New York Almanack

News and Views from the Empire State

Recreation

Rangers Respond to Marcy, Azure Mtn, Katterskill, Indian Head, Wildfire

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forest ranger logoNew York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Rangers respond to search and rescue incidents in the around New York State. Working with other state agencies, local emergency response organizations and volunteer search and rescue groups, Forest Rangers locate and extract lost, injured or distressed people.

What follows is a report, prepared by DEC, of recent missions carried out by Forest Rangers. [Read more…] about Rangers Respond to Marcy, Azure Mtn, Katterskill, Indian Head, Wildfire

Canalway Challenge Expands Beyond Trail

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Cyclists on the Canalway TrailErie Canalway National Heritage Corridor has invited New Yorkers to take part in the Canalway Challenge this fall, tracing history and tracking miles along New York’s canals and Canalway Trail.

Part fitness challenge, part journey of discovery, the Canalway Challenge is free and registration is open to people of all ages and abilities. Participants set their own mileage goal and walk, run, cycle or paddle to achieve it. [Read more…] about Canalway Challenge Expands Beyond Trail

Hinckley Reservoir, Fish Creek Campground on APA Agenda

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APA Building in Ray Brook NYThe Adirondack Park Agency will hold its monthly meeting at its headquarters in Ray Brook on Thursday, September 10th and Friday, September 11th, 2020. Thursday’s meeting will begin at 1 pm and Friday’s session will commence at 9:30 am.

In accordance with New York State’s ongoing efforts to mitigate the Coronavirus, the public should use the live Webcast event to watch the meeting. To watch the meeting, visit the APA website and click the September meeting agenda found under News and Activities. [Read more…] about Hinckley Reservoir, Fish Creek Campground on APA Agenda

Petition Circulating Calling To Make Whitney Park Forest Preserve

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Salmon Lake stands in the foreground, part of the Whitney tract, with Rock Lake and Little Tupper Lake in the backgroundThe 36,000-acre Whitney Park is up for sale. This tract, which includes 22 lakes and ponds, and over 100 miles of undeveloped shoreline, has been at the top of New York State’s land protection priority list for 50 years.

Over the decades, the property has been lightly developed by the Whitney family, which maintains a large complex of buildings in a mountain estate called Deerlands on Little Forked Lake, and  two inholdings totaling around 400 acres on Forked Lake and Plumley Pond at the south end of the tract. [Read more…] about Petition Circulating Calling To Make Whitney Park Forest Preserve

Featured Adirondack Hike: Mount Gilligan

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mount gilligan map courtesy adirondack atlasMount Gilligan, in New Russia, Essex County, is a somewhat popular 2.2 mile climb with views of the Giant Mountain Wilderness. The trail starts to climb almost immediately from the trailhead through an attractive but dark forest under tall evergreens. [Read more…] about Featured Adirondack Hike: Mount Gilligan

50 Adirondack Places To Visit Outside The High Peaks This Holiday Weekend

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DEC Trail Markers provided by PROTECTFor Labor Day Weekend, Protect the Adirondacks has published online hiking trail guides for 50 hikes that lead to great destinations outside of the heavily-used High Peaks Wilderness. [Read more…] about 50 Adirondack Places To Visit Outside The High Peaks This Holiday Weekend

Calls For Adirondack Park Permits In Historical Perspective

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Crowding on Cascade Mountain, eastern High Peaks Wilderness by Dan PlumleyI appreciate the Adirondack Council’s recent press release TAC Press Release, Aug. 26 which highlights the many benefits of permit reservation or limited entry systems and how such a system is needed and necessary now in parts of the High Peaks Wilderness Area. Support from the Adirondack Council for such a system comes at an important moment, as overuse of the peaks continues to spike during this pandemic summer. [Read more…] about Calls For Adirondack Park Permits In Historical Perspective