Summit of Ampersand Mountain

Summit of Ampersand Mountain

Sunday, June 21, 2015

Know Before You Go: Preparation and Packing for White Pine Camp

This post is more specifically focused on the nuts-and-bolts planning of our trip. It is a general checklist of what you might want to bring to White Pine Camp, what is already there, and a few ideas to help plan a trip to the camp. For this reason, it might not be as interesting as many of the other posts to the general interest reader. If you fall into this category, you may be interested in some of the previous entries, which are divided into the categories:
- Organizational Information (related to our trip)
- Fun Things to Do (in the Adirondacks)
- General Adirondacks Information
You can also view a topically sorted index of all of my blog entries.

A member of our group recently asked me what he needs to bring to White Pine Camp. Cooking Gear? A week's supply of food? Any other general supplies? Fortunately, the camp and its cabins are quite well equipped. Considering that the camp even has a washer and dryer, including laundry detergent, you could literally show up at camp with a sack of dirty laundry and still be adequately prepared for a week stay. Nonetheless, to make the most of a week at camp, here is a more precise list of what you will find at camp and things in general that you might want to consider bringing.

Cooking Facilities

Unless you anticipate doing cooking or baking with some highly specialized utensils, the kitchens have everything you will need. First the basics: the kitchens each have a full sized refrigerator-freezer, stove and oven, microwave oven, toaster and drip coffee maker, as well as a basic but comprehensive collection of cooking and eating utensils. Outside there is a barbecue grill and a stock of charcoal. The consumables provided include:
  • salt and pepper
  • a few packets of sugar
  • a starter supply of coffee and tea
  • filters for the coffee maker
  • kitchen paper towels, plus cloth dish and hand towels
  • dishwashing detergent
Groceries 

Even though White Pine Camp gives you the feeling of being deep in the woods, there are stores and a supermarket relatively nearby in the village of Saranac Lake.

Here is a list of supermarkets that we tend to use in Saranac Lake and on the outskirts of Lake Placid:
  • Tops Market on 156 Church Street, Saranac Lake (7:00 AM - 9:00 PM, 7 days) is slightly less than a 25 minute drive. The selection and the produce are, well average.
  • Hannaford Supermarket on 45 Hadjis Way, Lake Placid (open 6:00 - midnight, 7 days) is just over a 35 minute drive and has a more substantial selection and produce.
  • Price Chopper on 1930 Saranac Ave, Lake Placid (24 hours, 7 days), is just slightly closer than the Hannaford Supermarket and falls somewhere in between Hannaford and Tops with regard to selection and produce. Coming from camp, you will pass Price Chopper on your right just before you get to Hannaford, which is on the left.
In Gabriels, Brighton Mini Mart (Facebook Page), 846 State Route 86 (M-F until 9:00 PM, Sun until 8:00 PM) is the closest place to camp to get food, clocking in at an 11 minute drive. They describe themselves as "Your one stop convenience store & deli for all of your last minute grocery needs." They also have pizza and lay claim to a large beer selection.

All of the above mentioned stores are more-or-less close to camp, but as we are all coming from the north, we would have to drive past camp to get to them. If you want to pick up some groceries on your inbound journey, then a logical stop would be in Malone NY, which is about 45 minutes north of camp. 

Grocery Stores in Malone
Coming from Ottawa, you will pass through Malone if you cross at Cornwall. However, if you cross at
Ogdensburg, your best bet will be to do your shopping there. Ogdensburg has an Aldi, Price Chopper, Save-A-Lot and Walmart. Ogdensburg would be on your most direct route to camp, but it is still 1:45 from there to camp. So, if you are picking up perishables, you may want to consider the crossing over to the States at Cornwall, which only extends your journey about 5 minutes, compared to Ogdensburg.

Sanitary Facilities

The bathrooms are fully stocked, including soap, small bottles of shower gel, bubble bath, shampoo and conditioner. The towels are generally refreshed once a week and are not intended for use on the beachfront. There is a separate stock of towels at the old boathouse for use when swimming in the pond. You may consider bringing a towel if you want a large beach towel to lay out on or if you are considering going swimming somewhere beyond the reaches of camp. Gardner's cottage has a full bath including a claw foot bathtub and separate shower stall, plus a half bath with toilet and sink. Gate cottage has one bath with a claw foot tub with shower head and a second bath with a shower stall.

Recreational Equipment

At camp, you will find a large supply of gear for free-time activities, including canoes, kayaks and a rowboat free to use on a first come, first served basis. Sporting equipment includes a pool table, a two lane, set-your-own-pins bowling alley, ping-pong table, croquet set and an assortment of sports balls and frisbees. The cabins and the great room have a collection of books available. The cabins, great room, tennis house and bowling alley have wood-burning stoves or fireplaces and a stock of firewood. There are also designated fire pits in a few locations around camp that can be used. For those who can't spend a week offline, WIFI is available in the great room. We haven't had much success with cellphone connections at camp or in large sections of the Adirondacks, but our innkeeper says he doesn't have trouble getting a signal. Perhaps it is our European pre-smart phone era equipment or our provider. At any rate, you can make a collect call from the great room if you need to use a phone and can't connect via cellphone. See also the White Pine Camp website description of their amenities and services. The camp's website also has a list of suggested activities, as well.

What you should bring
  • sunscreen
  • bug repellent
  • towels (if you want to have a large one to lay down on or if you plan on going swimming away from camp)
  • rain gear: We have been known to hike in the rain and have recently added rain pants to our collection of gear. However, no one should feel compelled to do a rainy day hike with us.
  • clothes for hiking: It is an open question as to whether my knee will be in sufficient shape to do hiking in the higher elevations this summer, but others should feel free to hike as much or little as they wish. Particularly in the alpine zone, you need to be prepared for rapid changes in weather. Button down or zip open clothes are good options to adapt to changing elements. Also, a light pair of pants and moisture wicking materials are good tools to keep comfortable. We also suggest a light long sleeve shirt as well as long pants as an additional defense against biting insects.
  • sturdy shoes: Some of the more gentle trails can be navigated with a sturdy pair of sneakers, but you should have hiking boots if you plan on doing more serious climbing.
  • flashlight: Each cabin has at least one flashlight and/or electric lantern, some have two. It gets dark at night in the woods, and a significant portions on the camp's grounds are without outdoor lighting. The darkness is a benefit as it makes for terrific stargazing - and I have had the pleasure of watching shooting stars numerous times. Ideally, each person should have some kind of flashlight.
  • binoculars: There is lots of wildlife to investigate and much of it is too shy to be catch a glimpse of up close.
We have a relatively good collection of topographic maps and trail guides, and quite a number of hiking ideas for just about any level of difficulty. The staff at White Pine Camp has even more ideas still.

Camp Policies

Check-In is 4:00 PM.
That is everything that I can think of at the moment. Please feel free to let me know if you have any additional questions about what to expect or what you might want to bring to make your week great!

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Our itinerary is complete!

If you were to suggest to me that it wouldn't be until June 2015 that we would be finished booking all of the accommodations for our big trip - nearly the anniversary of the creation of this blog - I wouldn't have believed you. But, it is so. We finally booked the final accommodation for our journey. So, now we have plane tickets, the rental car and a place to stay for the duration of our trip.

Touchdown in Montréal

This will be the first time that we will begin a North American journey in Montréal. Since our flight gets in relatively late (8:30 PM), we will spend the night in the Best Western directly adjacent to the Airport and begin our journey the next morning. Here, we are not looking for anything fancy, romantic or memorable, just a convenient, reliable place to recharge our batteries. We are excited to explore Montréal, but will save that for the end of our journey.

We selected Montréal because it and Ottawa have the two closest international airports to White Pine Camp. In 2011, we made an open-jaws journey, starting in Toronto and departing via Ottawa - and can warmly recommend both cities. This time, we decided on a circle tour, which economizes a little bit on the flight costs (perhaps around €100 less for round trip compared to open jaws), but significantly on the one-way car rental costs: we paid $300 for a one-way fee in 2011. We selected Montréal this time for the novelty, and it appears to be a fascinating city.

Next stop, the Main Event: White Pine Camp

Google maps tells us that the 161 km journey from our hotel to White Pine Camp should take us just under 2:15 to get there - not including any delays at the border.

We will spend seven nights at White Pine Camp, and I have previously written about how we might spend our week, activities at White Pine Camp as well as some of our favorite mountain climbing and non-mountain climbing destinations in the park, plus some ideas about places to eat.

Continuing South in the Adirondacks

The most direct route from White Pine Camp to my parents' home is about a five hour journey. We decided to break up this journey with a stop in the Blue Mountain Lake region. This area is the home of one of my all time favorite museums, The Adirondack Museum, which I describe in more detail here. We will stay at LaPrairie's Lakefront Cottages, which is pretty basic, classic Adirondack style lodging. We have a small "Lakeside Suite"

Our room at LaPrarie - photo from laprairiecottages.com
To be completely honest, I was hoping to get a room at Hemlock Hall. It is located on a much quieter dead end road and is nestled in the woods. I had a lovely chat with the proprietor who gives the immediate impression that they are first class hosts. Oh, and they have Sunfish Sailboats available to hotel guests. Maybe we will be able to get a room at Hemlock Hall next time.

The Sunfish - photo from wikipedia
Maybe next time: Hemlock Hall - photo from hemlockhall.com
Home Again

Our next stop is the place of my birth and upbringing: Rochester, NY. For the sake of privacy, I have only placed the pin on the map in the general area (see below), not our exact address. We will spend time visiting friends and family.

The Foothills of the Adirondacks

Our return journey leading ultimately back to Montréal is via the south central Adirondacks. We will be staying at the Irondequoit Inn.

The Irondequiot Inn - photo from irondequoitinn.com
The Irondequoit Inn is located on Piseco Lake, which is just up the road from Lake Pleasant, where I spent many a childhood summer with my family and their friends, sometimes with some of our relatives as well. Our summer destination back then was "Baker's Lakeside Cabins," which has long since changed owners, and has been reconfigured to the point of being nearly unrecognizable to what I remember from way back when. Now, the property operates under the name of Waters Edge Cottages. I was considering staying there for sentimental reasons, but they only rent by the week, and we were only interested in staying for four nights. When we considered our alternatives on Lake Pleasant, we stumbled upon The Irondequoit Inn on Piseco Lake, which appeared to us to be the most cosy and inviting offering in the area.

The Northward Journey

We have a full day's worth of potential activities along the route from Piseco Lake back to Montréal. The most direct route would take us just under 3 3/4 hours, but we are considering stops in Fort Ticonderoga, the historic town of Essex on Lake Champlain and Ausable Chasm. While that will extend our driving time by a little more than another 3/4 hour, the sights are nicely spread out along the route at decreasing intervals and takes us on a route more directly along the shores of Lake Champlain.

Our final stop in Montréal

We will wrap up our journey with a three night stay in Montréal. We will stay in the Bed and Breakfast du Village, where we will have a small cottage house to ourselves. This reservation was the last piece of the puzzle, and we are excited to have found a place that comes with such enthusiastic recommendations where we can park our rental car and have easy access to the subway system.

Our Journey's Route



Saturday, May 9, 2015

Winter Wonderland at White Pine Camp

Wow. We had an amazing time.

Originally, we had anticipated that our next visit to White Pine Camp would be this summer with a group of friends and family members. While that trip is definitely on, we also ended up making an early spring trip to the US, and took that opportunity to spend four nights at White Pine Camp. Our desire was to spend the four nights in President's Cabin, but someone beat us to it for the first night, so we started out in White Pine Camp's most basic accommodation: Osgood. The innkeeper was kind enough to let us move into President's the second night. For the duration of our stay, we were the only paying guests except for the ones in President's the first evening. It was an honor, privilege and thrill for us - to have the feeling that for three nights, White Pine Camp was basically ours alone. With all of the challenges we have faced in the beginning of this year, that was the perfect treat.

Our Accommodations

Osgood is the only cabin that has a common sleeping/living/dining area and the only one that neither has a fireplace nor a gas fireplace nor a wood burning stove. Considering the time of year of our visit, the latter was of particular interest. Since we were confirmed for what is arguably the most fancy accommodation at Camp for the last three nights (at least among those available in the Winter / early Spring months), we decided to spend our first night in the simplest space available. We are already familiar with "the lodge building" where Osgood is located, because we have previously stayed in Guides and  Mrs. Otis. So, we felt at home immediately upon arrival. We would have been happy to have settled into Osgood but for the missing Fireplace. That and the extra room is nice for letting the wife get a few more winks of sleep when the husband is on his feet at some inhuman time of day.

President's is a point of pride and historical relevance for White Pine Camp because this is where then sitting president Calvin Coolidge spent his summer vacation in 1926, thus giving White Pine Camp bragging rights to name itself a "Summer White House." While it is indeed interesting to have such a brush with history, the real draw of President's for us was the large and luscious fireplace. We enjoyed lighting a fire each evening, but we were pretty much tuckered out from so much physical exertion each day that we dozed off pretty quickly in front of it. For the two of us, the cabin really offered the luxury of space: a bedroom probably as large as our own bedroom and study combined, bathroom with a claw foot bathtub, a well appointed galley kitchen, and a large living and dining room that spanned the depth of the house, overlooking Osgood Pond on the one side (as did our bedroom) and the central courtyard of the camp on the other.


So, in total, we have stayed in four different cabins at White Pine Camp: Guides, Mrs. Otis, Osgood and President's. During our summer visit, our group will occupy Gate Cottage, Gardner's Cottage and Kirkwood. So by then, we or members of our group will have stayed in half of the cabins at camp. And, I have been inside the majority of the cabins at one time or another by now. My feeling is that there is no bad cabin at camp, each has it's own unique features and they are lovingly furnished in Adirondack Style furniture and are all well equipped with thoughtful details. They are all rustic. I have read a few online comments about cabins showing signs of wear and tear. For me, that is very much a feature, and not a defect. It is such a pleasure to stay in a cabin that is over 100 years old, lovingly maintained with a sense of preservation. The worst thing imaginable would be to modernize the place into the form of a major chain hotel. When it is 0° Fahrenheit outside, I expect there to be a draft. The heating works fine, thank you very much, and what is better than a little draft to really appreciate that roaring fire in the fireplace. White Pine Camp does a great job everywhere that it counts: bed, bedding, fluffy towels, a well equipped kitchen and all the basic consumables you will need in the kitchen and bath. As this was the first time we were in a cabin with a bathtub, we took note of the fact that they even thought about supplying bubble bath. Oh, and the pine scented hand soap and shower gel was a nice touch as well.

The Timing: On The Heels of the Arctic Spell

We stayed from 22-26 March, which I think is pretty much the in-between season in the Adirondacks. Winter is technically over, so typical visitors to camp probably don't have their minds on making a jaunt out for winter activities, and it is a time of year where you can be greeted by just about any kind of weather. The Innkeeper proudly informed us that they had "broken out of [their] arctic spell," meaning 48 consecutive days where the mercury hit 0° some time during the day or night. For those who don't speak Fahrenheit, we are talking about just a tad above -18° Celsius. That sounded promising enough. Still, I had this strange fascination about spending time outdoors at this temperature, as I hadn't experienced such a temperature in a very long time, much less make a point of spending an extended period of time out and around in it. As it turned out, mother nature obliged my fantasy.


The first morning, we did indeed wake up to 0° temperatures. Thankfully, we came well prepared; we had stocked up on lots of high-tech thermal, moisture-wicking, multi-layered, windproof, water-resistant warmth. Still, I had a few moments of wondering if this outing was really going to be such a good idea. Actually, it was.
Image from adirondack.net. Note, the actual temperatures
we experienced were cooler than what is indicated on this table!

Our First Outing: The VIC

Our first full day was the coldest, but sunny throughout ... and windy. We packed two pairs of snowshoes into the car and headed to nearby Paul Smith's Visitor Information center (VIC). The VIC charges a nominal fee to access trails and has snowshoes available to rent, but as guests of White Pine Camp, we got free passes in addition to being setup with snowshoes. Snowshoes are the latest addition to the White Pine Camp inventory, and they plan on expanding on this with cross country skis and ice skates.

Once at the VIC, we were greeted by really pleasant volunteers. And, when asked where we came from, the guy at the counter directly switched over to German. As it turns out, this guy just happens to be Ed Kanze's next door neighbor. He introduced us to another volunteer who gave us some recommendations for snowshoeing at the VIC. And, this other guy and I also have someone in common. He purchased a canoe trailer from Joe Reiners Jr., the director of Adirondack Swim and Trip Camp, where I spent a quite a number of summers as a kid. So, by the time we hit the trail, I started to have a feeling that I was a part of the neighborhood myself.

Image from Paul Smith's VIC website
We took the Heron Marsh Trail to where it met up with the Jenkins Mountain Trail and then stopped for a quick bite of lunch at the gazebo. It was amazing to experience how much heat our bodies generated while snowshoeing. We cooled down really quickly during lunch, so we were quite motivated to continue on without delay. We then took the Boreal Life Trail loop to the outlook tower and returned to the VIC. The trails were snow-covered and crispy-cold. The surface was hard as it wasn't powder snow, but a dusting over an icy crust. It was so cold that each step made a sort of crunchy-squeeky sound, vaguely akin to walking on styrofoam. Oh, and did I mention it was cold out? The air was quite dry, so it was actually a comfortable cold, if that makes any sense. We were careful to expose as little skin as possible. The vapor in my breath froze my scarf in the form of my chin and formed ice crystals on my eyelashes. When we stopped on the trail, it was s i l e n t. The only thing we heard was the wind whistling through the trees. There was no one on the trail. We neither saw nor heard another living soul before lunch, and we crossed one or perhaps two people in the afternoon. As much as I enjoy interacting with the people we meet in the Adirondacks, it is such a treasure to be in a place of such pristine beauty and not see another living soul for miles and hours on end. I am guessing, but I think that we snowshoed a little bit over four miles.

Heron Marsh

Back at Camp: Exploring Osgood Pond on Snowshoes

Even after trekking around the VIC, we were still in for more. So, upon returning to White Pine Camp, we spent the afternoon snowshoeing across Osgood Pond. My wife was a tad nervous about this, at first, imagining the possibility of us breaking through the ice. Apparently however, the ice was about three feet (1m) thick and stable enough to safely carry the weight of a truck. We must have spent more than an hour crisscrossing the pond, taking in the sights. It was a strange and enjoyable feeling to walk instead of paddle across Osgood Pond. After the twin outings, we returned for dinner in our cabin and an evening in front of that luscious fireplace.

View of Mt. St. Regis, taken from the frozen surface of Osgood Pond

This picture of the iconic Tea House conceals the fact that it is located on a small island.
After our first day on snowshoes, we were hooked.

From Relaxation to the Next Challenge

Following a longstanding formula, we planned our next day's activities to be a bit less physically demanding. We started out taking advantage of another special White Pine Camp offer: a free Whiteface Mountain "Winter Passport." We took the ride up to the summit of Little Whiteface on the Cloudsplitter Gondola and got breathtaking views of the high peaks from our vantage point. It was another picture-postcard-perfect day.

"Cloudsplitter Gondola" ascent to Little Whiteface
Panoramic view from Little Whiteface
From there, we decided to continue on to the Olympic Jumping Complex, which would include an elevator ride up the 120m jump tower. As it turns out however, at least at this time of year, it is only open from Thursday to Sunday. We decided to forego some of the other attractions covered by the "Winter Passport," including the Lake Placid Olympic Museum, the Olympic Speed Skating Oval and the bobsled/luge/skeleton track.

Now early afternoon, we started to think some more about how to spend the rest of the day. Once again, we had a beautiful sunshine filled day, and it became increasingly mild as the day progressed. By the time we got to the village of Saranc Lake, I couldn't resist embarking on another snowshoe adventure. This time, our destination was something a bit more challenging, our first snow covered mountain trek to the peak of Baker Mountain.

On the Baker Mountain Trail
According to the Saranac Lake 6er trail description, the round trip distance to the peak is 1.8 miles. Just after clearing the trailhead register we ran into a familiar face: the innkeeper, who was just returning from the summit, out with his dog. The Adirondacks certainly is a village.

Baker mountain has what is called a "lollipop trail" meaning that there is a single path leading to the mountain which continues in a loop to the summit then returns via a different route to main path. One part of the loop trail is steeper and shorter and the other is longer but more gentle. We made our ascent via the steeper trail and soon came to realize that what was manageable for the ascent could quite possibly be too steep for our snowshoeing skill level for the decent. That meant the only way down was via the summit … and we had a heightened sense of anticipation as to how long it would take us and what kind of terrain was waiting for us on the other side of the mountain. Meanwhile, the shadows became longer. On top of that, we pretty much doubled our hiking distance by not starting at the trailhead, but from the Saranac Lake visitor's center parking lot, a well intended recommendation made to us there. On the last leg of our journey - returning via the trail extension - I was feeling the trail in my legs and feet and began to develop a mild sense of aggression toward that nice lady at the visitor center.

We made it
The increasingly mild temperatures gave us a softer, very slightly slushy snow on the trail, and early on in the hike I had shed all of my outer layers and was left in a T-Shirt and an open button-down.

Once we returned to the village, I had to take a closer look at the remains of the fabled Saranac Lake ice palace. The village has a winter carnival that goes back over 100 years, and its focal point is an elaborate ice palace. While the weather remained sufficiently cold to maintain the palace until our visit, due to insurance limitations, it was already reduced to a pile of ice blocks by the time we got to town.
What is left of the Ice Palace - the centerpiece of their Winter Carnival
As it turned out, we ended up exerting a lot more physical effort on our second day out than we had originally planned - but it was well rewarded. I was looking forward to wrapping up another splendid day with one more reward, a trip to my favorite local restaurant, the Red Fox. This lead us to the first of two minor disappointments during our stay …


As it was, the Red Fox was a consideration on the evening of our arrival. Our inbound route took us right past their doorstep. I am guessing it was round about 6:00 at the time. I checked in to see if we would be able to get a table - "yes" but they were only open until 8:00. I was undeterred at first, but quickly came to realize that it wasn't going to happen, as we still needed to check in, unload and do some grocery shopping. At the time I thought: we are here for four nights, we'll have our dinner there yet. So I thought.

Undaunted, I was determined to find an alternate destination for my Prime Rib dinner, and my wife had her sights set on Lobster Tails. Our extra effort was rewarded when we found the Great Adirondack Steak and Seafood Restaurant, with its own onsite microbrewery. While I had my choice of three different sized portions of Prime Rib, Lobster Tails were not on the menu, so my wife had to graduate to eating an entire lobster. We were not disappointed.

Photo Credit: adksteakandseafood.com
And the sun went on hiatus …

The day of our arrival and the first two days of our trip were marked by nonstop sunshine and starlit nights. I didn't get to see much of the stars though, as we pretty much consumed all of our available energy during the daylight hours. I can tell you from previous experiences that this corner of the Adirondacks is terrific for stargazing as it is very dark, since there is a notable lack of light pollution.

Our third and final full day started out with some sunshine, but we were starting to get some rain as well, and pools of water collected on the surface of the ice-covered Osgood Pond. We made a leisurely start of it, with a pancake and sausage breakfast (the wheat free pancake mix was a success), and puttered around the house a bit.


Later, we explored a few villages by car and stopped by at the VIC to sign up for an evening activity, their "owl prowl." Well, that lead us to the second of our mild disappointments. The evening event was subject to weather conditions, which became increasingly rainy as the day wore on, and the event was cancelled. The dark skies did have a silver lining though as they provided us with possibly one of the most dramatic skies that I have ever seen. If someone was going to orchestrate the scene for the end of the world, they quite possibly could use the sky we saw as their guide.





It was jaw dropping fascinating, and we were magnetically drawn back out over Osgood Pond to get a good look at it. We made a looping path from the "new" boathouse to the bowling alley where we played pool and watched the storm roll in. In retrospect, the weather played a symphony for us, showing such depth of character and breadth of mood. It was wonderful to experience the Adirondacks in such varying cinematography and it underlined to me what a gift each day had been.

White Pine Camp on Google Maps


View White Pine Camp in a larger map