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| On the trail to Copperas Pond |
My family and I are now back from our annual summer vacation in the Adirondacks of upstate New York! In all honesty, I cannot say I am glad to be back. I wish we were still up there. I already miss the easy sleeping under open windows, the balsam scents in the air, the calls of the loons, and my daily early morning, invigorating dip in the lake (air temperature usually at 55 to 62 degrees F the past two weeks at 8:00 AM).
My wife's family had a "camp" (the Adirondack term for what is called a cottage elsewhere) on Lake Placid for several decades and so Molly and I have spent a portion of almost every one of the last 37 summers "inside the Blue Line" at Lake Placid or other lakes. Every summer we have engaged in backpacking, hiking, mountain climbing, canoeing, swimming and other activities (including luxurious reading time) while re-creating and recharging the batteries. Our two sons have spent time in the Adirondacks nearly every summer since they were born. Both sons and our daughter-in-law joined us again this year. The Adirondacks already occupy a large place in our hearts and in our family's ever-evolving genealogy . . . and we hope and expect this to continue into the future and unto succeeding generations.
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The Adirondack Park is about 6.1 million acres in the northeastern section of New York. It is close to the size of the state of Vermont and is larger than Yellowstone, Glacier, Yosemite, the Great Smokies and the Grand Canyon combined! It is the largest park in the lower 48 states AND it is protected by the New York state constitution. The area is usually referred to as "the Blue Line" (probably because its boundary was marked in blue on many early maps). Adirondack Park has an interesting history and you can read more about it here.
A few pictures are -- as they say -- worth thousands of words, so enjoy below some of the magic that is the Adirondacks!
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| Lake Clear from the summit of St. Regis Mountain |
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| Canoeists in the sunset on Lake Clear |
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| Copperas Pond (our backpacking destination) |
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| Twilight on Lake Clear |
Blog posts should resume sometime this week after I see what awaits me at the office.
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All photographs (except the backpacking shot) by the author. All rights reserved. No reproduction or use of the photographs is allowed without the permission of the photographer/author.
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Copyright 2013, John D. Tew
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Great pictures, in Western PA they call them camps too.
ReplyDeleteMy Mom's maternal grandparents lived in Tupper Lake, NY for a few years about 1899-1900, before returning home to Canada. Thanks to your great photos, John, I now have a better idea what Adirondack Park looks like :)
ReplyDeleteGlad to have you back, John, but I'm sorry the vacation had to end! Good luck acclimating back!
ReplyDeleteWelcome back! Sounds like you had a great time. Your photos are gorgeous! What a beautiful place.
ReplyDeleteThank you all! While I wish I were still in the Adirondacks, I am glad to be back where I have capability to connect to the internet without driving into nearby towns so I can get back to blogging. :-) I have been catching up with two weeks of genealogy blog postings and emails.
ReplyDeleteSorry John, but I am just catching up with my blog reading, but I must tell you, your photos are lovely.It's clear how much you love that area. I'm in love with your sunset picture.
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