The first time I hiked to Gull Lake in the Black River Wild Forest I was appalled at the damage to the trails caused by the illegal use of all-terrain vehicles. That was more than ten years ago. This past Sunday, I went for a morning run on these same trails and discovered that nothing has changed. The photo above shows just one of numerous mud swales I encountered on my eight-mile jog. Not only do the machines create giant mud puddles, but they also double, triple, or quadruple the width of the trail in places. It’s a shame, because >>More
Lows Lake proposal OK’d
The Adirondack Park Agency voted 6-4 Friday to classify most of Lows Lake and adjacent lands as Wilderness, despite objections from local politicians. Under the proposal, which requires approval from the governor, Lows Lake west of Frying Pan Island will be designated Wilderness. The rest of the lake, which is much narrower, will be designated Primitive. The two classifications do not differ much in their management guidelines. Both classifications forbid motorized use by the general public. In this case, the Primitive classification reflects a recognition that the eastern part of Lows Lake abuts private lands, access roads, and a large >>More
McCulley wants Grannis off case
State Environmental Conservation Commissioner Pete Grannis may have ruled in Jim McCulley’s favor in the Old Mountain Road dispute, but McCulley still wants him off the case. McCulley’s lawyer, Matthew Norfolk of Lake Placid, filed a motion Tuesday asking Grannis to recuse himself for engaging in in “ex-parte” communications about the case with the Adirondack Council and Adirondack Park Agency, both of which are seeking permission to intervene in the legal controversy. They want Grannis to reconsider the decision. This spring, Grannis ruled that the state never legally closed the Old Mountain Road, which runs between Keene and North Elba >>More
The road to Pine Pond
Last Sunday, two friends and I paddled from Second Pond on the Saranac River to Oseetah Lake and then walked to the beach at Pine Pond for a swim. Although the weather was iffy throughout the afternoon (we got rained on twice, albeit briefly), the sun came out just as we returned to our canoes on Oseetah. Pine Pond is a beautiful body of water that lies just inside the High Peaks Wilderness, where motorized recreation is forbidden. We were somewhat surprised to find an all-terrain vehicle and a golf cart at the pond. But only somewhat surprised. The High >>More
Extra hearing on Lows Lake
The Adirondack Park Agency has scheduled an extra hearing on the controversial proposal to classify Lows Lake and adjacent lands as Wilderness. The proposal encompasses 12,545 acres, including the bed of the nine-mile-long lake. The agency already has held hearings in Long Lake, Wanakena, and Albany. The additional hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, August 10, at the APA headquarters in Ray Brook. The hearing will be broadcast on the agency’s Web site. Opponents of the proposal argue that Lows Lake, which is an impoundment of the Bog River, doesn’t qualify as Wilderness, which is the most restrictive of >>More
The life of Bob Marshall
After coming to the Adirondack Explorer a decade ago, I developed an interest in Bob Marshall, the legendary hiker and wilderness conservationist. Bob, whose family had a summer camp on Lower Saranac Lake, was the first to climb the forty-six High Peaks (accompanied by his brother, George, and their guide, Herb Clark), and today one of those peaks, Mount Marshall, is named after him. Bob later went on to help found and finance the Wilderness Society. He did a lot of other interesting stuff, such as explore and map arctic Alaska, compile a catalog of the nation’s largest roadless areas, >>More
APA loses court fight
A state appellate court has ruled against the Adirondack Park Agency in its battle with an Essex farmer who constructed worker homes on his property without an APA permit. The APA had levied a $50,000 fine against Lewis Family Farm, owned by Salim “Sandy” and Barbara Lewis. The Lewises contend that farmworker houses are exempt from APA regulations that apply to other single-family homes. On Thursday, the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court ruled 5-0 in the farm’s favor. The court noted that the state constitution and various state laws reflect an intent to encourage agriculture. “Nothing in any of >>More
Lows Lake proposal meets opposition
On Monday, the Adirondack Park Agency held the first two hearings on classifying Lows Lake as Wilderness, and as expected, there was a lot of local opposition. Both hearings took place inside the Park: at the town hall in Long Lake and at the state Ranger School in Wanakena. The opposition was stronger in Long Lake. APA spokesman Keith McKeever said only eight people attended the Wanakena hearing, and their views were “split down the middle.” Eighteen showed up at Long Lake, where “there more people opposed to the classification than were for it,” McKeever said. Following are newspaper accounts >>More
Green groups OK merger
The members of the Association for the Protection of the Adirondacks and the Residents’ Committee to Protect the Adirondacks voted overwhelmingly last weekend to merge into a new organization called Protect the Adirondacks. The association’s members voted 83-0 and the RCPA’s members voted 111-2 in favor of the consolidation. Protect the Adirondacks will use the association’s headquarters in Niskayuna, a suburb of Schenectady, as its administrative office but will keep the RCPA’s office in Saranac Lake. David Gibson, executive director of the association, will lead Protect the Adirondacks. As reported in anearlier blog, Michael Washburn, the RCPA’s executive director, plans >>More
