The only independent, nonprofit news organization solely dedicated to reporting on the Adirondack Park.
Since its creation in 1971 the Adirondack Park Agency has borne the responsibility of shaping the character of the Adirondack Park. Its decisions on how to manage state Forest Preserve and regulate the use of private lands set priorities and chart a future course. Its actions provide the answers to big questions: Will we value our critical natural areas? Will we respect a…
By Phil Brown Dix Mountain is a slide climber’s playground. In all, it boasts a dozen slides worthy of climbing. The problem is choosing one. R.L. and Karen Stolz, the owners of Alpine Adventures in Keene, recommend Index Finger, one of the longest of the Finger Slides on the north face. Last fall, my girlfriend…
Our editor finds himself paddling alone on the crown jewel of the former Finch, Pruyn lands, surrounded by high mountains, many miles from the highway. By PHIL BROWN In early June, I enjoyed one of my most memorable canoe trips in the Adirondacks: I spent the morning paddling around lovely Boreas Ponds, taking in breathtaking…
The title of your article about finches [“A frenzy of finches,” January/February, 2016] really hit home at our house! We put out a feeder specifically designed for finches this year, and the results have been spectacular at times. The thistle seed has brought them like oiled sunflower never has in the past. I’m attaching a photo that will illustrate. After the birds…
The articles on climate change have been well researched and clearly communicate the latest science for anyone to understand. We are well educated and read broadly and find your information well documented and in the mainstream of climate-change research. We were disheartened, but not surprised, by the letter from Jeffrey Munson of Rangeley, Maine. Having survived three years as residents of Rangeley, we…
I have to disagree with Town of Keene Supervisor Bill Ferebee’s claim in his interview with Publisher Tom Woodman [November/December 2015] that “hikers don’t spend a lot in our communities.” The last time I was in Keene Valley (October 2015), I stayed at the Ausable Inn ($45), ate breakfast at the Noonmark Diner ($10), shopped at the Mountaineer ($170), stopped at…
Environmental groups’ objections that maintaining the Polaris Bridge over the Hudson violates the Wild, Scenic, and Recreational Rivers System Act (“Essex Chain questions,” January/February 2016) appear unfounded. Instead, the proposed Cedar River Bridge is the more pressing issue. The primary purpose of the act is to designate high-quality rivers of the state that “shall be preserved in a free-flowing condition and shall be…
I have to say I’m incredibly disheartened by your inclusion of letters from the two climate-change deniers [March/April 2016]. The time for arguing about whether this is real is long over. The letter writers who said you print “Progressive detritus,” “malarkey,” and “left-wing garbage” and that “anthropogenic global warming is a hypothesis” are just ignorant of the facts supported by 99 percent…
I strongly support the growth of the High Peaks Wilderness in the Adirondack Park. I encourage Governor Andrew Cuomo to accept the proposal made by the Adirondack Council and other environmental groups to expand the Wilderness Area to more than 280,000 acres. As a student studying public lands, I believe that the growth and expansion of the High Peaks Wilderness area will…
BOOK REVIEW By R.L. STOLZ For many folks, the mere notion of climbing a sheer cliff, rising vertically for hundreds—or perhaps thousands—of feet, is the stuff of nightmares. Doing so without a rope, or at breakneck speed, fully understanding that your first mistake will almost certainly be your last, is simply beyond comprehension. Welcome to Alex Honnold’s world. Written from the…