Posts Tagged ‘Old Forge’

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

As Climate Changes, Poor Winters Hurt Adirondack Tourism

Mountaineer in Keene ValleyThe most profitable months for the tourism-based businesses in the Adirondacks are without question July and August. This is when families take their summer vacations, the weather is warm, and the bugs are tolerable. But while summer is crucial for small businesses, a successful winter season can mean the difference between making money or not for the year.

Vinny McClelland, owner of the Mountaineer in Keene Valley, knows this as much as anyone. His business depends on customers who recreate in the outdoors. In winter, they include backcountry skiers, ice climbers, mountaineers, and snowshoers. If there is a shortage of snow or ice in the winter, chances are there will be a shortage of customers visiting the Adirondacks and his store.

» Continue Reading.


Thursday, January 28, 2016

DEC Seeks Enhanced Snowmobiling in Black River Wild Forest

BRWF mapThe state Department of Environmental Conservation is seeking public comments on a proposal to create new snowmobile, hiking, and ski trails in the Black River Wild Forest.

The main goal is to improve snowmobile connections between communities in the southwestern Adirondacks by building new trails and reclassifying existing trails. At the same time, DEC plans to close to snowmobiling some trails in the interior of the Forest Preserve.

Overall, the mileage of snowmobile trails in the Black River Wild Forest would decrease to 60.1 from 67.5 miles—a net loss of 7.4 miles. Yet DEC says the plan will make it easier and safer for snowmobilers to travel from Woodgate to Old Forge and from McKeever to Nobleboro.

» Continue Reading.


Tuesday, January 12, 2016

APA Flooded With Comments On Rail-Trail Debate

Adirondack Tourist Train (Susan Bibeau)The Adirondack Park Agency has received a flood of letters and emails seeking to influence its forthcoming decision on the future of a state-owned rail corridor that extends 119 miles from Remsen to Lake Placid.

At its November meeting, the APA board voted to solicit public comments on whether a plan to split the corridor into a trail segment and a rail segment complies with the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan. The agency may vote on the matter as early as next month.

Comments were accepted through December 18. Pursuant to a freedom-of-information request, the Adirondack Almanack recently obtained and reviewed the comments. The PDF file provided by the agency comprises 373 pages, but it includes some duplication. » Continue Reading.


Thursday, November 12, 2015

APA Seems On Board With Rail Trail

rail_bikes_adiks_10-08-15_ncprThe Adirondack Park Agency intends to seek public comment on a plan to remove the railroad tracks between Lake Placid and Tupper Lake to create a recreational trail, but agency officials do not foresee any legal obstacles to the controversial proposal.

The APA has little authority to alter the proposal. Rather, its role is to determine whether it complies with the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan.

If all goes as planned, the state would open the recreational trail in 2017 at the earliest. » Continue Reading.


Monday, November 9, 2015

State Plans To Give Lake Placid Train One More Season

Adirondack Scenic RailroadThe state will allow Adirondack Scenic Railroad to run its tourist trains for just one more season on the tracks between Lake Placid and Saranac Lake, according to a final proposal by the state Department of Environmental Conservation and state Department of Transportation.

In the proposal, released last week, the departments are sticking with their original plan to remove 34 miles of track between Lake Placid and Tupper Lake – the north end of a 119-mile rail corridor owned by the state. » Continue Reading.


Thursday, September 17, 2015

49th Old Forge Firefighters’ Drill School This Weekend

1233376_657527430926266_794299730_nEvery September Old Forge is taken over by firefighters, but not because there is an emergency.

These dedicated firefighters are in town to hone skills, take classes and practice survival training at the Old Forge Firefighters’ Drill School. » Continue Reading.


Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Plein Air Paint Out And Auction Set For Old Forge

plein air paint out and auction old forgeThe Plein Air Paint Out and Art Auction will be held at View Arts Center in Old Forge, September 3-5, 2015.

Artists and guests are invited to visit View on the last day of the paint out, Saturday, September 5th at 5:30 pm, for a live art auction at View’s Gould Hall. » Continue Reading.


Sunday, August 30, 2015

Cascade Lake in the Pigeon Lake Wilderness Near Old Forge

Carol_mist-600x436When I suggested to my girlfriend Carol that we jog around Cascade Lake in the Pigeon Lake Wilderness, she endorsed the idea without hesitation. Not only is Carol a trail runner, but she also is an avid swimmer. You might say she is a little obsessed. When I mentioned that Cascade Lake has a sandy bottom, I could barely hold her back.

I had my own reasons for wanting to visit Cascade Lake. I was just finishing a guidebook (published in June by the Adirondack Explorer) called 12 Short Hikes Near Old Forge and wanted to take a few photos for the Cascade Lake chapter. » Continue Reading.


Thursday, July 9, 2015

Rail Supporters, Trail Advocates Remain Divided

Hope Frenette of ARTAAfter years of public debate and numerous public meetings, the state is nearing a final decision on the future of the rail corridor between Old Forge and Lake Placid, but railroad supporters and rail-trail advocates continue to disagree.

On Wednesday night, the Department of Environmental Conservation and Department of Transportation held a public hearing on its plan to remove 34 miles of track between Lake Placid and Tupper Lake and refurbish 45 miles of track between Tupper Lake and Big Moose (a depot northeast of Old Forge).

About 120 people attended the hearing at Tupper Lake’s high school, and 38 spoke. Some favored the state’s plan, seeing it as a reasonable compromise. Rail supporters, however, opposed the removal of tracks between Tupper Lake and Lake Placid, while trail advocates opposed the state’s spending millions of dollars to fix up the rail line south of Tupper Lake.

» Continue Reading.


Saturday, June 27, 2015

New Old Forge Guidebook Published

Front cover onlyThe Adirondack Explorer has just published its second pocket-size guidebook, 12 Short Hikes Near Old Forge.

The book is similar in format and price ($9.75) to the Explorer’s first guidebook, 12 Short Hikes Near Lake Placid, which was published last year.

For the second book, we chose a dozen hikes to summits, ponds, and rivers in the vicinity of Old Forge and Inlet. Each chapter includes detailed trail descriptions, GPS coordinates and driving directions for the trailhead, hand-drawn maps by local artist Nancy Bernstein, and photos by a variety of veteran photographers. We also rank the difficulty and scenic beauty of the hikes. » Continue Reading.


Thursday, June 18, 2015

Reception Celebrates New Exhibitions In Old Forge

The View Art Opening (2011)View, a multi-arts center located in Old Forge, will host an opening reception for seven new exhibitions, including For the Birds, a national avian-themed exhibition, and six solo exhibitions. The reception, which is free and open to the public, will take place on Saturday, June 27, 2015 from 5 pm to 7 pm at View. Refreshments and light fare will be served.

The exhibitions include: » Continue Reading.


Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Father’s Day Fishing Derbies

Adirondack Fishing DerbyThere are plenty of ways to celebrate the father in our lives. Once my children were old enough to make their own decisions they decided not to take the traditional route of gifting a necktie. They give their father what he wants most, time with his children.

This year Father’s Day also falls on my husband’s birthday so he’s expecting his kids to pull out all the stops. I’m not sure they can make everything on his wish list come true, but they are doing their best. » Continue Reading.


Friday, May 22, 2015

Annual Neighbor Day at View in Old Forge

view old forge neighbor dayView in Old Forge will host their annual Neighbor Day on Sunday, June 7, from 12 pm to 4 pm. View hosts local and national exhibits, performances, workshops and special events in its LEED Silver-certified green-built and green-run building. LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a green building certification program that recognizes best-in-building strategies and practices.

The 28,000 square foot building includes a state-of-the-art performance hall, expanded exhibition galleries, and dedicated workshop and ceramic studios, as well as a gift shop. » Continue Reading.


Thursday, May 14, 2015

Traveling To the Fulton Chain In 1892

1892 fulton chain club 1_0In March, 1889, a group of Jefferson County business men and a Thousand Islands cigarette magnate (Charles G. Emery of Calumet Island Castle) purchased a block of overt 6,000 acres extending from Fourth to Seventh Lakes over to Limekiln Lake.  They formed a club, the Fulton Chain Club, and advertised the region to attract wealthy investors, but failed at this venture and began selling lots to anyone.  Within the Prospectus for this club is a description of the Fulton Chain region containing a valuable snapshot in time, 1892, of this area’s history.

A copy of the prospectus is held by the Adirondack Museum, from which the excerpts below were taken (my comments are in brackets): » Continue Reading.


Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Fish Tales: First Stocking of the Fulton Chain (1876)

1874 buell map - Copy (2)I recently discovered an article written by Alexander Byron Lamberton, one of Old Forge’s earliest historical figures, that was published in Forest and Stream in March of 1876.

The article describes the first large-scale stocking of fish on Fulton Chain waters. Lamberton had only recently taken over as owner of the Forge House, and his story reads like an adventure tale: » Continue Reading.



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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

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