History, Natural History & the Arts
In 1854, Samuel H. Hammond, a prominent attorney, newspaper writer and editor, State Senator and sportsman, wrote in Hills, Lakes, and Forest Streams: or A Tramp in the Chateaugay Woods (1854) about a sporting trip with his guide to Tupper Lake in the Adirondacks.
Hammond described a world that was considerably different than today, thanks to logging, blasting, damming, and flooding. He wrote in his diary: [Read more…] about Extinction: Passenger Pigeons Once Darkened The Skies
The Raquette River, from Raquette Falls to the State Boat Launch on Tupper Lake, is one of the nicest stretches of flat-water anywhere in the Adirondacks. Paddling this river corridor under a clear cerulean blue sky, on a sunny autumn day with the riverbanks ablaze in orange and red, is exquisite. For me, though, the river’s history is as captivating as its natural beauty. [Read more…] about Dam History: The Proposed Oxbow Reservoir Project
I am often dwarfed by the vastness of the landforms which surround me. The glacial lake basin that forms part of the Raquette River Valley is one such formation. The old meandering Raquette River from Raquette Falls to Piercefield Falls twists and turns, almost comes back upon itself for several miles, as it flows towards its mouth on the St. Lawrence River.
At one point it flows into a lake area and makes a series of rather long graceful turns. The already slow moving water slows even more, and the current of the river is almost unnoticeable. Such is the glacial river basin that forms Simon Pond, Tupper Lake and Raquette Pond. Here the particulate matter, which once came from the surrounding mountains, falls out of suspension.
The slowing of the river as it passes through these lakes, over centuries and centuries, over thousands and thousands of years, since the last glacier, allows for great deposits of earth (sand, mud and muck) to build up on their lake floors. [Read more…] about Dam History: The Proposed Tupper Lake Reservoir
The Raquette River flows from its source at Blue Mountain Lake in the Adirondacks, to the St. Lawrence River at Akewesasne.
East of Tupper Lake and just north of Simon Pond is a place called “The Cut.”
“The Cut” was channel dug to “straighten the river” so that logs could be floated (driven) straight into Simon Pond, thus avoiding a shallow and meandering section of the Raquette River known as Moody’s Flow. [Read more…] about An Unnatural History of the Raquette River
The 2020 Great Adirondack Garage Sale is set for this coming weekend, August 7th, 8th, and 9th. In the past, the event was traditionally held on Memorial Day weekend, but due to safety concerns, it was pushed back to August for this year.
The 11th annual event consists of residents selling their items along a 150-mile trail stretching from Tupper Lake to Speculator, and Old Forge to Newcomb in the Adirondack Park. [Read more…] about Great Adirondack Garage Sale This Weekend
Due to their popularity, the combined 47th Annual Art Show and Adirondack Woodcrafts Show have been extended to run through August 16th.
The combined shows feature the work of local artists and artisans for sale, including paintings in various mediums, photography, and a variety of unique woodcrafts. [Read more…] about Tupper Arts Extends Shows, Opens Sculpture Exhibit
The Wild Center in Tupper Lake has converted a portion of their Meadow parking lot into a drive-in movie theater. The Wild Center will be showing family-friendly movies and other “edutainment” on Saturday evenings beginning with Jurassic Park Saturday, July 25th and running through August. [Read more…] about Wild Center Announces Drive-In Movie Theater Nights
The Adirondack Park Agency will decide if the proposed final Remsen-Lake Placid Travel Corridor UMP conforms to the State Land Master Plan. The State is planning to tear up part of the historic Adirondack Railroad line between Tupper Lake and Lake Placid for a multi-use trail. [Read more…] about Vote On Historic Railroad Corridor Set For Thursday
The New York State Departments of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Transportation (DOT) have announced the release of a draft Remsen-Lake Placid Travel Corridor Unit Management Plan (UMP) Amendment/Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS).
The amended proposal comes after the operators of the Adirondack Scenic Railroad, which ran on the line between Saranac Lake and Lake Placid, successfully sued the state. They successfully argued that the State’s plan to turn the historic railroad line into a rail-trail did not comply with state historic preservation law or the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan.
The decision was handed down by State Supreme Court Judge Robert Main Jr. in 2017. In December, 2018 the state Adirondack Park Agency changed the “travel corridor” definition in the State Land Master Plan to allow for the removal of the rails. [Read more…] about State Issues New Plan For Historic Adirondack Rail Line
The Wild Center, located at 45 Museum Dr, Tupper Lake, is set to celebrate its Ways of Knowing partnership project on Saturday, July 6th from 10 am to 5 pm.
Following the celebration, the Center will host Joanne Shenandoah in concert from 7:30 to 9:30 pm. Together for the first time, Ways of Knowing and Joanne Shenandoah will explore the perspectives that different cultures have through their connection with nature and present a deeper look into Native American tradition and expression. [Read more…] about Wild Center Hosts Ways of Knowing Celebration