Quirky and Commercial Adirondacks

It would be stating the obvious to mention that this blog focuses on some of my favorite aspects of the Adirondacks. In doing so, I like to stress that the park has something for a broad variety of interests and tastes. And, I like to believe that my representation of the Adirondacks in these musings is vaguely representative of the place itself. One of the main purposes of this blog is to give those who will be joining us next summer an advanced sense of inspiration about the place and a handy selection of ideas about things they might be interested in doing once they arrive. For all my efforts at being a good virtual guide and distant ambassador to the park, they are going to be skewed to my own preferences, leaving out or glossing over some other aspects of the park.

A park the size of a small country is bound to have a few contrasts and aspects beyond the scope of what I like to focus on most. (By the way, Belize, Israel and Slovenia are just three of the 99 countries on this planet smaller than the Adirondacks.) The Adirondacks I like to write about is a mountainous adventureland, a place of lakes, ponds and streams, trees, wildlife and fascinating geological formations. It is a place where we can spend days alone communing with nature, or have a relaxed conversation in a slower paced environment than we experience most of the time. In addition to "my" Adirondacks, there are other aspects to the park.

One other aspect of that I would like to focus on is what I will call the "Quirky and Commercial" Adirondacks. Quirky is in the eye of the beholder, and certainly some of the destinations that I will elaborate on will be more quirky than others, but I believe that even the most commercial enterprises in the Adirondacks have a typically Adirondack flair. Originally, I was planning a single post on this topic, but have come to realize that I am looking at a miniseries of entries, lest I get too long winded again.

The places that I think of which fall into the category of Quirky and Commercial in the Adirondacks include North Pole, NY - Home of Santa's Workshop, Enchanted Forest Water Safari, Ausable Chasm, the Lake Placid Winter Olympic Facility, including the Whiteface Mountain Ski Center and the one I will elaborate on today, the Whiteface Mountain Veteran's Memorial Highway. I am sure I am leaving something out here, but these are some of the most famous, most historical and most commercial corners of the Adirondacks. I don't like to dwell on these parts of the park because I don't want to give the idea that the park is dominated by these places, it is not. But these places are part of the Adirondacks, have longstanding followings and they create much needed jobs in the park. There are also some interesting stories to tell about them.

The Whiteface Mountain Veteran's Memorial Highway is the only one of the above mentioned attractions that I have actually been to. Also known as New York State Route 431, it is the only road in the Adirondacks which leads to the peak of one of the 46er mountains. Actually, the road doesn't go all the way up to the summit, but within 276 feet of it. From there, the summit can be reached either via a staircase or an elevator which is built into the mountain: a horizontal tunnel takes you 426 feet into the mountain where the base of the elevator shaft is located.

Construction of the road was completed in 1935, it is roughly 8 miles (13 km) in length and ascends 3500 feet (1100 m). The road is at once an abomination and somehow a blessing.  Traveling by car at 25 mph beyond the timberline to the 5th highest peak in the Adirondacks is a stark contrast to the remaining 45 peaks which take you directly into the most primitive corners of New York State.

Once at the top, you are surrounded by scores of people who would otherwise never make it to such an elevation, it seems sacrilege. I heard one older gentleman chirping into his cellphone "You'll never guess where I am right now, I'm on the top of the highest mountain in New York State!" When he finished his conversation, I couldn't keep myself from informing him about the factual error in his statement. To this he replied with a shrug, "aw, my buddy is in Florida, he won't know the difference!"

I also encountered a large family that appeared to be Amish, based on their clothing. I must have been mistaken, as I can't imagine members of a religious group who shun modern conveniences like automobiles would be on the peak of this mountain.

It is a grand sight at the top, but it just seems different to be exposed to such a majestic panoramic view without any work. You just don't enjoy it as intensely if you don't have to fight your way to the peak. Still, I think that there is some value to having one 46er that people of limited mobility can fully experience from its rocky summit.

As easy as it sounds to get there via car then elevator, it is the only major peak in the Adirondacks that my wife and needed three attempts to get up. The first two times, the access road was closed due to poor weather.

Here is a nice blogger's description of the access road to Whiteface Mountain, complete with a nice series of pictures - you will have to be patient with the fly-in banner advertisements.

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Adirondacks News #2

Here are some tidbits of Adirondacks News that I have stumbled across in the past few days...

Appellate Court Upholds Paddling Rights
from adirondackalmanack.com

Photo Credit: adirondackalmanack.com

This article in The Adirondack Almanac is interesting as it deals with a fairly tender issue in the Adirondacks: the rights of private property owners versus the right to public access. In the case in point, Adirondack Explorer editor Phil Brown canoed along a waterway which passes through private lands for an article he wrote in 2009. The owners charged him with trespass. The state appeals court confirmed a 2013 ruling which dismissed the charges against him. However, since it was a 2-3 ruling, the landowners have an automatic right to appeal their decision.

The subject touches on an aspect of the Adirondack park that I raised in my blog entry last week. As I mentioned then, just a little more than 50% of the Adirondack Park is in in private hands. Those who do own land here are subject to the most restrictive development regulations anywhere in New York State.

The subject of the article, Phil Brown, first caught my attention when I read one of his articles in a magazine at White Pine Camp titled "Osgood as it gets." It traces a canoe journey from Jones Pond (where my childhood summer camp Adirondack Swim and Trip Camp "ASTC" is located) to Osgood pond and finally up the Osgood river. Not only is "Osgood as it gets" a nice piece of writing, but it also bridges two special places to me, ASTC and White Pine Camp. I have mentioned Phil Brown (or used the map from his article) in previous blog entries, here, here and here.

(Please note: the link to the article "Osgood as it gets" can only be accessed if you create an account on Adirondack Explorer, but this can done quickly and without divulging any sensitive information.)

APA Approves Controversial Subdivision
from adirondackalmanack.com

Photo Credit: adirondackalmanack.com

Phil Brown is the author of this article instead of it's subject. You see, the Adirondacks is essentially a village.

In my most recent blog entry, I discussed about how development in the Adirondacks is regulated by the Adirondack Park Agency (APA), and there is a constant struggle between maintaining this place as a wildlife refuge and developing parts of the park for private residence, commerce or for recreation. The battle often pits economic viability against environmental conservation. I would add, this debate also pits rich people against poor people. If you look at the development plan I inserted above, it is significant to note that the subdivided parcels range in size between 3 and 145 acres - and the majority of these are on the larger end of that scale. The article mentioned that this development will generate $60,000 in new tax revenue per year. That means the largest parcel will be paying over $2400 in taxes each year. Or, to put it on another scale, the largest property is more than four times the size of White Pine Camp. By any account, the housing going in here is well out of line with the typical income of the park's year round residents. I am reminded of the era of the "great camp" where Vanderbilts, the Rockefellers, the Carnegies, et. al. staked their claim to this precious space.

Hiking Mount Jo near Lake Placid during winter’s coldest week
from ottawaroadtrips.com

Photo Credit ottawaroadtrips.com

OK, this one is not serious reporting, nor is it an insider's perspective on the Adirondacks. But, it is a cute story about an outing in the park, and it combines two of our personal experiences with an element that we have not experienced in the Adirondacks: winter.

As I have mentioned before, Mt. Jo, was the first mountain that I climbed in the Adirondacks. On our most recent jaunt up little Mt. Jo, our journey actually continued from there to Ottawa, the starting point perspective of this article. There are two significant differences between our experience an the one mentioned in the article: we made it to the top, and we weren't subjected to -26°C temperatures. In fact, I have never experienced the park in these conditions. One aspect of the article did make me cringe though: "due to my schedule, we only had about an hour," the author writes. Accordingly, the story only takes us part way up this mini-mountain! The lakeplacid.com website describes Mt. Jo as taking two hours round trip for the experienced hiker and 2 1/4 for the "out of shape hiker." Seriously, who travels 250 km from Ottawa to write an outdoor adventure piece about the Adirondacks and doesn't allow for more than an hour on the trail?

An old favorite in winter
from adirondackexplorer.org

Photo Credit: adirondackexplorer.org

Now, here is how locals write about outings in the Adirondacks. Once again, we hear from Phil Brown. As he mentions, the fire tower still remains closed to the public. He alludes to the fact that it is slated for restoration, which I have read from other sources is scheduled to be done in the summer of 2015. I am still scouting around for more details about this restoration project. As I mentioned in a recent blog post, the trailhead to Mt. St. Regis is only a few minutes away from White Pine Camp, and it is one of the potential activities during our week there next summer.

Who Rules the World?
Podcast by Ed Kanze on mountainlake.org

Well, the connection to the Adirondacks in this podcast is perhaps tenuous, but it is from Ed Kanze, so I decided to include it here. In this podcast, Ed ponders whether girls rule the world. At the end of it, he mentions his new book "Adirondack Life and Wildlife in the Wild Wild East," which I just finished reading and warmly recommend. He also mentions a series of videos about the Adirondacks which have since been completed, you can find links to these at this previous blog entry. As Ed typically gives a weekly nature walk at White Pine Camp during the months of July and August, we look forward to meeting him then!

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Forever Wild: A Unique Park

People throughout New York State are proud of their parks in general and the Adirondack Park in particular. The fact that the Adirondacks is a state park as opposed to a national park is significant for a number of reasons, and makes this place unique among parks. However, before I get into further discussion about why I believe this is so, lets review some basic data and fun facts about the Adirondacks.

Largest Park in the Contiguous Untied States

With the exception of Wrangell - St. Elias and Gates of the Arctic national parks, both in Alaska, at 6.1 million acres, the Adirondack Park is the largest park anywhere in the United States. The seven most frequently visited National Parks in the United States (Great Smoky Mountains, Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone, Olympic, Rocky Mountain, Zion) have a smaller combined size than the Adirondack Park. Here are a few other interesting size comparisons:

• The Adirondack Park is larger than any of the five smallest states in the United States: Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey, New Hampshire.
• Only five out of 16 states in Germany are larger than the Adirondacks (Brandenburg, North Rhein-Westphalia, Baden-Württemberg, Lower Saxony and Bavaria).
• At 23,180 km² Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is most similar in size to the Adirondacks (24,281 km²).
• Germany's largest state, Bavaria, is just under 3 times the size of the Adirondacks.
• The Adirondacks is just under half the size of Bosnia and Herzegovina (51,209 km²)

To put the size into perspective, I plotted a few German cities onto a map of the Adirondacks.

Three German cities superimposed on map to approximate similar distances

If the estimation of 10 million visitors per year is correct, then the Adirondacks has more visitors per year than any of the national parks in the United States. Interestingly however, it does not have the name recognition - at least not among Europeans - of any of the most famous National Parks, such as Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Great Smoky Mountains, Yosemite, Death Vally and the like. Depending on your point of view, that is either a pity or a blessing, but those who don't know are missing out on the beauty and recreation that this park has to offer.

Lots to Do, lots to see

Let's get this out of the way, Mt. Marcy, the highest point in the Adirondacks at 5,343 ft (1,629 m), is not on the same league, vertically speaking, as many other famous mountain ranges, such as the Himalayas (29,029 ft), the Alps (15,780 ft) or the Rocky Mountains (14,440 ft). Regardless, unless you are singularly interested in testing your breaking point doing extreme climbing, you will find an outdoor adventure or hiking challenge in this park suitable to any skill level. Here is a brief overview of what you will find here:

• 46 mountains (more or less) with peaks above 4000 ft. (My earlier post explains what I mean by "more or less.")
• The 11 highest mountains have alpine summits above the timberline.
• There are more than 2800 lakes and ponds.
• There are more than 1500 rivers fed by an estimated 30,000 brooks and ponds.
• More than 2000 miles of hiking trails of all levels of difficulty provide the largest trail system in the United States.

Fun Facts

• The word "vacation" is said to have it's origins in the Adirondacks. The super-wealthy of the Industrial Age, the Vanderbilts, the Rockefellers, the Carnegies, et. al, built "great camps" in the Adirondacks, "vacating" the cities during the summer months.
• Lake Placid was the only place in North America to host the Winter Olympic Games twice (1932, 1980) and one of only three places to so. The other two were Innsbruck, Austria (1964, 1976) and St. Moritz, Switzerland (1928, 1948)
• The Adirondacks is the largest area within New York State without any cities. (The largest population centers are villages.)
• Old growth forests cover more than 100,000 acres of public land. (I don't have the stats, but theoretically a similar amount is within the park on private land. A further explanation of why this is plausible follows.)
• The Adirondack Mountains are growing faster than the Himalayas, at a rate of one foot every 100 years.
• The park has roughly 130,000 full time residents and 110,000 seasonal residents, who share the park with an estimated 10 million visitors.

Wait, residents? People live in the park?

The fact that the Adirondacks is home to a significant number of private citizens brings me back to my point about why the Adirondacks are unique and the fact that it is a state park plays a defining role in this. Together with the Catskill Forrest Preserve, also in New York, the Adirondacks are the only constitutionally protected forest lands in the United States. This is also part of the mythology of the Adirondacks, making it a special place for visitors and residents alike.

The lands of the state, now owned or hereafter acquired, constituting the forest preserve as now fixed by law, shall be forever kept as wild forest lands. They shall not be leased, sold or exchanged, or be taken by any corporation, public or private, nor shall the timber thereon be sold, removed or destroyed. (Article 14 of the NY State Constitution) 

Source: Wikipedia

However, the fact that the Adirondack Forest Preserve exists and is protected by the New York State Constitution does not in and of itself explain how it is that people can live here. The Adirondack Park is an area delineated by an outer boarder called the "blue line" which is made up of areas with different classifications, and slightly more than half of the 6.1 million acres is actually private land. The entire park is divided up like this:

Source: Adirondack Park Agency

Represented on a map, the utilization of the park looks like this:

Source: Adirondack Council

The Adirondack Park is thus a patchwork quilt of private and public land. While it is true that the Adirondacks and the Catskills enjoy the highest degree of protection of wild lands in any state, the cause is not as singularly noble as it may sound. The origin of this protection was in fact very pragmatic and served to protect commercial interests. The forests in the park were heavily logged during the time after the Civil War, and the state's business community began to fear that this could cause erosion and make the Erie Canal unnavigable through silting. In retrospect and particularly considering the United States, nowadays it is a very quaint idea to think that such a monumental act of environmental protection came about as the result of a political initiative serving to protect business interests.

Also, the protection of the park is the subject of much controversy. On the one hand, it is probably safe to say that the private lands in the Adirondacks and the Catskills are subject to the most stringent development restrictions anywhere in New York State, further challenging prosperity in an area prone to economic depression even without such restrictions. On the other hand, the Department of Environmental Conservation which manages both the Adirondacks and the Catskills, as well as the Adirondack Park Agency, charged with performing long range planning for the future of the Adirondack Park, have both fulfilled their functions - how shall I say - inconsistently over the years. As with any public service agency, operations are very much dependent on the funding and staffing they receive, and both of these variables have been manipulated to varying effects in relation to the political persuasion of the state's government over time. For an in-depth discussion of this issue, I recommend Paul Schneider's book "The Adirondacks: a history of America's first wilderness" Also, anyone interested in learning more about life in the Adirondack Park, including how this legal framework has an impact both on humans and nature, should definitely visit the Adirondack Museum.

In his book "Adirondack Life and Wildlife in the Wild, Wild East," Ed Kanze also discusses the uniqueness of the Adirondacks and puts it into the context of the competing philosophies of the naturalists John Muir and John Burroughs. Kanze explains that Muir believes nature is best protected when humans are kept away, but himself feels aligned with Burroughs' hypothesis. Burroughs argues that humans are of nature as opposed to being apart from it. Accordingly, the ideal state would be to live in harmony with nature as opposed to separate from it.

Kanze continues, explaining that Muir's thinking is what gives rise to the cathedral like setting which can be found in any of the national parks in the United States. These are places where entry is regulated - usually with an admission fee and often limited in numbers - activity is limited and supervised by the priests, ...err... that is rangers, of the parks. The Adirondacks, on the other hand, is very much of the Burroughs school. It is a place where people live and earn their livelihoods. The "blue line," which delineates the park's outer perimeter, is entirely permeable. You can cross it at cruising speed on the road, casually noting a signpost. Or, if you enter by ferry over lake Champlain, you have already entered the park prior to the boat docking on the New York side. The theme of living as part of nature is returned to several times in Kanze's book. Indeed it is the very foundation of many of the premisses in it and also of his own livelihood in the Adirondacks as well as that of his family.

Source: panoramio.com

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Moose in the Adirondacks

The Moose, alces alces, is the largest member of the deer family and has an estimated population in NY State of 500 to 800 as of 2010. We have yet to encounter a moose in the Adirondacks, but there have been sightings on Osgood River, near to White Pine Camp in 2014.

MOOSE confirmed at WPC! First time guest Bob Allbery and wife from Ohio paddled the Osgood River and saw 3 moose: a cow and large calf about 2+ miles down and then another cow about a mile from the mouth of the river! There was a report by another guest of one standing near the shore in view of WPC a month ago. (posted to White Pine Camp Facebook Page, September 18, 2014)

Moose sighting on Osgood River, Photo Credit: Bob Allbery
source: White Pine Camp Facebook page

We have had very close-up sightings of deer, once seeing two generations together immediately outside our cabin at Adirondack Swim and Trip Camp. Apparently, deer and moose rarely cohabitate because deer carry a parasite which is deadly to moose.

While sightings are rare and celebrated these days, moose were commonplace in the 1800s, the age of the Adirondack guides. Guide Alvah Dunning was credited with killing the last moose in the region sometime in the 1860s (accounts vary as to the exact year).

Hamilton County sighting, Photo by Gary and Karen Lee, source DEC Website

Here is a video showing giving us a peak at this fascinating creature and some interesting information. (Unfortunately, the creator disabled the youtube imbed function.)

I think in the simplest possible terms, the moose is a symbol of both the richness and the history of the Adirondacks: it has a rare and unique beauty, it flourished in the wild until being brought onto the verge of demise through human interaction, and it is making a tentative and uncertain comeback. On second thought, that characterization is much too dramatic for the Adirondacks writ large. I believe that the current state of the Adirondack park is much more robust than that of her inhabitant the moose.

Dear moose, we hope to catch a glimpse of you on our next visit to White Pine Camp.

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