Thursday, June 30, 2016

Canoe camping, Follensby Clear Pond: 06/26/2016

Canoe camping on Follensby Clear Pond, 06/26/2016.

The Saratoga Skier and Hiker, first-hand accounts of adventures in the Adirondacks and beyond, and Gore Mountain ski blog.

At 12 and 8, our kids are the perfect age for camping. After some island camping at Lake George last weekend, we headed north to one of my favorite parts of the Adirondacks for some canoe camping this weekend.

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Lake George island camping, Fork Island: 06/18/2016

Island camping, Lake George, 06/18/2016

The Saratoga Skier and Hiker, first-hand accounts of adventures in the Adirondacks and beyond, and Gore Mountain ski blog.
In the 35 years that I've been exploring Lake George I've done a lot of paddling, hiking, motor boating, sailing and water skiing, but I think the best way to really soak up the beauty of the lake is camping on one of the islands. There's nothing like going to sleep at night and waking up in the morning with the lake lapping at your campsite, surrounded by water. No cell phones, no tv, no distractions, just you, the lake and the mountains.

With a perfect weather forecast last weekend, we loaded our family's boat with paddling and camping gear and headed north from Bolton Landing up into the Narrows.

Thursday, June 16, 2016

Sleeping Beauty Mt: 06/12/2016

Sleeping Beauty Mountain, Sunday 06/12/2016.

The Saratoga Skier and Hiker, first-hand accounts of adventures in the Adirondacks and beyond, and Gore Mountain ski blog.

We've done Sleeping Beauty as a family hike in the past, but on a cold (temperatures in the low 50s), blustery mid-June Sunday the kids' enthusiasm level for hiking hovered between 0 and 1 on a ten-point scale. So the kids stayed with the grandparents while Beth and I did the hike. Win - win.

Thursday, June 9, 2016

Chapel Pond Slab, Regular Route: 06/04/2016

Climbing at the Chapel Pond slabs, Saturday 06/04/2016.

The Saratoga Skier and Hiker, first-hand accounts of adventures in the Adirondacks and beyond, and Gore Mountain ski blog.

Back when I first started climbing, my first multi-pitch lead was up Regular Route on the Chapel Pond slabs. With its comfortable belay ledges, exciting but non-intimidating exposure and wonderful views it's a great first lead. It's also a route I've returned to many times for the sheer fun of easy climbing (5.5 on the Yosemite Decimal System) on a long route (6 pitches) in a superbly scenic setting. But Saturday's climb topped them all, when my wife Beth and I led our 12 year old son up Regular Route for his first multi-pitch climb.