The Adirondack Almanack -

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Toronto, Canada and Buffalo, NY – Grocerist, which makes e-commerce profitable for grocers with the first and only grocery-specific e-commerce solution built on Shopify, and Field & Fork Network, a New York State nonprofit that connects communities to innovative solutions that foster a sustainable food system, announced on February 24 that they have partnered to make New York non-profit The Hub on the Hill the first grocer in the nation to roll out an automated online solution for Double Up Food Bucks. Double Up Food Bucks helps SNAP recipients stretch their benefits by matching SNAP dollars spent on fresh fruits and vegetables, doubling their impact. The program is available in 25 states, and this is the first automated, scalable solution that other grocers can leverage.

Thursday, March 16, 2023

Saranac Lake’s Common Ground Gardens Opening Registration to New Gardeners Today

Planting a Seed – Saranac Lake‘s Common Ground Gardens Opening Registration to New Gardeners Today, Thursday, March 16, 2023

By Paul Sorgule

It’s a bit ironic as I sit with my morning coffee, looking out the window at a steady Adirondack snowfall, knowing that my shovel is waiting outside – that my thoughts are on planting our garden in a few short months. Our High Mowing Seeds order has already been placed and a path has been cleared to the backyard shed where garden tools stand ready, willing, and able. There is something so gratifying about getting our hands in the soil, weeding between rows as shoots pop their heads through the dirt, and watching humble seedlings grow and mature into the vegetables that will grace our table during the summer and early fall. Sharing this experience with dozens of other local planters at Common Grounds Community Garden is icing on the cake. These thoughts are really the first sign of Spring, long before lawns peek through the snow, and the birds return from their winter homes.

Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Deciphering a court decision

by Zachary Matson

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A decision from the Appellate Division last week effectively rejected the Adirondack Park Agency’s long-standing interpretation of its wetlands regulations. I imagine we will be tracking the fallout from the decision for months to come.

That part of the ruling was a clear win for Thomas Jorling, a former DEC commissioner challenging a marina near his Lower Saranac Lake property. But another part of the decision concerning the state’s responsibility to study the carrying capacity of the lake was more of a mixed bag.

On the one hand, the decision sent a clear message to the state that it does in fact have a responsibility to study the lake’s ability to sustain various uses, including motorized boats, calling the state’s failure to do so “wholly unexplained and, indeed, inexplicable.”

Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Northern Forest Center Offers Grants for Community Recreation, Proposals Due March 31

The Northern Forest Center is offering grants of up to $2,500 to volunteer-led organizations working to increase local participation in outdoor recreation in Northern Forest Communities. Proposals are due by March 31, 2023.

“We’re increasingly aware of the positive physical, social, and economic benefits of outdoor recreation, and that sometimes a small investment in equipment, staffing, or infrastructure can have a big impact in a community,” said Joe Fox, outdoor recreation manager for the Center. “We’re grateful to LL Bean for providing funding for this grant program.”

Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Rangers assist injured cross-country skier in Lake Placid

by NYS DEC

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Village of Lake Placid
Essex County
Skier Rescue: On March 7 at 11:05 a.m., Forest Ranger Evans heard about a cross country skier who hit a tree near the Penny Glades in Lake Placid. Fifteen minutes later, Ranger Evans reached the 67-year-old from Lake Placid, helped him to his home, and performed a medical evaluation. After noticing a large contusion on the subject’s hip and a laceration and swelling on his face, Ranger Evans called for an ambulance. Lake Placid Ambulance took the subject to the hospital at 11:47 a.m.

Tuesday, March 14, 2023

Big solar, plus APA court decisions

by Gwendolyn Craig

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I sifted through the new Office of Renewable Energy Siting’s regulations and talked to some state and nonprofit sources about large-scale solar projects and the permitting process. Some of you have had questions about solar capacity factors and decommissioning, among other things, in my time covering these solar facility permits. We try to answer some of them for you here.

The Adirondack Park Agency lost two separate court decisions —one involving a marina permit on Lower Saranac Lake and another involving an herbicide permit on Lake George. The Court of Appeals case involving a private marina was the first to come out, and in an unanimous opinion judges criticized how the APA has been applying its wetlands regulations. We learned Judge Robert Muller, of the state Supreme Court in Warren County, issued a decision on a Lake George herbicide permit suit that scolded APA for being “one-sided” in its application review and said the agency should have held an adjudicatory hearing. » Continue Reading.

Tuesday, March 14, 2023

View, Old Forge Library to present Community Dance with Dan Duggan and High on the Hog

The Old Forge Library and View are collaborating to present a wonderful evening of dancing and community. Dan Duggan will teach and call circle, square, reels (line) and contra dances. Dan and High on the Hog will keep your feet moving with live old time string band music, featuring hammered dulcimer, fiddle, banjo, guitar and bass. The community dance will be held at View on Friday, March 31 at 7 p.m. The event is free, fun, and family-friendly, and no prior dance experience is needed. View will provide snacks and a cash bar. » Continue Reading.

Tuesday, March 14, 2023

APA to hold monthly meeting March 16

APA Honors Women’s History Month with “Remarkable Women of the Adirondacks” Historical Presentation and Fine Arts Exhibit

Ray Brook, NY – The Adirondack Park Agency (APA) will hold its monthly meeting on Thursday, March 16, 2023. The meeting will be held at the Agency’s headquarters in Ray Brook, NY. The public is welcome to attend in person or remotely.

Public comment will be available to members of the public who attend the Agency meeting in person as well as those who participate remotely. If you would like the opportunity to make a public comment remotely, please email your name and the phone number used to call into the Board Meeting to AgencyMeeting.PublicComment@apa.ny.gov.

Monday, March 13, 2023

The 90-Miler at 40: Call for Stories, Deadline March 31

In honor of the 40th anniversary of the Adirondack Canoe Classic (the 90-Miler), the Northern Forest Canoe Trail is seeking submissions for the creation of a commemorative coffee table book.

Stories must be short — 300 to 400 words — and ideally be accompanied by photos, though the NFCT will be working with photographers as well. NFCT aims to share stories from each decade dating back to the 1980s and intends to cover a wide array of topics, including family stories, first-timer stories, fierce competition, weather mishaps, etc.

Please Note: A submission is not a guarantee that a story will be published in the book; the NFCT will, however, aim to share stories that don’t get published in the coffee table book, on their website and social media accounts.

The deadline to submit stories is Friday, March 31.

Those who wish to submit a story, or those who have additional questions are asked to email chris@northernforestcanoetrail.org.

Photo at top: A group of spectators watch as 90-Miler participants make their way through Inlet, NY. Photo provided by the Inlet Information Office.

Monday, March 13, 2023

Tupper Lake: Wild Center Takes Second in USA Today 10 Best Competition

The Wild Center in Tupper Lake took second place in the USA Today 10 Best competition. The Adirondack location ranked among museums from California, Georgia and Missouri, as selected by readers in the month-long competition. Ultimately, The Center of Science and Industry in Columbus, Ohio, took the top spot. However, The Wild Center is not slowing down, and staff said that they have a variety of programming, events, and exhibits in store for the remainder of 2023. Read more here.

Learn more about The Wild Center, its history, and offerings at this website.

Photo at top: The Wild Center in Tupper Lake. Photo provided by the Inlet Information Office.

Monday, March 13, 2023

Short film aims to support career pathways for students

A short film produced by Saranac Lake native Kirk Sullivan is helping high school students expand their horizons when it comes to planning their futures.

“Success!” first debuted at Saranac Lake High School (SLHS). It features local actors singing and dancing through the school’s classrooms and hallways, with teenagers highlighting their own career interests and teachers responding with educational pathways to get there. Following the initial screening, 10th grade students engaged in a discussion with Sullivan and SLHS counselors Maria Braun and Christine Bell about how their personal interests can lead to fulfilling careers, whether they decide to attend college or not.

Sunday, March 12, 2023

A Nordic Adventure in Raquette Lake

by Guest Contributor

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By Tim Helms, Long Lake & Raquette Lake Events Coordinator

With the return of winter and a decent snowpack in the Adirondack backcountry, this is the perfect time to explore a new trail or area that you have never experienced before. For this outing I chose the Powerhouse and Cascades Trails in the Historic Great Camps Special Management Area, which is part of the Blue Ridge Wilderness located in Raquette Lake, NY. To access the trailheads head south on Sagamore Road for approximately three miles, the first trailhead will be the Cascades Trail on the left side of the road. The Powerhouse Trailhead is another quarter mile on the left just across the bridge over South Inlet. The Cascades Trail has a very visible sign marking the parking lot, the Powerhouse Trail does not have a sign marking the parking lot, but the lot is very obvious and is just across the bridge and hard to miss.

Sunday, March 12, 2023

ANCA Awarded $558K USDA Grant for Climate Smart Project

Saranac Lake, NY – The Adirondack North Country Association (ANCA) has been awarded a $558,000 federal grant to support climate-smart agroforestry projects on small farms in northern New York. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) awarded the regional economic nonprofit a Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities grant to help farmers diversify their operations while implementing farming practices that improve land, water and air quality across the region.

The pilot project will provide customized technical assistance to participating farms and monitor economic and environmental benefits of utilizing agroforestry practices like silvopasture — a technique that integrates livestock, forage crops and trees on the same land. Planning and implementation phases of the project are expected to take two years, beginning in the summer and fall of 2023.

Sunday, March 12, 2023

Weekly news round up

by Melissa Hart

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A collection of interesting reads:

Saturday, March 11, 2023

Tales of babysitting a coon cat, fat flying squirrels, and unpredictable weather

by Gary Lee

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This week stayed more like winter…or at least the ground was white. I did blow out the driveway a couple times, but after the first snowstorm there was nothing but a misty rain the following day which froze [and created] a sharp crust on the snow that night. I had a couple runs to Utica this week and one day it was 33 degrees the whole way with light rain but when I got to Deerfield Hill it was a whiteout. Then going down the other side I could see all of Utica. Coming home that night it was the same [temperature] (33 degrees) and light rain until I hit Old Forge. Then it went [down] to 29 degrees and [I had] an instant freeze on my windshield at the top of the summit. I’m glad it wasn’t that way all the way home.