Let the celebrations begin!The summer season is off to a great start - the water is as blue as the sky, the sun is shining, and our seasonal shops are open for business!The action really heats up this week as our villages prepare to celebrate the long holiday weekend with events for all ages. We invite you to come celebrate with us along the Adirondack Coast; it is really the ideal location for this specific holiday.It was on the waters and...

In the charming hamlet of Port Henry, a new establishment has opened to fill the needs of visitors coming to enjoy the Adirondacks.If you are ready to stop for the night, the Village Inn offers immaculate lodging that lands squarely between a hotel and a bed and breakfast. If you just need a bite to eat, then the Red Brick Café will fix you up with a tasty panini and the best espresso around.Travelers can now better plan their journey knowing...

 Recently my wife and I took a little spring outing. The morning sky was clear and the sun shown warm as we started out. Opening the car door, our two enthusiastic companions and intrepid explorers, Cappy and Waggs, excitedly jumped in and we embarked. We have been exploring our local CATS (Champlain Area Trails), starting with a lovely hike up Coot Hill/Big Hollow last fall. We decided Crowfoot Pond would be a more challenging follow-up -...

(Featured Image Courtesy and Copyright Fort Ticonderoga)  Just a few more days and Fort Ticonderoga will be open for the season! There you find an ever-changing adventure. I recently spoke directly with Beth Hill, President and CEO of Fort Ticonderoga to get the inside scoop on what exciting experiences we might find at the Fort this year. I will share her insight on a few not-to-be-missed features for this coming season:If cannons...

Birding my way around the lakeWhile our recent late-season storms have made the North Country look like winter again – as it should look at this time of year, in this climate – spring continues to press upon the landscape and the birds know it. With that in mind, Wren and I took the chance to bird our way back from Vermont the other day. Birding has been great in the Lake Champlain Region all winter, but I was curious to see what else was...

If ever you’re traveling through Westport on the last Saturday of the month between now and April, be sure to stop in to the Winter Farmers Market in Westport. You don’t need directions - you’ll see all the cars parked along the edges of Main Street in front of the Heritage House.I stumbled upon it quite by accident while out on a drive to battle a little case of cabin fever - it turned out to be the perfect cure for what ailed me. We saw the...

Starting with Boreal Birds and then off to the ValleyMy family recently headed to the Adirondacks to join me for a long weekend of birding. After our success in finding Great Gray Owls in Massena, my brother, his son, and I decided we'd head to the Lake Champlain Region.Before we left the Saranac Lake region, we thought we'd start with a search for boreal birds. We began at Bloomingdale Bog north of Saranac Lake where the Gray Jays entertained...

Norm’s Bait and TackleThroughout your life you’ve probably received all kinds of unwanted advice on those embarrassing topics of a romantic nature. Invariably these are inflicted on you by people whose life choices have been even worse than your own. Who am I to break with such long-standing traditions? I just have one gem to add the pile of axioms, idioms, malaprops, and metaphors given to you by anxious parents, tacky uncles, drunken...

Fresh from the Lake Champlain RegionWe can’t all have our own farms, so luckily our Adirondack Coast farmers are willing to share! All about localThis winter the Westport Heritage House is hosting a family-friendly indoor activity for all ages. A monthly farmers market featuring 18+ participants will be held from 10am to 2pm on the last Saturday of each month beginning on January 28.We got the scoop on what to expect at the region's newest...

Learning to AdaptDeja vu? Blogger's note:As I was out hiking along the Adirondack Coast this week, I was reminded of this old blog I wrote that seems to describe a January very similar to the one we’re experiencing now. There’s little snow on the ground here, and temperature fluctuations have rendered our trails pretty darn icy.No worries; we Adirondackers have learned how to adapt to the unpredictable patterns and extreme weather events...

It’s that time of year againHard as it is to believe, we have once again cycled through the birding year to the time when Christmas Bird Counts fill our calendars. A few local CBCs were held on Sunday, 12/18/16, including Elizabethtown, Plattsburgh, and also the Vermont Islands count which overlaps across the lake to include the area surrounding Point Au Roche. I was planning to help with this latter count, but I was unable to do it on the count...

(Feature pic courtesy of Essex Inn on the Adirondack Coast) 'Tis the season for a bit of indulgence. It is like we get a pass for the preview game on Thanksgiving, but the real game kicks into high gear as the end of the year gets closer. Indulging in that rich decadent dessert, that second helping of dressing with gravy, or that third cookie is unlikely to be met with raised eyebrow; even from Aunt Julie who probably weighs about 98 pounds...

As we approach the holiday season, there are two specific events I look forward to every year. In fact, missing either one of these makes the season incomplete for me. I encourage you to add these events to your holiday “list of things to do”- have them become a part of your holiday tradition. Canadian Pacific Holiday TrainEvery year, in late November — this year on November 27 — the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train of Lights winds its...

I love living in the Adirondacks. It's not like other places. For example, the majority of people in this country battle traffic on their way to work, on their way home from work, and then again when they venture out to play. If I were anywhere else but here and I wanted a meal out, I'd possibly be faced with the prospect of navigating through red lights and irate drivers.My “ordeal” to eat out tonight involves a beautiful ride through the...

Thank you to this week's guest blogger: Kyle MillerA Jaunt Through The Gloaming No matter how many fine choices there are for dining in your little town, do you ever feel restless and in the mood for something different?That was just my predicament recently. The wife and I had each just arrived home from our respective jobs, and as we approached the house together we could sense a shared but unspoken disinclination to cook supper. It had...

Welcome to a huge water playground. Lake Champlain has over 435 square miles of surface — that’s 271,000 acres of fun for any water sports enthusiast. There is a multitude of options to get you on the water along the Adirondack Coast, so pick your pleasure.On the WaterEveryone should have an “on the water” experience on Lake Champlain. The sights, smells, and sensations are unsurpassed. The surrounding landscape takes on an entirely different...

Were you aware that we, North Americans, live on the back of a turtle? So says an old Iroquois legend that I recently learned about. I’m not sure I will remember it exactly as it was told to me, but the fundamental gist of it was that at one time there was nothing but water and sky. The earth was covered with water and inhabited only by water animals. The sky contained the “sky people.” The sky began to fall to the earth and in order to save the...

After a couple long weeks on the job it’s inevitable that we would get out and enjoy nature, the best prescription for whatever ails you. On this ridiculously hot and humid day in May, Corenne and I set out for a most attractive hike, one which we'd wandered on before. Rattlesnake Mountain was where we ended up with the post-hike plan of visiting a new brewery in Keeseville called Ausable Brewing Co. Needless to say, we were excited about both....

As I started to write this blog it was snowing! Are you as anxious as I for some real spring/summer weather and all the opportunities and activities to choose from? A major summer treat for me are the farmers’ markets. I find them a feast for all senses. The colorful sights, smells, and tastes of summer are all on display at the numerous farmers’ markets throughout the region. Luckily, Ticonderoga is not making us wait until the depths of summer...

There is a little culinary treat right on the main street of Ticonderoga that I feel compelled to place on your radar screen. Bodette’s Barbecue is located at 133 Montcalm Street and the corner of Tower Avenue. You can easily find it by following the delicious scent across the street from Ticonderoga’s Community Building and adjacent to the Ticonderoga Heritage Museum and Bicentennial Park. Any carnivore who appreciates slow-...

If you've ever hiked in the Adirondack wilderness and experienced a pop-up storm along the way, I suspect you were happy to stumble across a remote rustic shelter welcoming you in from the rain. That may have been your first appreciation of an Adirondack lean-to. The three-sided cabin with a floor and an overhead roof might have seemed like a luxurious accommodation miles from civilization. Even if your pack had included a tent, the solid roof...

The season may be off to a bit of a slow start, but that doesn’t stop the excited anticipation of snowmobile enthusiasts here along the Adirondack Coast. Conditions are improving as I write - with a good 3 inches of fresh powder last night. If you are one of these enthusiasts that like to venture onto some remote Adirondack trails, then more often than not you can thank a local snowmobile club for that opportunity. It is the effort and hard work...

An unseasonably warm start to winterWinter has had a difficult time making it to the Adirondacks and the entire northeast this year. A strong El Nino, a jet stream which remains far to the north, and perhaps a dose of climate change have mixed together delivering a concoction of warm air for much longer than many of us would like. Our ski centers were screaming for snow through Christmas and my skis and muscles were getting dusty with neglect....

Wilderness Survival 201It’s amazing what you can learn in just 2 hours, even with the smooth sounds of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” running in the background of your mind.I signed up about 1.2 seconds after receiving a notice that Pok-O-MacCready Outdoor Education Center (PMOEC) and Champlain Area Trails (CATS) were partnering up to host a Survival Skills Workshop at the Blueberry Hills Trail system in Elizabethtown. There was a family-...

Skiing and Snowshoeing the Champlain ValleyThe Champlain Valley is chock-full of unique trails located up and down the Adirondack Coast, but sometimes the best bang for your buck are areas with many trails, loops, and levels of enjoyment. At the five locations I'm going to highlight, you will have the opportunity to XC-ski at all levels, snowshoe as long as your heart desires, and in non-snowy conditions you can trail run, hike, or just sightsee...

It's all about the holidays in the Lake Champlain Region during December. Most communities will host some kind of holiday celebration throughout the month from craft shows to week-long, full-blown, multi-event bashes.  North Country Christmas WeekTiconderoga celebrates the holidays with a wonderful week of holiday magic known as North Country Christmas Week through December 6. With community events, retail promotions, Garden Club events,...

Here it comes - the holiday season. The turkey is barely digested, when we start to think about SHOPPING! I’ve never have gotten into the Black Friday frenzy though I’ve seen the television news clips filmed at the big box stores. No tryptophan residue apparent there; it looks more like a contact sport. Stampedes, crowds, waiting lines, aggressive shoppers, and harried clerks do not look like my idea of a good time - particularly on a recently...

I grew up in a fairly large family. There were seven of us and during “deer season” we were divided into two camps; the hunters and the hypocrites. My sisters and I were in the hypocrite camp. Mom actually was a hunter and a fabulous wild game cook, which was a principle reason the remainder of the females ended up labeled by my brother as hypocrites. You see, though my sisters and I claimed we did not like the idea of hunting, none of us...

Living in the Adirondacks means that we have a glut of options when it comes to trails. From anywhere in Lake Placid you can ride to several great trail networks. A short drive away Wilmington has miles and miles of quality trails. Whiteface Mountain has lift service downhill and now there is a gravity trail at Mount Pisgah in Saranac Lake. But as much as I love lapping the trails that I know well, I love exploring new trails even more.In my...

Hiking in the Eastern Pharaoh Mountain WIldernessIt sure has been hot and humid the last few weeks and on those particular days when it seems to be the worst I have been available to get out and explore. The only remedy for that is to stay home and stay cool, but quite honestly I don’t see that as a plausible option. So, I packed extra water and planned for a bit of an earlier start, which are two very important steps. First off you have to stay...

How to decide which boat to buyPicking the right boat doesn’t need to be as daunting and overwhelming as you might think it’s going to be. Sure there are a ton of boats out there to choose from, and many questions you need answered to narrow down the field, but if you are prepared and start your shopping early, I know you can do it and be happy with the results. Go into this experience with an open mind, and you'll come out with a great ride....

Prolong the life of your gearThe end to a long winter season is once again upon us. It’s time to start thinking about how you make you winter gear stay in the condition you desire while being stored in the off-season. Throughout the winter season your gear gets wet then dry, wet then dry, and this process continues right through the season. The more active your season the more important it is to take care of your gear, so it takes care of you....

A fundamental requirement for ice fishing is, of course, a body of water with a frozen surface. Right now, as I write, that is not the case on Lake Champlain, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen soon. Here it is near the end of December and Lake Champlain is, for the most part, wide open. In fact I saw boats on the water just yesterday, pretty much unheard of at this time of year. I asked a few of our local veteran fishermen about their...

Skaters Gonna SkateLet me start with the following statement: I am not a strong swimmer.I’ve always had a slight fear of the water - though I realize it is a necessary evil if I’m going to paddle anywhere. I can swim, yes, but it’s not my best subject. Frozen water, is, of course, still a form of water.  And a healthy fear of water has gotten me this far, so I’m going to retain my cautious approach. I grew up on the shores of Lake...

A circumnavigation of Goose PondI spend quite a lot of time out on the trails but over the years I have found a unique love for the mountains in the Adirondack Park that don’t have trails. There is so much lightly explored and unexplored land out there just calling my name, and I answer the summons to see what I can discover with enthusiasm and excitement. New and exciting features, landscape, views, dense forest, tall cliffs, hidden wetlands,...

Staying Fit for the HolidaysThe Champlain Area Trails (CATS) is a rather large network of trails for hiking, skiing, snowshoeing, birding, and picnicking in the Champlain Valley that stretches as far west as Elizabethtown. Many of the trails are built and maintained by a not-for-profit organization that was started back in 2009 to link communities, connect people with nature, and promote economic vitality. Along with these ever so important...

Not Minnesota!There is a unique food creation that exists along the western shore of Lake Champlain. It’s called a michigan, or michigan hot dog. That’s right a small “m”; unlike the state. It consists of a steamed hot dog, on a steamed roll, with a tomato based meat sauce. Often it is sprinkled with finely diced fresh onion and a ribbon of mustard is added. Whether the onions and mustard are “buried” under the sauce or the dog, or whether they...

Favorite hike on a favorite day - National Trails DayEach year the first Saturday in June is designated as National Trails Day. There were lots of local celebrations underway last weekend but I decided to do a quick hike on my own to a favorite destination I have frequently done with children--Mount Gilligan. The name itself sounds fun.The Trail for Gilligan BeginsThe trail begins 2.6 miles south of New Russia from a parking area on Scriver Road...

Boating From Manhattan to MontrealMany are surprised when I tell them that they could launch their boat anywhere along our Lake Champlain Region and easily end up in Manhattan or Montreal. I often get a raised eyebrow, but some are aware that the Champlain Canal connects the southern end of Lake Champlain to the Hudson River. At the northern end, the Chambly Canal connects to the Richelieu and St Lawrence. Although I have never made the...

Lake Champlain is a big attraction in the Adirondacks through every season. The lake dictates weather, moods, activities and gear. This winter has been a wild one. Each week Lake Champlain has had a completely different character. I walk my dog to the boat launch in Westport most days so I have a chance to get up close and watch as the season progresses.  Natures mood swingsIn January, temperatures were too warm to cool the water but...

 Look out perch; the jig is up.   I can’t believe it, but I think I want an ice fishing rod for my birthday. On the nonexistent list of things I do NOT like, being cold and touching fish would be in the top 14. It seems odd then, that I would proactively seek out an adventure that included the potential for both.Apparently, with the recent cold temperatures, the one thing we can count on this winter is ice, and plenty of it....

            I did a little birding and hiking with Wren in Point AuRoche earlier this week.  We started around Cumberland Head just north of Plattsburgh, checking out the mouth of the Saranac River and the Ferry Terminal.  There was a mixture of open water and ice at the river mouth, but there were very few birds besides a handful of Mallards and a lone American Black Duck. ...

  Searching for Raptors (and other predatory birds) in the Magic Triangle          Earlier this week some friends and I drove over to what some birders call the Magic Triangle located between Westport and Essex. We were looking for raptors and other field birds, and there had been reports of a Snowy Owl in the area and we were hoping to see and possibly photograph it.   ...

Family Fun along the Adirondack CoastHere's a little chronicle of my family's recent picks of outdoor fun.  When you have ice you have to go with it.Most of what we love is free and local, making for easy, family vacation time. Despite cold temperatures we needed to get outside and exercise to justify our caloric intake (!).  You all know what I mean.The day before Christmas was super icy so we opted for a hike on--what else--a nearby...

Snowshoeing the Black Kettle TrailLast week before the ice came I had a great hike with my daughters who are both home for a few weeks.  They love to get outside after months in urban places so we take every chance we can to check out the woods. The snow last week was fluffy and light and every little crystal was twinkling because the temperature was so low (16 degrees when we left the car) and the sun was out.Getting ThereWe parked near...

            This weekend found me in the Champlain Valley birding with some friends, taking advantage of the nice weather.  We found 46 species of birds – not a bad tally for a December day.  We started our day at Westport where the boat launch had a small collection of ducks and large numbers of Canada Geese.  We searched through the geese for something different in their...

            With our current arctic freeze bearing down on us this weekend, my friend and I jumped on the last warm(ish) day in the forecast and headed to the Champlain Valley for some birding.  We didn’t find much of interest at Cumberland Head north of Plattsburgh so we headed north to Point AuRoche to check out the enormous numbers of Snow Geese which have been assembled there....

This morning the wind was blowing like fury and the temperature was 16 degrees but I needed to go outside.  After spending a day at my desk yesterday I was ready for some fresh air. I'm spoiled and have my pick of the entire Champlain Valley and Eastern Adirondacks right out the door but today I headed for a favorite overlook with an easy retreat if the wind proved too hostile.I bundled up and donned my blaze orange head band (it's still...

            I went looking for Snow Geese in the Champlain Valley the other day with one simple goal– find the flocks of Snow Geese that were staging there on their way south and search them for a Ross’s Goose.  I started at Point AuRoche State Park where I went to the beach and let Wren run around the large open field while I scoped through the five or six hundred or so Snow Geese...

            My friend and I spent some time birding in the Champlain Valley on Saturday.  It was chilly and overcast early and we did have to tuck into the car during some cold showers and wind later in the day, but we still had a successful time out.  We started at Westport, and while there weren’t many birds at the boat launch besides a few Bufflehead, we found quite a few gulls...

This is my first silent movie with a live accompanist and I know for a fact that it won’t be my last. This evening’s event finds me at Willsboro School where the Champlain Valley Film Society (CVFS) is hosting renowned pianist/organist/film historian Ben Model and two Charlie Chaplin movies: “A Dog’s Life” and “The Kid.”Ben Model is one of the USA's leading silent film accompanists, and has been playing piano and organ for silent movies at the...

            The other day, my friends and I were checking out what some birders call the Magic Triangle, just north of Westport.  We poked around along a series of hedgerows and fields, finding good sized flocks of red-winged blackbirds, yellow-rumped warblers and white-throated sparrows, but not much else.  We chatted with a couple deer hunters who were returning empty handed, and...

Tonight I am attending “Songs to Remember” or Vagabonding—Reminiscences, Songs, Stories and Poems of Marjorie Lansing Porter.  The evening evolves into a tender history lesson, an enchanting musical journey, and a moving and nostalgic tribute to one of the founders of this museum in Elizabethtown who also happened to be the foremost collector of North Country Folklore and folk songs.Adirondack History Center Director Margaret Gibbs...