Thursday, November 18, 2021

Champlain Area Trails to Open Spirit Sanctuary Trail

Hikers enjoy a sneak peek of the new trail at Spirit Sanctuary.

WESTPORT – Champlain Area Trails (CATS) will host a trail opening hike on the new Spirit Sanctuary Trail in Essex, on Saturday, November 27th at 10 a.m.  

The Spirit Sanctuary Trail is a one-mile there-and-back trail that begins on Cook Road, about 1.3 miles west of NYS Route 22 in Whallonsburg. It goes through the new “green” cemetery, then along a forested little ridge overlooking a wetland and connects to the popular CATS Black Kettle Trail. Hikers can continue on this 1-mile loop trail with beautiful views, cliffs, big trees, and a scenic brook and then return through the Sanctuary. 

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Wednesday, November 17, 2021

On the idea of an Adirondack Mountains National Park

adirondack national park mapOn a fall Saturday afternoon in the early 1990s some friends and I met up with wilderness coalition leader Paul Schaefer (1908-1996) at his cabin. Deciding to spend the night with him at the cabin, we drove Paul into North Creek for something to eat. We tried the area’s hotel. One of the hotel staff took a look at Paul’s red plaid hunting jacket and asked him if could change into something more formal. At that, we turned heel and, walking across the street, the side bordering on the Hudson River, entered Smith’s restaurant. Paul was immediately comfortable, having eaten here many times. Someone greeted him, a fellow deer hunter who remembered him. We took a booth and Paul ordered a steak.

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Wednesday, November 17, 2021

Rangers assist hypothermic hunter in Fine

forest ranger reportsRecent NYS DEC Forest Ranger actions:

Village of Lake Placid
Franklin County
Wilderness Rescue: On Nov. 12 at 12:55 p.m., Central Dispatch received a call from Franklin County 911 regarding a distressed hiker. At 1:24 p.m., the hiker was with Caretaker Bastian at the Lake Colden interior outpost. Forest Rangers Evans and Bode helped the hiker down to Marcy Dam at 3:45 p.m. At 5:44 p.m., the hiker was turned over to Lake Placid Ambulance and taken to the hospital for further treatment.

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Wednesday, November 17, 2021

‘Adirondack Mac’ Will Serve as Official Mascot for World University Games

adirondack mac the new mascot for lake placid fiosu world university games

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that Adirondack Mac will serve as the official mascot for the Lake Placid 2023 FISU World University Games. The moose mascot was designed by Kristina Ingerowski, a sophomore at the Fashion Institute of Technology and a native of Farmington, Ontario County. Mac will appear in various forms including a live, costumed character; as merchandise including toys, stuffed animals, apparel and other souvenirs; and in promotional materials. The Lake Placid 2023 FISU World University Games are scheduled for January 12-22, 2023.

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Tuesday, November 16, 2021

Formality Will Not Generate the Planning Needed in the Adirondacks

By Lee Nellis

Thanks to Peter Bauer for once again providing us with useful facts and commentary in his “Team Cuomo” editorial. I have no argument with what he says, so far as it goes, but fear that he creates the impression that the more frequent use of formal adjudicatory hearings will restore sound land-use planning to the Adirondacks.

It will not.

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Tuesday, November 16, 2021

DEC opens comment on Draft Unit Management Plan for Tug Hill East

tug hill east map

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced that the agency will accept public comments on the draft Unit Management Plan (UMP) for Tug Hill East through Dec. 15, 2021. The draft UMP covers 22,886 acres of land in seven State Forests, one unique area, and 13 detached Forest Preserve parcels in the Lewis County towns of Lewis, Martinsburg, Osceola, Turin, and West Turin, the Oneida County town of Ava, and the Oswego County town of Redfield.

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Tuesday, November 16, 2021

Poem: Every Day

Every Day

On every day that we breathe,

We give thanks.

On every day,

Free from suffering, want, despair,

Free from fear,

Free,

We give thanks.

Every day we have lived through,

Loved, learned, struggled through,

Has made us what we are.

For what we are, and what we can be,

With the help of grace, mercy, compassion,

With grateful humility, every day,

We give thanks.


Monday, November 15, 2021

The Season of Northern Lights 

aurora

In late October and earlier this month, spectacular aurora activity was visible across much of the northern hemisphere. Sightings were reported from Maine to Washington State and as far south as Connecticut and California.

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Monday, November 15, 2021

A remembrance from growing up near Akwesasne

david fadden, photo by linda Friedman Ramirez

Editor’s note: In recognition of November being Native American Heritage Month, reader Joel Rosenbaum shared this story:

By Joel Rosenbaum

The grandfather of David Fadden (see here for a recent profile on David Fadden), Ray Fadden, was always talked about with a great deal of respect in my family, where I grew up in Massena, N. Y., not far from the Native American reservation (Akwesasne) in Hogansburg, N. Y.

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Monday, November 15, 2021

Online auction supports Northern Forest Canoe Trail

The Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFCT) will host its annual online auction Nov. 15-30 to support stewardship and programming along the 740-mile water trail that connects New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and Quebec.

The auction features gear and experiences donated by businesses, organizations and artisans across the Northern Forest region. This year’s feature item is a Nova Craft Pal 16-foot recreational canoe, donated by White Rose Canoe.

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Sunday, November 14, 2021

Exploring wild places

In a week where we were again reminded that development pressures are always with us, it seemed a good time to visit a spot where the reverse is occurring. On a wooded glade bordered by wetlands near the hamlet of Essex is the Brookfield Headwaters Trail, which loops eight tenths of a mile over old farmland that is embarking on a 200 year journey toward becoming, once again, an old growth forest.

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Sunday, November 14, 2021

The power of local

As a lean, mean non-profit news organization, every dollar in donations we receive goes directly into our journalism, to put reporters in every corner of the Adirondack Park, to dig deeply into the environmental and human issues of importance to all who live and visit our region.

This past year has been one of tremendous growth. Some highlights:

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Sunday, November 14, 2021

Weekly news round up

A collection of interesting reads:

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Saturday, November 13, 2021

Adirondack Wild: Resort Developer Fails to Deliver Requested Information to APA

proposed jay resortA Miami, Florida developer has sent the NYS Adirondack Park Agency Part 1 of an application for a proposed 350-acre resort in Jay, NY near Whiteface Mountain and Lake Placid.  However, in this Part 1 phase of review the developer has failed to provide the most basic of requested resource information needed to evaluate project impacts.

In their comment letter to the Agency Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve, a nonprofit Park wildland advocate, states that the application for up to 120 residential units near the East Branch of the Ausable River fails to comply with the Agency’s review criteria, including protection of open space, wildlife, and habitat resources, and in accordance with the objectives of conservation design.

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Saturday, November 13, 2021

DEC Announces Completion of Grasse River Habitat Restoration

East elliptio mussel East elliptio mussel provided by DEC

A significant Grasse River restoration project to help address a legacy of contamination and improve habitat in the region has been completed. This habitat restoration milestone is the result of a landmark DEC agreement (PDF) with Arconic in July 2020, and DEC’s ongoing collaboration with the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, New York State Museum, and other partners committed to the Grasse River’s ecological renewal. This work was completed in conjunction with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-led cleanup of the Grasse River, a federal National Priorities List site.

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