The only independent, nonprofit news organization solely dedicated to reporting on the Adirondack Park.
The opening of the Essex Chain Lakes attracts a flock of paddlers on a colorful autumn day. By Phil Brown AFTER CARRYING our canoes a quarter-mile, paddling briefly across Deer Pond, and then carrying another half-mile, Sue Bibeau and I were eager to begin our exploration of the Essex Chain Lakes, a string of pristine…
By Brian Mann For more than twenty years, the Adirondack Scenic Railroad has struggled to create an excursion train from Utica to Lake Placid, an attraction that advocates hope will one day serve as a major draw for tourists, carrying passengers through some of the most rugged and scenic terrain in the East. “We view an…
Pigeon Lake Wilderness offers skiers a quiet refuge in snowmobiling country. By Phil Brown LAST WINTER, a former colleague got in touch to see if I wanted to go skiing in the Inlet area. Not one to turn down a chance to ski or catch up with a friend, I suggested we do the loop…
Ideas for a better park. By Mal Provost At Adirondack Explorer conference, speakers call for strengthening the APA in order to protect water quality and the region’s wild character. "There is no constitutional right to sprawl." -Randall Arendt, keynote speaker
By Fred LeBrun AS I WRITE THIS, the debate is continuing to rage over how much motorized access should be allowed on former Finch, Pruyn lands sold to the state, but regardless of the decision, the age of private hunting and fishing clubs on those lands is quietly drawing to a close. We’re in the…
The Adirondack Explorer staff hiked the Saranac Lake 6 and prepared this guide containing trail descriptions, maps, and photographs.
Environmentalists disagree on whether proposed swap is good for the Forest Preserve. By Phil Brown THE VIEW from Hardwood Hill is a bit disappointing. We were hoping for open ledges with a vista of the Jay Range, but when we got to the summit we found ourselves wading through ferns and zigzagging among trees.…
Despite attempts to save it, Newton Falls paper plant shuts down for good, dealing a tough blow to a hard-pressed part of the Park. By Brian Mann THIS SUMMER, a Canadian company called Scotia Investments has been auctioning off parts of the old Newton Falls Paper Mill in the northwestern Adirondacks. It’s the…
By Tom Woodman FOUR DECADES ago the Adirondack Park Agency came into being. It was not an easy birth or infancy. Political opposition weakened this new creature even before it saw the light of day. And controversy surrounded its early years as it worked to incorporate conservation values in the regulation of private lands. Its…
The North Country’s prison economy boomed when New York State got tough on drugs, but now the inmate population is dwindling and so are the jobs. By Brian Mann IN MAY 1973, Governor Nelson Rockefeller signed two controversial laws that would change life in the Adirondacks. The Adirondack Park Land Use and Development Plan, which…