Spring on the River...

With so many wildflowers in bloom lately I have spent my time looking down at the ground. A few days ago as I was driving home from work I realized that the leaves were nearly full grown. In this shot of the Boquet River you can see that several trees are in full-leaf, while some are not quite there yet.

It seems like we are looking forward to warm weather in May, then all of a sudden it is the 4th of July, then it's August and school is almost ready to start for another year. With the speed of life in mind I'm enjoying so much green around me this year. I'm savoring every leaf and flower! Here is some springtime green for you to enjoy!

The Heart of the Adirondacks...

Long Lake, NY is one of my favorite places to visit. The web page for the village calls it "The Heart of the Adirondacks."

The ice is out, the snow has melted, however the village is still empty of summer residents and tourists. It was very quiet when I was there yesterday.

One of the biggest attractions in Long Lake is the seaplane rides over the many lakes and mountains. Helms Aero Service is a family owned business. I am sure it's in the second generation, if not the third generation of flying sightseers, fishing and hunting parties in the Adirondacks.

Great food is served here at the Adirondack Hotel. I enjoyed lunch there a few years ago.

I was in town only a few hours for an event, with no time for flying or lunch at the hotel. But just doing this post has me thinking that I should take a day and do those things in Long Lake... stay tuned later this summer!

Day dreams...

...of warmer weather!

When I checked the temperature this morning it was 28° and there was snowflakes in the air! So my traditional Easter picnic out in a natural area was postponed. We stayed in and watched a movie and picnic'd in the livingroom in front of the tv.

Day dreaming of warmer days to come.... This is a picture of the resort on the St.Lawrence River where I spent last weekend. You can see by the date that I have been going to the river for years. The 1000 Island area is a wonderful place in warmer weather!

That same year I spent time with some cousins at a camp on Upper Saranac Lake. This is the view from in front of the camp.

Warm days and calm water for canoeing and kayaking will be here soon. But you sure couldn't tell it by the weather today. I just couldn't bear to take one more picture of dark skies and snowflakes!

The Wadhams Falls,...

The ice on the waterfall in a nearby community has finally fallen away. This photo was taken Sunday. On the right side of the falls you can see a large chunk of ice that fell forward onto the rock ledges. I know these photos will be of special interest to a fellow blogger who loves waterfalls, Betsy from Tennessee.

This is a natural waterfall. However, many years ago it was enhanced by a dam at the top of the falls to support the local power plant. A large tubing ran from the dam at the top of the falls to the electric generating plant below the bridge that spans the river.

The plant looks deserted now. However it is not! It is still producing electricity and the current owner keeps it in good operating condition. I'll do some research on that for another post.

Enjoy the waterfall Betsy!

Life Waiting,...

This morning on my way home from having breakfast with a friend, I drove by this river. I was thinking of all the life that is natural to a river and wetland area. For now it is silenced by winter's snow and ice. But in a few weeks the leaves will bud, the ferns will be loosening their curls, the "peepers" will be singing during the springtime evenings.

Ducks will once again be swimming along with a family of babies trailing behind ...

Perhaps even some people will enjoy the peaceful river as they float along in kayaks,...

It is a good time of year to think positively about the coming warmer seasons!

Wilmington Flume,...

Between Wilmington and Lake Placid on route 86 is the Wilmington Flume where the Ausable River leaves its easy flowing fishing holes and plummets through a gorge.


Looking upriver from the bridge...


Looking down river into the gorge from the bridge...


Standing on the bridge looking directly below into the foaming water...

The heavy rains have made this place especially spectacular in recent days!

The Old Dock...

Monday I joined two friends for lunch at a local summer eatery on the shore of Lake Champlain in Essex. The weather continues to be rainy and overcast, but the conversation was sunny and warm!
The entrance is welcoming, lined with flowers and herbs.



Despite the overcast sky the breeze was not chilly...


There are moorings provided for those that wish to arrive by boat. At mid-day these were empty but evening hours finds them busy with people arriving for dinner from up and down the lake and across from Vermont.

The sign over the bar out on the deck ....

A few feet north of the restaurant is a ferry that travels back and forth between the NY and VT side of the lake.

Lunch at The Old Dock,… always a treat! Now if we could only have some sunny weather!

Camping at Crown Point

As readers know, camping is a passion of mine. This past weekend found my little a-frame camper on a spacious site at Crown Point State Park. Crown Point is the peninsula of land that reaches out into Lake Champlain and faces Chimney Point in Vermont.

Part of this campground is the historic Champlain Memorial and Lighthouse.
Samuel DeChamplain "discovered" Lake Champlain in 1609,... however of course Native Americans had populated the area for centuries.

Both the British and the Americans held this soil during the Revolutionary War. Information on this lighthouse and the area is available at

http://www.historiclakes.org/crown_pt/champlainlight.htm

Following the walkway past the lighthouse you descend stairs to the old steamship pier. This is now a favorite fishing spot. The pier was a routine docking place for the steamships that once provided transportation from town to town along the 108 mile long lake in the early 1900s.

The decades of weather have taken a toll, both the lighthouse and the steamship pier are scheduled for repair this next year. The weather was hot and humid and ice cream was a must! A trip over the bridge.....

..... to a little ice cream stand in Vermont was a fun trip on Friday. This scene looks back at the steamship pier from high on the bridge.

St. Regis River,...

Sunday I attended a family birthday party for my friend's uncle who had turned 80. We drove west through Lake Placid, Saranac Lake and Paul Smiths to route 458 and then the last few miles on that road that runs near the St.Regis River. It was a dreary day, either raining or overcast all day long, the misty weather adding mood to the views of the river.

The party was held at a campground in the village of St.Regis Falls. A new footbridge has been built across the river, affording a wonderful "Adirondack View" of down the river...and back upriver toward the falls for which the village is named.
The balancing rock in the middle of the river is another example of large boulders left behind by glacial melting.

Cascade Lakes...

In the pass between Cascade Mt. and Pitchoff Mt. are the Cascade Lakes, and the narrow road, rt. 73, from Keene to Lake Placid. Longer ago than anyone can remember there was one lake where there is now two. A torrential rain and resulting landslide created the small bridge of land between the lakes as they are today. For a few years a hotel and stagecoach stop stood on that spot. When the road was improved in the 1930s the dynamite blasting damaged the old hotel so that it had to be torn down. Now there is a day-use area there.
A little brook now flows between the two lakes at the site of the landslide years ago.
Sheer cliffs rise on both sides of the lakes. The lakes are very deep. Because they are protected by the mountains on both sides they freeze smoothly to make wonderful skating in the wintertime.
No motorized boats are permitted on these lakes which creates a peaceful spot for canoes and kayaks.A young couple was just preparing to launch their kayak and were making a second trip to their car for paddles and lunches. The lake looked like it was going to give them a wonderful day!

The St.Lawrence River

Just to the west of the Adirondacks, past the foothills of the mountains, lies the St.Lawrence River Valley. The St.Lawrence River flows to the Atlantic Ocean from Lake Ontario and is navigable by a system of locks. My favorite campground is on the shore of the St.Lawrence River. Coles Creek State Park. From your lawn chair by the campfire you can watch the ships slide by, and hear their horns as they greet each other in passing.




In this shot my grandson fishes on the shore of our campsite at Coles Creek while out on the river a freighter travels downriver toward Montreal.


I am fascinated by the lakers,…. freighter ships carrying all sorts of things from ports farther west in the Great Lakes such as Thunder Bay, Ontario; Duluth, Minnesota; Toledo, Ohio and north of us in Montreal, Quebec. I have been to the Eisenhower Lock in Massena, NY, many times and watched the freighters go up and down with the water level in the lock so that they can continue either up river or downbound.

A bit farther upriver from Coles Creek is Alexandria Bay, NY. This is the home of Boldt Castle built by George C. Boldt, one-time owner of the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York City. Mr. Boldt began building it in honor of his beloved wife, Louise. The castle grew to six stories and 120 rooms. But in 1904 Louise died suddenly and Mr. Boldt, in his great sorrow, stopped all work on the castle. It is now, after many years of being vacant to be ravaged by wind and rain and vandalism, being restored and is a “must see” if you are in northern New York State. Check it out at http://www.boldtcastle.com/.

The pictures today were taken at various times and on various trips to the St.Lawrence River.

Sunset on the St.Lawrence, another great camping day draws to a close at Cole's Creek.