The NYS DEC is once again enforcing the annual burn ban from March 16 through May 14. During this time, NYS is especially vulnerable to wildfires, with nearly half of all serious wildfires happening in the spring. As the snow melts to reveal fall’s dry leaves and downed branches, warm temperatures, and low humidity increase the risk of fires spreading. The annual burn ban temporarily prohibits burning residential brush to reduce the risk of wildfires across the state.
Bolton Landing, NY – The Sembrich was awarded a total of $120,400 in grant funding from New York State to support new and ongoing initiatives. The funds were awarded through two agencies, the NYS Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and I LOVE NY/New York State’s Division of Tourism.
“We are grateful to the State of New York, the Council on the Arts, and I LOVE NY for their partnership and support,” says Director of Institutional Advancement Caleb Eick. “These funds will allow us to continue to grow and expand our programs and presence in our community. We are excited to undertake new initiatives and further solidify The Sembrich and our region as a world-class cultural destination.”
Ruth Kuhfahl died at age 99 on March 22, 2023 and her indomitable spirit will be greatly missed. Her story is the perfect example of the importance of capturing the stories of our elders, according to Jery Huntley, OurStoryBridge, Inc. President.
“We in the Town of Keene mourn a life well lived and a spirit that can guide us all into our elder years,” said Huntley.
Listen to “Almost 98 and Still Kickin” by Ruth Kuhfahl, an interview with Jery Huntley on July 9, 2021 at this link: https://app.memria.org/stories/public-story-view/29fa4c3cb94345a1bd795c7755bb43a5/
(Story #2 of our sharing series shared with permission from Adirondack Community, courtesy of OurStoryBridge, Inc.)
The Adirondack Almanack will share stories written by those who live, work, and play in the ADK, courtesy of OurStoryBridge/Freedom Story Project. These stories, which will be a combination of current and past events, people, outdoor activities and more, will be published on a weekly basis. The stories will focus on various locations situated in the Adirondack region, including the High Peaks, the town of Keene, and many other areas around the Park. Stories are compartmentalized into the following categories, arts & culture, catastrophes, work, people, outdoor activities, daily life, community, and natural & man-made environments.
Several Adirondack area non-profit organizations, including Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK), Adirondack Land Trust, and the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST) recently welcomed new staff and officers to their teams.
LAKE PLEASANT – The Hamilton County Soil and Water Conservation District hosted our 42nd annual Field Day to spotlight conservation for fifth and sixth graders, who were rewarded for their knowledge of natural resource protection during essay and poster contest ceremonies.
Lake Pleasant Central School’s fifth grade Conservation Field Day poster contest winners: class-wide second place Eden Borelli, over-all first place Adeliz Ruiz, and class-wide third place Dwaylon Pitts.
By Lorraine Duvall
March 25, 2023 – A dear Adirondack friend, Ruth Kuhfahl, died March 22, 2023 at the Adirondack Health hospital in Saranac Lake after experiencing a stroke at the age of 99. She was known for her many contributions to multiple organizations in the Adirondacks. Ruth began hiking and paddling in the High Peaks region in the 1970s with her friends from the Buffalo chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club. They hosted a reunion for her 95th birthday with a hike to John’s Brook Lodge in 2015.
Friend, Karen Boldis, told me that they hummed Pomp & Circumstance as they approached the lodge. Karen said, “I loved seeing Ruth hike with a set of pearls! Every person who passed us on the trail either coming or going in seemed to know Ruth.”
Great Camp Sagamore & The Sagamore Resort join together to invite you to an evening lecture highlighting the history of both of these Adirondack icons. All are welcome to gather on Friday, April 7 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. for a Tale of Two Sagamores lecture at the Sagamore Resort Conference Center in Bolton Landing, NY.
Historian and author Bill Gates will speak about the rich history of The Sagamore, one of the Adirondack’s most iconic resorts. Robert Engel, historian of Great Camp Sagamore, will share the fascinating history of one of the first Great Camps in the Adirondacks. Both speakers will provide insight into the history and significance of these two Adirondack icons.
The first day of Spring has arrived with only a new inch of snow and 18 degrees on the thermometer…(better than the three inches of snow and strong winds the day before, but no loss of power.) Many others are still struggling with more water and snow than they can deal with. Others [are dealing with] with damage from high winds and tornadoes that came across the country during the last week. Many in the south had a hard freeze which will affect many flowering trees, shrubs, and some crops that were already up.
Saranac Lake, NY – Poetry is alive and well in the Adirondack region, inspiring folks to embrace their creative sides while visiting various locations in the Adirondacks. Two such examples of artistic outlets include a recently released Poetry Machine created by those at the Adirondack Center for Writing (ACW) based in Saranac Lake. Another is ACW’s upcoming Poem Village 2023, a program in which submitted poems will be published and hung in storefront windows in Saranac Lake in mid-April, remaining up until mid-May. Poetry submissions are due by April 1.
In March, The Heart Network had the privilege of participating in the 2023 Adirondack Food Justice Summit, organized by the Adirondack Health Institute and the Adirondack Food System Network, and hosted at The Wild Center. This year’s theme was “Feed Back: Food is Health” — a theme that strongly parallels The Heart Network’s Creating Healthy Schools & Communities (CHSC) priorities in Franklin County.
The one-day event zeroed in on “food as medicine,” highlighting programs and initiatives across the Adirondack region aimed at strengthening our food systems to reduce food insecurity — without compromising population health. In fact, much of the discussion spoke to strategies that can improve health while also advancing equity in our food systems. One such strategy is the implementation of Food RX models in our communities, which involves healthcare providers working with patients to connect them to healthy local food sources. One of the two keynote speakers — Benita Law Diao — challenged participants to examine more closely the barriers that prevent people from accessing nutritious foods and physical activity.
Story and photos by Heather Swartz
It seemed like an Adirondack fairytale at first. I had completed the navigation at dawn from Blue Mountain Lake to the Santanoni Range Trailhead at Upper Works. The sun rose on the tree enveloped horizon as I drove Northeast and spied a single young buck at the roadside in the morning light. I considered these good omens. It was early September. I parked at the trailhead and proceeded solo up Santanoni Road and began the Bradley Brook Trail, full of corduroy, horizontal logs laid out to make an old and well used, wet, roadway.
The following are only the most recent notices pertaining to public lands in the Adirondacks. Please check the Adirondack Backcountry webpages for a full list of notices, including seasonal road statuses, rock climbing closures, specific trail conditions, and other pertinent information
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The Adirondack Almanack is a public forum dedicated to promoting and discussing current events, history, arts, nature and outdoor recreation and other topics of interest to the Adirondacks and its communities
We publish commentary and opinion pieces from voluntary contributors, as well as news updates and event notices from area organizations. Contributors include veteran local writers, historians, naturalists, and outdoor enthusiasts from around the Adirondack region. The information, views and opinions expressed by these various authors are not necessarily those of the Adirondack Almanack or its publisher, the Adirondack Explorer.
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A Material Increase and Burdens on the Forest Preserve
How the Adirondack Park Agency interprets its own State Land Master Plan with respect to public motorized uses of roads on the Forest Preserve (Wild Forest guideline, “No Material Increase”) has been in the news since last spring and deservedly so. In contrast with more intensively developed park facilities elsewhere, the Adirondack and Catskill Forest Preserve are “forever wild,” written into our state’s constitution.
The public’s general expectations on the Forest Preserve today is much as it always has been, to seek, find and experience peace, tranquility, awesome scenery, quiet, solitude, bird song, bees humming, red squirrels chattering, a sense of the primitive. The overall expectation is not to hear motors idling or accelerating. That is the contrast value of the Forest Preserve. No other state can boast of it. No other state has a Forest Preserve in their state constitution, kept, mostly, primitive and quiet, most of it within 3 miles of a paved road or highway. 20th and 21st century voters seem to like it that way.
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