The only independent, nonprofit news organization solely dedicated to reporting on the Adirondack Park.
Mike Lynch has been the Explorer's climate reporter since January 2025 and has worked for the publication since 2014. In addition to writing about climate change, he covers issues related to wildlife. Mike has also worked as a licensed outdoor guide and thru-paddled the 740-mile Northern Forest Canoe Trail. He is the author of 12 Short Hikes on Preserves near Lake George. He can be reached at [email protected].
By Mike Lynch
Mirror Lake didn’t experience its natural spring turnover for the second consecutive year due to its high concentration of road salt, according to the Ausable River Association. Spring turnover occurs when top and bottom water levels mix after ice out. The mixing causes a distribution of nutrients and oxygen throughout the water column. This turnover…
By Mike Lynch
Work on a controversial road project along state Route 30 between Tupper Lake and Long Lake is scheduled to wrap up by the end of the week, reopening the busy road. The State Department of Transportation closed a section of the road eight miles north of Long Lake several weeks ago in order to replace…
By Mike Lynch
As Tim Rowland and I paddled Little Clear Pond toward the St. Regis Pond carry in the early afternoon in mid-May, we noticed a group of anglers had gathered at the take-out. Two men were loading large backpacks into what looked like a Radisson canoe, a popular fishing boat that is propelled with oars like…
By Mike Lynch
Spring has arrived, and as a new season of hiking and outdoor recreation in the Adirondacks approaches, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) urges hikers to be cautious and practice “Leave No Trace” principles to protect natural resources, and help ensure a safe and enjoyable experience, and help DEC responsibly manage the…
By Mike Lynch
The current theme for the Explorer’s Views of the Park photo contest is “wildflowers.” Enter your favorite Adirondack wildflower shots by posting them on social media and using the hashtag #adkexplorerpix with the images. Five winners will receive free subscriptions and be published in the July/August issue.
By Mike Lynch
Well-known Tupper Lake guide Vanessa “Lynn” Malerba has died just days after she was hit by a tree while camping in the Pharoah Lakes Wilderness in the eastern Adirondacks. Marlerba, 60, had been tent camping with three other people on Rock Pond Friday night when she was hit by a tree. After being rescued by…
By Mike Lynch
Last week, New York State sent personnel to the village of Saranac Lake to help control flooding from the Saranac River and other waterways. Above are photos of high water on Lake Flower and Saranac River in Saranac Lake. Here is a link to a news release that we received May 3.
By Mike Lynch
A 60-year-old woman from Tupper Lake is in critical condition after being hit by a tree early Saturday morning at Rock Pond near Putnam Pond Campground. The woman was rescued by forest rangers and local fire fighters who removed the tree that had pinned the woman, according to a state Department of Environmental Conservation. Storms…
By Mike Lynch
The state Department of Environmental Conservation is proposing to move the Cascade Mountain trailhead to the Mount Van Hoevenberg Olympic Sports Complex as a way to deal with the surge in hikers using the trail, according to a draft amendment to the High Peaks Wilderness unit management plan. This amendment, which also contains proposals for…
By Mike Lynch
Standing on the shoreline of Follensby-Clear Pond on May 1, Doug Fitzgerald surveyed the ice conditions before him. “This (pond) is still locked up tight,” said Fitzgerald, referring to how ice covered much of the pond and hugged the shoreline. Fitzgerald has been keeping ice records on a handful of lakes and ponds in the…