The only independent, nonprofit news organization solely dedicated to reporting on the Adirondack Park.
By Phil Brown
The fifteenth annual Adirondack International Mountaineering Festival comes to Keene this weekend. As usual, the Mountaineer and Rock and River have attracted elite climbers to the event and are offering a variety of classes for those who want to learn or polish mountaineering skills. Most of the classes are full, but there are still openings…
By Phil Brown
Region 5 of the state Department of Environmental Conservation released today its Ranger Activity Report for November and December. The region covers the eastern two-thirds of the Adirondack Park. The report follows verbatim. Clinton County Town of Champlain, Private Lands On Thursday, November 4, at approximately 11:45am, State Police in Plattsburgh requested DEC Forest Rangers…
By Phil Brown
I’ve done several ski trips in the Saranac Lake region with my daughter Martha over the past week. Conditions are excellent if you choose the right trail. Two that I can recommend are the Hays Brook Truck Trail in the Debar Mountain Wild Forest and the Fish Pond Truck Trail in the St. Regis Canoe…
By Phil Brown
Joe Martens, president of the Open Space Institute, may be the state’s next environmental conservation commissioner, according to the Albany Times Union. The newspaper reported on its Capitol Confidential blog that Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo is looking at Martens, who in the early 1990s served as an environmental adviser to then-Governor Mario Cuomo, the incoming governor’s…
By Phil Brown
When I wear my outdoors-writer hat, I always want to know the distances of my hikes, paddles, trail runs, ski trips, and what have you. In the spring of 2009, I finally broke down and bought a GPS watch, the Garmin Forerunner 405. Now when I take a hike, I can see precisely how far…
By Phil Brown
Backcountry skiers can contribute to a good cause by participating in the Camel’s Hump Challenge in Vermont on February 13. At 4,083 feet, Camel’s Hump is one of the highest mountains in Vermont. In the annual Camel’s Hump Challenge, participants ski around the mountain on trails not normally open to the public. Each skier must…
By Phil Brown
The Adirondack Explorer has hired Glens Falls attorney John Caffry to defend me against alawsuit filed by landowners who claim I trespassed when I paddled through their property near Lake Lila last year. The state Department of Environmental Conservation has said the waterways in dispute—Mud Pond, Mud Pond Outlet, and Shingle Shanty Brook—are open to…
By Phil Brown
The owner of the Hudson River Rafting Company has been indicted on five misdemeanor charges accusing him of endangering clients on whitewater trips. The defendant, Patrick Cunningham, pleaded not guilty to the charges last week in Hamilton County Court, according to the office of District Attorney James Curry. Cunningham is charged with two counts of…
By Phil Brown
This afternoon I took a short walk to check out the new section of the Jackrabbit Ski Trail created recently by the Adirondack Ski Touring Council. Not surprisingly, I ran into Tony Goodwin. The ASTC executive director, Tony was working with a pick-ax and chainsaw to remove large roots from trail. A helper, Bill Dora,…
By Phil Brown
A few days ago, the Brandreth Park Association filed a lawsuit against me, alleging that I trespassed when I canoed through private land last year on my way to Lake Lila. As part of the suit, the association is asking the New York State Supreme Court to declare that the waterways in question—Mud Pond, Mud…