Journey to Boreas Ponds
In early June 2016, Editor Phil Brown enjoyed one of his most memorable canoe trips in the Adirondacks: He spent the morning paddling around lovely Boreas Ponds, taking in breathtaking views of the High Peaks.
paddling
All Stories
Court hears paddling case
The state’s top tribunal is expected to issue ruling soon in lawsuit filed against Explorer editor after he canoed through private property. By KENNETH AARON A lawsuit sparked by a canoeist’s paddling through private land in 2009 may finally be nearing an end, as New York’s highest court heard arguments in March on whether the…
Essex Chain lawsuit
Environmental groups claim DEC’s management plan for new state lands violates State Land Master Plan and other regulations. By Phil Brown Two of the Adirondack Park’s major environmental groups are suing the state over the management plan for the Essex Chain Lakes region—a large tract of forest, ponds, and streams that the state acquired from the…
Joining the fight
As navigation-rights case heads to the state’s Court of Appeals, both sides get help from interested parties. By Kenneth Aaron For five years, a group of Adirondack landowners has engaged in a legal battle with the editor of the Adirondack Explorer and the state Department of Environmental Conservation over navigational rights on a remote waterway…
In Nessmuk’s wake
By Mike Lynch
Will Madison retraced the 1883 paddle of his great-great-great grandfather George W. Sears. By Mike Lynch The nineteenth-century writings of George W. Sears—best known as Nessmuk—have inspired countless Adirondack paddlers. Among the most recent is his great-great-great-grandson Will Madison. In September, the twenty-two-year-old St. Lawrence University graduate retraced much of Nessmuk’s 1883 canoe trip from…
State purchase opens up Opalescent
With the acquisition of the MacIntyre East tract near Tahawus, the public now owns 12 miles of shoreline along the upper Hudson and the Opalescent. By Phil Brown Brian Mann and I had been on the water for several hours when we came to a fallen tree stretched across the river. We pulled over to…
Canoe case in top court
Landowners appeal dismissal of trespass suit against Explorer editor, contending constitutional property rights are at stake. By Kenneth Aaron The Adirondack landowners who sued the editor of the Adirondack Explorer after he paddled through their property are taking the case to New York’s highest court, saying a lower court’s decision infringes on their constitutional rights. The Brandreth Park Association and the Friends of Thayer…
Court rules for paddlers
Brandreth Park’s attorney says appellate decision in favor of Adirondack Explorer threatens private-property rights. By Kenneth Aaron The Brandreth Park Association and Friends of Thayer Lake contend that a recent court decision upholding the right of canoeists and kayakers to paddle through their remote Adirondack parcel threatens to upend private-property rights in New York State. In January, the…
Paddling case re-argued
Judges hear appeal of ruling that upheld right of canoeists and kayakers to travel through private land on Shingle Shanty Brook. By Kenneth Aaron Lawyers for the landowners who sued Adirondack Explorer Editor Phil Brown for canoeing across their property returned to court in early October, arguing that the waterway in question should be closed to the public. A five-judge panel of…
Essex Chain plan on hold
DEC is criticized for avoiding snowmobile-trail issues in draft document. By Phil Brown The state Department of Environmental Conservation has withdrawn a draft management plan for new state lands known as the Essex Chain Lakes Complex in the face of criticism that it failed to discuss the route of a controversial snowmobile trail. The decision to address the snowmobile issue in a…