Hungry Bay’s Howl
On the northern shores of Middle Saranac Lake Between Weller and Eden Rests a remote rock rimmed boulder bay Biding time’s weathered seasons Beyond lonely wail of coyote and loon Made legend by Reben Beware Hungry Bay’s windswept whitecap howl Stalking doomed souls it feasts on ********** It...
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Forbidden
When the Laws of Man and Nature Collide in the Mountains The year was 1983. July, to be exact, as a young man’s lone figure eased into an overgrown Adirondack trailhead parking lot and turned off his truck’s engine. He did a quick personal pat down; keys, pocket-knife,...
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National Hunting Blind Set-Up Day
If that’s not an official holiday, it oughta’ be! Well! This is it! Saturday is October 1st. The time of year every hunter has been waiting for. In New York State, October ushers in the opening of bow season, fall turkey and duck hunting, as well as most small...
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Captain Blue’s Crew
A Cancer Fighting Canine’s Morning Paw Patrol Photo Shoot Featuring: Captain Blue As folks may or may not know by now, our Monroe Paw Patrol family recently received some very devastating news. Captain Blue, our canine Paw Patrol Leader, was diagnosed with lymphoma. Captain Blue is only six and...
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Advanced Biology
OR “THE GREAT RAT CAPER OF 1981” It was fall, 1980. My friends and I had somehow managed to survive our way to senior year at Saranac Lake High School. I wasn’t a great student in high school. I never really studied or applied myself. I copied...
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The River Calling
Beneath forgotten trestle’s flow Rainfall bounty, melted snow Where heron, bass, and beaver go I can hear The river calling Misted memory’s mountain home Rocky rapid’s rippled foam Long lost laughter skipping stones I can hear The river calling We swam, we fished Wind’s whispered wish Wild water’s kiss...
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What Defines “Adirondack”?
The original version of this story 1st appeared in the June 17, 2021 on-line edition of the Adirondack Almanack I had an interesting conversation with my brother a while back in camp. It began innocently enough, with an observation he made about the difficulties the Saranac Lake Elks...
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Bedroom Window
I awoke to the sun. Its warm morning rays gently knocking on my bedroom window. I sat up, yawned and stretched, kicking back my hand quilted comforter. I looked out from my second story vantage point across Stevenson Lane to the day. To my left was Carpenter’s...
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Snowshoe Tracks
Author’s Note: The snowshoes pictured here are my dad’s vintage pair. He made them in Ranger School during his time at Wanakena. He graduated from Ranger School in 1961, two years before I was born. They are still sturdy, solid and strong. I have taken great care to maintain...
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A Trail of Broken Hearts
An Adirondack Outlaw Wandering Lost in Love’s Wilderness ********** Author’s Note: This story was featured in the February 13, 2022 online edition of The Adirondack Almanack ********** There’s a mystic trail in these mountains. Myths, tragedies, and harrowing rescue tales surround it. It’s not marked on any map. Oldtimers...
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