New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

Adirondacks Region

Forest Preserve Decision Has Far-Reaching Implications Beyond Tree Cutting

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Canopy by Peter BauerRecent pieces in the Adirondack Explorer (see here and here) have attempted to assess the implications of the decision by New York State’s highest court in Protect the Adirondacks v Department of Environmental Conservation and Adirondack Park Agency.

The Court of Appeals found that these state agencies violated the state constitution in their efforts to build a network of new extra-wide snowmobile trails in the Adirondack Forest Preserve. These commenters have derided the decision because they say it’s focused on tree cutting, which they argue is a poor standard to evaluate the constitutionality of management actions by state agencies under Article 14, Section 1, the Forever Wild Clause. [Read more…] about Forest Preserve Decision Has Far-Reaching Implications Beyond Tree Cutting

The Adirondack Park & The NYS Legislative Session

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The closing hours of the NYS Legislative Session saw three Adirondack Park Agency appointees confirmed by the Senate, including the first Black appointee, Benita Law-Diao.

The Legislature also approved policy advances to curb the impacts of climate change, such as the commitment to protect 30% of New York’s forests by 2030. None of the several proposed amendments to the NYS Constitution’s “forever wild” clause were approved. [Read more…] about The Adirondack Park & The NYS Legislative Session

Jock Wright & Dut Barber: Honondaga Lake History

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Map of Jock’s Lake is taken from the 1876 E. R. Wallace Map of the Adirondack WildernessOne of the earliest written accounts of Jock’s Lake in the Adirondacks (about twenty-five miles east of Boonville) was given by Jeptha Simms in his 1850 book Trappers of New York: A Biography of Nicholas Stoner & Nathaniel Foster:

“Jock’s Lake, so-called after Jock (Jonathan) Wright, an early trapper upon its shores, is a very pretty lake, five or six miles long, though not very wide; and is situated in the north-eastern or wilderness portion of Herkimer County, some ten miles from a place called Noblesborough. Its outlet is one of the sources of the west branch of West Canada Creek.” [Read more…] about Jock Wright & Dut Barber: Honondaga Lake History

Adirondack Cabin & Mountain Poems

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adirondack cabinThe new book Adirondack Cabin & Mountain Poems (Subjudica House Press, 2022) by Edward Zahniser features mountain and wilderness poetry, written from the Adirondack cabin Zahniser has visited since the 1940s.

Here is the mountain experience rendered by the poet’s words. A harvest of wilderness after-thoughts by Zahniser who is a regular contributor to New York Almanack of poetry and essays about wilderness, his youth in the Adirondacks, and his father Howard Zahniser, author of the national Wilderness Act and friend of Adirondack conservationist Paul Shaefer. [Read more…] about Adirondack Cabin & Mountain Poems

State Forest Preserve Visitor Use Management Plans for 2022 Season

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DEC LogoNew York State and local community leaders recently announced initiatives planned for the 2022 outdoor recreation season designed to protect public safety and promote sustainable recreation in the Adirondack and Catskill Parks.

Many of these actions, bolstered by $8 million from the State Environmental Protection Fund specifically for Adirondack and Catskill visitor safety and wilderness protection in the recently enacted 2022-23 State Budget, support a strategy to improve safety, sustainability, and equitable access. [Read more…] about State Forest Preserve Visitor Use Management Plans for 2022 Season

A Constitutional Amendment Proposed for Mt. Van Hoevenberg

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Mount Van Hoevenberg Olympic Sports ComplexAn Article 14 Constitutional Amendment is being proposed for the Mt. Van Hoevenberg Olympic Sports Complex in the Adirondack Park outside Lake Placid.

At the Mt. Van Hoevenberg complex, the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) currently manages around 1,220 acres of Forest Preserve classified as Intensive Use by the Adirondack Park Agency (APA). Abutting these lands is 319 acres of land owned by the Town of North Elba.

Together this complex houses the Olympic bobsled and luge track, cross-country skiing and biathlon trails, and associated facilities, with most of the intensive buildings and facilities located on the town lands. These facilities have seen massive upgrades and state spending in preparation for hosting the World University Games in 2023. [Read more…] about A Constitutional Amendment Proposed for Mt. Van Hoevenberg

An Adirondack Lumber Camp at Twitchell Lake, 1860-80

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5a Objects dug up in Lumber Camp #2 about a half mile east of Twitchell Lake, Noel SherryMy uncle Frank Sherry taught my brother Tom and I orienteering, using a map and compass to navigate through the woods and find a remote pond or other location. We were teenagers and it was an exciting way to spend a Saturday.

On one of these adventures we were in search of Silver Dollar Pond to the east of Twitchell Lake in Northern Herkimer County,when we stumbled on our first lumber camp. The telltale signs were pieces of metal hanging from a tree and protruding from the ground, with old bottles half-buried in the forest floor. We made note of the location on our map, a half-mile from Twitchell, and returned to explore it. It wasn’t long before we located the camp dump, from which we dug up the items pictured here.

These and other objects triggered an active discussion on the date of this old camp, with an imaginative re-creation of what life might have been like for a lumberjacks living and working there. [Read more…] about An Adirondack Lumber Camp at Twitchell Lake, 1860-80

Logging the Adirondack Interior, Spurring Preservation (1840-60)

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One of the most satisfying pastimes for me at our summer home on Twitchell Lake in Big Moose in the Adirondacks in Northern Herkimer County), was taking the camp guide boat out for a spin. That privilege was earned by passing the family test, a solo swim across the lake, about the distance of a football field.

Weighing just over 30 pounds, this unique 14-foot wooden craft sped through the water powered by two oars. A cabin shelf still displays several awards for winning the annual guide boat race. I fondly remember the one-mile hikes to neighboring Oswego Pond, trailing my older brother Burt carrying that guide boat on his shoulders using a hand-carved yoke, my father in the lead bearing the oars and fishing gear. [Read more…] about Logging the Adirondack Interior, Spurring Preservation (1840-60)

Adirondack Foundation Awards Nearly $1M

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adirondack foundationAdirondack Foundation this year awarded a record $900,000 in Generous Acts grants to meet pressing needs and drive positive change in local communities across the Adirondack region. This represents an eight-fold increase in Generous Acts grant dollars from five years ago. [Read more…] about Adirondack Foundation Awards Nearly $1M

Comments On Increasing Adirondack Park Road, Snowmobile Trail Mileage Sought

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Adirondack-Park-Map-Road-LayerThe Adirondack Park Agency Board, at its May 2022 meeting, authorized a 60-day public comment period to solicit comments to help inform the Board’s interpretation of the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan’s “Wild Forest Basic Guideline No. 4” which calls for no material increase of road mileage on lands classified as Wild Forest.

The APA’s interpretation of Basic Guideline No. 4 could establish a new baseline for road mileage on Wild Forest classified lands. [Read more…] about Comments On Increasing Adirondack Park Road, Snowmobile Trail Mileage Sought