The only independent, nonprofit news organization solely dedicated to reporting on the Adirondack Park.
By Betsy Kepes
What you need to know about Northeastern forests After a slow start, “Forests Adrift” (Yale University Press, 2020) gives a good overview of the state of our Northeastern forests. Ecologist Charles Canham brings his keen eye to what causes changes in our forests. I was fascinated by his chapter “The Fall and Rise of White-tailed Deer.”…
By Betsy Kepes
If you’ve missed the Ironman race Sports books aren’t my favorite genre, but Herb Terns’ novel “Iron Sharpens Iron” (The Troy Book Makers, 2020) is more than a series of training tips. Colden McIntyre, a Lake Placid native, wants to win the gold at the Lake Placid Ironman. But he works full-time as a chef…
By Betsy Kepes
Your fix of Adirondack lore Christopher Shaw mined memories of his conversations with Adirondack old-timers when he wrote his novel “The Power Line” (Outskirts Press, 2020), set mostly in the 1920s. His characters Fran Germaine and Lonnie Monroe supplement their work for the entrepreneur Paul Smith by transporting alcohol through the woods in a scheme…
By Betsy Kepes
For young readers looking for adventure The road up Whiteface also appears in “Camper Girl” (Fitzroy Books, 2020), a Young Adult novel by Glenn Erick Miller. Eighteen-year-old Shannon Burke, unable to afford college, goes on a solo quest to the Adirondacks from her home near Utica. She’s inherited her favorite aunt’s old camper and also…
By Betsy Kepes
Some new hikes to try—and their history In his chatty, enthusiastic prose William C. Hill has the voice of a 21st century Adirondack guide in his book “Hiking the Trail to Yesterday, vol. II” (WIlliam C. Hill, [email protected]). He combines history and hiking in the 14 routes he profiles in his portable book. All of…
By Betsy Kepes
A murder mystery for your dock reading “Hid From Our Eyes” (Minotaur Books, 2020) is Julia Spencer-Fleming’s ninth mystery set in the fictional village of Millers Kill, a place where, she writes, “poor farms and Saratoga money and the mountains all come together.” When police chief Russ Van Alstyne is called to a back road…
By Betsy Kepes
For history buffs and pancake lovers Matthew Thomas is also fascinated with the history of the area south of Tupper Lake. In “A Sugarbush Like None Other” (Maple History Press, 2020), he tells the story of A.A. Low’s industrial scale 19th century maple sugaring operation at lands around Horseshoe Lake. The huge sugarbush had its…
By Betsy Kepes
A backpacking trek through the Western High Peaks Wilderness and along Cold River follows the footsteps of Adirondack hermit Noah John Rondeau.
By Betsy Kepes
Backpacking is a time to get away from the stress and worries of the working world, but in the time of COVID-19 it carries a new set of difficulties. Is it possible to share a lean-to or a campsite with other hikers? And what is the new etiquette when meeting others along the trail?
By Betsy Kepes
The incarcerated men are imaginative students, writing instructor Jackie Keren says, and they actively participate in class discussions and most are avid readers.