged ever since.” Streiff said Ahern was hired as a ranger in 1914 at a salary of $60 per month (about $1,450 in today’s dollars). When he died, he left behind a wife and two children: James, 11, and Doris, 9. According to a May 4, 1917, ar-

ticle in the Lake Placid News, Ahern was 42 at the time of his death and suffered from a rupture of the intestines after the fall. Born in Reford, he lived in Tupper Lake for a number of years and operated several businesses in the Tri-Lakes area, including a theater in Saranac Lake, before becoming a forest ranger. “The duty fulfilled by Ranger Ahern is the same one carried out by rangers today,” Streiff said. “We are a force rich in tradition, unified in purpose, solid in our beliefs and dedicated to our mission. “We follow the same trail today that Ranger Ahern blazed before us.”

Legislation

Van Laer, who acts as the ranger division’s unofficial historian, said he found out about Ahern’s death while doing research. He said that originally, rangers’ families were not given any sort of death benefit,

even if the rangers died in the course of their duties. But Ahern’s death prompted legislative action in Albany, and in mid-May 1918, a bill was passed honoring Ahern and awarding his wife and kids a survivor’s benefit. The bill also declared that rangers worked in hazardous conditions and ensured that from then on, the family of any ranger who died in the line of duty would also receive death benefits. Van Laer said it is thought that seven rangers have died in the line of duty since Ahern: at least four due to heart attacks while on hiking or fire patrol, and most recently in a plane crash in the 1970s. State Assemblyman Billy Jones was at the ceremony, along with several other local officials, retired rangers and law enforcement officers. “It’s important to be here … to honor our forest rangers and honor

the jobs they do,” said Jones, DChateaugay. “They do it in very adverse conditions, and they don’t often get the recognition they deserve. And obviously, for this family, this was important.” There are only about 120 forest rangers statewide, and each is responsible for patrolling an average of tens of thousands of acres. Jones, a former state corrections officer, has introduced a bill that would require safe CO staffing levels at state prisons, and he said he wouldn’t rule out a similar effort to increase ranger staffing levels. “I think we have a low level of staffing in the forest rangers,” Jones said. “Look at the vast area we live in, and I think it’s always important that I tell my colleagues from the city and from south of here how important it is to staff this properly. “Because when we need them, we desperately need them.”

State purchaSeS hiStoric marion riVer carry

From staff reports

ov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration celebrated the Adirondack Park’s 125th birthday by adding

to it. Saturday, May 20 was the 125th anniversary of the day Gov. Roswell Flower signed an act establishing the Adirondack Park’s original Blue Line boundary — now much expanded. On Monday, May 22, the state celebrated that by announcing it has bought the 296-acre Marion River Carry property, between the communities of Blue Mountain Lake and Raquette Lake, from the Open Space Institute. As part of the same announcement, the state officially put to rest a knotty land dispute that persisted for more than 130 years in what was called Township 40 in Raquette Lake, involving 216 land parcels totaling more than 1,000 acres. The Marion River Carry has his-

PHOTO BY JUSTIN A. LEVINE

Capt. John Streiﬀ, left, and Michael Ahern, the great-grandnephew of Ranger James Ahern, place a ceremonial wreath on his grave on April 30 at Pine Ridge Cemetery in Saranac Lake. It was the 100th anniversary of Ahern’s death, the first line-of-duty death for the forest rangers.

torical as well as recreational value. It’s a popular carry for paddlers on the upper reaches of the Raquette River, and for more than 100 years it was one of the passages by which tourists came to the heart of the Adirondacks. At one point the carry had its own short railroad. The train is preserved today at the Adirondack Experience (formerly Adirondack Museum) in the hamlet of Blue Mountain Lake. The Township 40 quagmire originated in the 1870s and 1880s with possibly illegal tax sales that resulted in unclear titles. The parcels were doubly claimed by the state as well as by private entities that include homeowners, a fire department, a school district and a utility company. Finally, the DEC and landowners came to an agreement: The state would give up its claims and leave the private owners with clear titles if those people paid money

the state could use to buy land elsewhere. OSI had that in mind when it bought the Marion River Carry in 2012 to protect it from potential development. Earlier this year, OSI transferred the property to the state Department of Environmental Conservation, donating most of its value — $1.3 million. The state also used about $750,000 from the Township 40 landowners for the purchase. The deal required an amendment to the state constitution, which meant it had to be passed by two successive state legislatures and then by voters statewide. New York voters approved it in November 2013, and in 2014, the owners of all 216 parcels opted into the agreement. As part of the deal, DEC surveyed the once-disputed parcels and made maps to show the exact boundaries of the land for which it was relinquishing its claims. DEC

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Commissioner Basil Seggos signed those maps Monday in Albany. “DEC worked diligently with the town of Long Lake to acquire the Marion River Carry property from OSI and provide permanent public access to the carry and protect the property’s significant natural resources,” Seggos said in a press release. Clark Seaman, supervisor of the town of Long Lake in which Township 40 and the Marion River Carry lie, called this “truly a momentous occasion. “Many people have been working for years to bring this to fruition, including a core committee of Raquette Lake residents chaired by Carolyn Gerdin. She has been tireless in her pursuit of this settlement. All of the affected property owners owe Carolyn and the committee their gratitude. I also want to acknowledge DEC staff who have been working so diligently over the past several

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years to finalize this settlement.” Gerdin, who claims title to disputed property that has been in her family for many decades, said, “The solution of the centuries-old problem of title in Township 40 is a testament to the power of people working together.” Also, two people who had claimed title to contested parcels transferred their interests in portions of their parcels to the state: a 20-acre piece donated by Carol Redenbaugh on the northwest end of Sucker Brook Bay, with a trailhead for a hike to the summit of West Mountain, and a 116-acre parcel on the south shore of Sucker Brook Bay, donated by Jeffrey Sellon. This acquisition preserves more than 3,000 feet of pristine shoreline. Both parcels are now DEC-managed Forest Preserve. The DEC also announced it is moving forward with acquiring at least 1,400 more acres to add to the Adirondack Forest Preserve.

June-July 2017

Bang for your buck Continued from page 10

adults may be wary. It’s not bad, but looks intimidating from below. You will get your first good look at Silver Lake at the 0.8-mile mark, and another stunning treat just a tenth of a mile past that. This view at 0.9 miles is the best on the mountain. From here, you can sit on the rocks and look west and south at the Adirondacks stretching out before you. Catamount Mountain is in the foreground to the south, while Whiteface Mountain is visible in the distance and Taylor Pond stretches out before you. Silver Lake and Union Falls Pond are also visible from here. If you want, continue another few hundred feet to a cliff top that will give you better views to the south. You will also see that Silver Lake

Mountain stretches out to the east, and large cliffs give the impression that you’ve just climbed a much more serious mountain. Silver Lake Mountain is an easy climb with a few moderately difficult spots, but nothing that should keep you from the top. It took us just over 30 minutes to reach the top, where we enjoyed the views while basking in the warm sunshine. Although we had started hiking with temperatures in the 30s, sitting on the rocks at the top made it feel like 70 degrees out.

Owls Head Mountain

As far as Adirondack hikes go, Owls Head Mountain provides one of the biggest bangs for your buck in the entire park. The hike is easy at just over a half-mile one-way, and maintains a

CANOE & KAYAK TRIPS

slightly more than gentle grade most of the time. While you will be going uphill the whole time, it’s such a short trail the slope never really gets to you. Even with several stops to take photos, the climb up Owls Head took us just over 20 minutes. The trail is a good one for mud season, since it is rocky for most of the way. Even in early April, there was only one short stretch of wet trail, which was easily navigated by stepping on rocks. The trail starts out on private land, and is not marked, aside from a sign at the parking area. However, it is a popular hike and the trail is easy to follow. Just be sure to stick to the trail and don’t litter, since the trail exists only because of the landowner’s generosity. As you make your way up the trail, there will be glimpses of

Pitchoff Mountain and state Route 73 behind you. Nearing the top, keep an eye on young kids as there are cliffs that can pose a serious hazard. The trail skirts to the left of the cliffs and loops around to the mostly open summit. From there, you will have unobstructed views of Pitchoff, Cascade and Porter mountains, the High Peaks and, on a clear day, one can see the fire tower atop Hurricane Mountain off to the east. The views earned from this short hike are some of the best in the Adirondacks. Since the hike is so short, this is a good one for kids to come along on. The cliffs, while dangerous, also offer the type of natural playground that is irresistible. With proper supervision, the cliffs and boulders can be explored, and plenty of fun can be had for just a little bit of effort on the hike up.

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The cliffs, while dangerous, also offer the type of natural playground that is irresistible. With proper supervision, the cliffs and boulders can be explored, and plenty of fun can be had for just a little bit of effort on the hike up.

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June-July 2017

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PHOTO BY JUSTIN A. LEVINE

The Seven Carries route includes several beauriful views of wetlands like this one on St. Regis Pond.

Historic Seven Carries route Continued from page 9

lakes and ponds make possible a remote and unconfined type of water-oriented recreation in an essentially wilderness setting,” the DEC’s canoe area website says. “The area covers 18,400 acres, and includes St. Regis Mountain, St. Regis and Long ponds, sections of the east and west branches of the St. Regis River, and 56 other waterbodies.” Campsites and lean-tos dot the shorelines of most of the ponds, and Brad and I scoped out clusters of sites that would be great for group camping. Of course, since it was late October, no one was out camping, but we did see a trio of guys in blaze orange paddling past us in the other direction on St. Regis Pond. Once you skip through Bog Pond, the canoe route hits the biggest lakes of the day, Upper and Lower St. Regis Lakes and Spitfire Lake between them. Paddling on Upper St. Regis, we fought a bit of a headwind, but marveled at the great and not-so-great camps on the lake. From island cabins to mansions that hang out over the water, these lakes are an architect and historian’s dream come true. We made our way through the slough between Upper and Spitfire, and quickly came upon Rabbit Island, a tiny little spit of rock with a handful of trees on it that played a huge roll in the study of tuberculosis. Dr. E. L. Trudeau had a camp near the island, and used it in an experiment on the disease he had moved to the area to escape. Trudeau infected a number of rabbits with tuberculosis, and kept half in captivity, while the rest were set free on the little island. “On the island, however, all of the rabbits thrived, despite their infection,” according to Historic Saranac Lake. Trudeau published the results of his experiment in 1887 in the American Journal of the Medical Sciences, arguing that fresh air, rest and moderate exercise could slow or halt progression of the disease. There is a plaque on the island commemorating Trudeau and his experiment.

The plaque was dedicated in 1972, in front of about 150 guests. Dr. Rene Dubos, a scientist and writer who won the Pulitzer Prize in 1969, highlighted the importance of the experiment during the dedication ceremony, which was detailed in an October, 1972 article in the Adirondack Daily Enterprise. “Dr. Dubos outlined the experiment in which Dr. Trudeau placed 15 rabbits on the island, infecting a group of five with the tuberculosis germ and placing them in unpleasant living conditions in a chamber; five uninfected rabbits were placed under similar unpleasant conditions also, while the remaining five were infected and allowed to roam about the island,” the article reads. “The final results, he said, showed that the five infected rabbits living under poor living conditions all died of tuberculosis; the five uninfected rabbits living under similar poor living conditions, all survived although all lost weight and did not look well; the five who had been infected and avowed to roam freely about the island all survived. “This experiment,” Dubos declared, “symbolizes the problems that those of us who are concerned with infectious diseases must always keep in mind: ‘Yes, there is the germ and we must learn to deal with it; but there is the quality of the environment, and it is that which makes you more capable of resisting the infection.’” We made our way through Spitfire and were soon able to see the buildings of Paul Smith’s College on the other side of a large marsh. Winding through the open channel of the marsh, Brad and I could see our alma mater in all of its glory. And even though the relatively new student center and library dominated the view, the old cottages of the rich and famous, people who had made huge contributions to American history and had possibly done the same exact paddle we had, stood to our left as we reached the shore, a silent reminder of the history we were sharing.

From island cabins to mansions that hang out over the water, these lakes are an architect and historian’s dream come true.

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Adirondack “By Owner”

June-July 2017