Baker's Outdoor Blog

Phelps

2009-10-18T19:13:00.001-07:00

The McIntyer Range from Phelps Mt.

I decided at the last minute to hike Phelps Mountain today. Since this is an easy high peak, only 9 miles round trip and 1800’ of elevation gain along a busy trail system I felt that I was safe enough. Plus I always prepare for the worse case scenario.

I left before sunrise and was greeted with peeks of the snow capped high peaks as I traveled north on I-87. I reached Heart Lake and the Adirondack Log shortly after sunrise and began the hike into Marcy Dam. I was moving fast as there was a chance that a front would move in and at the moment the skies were a crystal clear blue that would make for great pictures. I made Marcy dam in 30 min 2 miles. I stopped and snapped some pictures as how could you pass by a lake nestled between such snow capped splendors. The trail to this point is very easy and the hike into just Marcy dam would make for a nice way to expose little ones to the high peaks and hiking without the hard work. Actually the trail is easy for one more mile until the Phelps trail diverts to the left. Here it becomes steep and rocky, but you only have 1 mile to the top and this went by fairly easy. The trail was icy in spots and the Yax Trax that I bought did not work well. They were better than nothing but I have to buy some mico spikes.

Has I was focused on the trail close to the summit I almost forgot to turn around, which I did and had that WOW moment as I had a great view of the entire McIntyre range. Shortly after that I summated and commenced with enjoying the excellent views that this mountain provided. It is one thing to look at the high peaks from lesser mountains or from certain areas that offer views, but it is quit another to be one a high peak looking at close of view at it’s sister mountains. There is a power in it that cannot be captured on film, canvas or words, but has to be experienced first hand and only after you have earned the right through your blood sweat and tears. I spent 1 hour on top of Phelps alone eating lunch and taking picture on a beautiful, calm, crisp fall morning. What is better than that????

Northville-Placid trip 2009

2009-09-27T10:59:00.000-07:00

My two trail mates and I started our Northville-Placid expedition on Aug 10, 2009 from the Long Lake Trailhead, at 9 am on a warm grey day. The trail at this point was easy and dry as it drifted close to Long Lake and then moved away. As we worked our way NE we came upon lean-tos and old foundation of long ago destroyed buildings that once lined this now forever wild wilderness. We stopped at Pawley Point Lean-to #1 and began to set up camp. We had this lean-to to ourselves and it was a gorgeous site with and nice sandy beach. I had brought my pack saw and commenced with gathering wood for this evenings fire. The light pack buck saw worked great for this trip, and is going to make it on all my excursions. I would prefer to take my Hudson Bay ax, but it is too heavy. I was able to call my wife from this location and she warned me that we were about to get slammed with some pretty hefty rain at 11 pm so we decided to stay in the lean-to rather than set up a tent. Big mistake! It did rain and rain hard, BUT the mosquitoes were very hungry and I must say plentiful, and I did not sleep at all that night. BUT I was dry and safe from the big bad thunder, the greater of two evils.

After a mosquito invested night we broke camp in the morning and started heading toward the Seward Lean-to on the Cold River. On the way the trail was good; at one point we had a doe cross in front of us and then walked parallel with us about 20 feet off the trail. She just walked and kept an eye on us. We figured out she must have had a fawn back where we came from. After a few more steps she did a button hook and rushed back in the direction we had just traveled. Another spot a little further up the trail we went through an old blowdown that was impressive. There was about a 100 yard swath of old 30-60 inch oaks that looked like a giant pull them out by there roots and stacked them on top of one and other. We soon started to see the Cold River and the trail turned to follow the river as we headed north.

About 1:30 pm, about 8 miles from the Pawling Point Lean-to we arrived at the Seward lean-to and one of the most beautiful places that I have ever been to. The lean-to is up on a little hill over looking a pool in the Cold River. Upstream there is a little flume that flows into a wide and deep pool that provided us with a great cool place to swim and cool off from the hot humid day. After our swim and a little snooze on the one of the many flat rocky areas in the river, I went and collected wood for our campfire and also looked for some worms or grubs to use for bait with a little hand line I brought with me, but gave up. Bear Grylls makes it look so easy. We found as we explored the rock formations in the river that we had a great view of the Seward Mountain range. We ate dinner and slept in our tents mosquito FREE!! I slept like a log as the night was cool.

We awake to a clear cool morning, made our breakfast, packed up and headed northeast to our next location one of the Duck Hole Lean-to’s. I want to take a second to talk about suspension bridges. We crossed a couple the day before and on our way to the Duck Hole I had to go over a couple of more. I hate these things. They scare the crap out of me. There was one that had a steel grate that was 30 feet over a steep gorge. I made it over and even gathered enough courage and took a picture of the Cold River. Then I looked down and hustled off the damn thing. But I digress…The trip to the Duck Hole is best described as a pleasant scenic walk We stopped at a lean-to about 3 miles from our destination to grab a bit of lunch, when it poured for about 20 minuets, then cleared off and the skies again turned blue. We were lucky like this throughout the entire trip. It rained every day for a little while, but we were always in a shelter. One of the highlights of the trip for me was to stop and visit the location where Noah John Rondeau built his hermitage and stayed until 1950. I remember reading about him as a kid and was fascinated about how he survived in the Adirondacks the way that the pioneers did, except alone and not with a community. Anyway, it met a great deal to me to be able to finally reach this area and now I know why he selected it. It was beautify remote…A place that is nice to visit for me, but not to leave society for.

We arrived at the Duck Hole and again had our pick of lean-tos. We were treated to some great scenery and spent most of the rest of the day observing the multitude of wildlife that was just fluttering and jumping around that wonderful place. I had a humming bird just stop in front of me and hover looking at the white patch on my hat for 20 seconds. In the morning when the mist was still on the pond we observed a deer on the opposite shore, unaware of us, just eating and drinking as she slowly walked along the edge of the pond.

We set out the next morning, which was day 4 or our trip, the day was clear and warm, but we had a downpour during the evening so this part of the trail was difficult do to the blowdown and the muddy trail condition. Now even though the trail was slick and difficult to traverse we made our destination at Wanakena by 12:30 pm. This was yet another wonderful place. 120 foot falls that drops into a 30 foot pool at the bottom that you can swim in (water was very cold here), and you can set your tent up right there. We were thinking of straying the night there or that was the plan, but we arrived earlier than expected and all three of us really wanted a beer. Sooo…after spending a couple of hours resting we decided to hike the remaining 7 miles and get that beer. That made for a 12.5 mile day with full packs, but it was worth it. There were not many views along this section, but we did get to see a Merlin, a type of Falcon that our birder in our small troop had never seen. It swooped right over my head and perched in a tree nearby. Anyhow we made it out and drank our beer (not very cold, but boy it tasted freakin’ good and so didn’t the meal at the Noonmark we had later. Just a jumbo burger and fries, but I was HUNGERY!

This was a great trip for my friends and me. They had done it before, but said they never tire of that section of the N-P trail. I will do that section again and again if I can ever find the time. That and the West Canada Lake region: all in all a magnificent trip!

The Pitchoff Mt Experience

2009-09-26T20:15:00.000-07:00

Today was a perfect day. We drove to the north trail head of Pitchoff Mt and spotted a car there and continued down Route 73 and parked at the south trail head and began our hike. I am not going to lie to you there are some steep sections. But, there are a lot of places to stop and take pictures which is the main reason to do this trip.

What makes this trip magical is as you increase in elevation your perspective on the view is always changing in a very noticeable way. As we came to our first vantage point Cascade Mountain dominated our view with little peeks of Marcy and Colvin and Algonquin. Then we came to another viewing spot and Cascade became less dominate and Marcy and Algonquin become more promiate. We came to one huge rock outcrop, about 3 acres in size that offered a spectacular view of the above mountains, and Lake Placid. At this point were saw periquin falcons, golden eagle and red tailed hawks, all who flew right next to us.

From this spot we kept going up and down as we traversed the ridge going from one vantage to another, but as we moved along the ridge we begin to look NW and could see great views of Whiteface off in the distance. After we hiked over the last "peak" it was a short steep downhill hike to our car we spotted.

This hike was only 5 miles, but it was a long 5 miles. This is a trip that is all about the scenery and should not be done in a hurry. Bring a camera and extra batteries.

Been away for a while

2009-09-15T17:55:00.000-07:00

I have been busy with summer activities and such so I have been neglecting this blog. Not to worry. I have plenty of adventures to write about. Namely my adventure on the Northville-Placid Trail with my two trail mates. A four day odyssey through what I believe now is the most beautiful section of the Adirondack Mountains. Right now I am gathering my thoughts and will be posting again shortly.

Pharoah Lake

2009-07-25T17:26:00.000-07:00

View of a beaver pond on the way up to the Pharaoh Lake

Beaver Dam

Today some friends an myself went in to the Pharaoh Lake wideness area via the Beaver Pond trail head. The trail in is very easy and a great beginner trail for people who would like to go into a beautiful part of the Adirondacks. There are 6 lean-to's that are placed around Pharaoh Lake. At this time of year there are usually full, but there are other campsites around that offer great places to camp and enjoy the area. There are also trout in this Lake.

We hiked in had lunch and hiked out. 8 miles of easy trails, a nice relaxing hike. The new hikers in our group enjoyed themselves.

Upper Wolf Jaw and Amrstrong

2009-07-23T17:26:00.000-07:00

Laddder on Armstrong

Last Friday the 18th my buddy and I decided to hike Upper Wolf Jaw and Armstrong from the Garden as a day hike. This was something that I have been wanting to do for a couple of years as I wanted to see the ADK's Johns Brook Lodge (JBL) to see how the area would be for camping as it would be a good base for a lot of the high peaks in the vicinity.

The 3.25 mile hike in was pleasant and went fast. We took the trail that lead by the NYS Ranger's interior outpost, nice, and that is when we headed up toward Upper Wolf Jaw. The trail was steep, but not terrible but when we hit the 0.9 mile mark that's when it got serious. It was safe to go up without ropes, but you had to climb up ledge over ledge like steps for a giant. After some hard work we made it to the top of UWJ and spent some time taking pictures and then headed to Armstrong. It seemed that we climbed down 1000' into a col and then began the ascent up to Armstrong. This was similar to the ascent up UWJ; there was a 35' ladder to help us in one area. The view from Armstrong was better than UWJ, with an exceptional view of the Gothics. I wanted to go on and get Gothics as the elevation change was not as bad and we could then go down the Orebed Brook trail, but my buddy's knee was bothering him and we didn't want to add any more mileage to the day.

In all the day involved about eleven hours of hiking and when we saw the van back at the Garden we were very happy. It was a little scary in places but it was nice to be challenged.

Gothics

GPS and Comapss

2009-06-21T12:02:00.000-07:00

In the last post I talked about my bushwhacking adventure on the side of Prospect Mt and the Berry Pond tract. As I said I calculated the true N bearing and followed it to the pond. I did drift a little to the west, but I hit the pond without any trouble. Now instead of figuring my heading from Barry pond to my van, I used the GPS to do that and then sighted my compass on a point that the GPS pointed at. When all was said and done I hit about 250 meters S of my car and I had to really on the GPS as I closed in. When I plotted my track on the map and looked at what I had done, my fist 100 meters were in a straight line as the woods were open, but that straight line if extended would had missed by 400 meters. That was the course set by the GPS.

Now what I think I observed was that the GPS is good at getting you to where you need to go, but you should not rely on it to set your compass bearing. I believe the GPS constantly updates and changes your course for you as you move. I noticed this when I started out for Berry Pond I check my compass sighting with the GPS and at first it was off then it settled down and was close. I will continue to use the GPS, but will set bearings independently of the GPS and rely on them when Bushwhacking. I think that is the best bet.

New Trail and Bushwhacking

2009-06-20T13:16:00.000-07:00

I have not really been an outdoorsmen lately as work has taken a lot of my time. Finally, the catering events and major functions are over for a while and I am ready for some of doors fun. I did do a little catfishin' last week. Did ok, of course the big one got away...no really it did :-)

Yesterday I went geocaching at the Lake George Rec Park where I had been before. There was a new set of GC's planted that took me up to the summit of Prospect Mountain. A approach that I have never done. Also I looked for and found my first Hybrid Cache/letterbox. I would like to see letterboxers not be so adverse to the idea of using GPS coordinates in their clues, but at this time many letterboxers have a negative view towards this. I digress...

Anyway these geocaches where placed about 350 meters apart (Yes I said meters I am on a personal quest to go metric. And I was born and raised in the US) which I think are too close, however this placer hid the caches at strategic points that brought me up the mountain perfectly. The geocacher actually says that that is why they were placed there.

After learning the new trail, at the last Geocahe, I calculated my bearing and bushwhacked to Berry Pond a new acquisition by the Lake George Land Conservancy. I did pretty good for a 2.3 km hike through the bush. I hit the pond at about where I was trying to get to. I then, being lazy took a direction with the GPS and followed that bearing out to my car.

I will talk about that later this week. All and all a good day and I was able to work on my land navigation skills a bit.

Black Mountain 2009

2009-05-23T12:39:00.000-07:00

This past Friday I went up Black Mountain on the East side of Lake George from Black Mountain Point. This is a favorite trail of mine as it is a nice little trainer for the High Peaks and it has some real nice views of Lake George. Also, since this trail is for the most part accessed via the lake, it is usually quiet. I was not disappointed. In fact the trail showed very little signs of recent travel. The trail is clear with only a couple of small obstacles. However, as pleasant as the woods were, they were well populated with black flies, that got out of hand a couple of times. One nice part of the day was that I had the summit all to myself, which is a first in recent years. Even the black flies left me alone up there. This trail and a lot on the east side of Lake George do not get a lot of use and are great places to get away. I usually see less people of these trails than I do on the high peaks trails in the Adirondacks.

I want to mention a couple of things about our boat trip up to Black Mountain Point. We saw an otter not 30 feet from our boat in Warner Bay. I saw a pair of them last fall in there, but I was surprised to see one during the busy season. They must be getting used to people. The other thing that I want to mention is my feelings as we made the turn at 14 mile island heading into the Narrows and looked into Shelving Rock Bay at the Knapp Estate. Even the houses that are not part of the Knapp Estate, like Tommy Hilfiger’s House fit into the Old Adirondack feel that little corner of the Lake has for me. I really enjoy looking at these new and old homes that take me back to how I imagine the glory days of the Adirondack were. Anyway this area just takes me back I guess.

Oh and I checked on both my letterboxes and they are fine.

Big Hollow Road letterboxing maintanence

2009-05-03T18:23:00.000-07:00

I went up Big Hollow road in Lake George today. We locals call this road/trail the Backside of Prospect. What a nice day to be in the woods. I saw so much bird life it wasn't funny. At one time I had a goshawk jumping from limb to limb over my head for 500 feet. I also saw among other birds four different species of wood peckers... I really need to work on my bird identification.

I traveled up Big Hollow to check on my letterboxes that I have placed along the road and to find a pleura of Geocaches that have been hidden all over the place.

My Lb's survived the winter very well considering that they are in recycled containers. The one thing that concerned me was that all of them were either hidden in a slightly different location or they were left out in the open. The fourth Lb of my Prospect Mountain Environmental Series was left exposed in the rock wall that it was hidden in. I was lucky to not have them muggled. But the important thing is that they are all safe and ready for another season of letterboxing.

The geocaches were easy to find and were in non-discrip locations. The purpose of the caches I believe is to bring people up the road.

One thing to note. The beavers have replaced the dam at the second reservoir again and the pond is a pond again. Life is good.

A hiking tips and more...

2009-04-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

When you are hiking a marked trail and you come upon a stack of sticks laying across the trail look around for a trail marker. There are times when a marked trail will be changed or a trail will follow an old tote road for a while and then turn and the tote road keeps going straight and people not paying attention will miss the turn on the marked trail. Trail maintainers will lay brush down across the trail to stop this from happening. There are a couple of these at Pilot Knob Ridge that I have installed, but every year people will step right over them and walk out somewhere where they shouldn't be. Remember to always keep an eye on the trail markers. If you don't see one for a bit stop and find the last one and look for the next marker before you continue.

Great day to be in the woods. Cool, sunny and just plain pleasant. I check on the Pilot Knob Moose Letterbox and it was dry and waiting for long hikers to find it.

The Adirondack Almanack is four years old this week.

2009-04-13T17:07:00.000-07:00

The Adirondack Almanack is celebrating it's fourth anniversary this week.

This website has a wealth of information both current and historical regarding the Adirondack region. If you have never been to this site stop by this week and check it out.

http://www.adirondackalmanack.com/

Ideas to become mentally and physically prepared for a long Lb search

2009-04-11T19:33:00.000-07:00

You may be one of those letterboxers who really would like to look for that Lb that is off the beaten path, but you are little nervous about going into the deep woods. In this blog entry I am going to give you some tips that will hopefully help you become a little more comfortable with the idea of going out and getting those letterboxes that are a couple of miles off-road. I want to use my letterbox at the Pilot Knob Ridge Preserve that is owned by the Lake George Land Conservancy as an example of how I would prepare of a trip in the woods looking for this Lb will take you. The total trip is about 4 miles and the beginning 0.75 mi is a little on the steep side, but the trails are well maintained and well marked. I know as I am a Volunteer Preserve Steward and I am on this piece of the Southeastern Adirondacks a couple times a month.

So I will answer some hypothetical statements I believe that people may ask themselves and then answer them.

I don’t feel comfortable going into the woods.

If you feel uncomfortable going into the woods, do not go alone, bring a friend. This applies to experienced hikers also. This is the number one rule when hiking in the High Peaks region of the Adirondacks, so you should not feel bad because you don’t want to go it alone.

Let someone at home know your itinerary. When you are expected back, making sure that you leave enough of a cushion to allow you to enjoy the unexpected. After that time has past that person will call the authorities and let them know where you are and how late you are and they will take it from there.

You have a partner, and someone at home is going to alert the authorities if you are late, now it may take time for the rangers to find you that is why when you are going into an area for the first time you will have a little Possibles kit with you. That will contain some waterproof matches, high energy food an emergency blanket, knife, some twine and water purification tablets. You will also have in you pack rain gear and some extra weather appropriate cloths. So that if you do stumble off the trail and you do become lost you may be uncomfortable and scared, and never are going to go back into the f$&king woods again, but you will have an adventure that you will tell your friends and family about when the handsome or actually now a days pretty ranger finds you and takes you out.

In other words and stated a little more briefly, you are prepared for the worse and that it in itself should give you comfort.

When I come to a steep section of the trail I hate it.

Here is the mind over matter thing. The beginning of the Pilot Knob Ridge trail has some steeper spots in it. The steepness of the trail coupled with your unfamiliarity with the length of the trail makes the hike up to the Gazebo seem a lot longer than it really is. The hike up to the clearing is only 0.75 mi long and will get your blood going and yes you may even work up a little sweat. Good! Your body needs to be pushed a little and if you are in good health a little exertion like this is what the doctor ordered, and for me literally ordered. When you come to a steep section that makes you think about turning around, do not think about the steepness, just take small steady steps and slowly chip away at the hill. Do not worry yourself one bit if the group is getting a little ahead of you and you are the caboose. We all have and will be there. They will stop for you and let catch up. A lot of people, who are in okay shape, but they only hike infrequently are the hurry up and wait type of hiker and they really want a slower person in the group to allow them time to suck wind while you chug away up the hill. I am grossly over simplifying this, but I have run into this enough times to mention it here.

Now if you really wish to do some long letterboxing that requires you to hike more than a mile and you a are reluctant because you are afraid you can not handle it physically, go for a 30 minute walk every night, more if you have time, but that will get your legs in enough shape to be able to handle any moderate hike at a slow to moderate pace.

I really want to look for a letterbox, and I am beginning to become comfortable on the trail, but I am a little reluctant to go to an unfamiliar location.

The letterbox clues are the beginning of understanding where you are going. Use the internet to search for trail descriptions. If a letterbox is hidden in the Adirondack region of New York State the Adirondack Mountain Club has detailed trail descriptions of hundreds of trails in books for sale or at the library and on-line for free. Pilot Knob Ridge is published in the ADK’s Eastern Section trail guide. By reading the trail descriptions you will have fewer surprises and know what to expect. You will know that this steep section does not last for ever, that there are sharp switchbacks in the trail that you will need to pay attention.

Now if the box you wish to hunt for has no trail description and the clue is not detailed, but you will not be put off, get a topographic map of the area and study the trail that you wish to look for the Lb on. Trust me this is not as hard as it sounds but understanding and map and compass will give you one more tool that you have that will allow you to enjoy the hunt for the box and the trail itself on your journey. Skill with map and compass takes time and you should practice using and reading these important tools. Have knowledge of how to use a map and compass will give you yet another layer of confidence.

I am not put off by hiking, but sometimes you have to go off the trail to look for the letterbox and I am worried that I may not find the trail again.

This is something that you should defiantly be cognizant of and is something that I have run into hunting and geocaching. Last year I was geocaching in an area that I was familiar with and have been on the trail that leads to the area of the geocache many times. I reached a bend in the trail and had to go about 300’ off the trail to locate the geocache. When I was done I headed out to the t rail and missed it, I had to use the GPS’s track back feature to relocate the trail. What if the GPS failed I would knew what to do to relocate the trail, but it would have been more difficult than it needed to be.

What happed and what should I have done? When In reached the point that I was going to leave the trail I should have looked at the direction that I was going to be going and take a bearing with a compass. Shoot a landmark like a unique boulder or tree. Also look for something near the trail that would be a defining landmark. Go to that point and keep going if you need to use your compass until you are where you need to go. Before you leave the point that you just sighted look back at your “back bearing to the trail so you know what to look for. You get the idea you will use the back bearing to get back to the trail.

It is easy to become excited when you are in close proximity to the treasure, but that is the time to slow down and take your time. This step will prevent you from getting lost.

Now with that said, use a map and know where the roads and lakes and streams are on the map for instance on Pilot Knob ridge, if you for some reason lost the trail on the orange trail you would go west as this will take you out to Pilot Knob road and Lake George, and from there you will be able to find your car.

All this information are just ideas to get you started. Start with easy trails that are very well marked and in fairly civilized area and them begin to go to more and more challenging hikes. If possible join a hiking group like the Adirondack Mountain Club and go with experienced hikers or maybe you have a friend that is an avid hiker who would love to take you along and show you some skills.

The Pilot Knob Moose Letterbox is a good box to go after if you are a little nervous, but really want to go for a hike in the woods. Good luck and let me know if there is anything more that you would like to know.

Great Letterboxing Idea.

2009-04-05T06:21:00.000-07:00

New York Letterbox Hiking Challenge Patch launched by Jackbear is an excellent idea!! See contact information below and in the side menu. Check out his blog for the complete information. Jackbear blog about how to earn this patch.

I have long wished that there would be more letterboxes planted in areas of interest that required a little more hiking than many of the boxes located in my area do. I understand why many boxes are planted where they are, very near the road or in parks. Many boxers themselves are reluctant to venture in to the woods too far; also many of the boxes that are planted deep in the woods are not visited that often and are a little more difficult to maintain. Let's face it many new boxers and I was one myself, want to visit their box and see the log book full of visitors. That is not going to happen with the deep woods hides. I have one the Fishbrook Lb that has not been found in two years and the hike in is not that bad.

Any how I think that Jackbear's idea of a hiking challenge patch is a great idea, that will hopefully get more people out hiking. Not only for the sake of looking for letterboxes, but to learn new skills and to have a fun filled adventuresome day that does not cost very much! Yes hiking is cheap, you just have to learn a little about hiking safety and you will have all you need to enjoy hours of fun outside, away from technology, and yes giving your body the exercise that it craves.

Information that you need to know about how to earn your New York Letterbox Hiking Challenge Patch . This is posted with permission by Jackbear.

According to Jackbear's rules this is what you have to do to earn his NY patch.

The guidelines? - Each foot mile you hike in NY while letterboxing counts.
You keep track, and this patch is on the honor system. We won’t challenge your
numbers, but you should challenge yourself. We recommend that you only count
miles on the trail to and from letterboxes in NY, NOT miles driven to
letterboxes…this is a “hiking/letterboxing” patch. We also encourage
participants to make hikes that are at least one mile or more (i.e. 0.5 miles to
a letterbox, and back)…yes, this is also a “challenge” patch. Miles can be
counting finding, planting, and maintaining letterboxes.
- Challenge Patches will be available for both residents and non-residents completing a challenge.
- Start date for counting begins today, April 2 2009. Hikes while letterboxing before
this date should not be included.

- Patches can be ordered by sending an SASE to Jackbear for a $3. Payment can be via paypal, cash, check, or money order.

-Your SASE can be mailed to John Ballou, 200 Hillside Ave. Rochester, NY 14610.

Patches will also be available at gatherings in NY attended by Jackbear, Scout,
or Sahalie.
Contact information for Jackbear

Yet another reason to letterbox.

2009-04-04T13:17:00.000-07:00

I went up to the Lake George Land Conservancy's preserve at Gull Bay to pick up a letterbox that I have been looking forward to looking for, for a while. Today I was not disappointed with a fine couple of hours of hiking, letterboxing, birdwatching and yes geocaching all in a little tiny nature preserve.

I found the letterbox easily, it was hidden in a great place and had a very nice hand carved stamp. After I found the box I went caching. The GC was located on the opposite side of the preserve which allowed me to have a pleasant hike along old tote roads to a vantage point that offered a stunning view of the Great Blue Heron nesting grounds.

Not only did I find the caches and letterbox, but I saw deer, grouse and of course a pleura of great blue heron. All in all a great letterboxing/geocaching day!

Thoughts on Geocaching

2009-03-29T19:08:00.000-07:00

I did some trail maintenance this weekend ant the Pilot Knob Ridge Preserve and while I did this I also looked for two new GC's. I am seeing a trend that I do not care for too much, that being that cachers are over populating certain areas.

On the 200 something acre preserve that I help to maintain, there are now 5 caches, one brings you to that special place, the rest are stuck in the woods, and one is in the kiosk. When I first began geocaching and letterboxing 4 years ago I liked the discovery of those new places that are known to a few, but are still special, or the thought that goes in to making a multi-cache that takes you on an awesome adventure. That GOOD caches are becoming diluted with the pleura of GC's out there that are hidden simply for the sake of hiding a cache. I don't bother hunting for roadside caches or caches placed in areas that I have already been or micro's.

The problem for me is two years ago a majority of the caches were interesting now they are the exception. Geocaching for me is something that I do now if it is near to a place that I am hiking, but I do not go out of my way to cache or look for boxes anymore. It really is too bad, because there are some many places that are interesting that do not have a stashed item on them that could, but with the volumes of junk caches out there are even more difficult to find. I fear that the popularity of the sport is going to be its demise. The GC lords need to space the single caches further apart, and to coordinate better with letterboxers for the sake of both activities

First Hike of the Season

2009-03-22T11:06:00.000-07:00

After a very quiet winter with me at war with my lower back I am finally able to get out and hike.

Today I went up the little Pilot Knob Ridge preserve that I am a volunteer for and did my first loop around all the trails. I was very happy seeing all the trails in excellent shape. I won't have to spend the first few weekends up there hacking blowdown.

I am looking forward to getting up north and we are planning a 5 day trip on the NPT so I have a lot to look forward to this summer.

I was happy with my winter conditioning program, I was out of breath in a couple of spots, but not bad really. Of course I was taking it easy the first time out. I will push it a little more next week.

Just Back From Vacation

2009-01-03T10:57:00.000-08:00

I just returned from a 21 hour drive from Fla and after a wonderful two week Vacation. Most of what we did was theme park related but we did some outdoor related activities as we explored the Central Florida. I will post them this week and yes I will spare you the family photo session.

Just wanted to let everyone what has been going on.

The North Country National Scenic Trail Info

2008-11-30T18:37:00.000-08:00

Here are some links and information regarding the North Country National Scenic Trail.

This came from the DEC Website:

The draft NCNST Plan/GEIS for the Adirondacks will be the subject of 3 public meetings:

Wednesday, December 5th, 6:30-8:30pm, DEC Office, 232 Hudson St., Warrensburg.

Thursday, December 6th, 6:30-8:30pm, Town/Village Office Bldg., 13149 State Route 12, Boonville.

Friday, December 7th, 2-4pm, DEC Central Office, PA-129A, 625 Broadway, Albany

Website with all the information you need including the draft plan: The North Country National Scenic Trail

Also the public comment period ends on 2/15/2008

So if you have issues with this plan you will want to read the draft plan on the DEC website and make sure to make your comments to the contacts specified on the DEC Website

The North Country National Scenic Trail

2008-11-30T16:01:00.000-08:00

This is a trail system that is a east-west version of the Appalachian Trail. This trail beginning in North Dakota and runs currently into the Finger Lakes region of New York State. The next leg of this trail is being planned through the Adirondacks to Crown Point. One of the routes that are being planned is through the West Canada Lake region I am not sure exactly which trail they would like to route this through, but it looks like that the NCNST will cross the NPT at South Lake and go east via the French Louie Trail. There are three other routes being planned and I think that the general feeling is that the State does not want the trail routed through here, but I don't know that from any direct communication.

My feeling on this is mixed. I do not think that this trail will bring in the huge numbers of thru hikers, however, if the NCNST portion that leads into the W.C. Lakes area makes parking and access easier, this may make this remote, glorious area more accessible by others who have no interest in hiking the NCNST. The nice thing about areas like the West Canada Lake area is that it is so difficult to get to so that only those who are more serious outdoors men will work to hike in. Well worth the work. I worry that if the State takes too much of the work out, that this area and areas like the West Canada Lakes will loose their remoteness that make them so special to people who are willing to work to get to them.

Right now the route is up for public comment and I think that after the route will be announced and work will begin. Most of which, I believe, will be from volunteers from the ADK along with the already stretched thin DEC crews.

I will keep and eye on the goings on a little closer and report back as I learn more myself.

Checks on Letterboxes and the other hunting season waring!!

2008-11-02T13:53:00.000-08:00

I check my Col. Williams and Fort George Park Letterboxes today and both were dry and in good shape and look like they had a lot of visitors this year. There was one thing for both of these boxes. They were both left out on top of the ground!! Please re hide in the described hiding spot as good or better than you found it. Fort George Park could have easily been seen by a muggle. I am glad now that I painted the lid black.

While I was doing this I also took my dog for a walk. I cut down toward Lake George and came out at a DEC auxiliary parking lot at a swamp that I used to trap 30 years ago. My dog charged into the water and I ran after him, and noticed that the area he was in was a wet area from a fresh beaver dam and he ran down a beaver run. I instinctively looked down and there it was a leg hold trap. My dog luckily jumped over it. He was coming out and heading right fom the trap. I grabbed it and allowed him to get out and then put the trap back. What the hell was I thinking! It is trapping season in this area and you don't bring dogs next to any backwoods water. Also, walk with you dog on a leash if you are in a no hunting area as there could be traps out there off the trails.

I was an idiot!. I could have caused my dog a bunch of pain, I also disturbed a trapper's set...I had to sorry buddy...I do not trap anymore, but I am pro trapping and hunting. These are the primary methods to control wildlife populations. You may not like it but it is the best way to keep the numbers in check. By doing that trappers help keep wildlife population healthy and keep diseases such as rabies from becoming a concern.

Anyway leash your dog for their safety.

A little thinking on a rainy NON HIKING day...damn!

2008-10-25T07:00:00.000-07:00

This past summer and fall has been wonderful for me as far as getting up in to the high peaks and other parts of the Adirondacks which I love. I have become in better shape, I now have hiking buddies, one who is very gung-ho. They are all my age and have similar issues finding time to go hiking; I think that what I really need to do is begin to make friends with some of the ADK members. This is hard for me as I am a classic introvert. There are functions that our local Glens Fall Chapter has that I should just go to meet people, or just go on one of the organized hikes. But I seem to keep finding and excuse not to. I really don’t like the idea of going up with a group of 8 people that I have not met. I would rather go in a small group of three or four people.

I think that what I am going to do is volunteer for the local work ADK days, and go to the trail work seminar and the leave no trace course that the ADK offers in the spring. These situations are easier for me to meet people, than at a dinner or other function. Something about working next to someone that for me is easier to make a new friend.

To you people who are extraverts being shy really sucks the big one.

I also think that I need to organize my outings more . I am not saying right now that I wish to be a 46r, as if I do I have an obsessive tendency and I do not need to do that right now. With that said I think that I am going to be more efficient with my hiking to ...ummm see more interesting places…yes that’s it. I have 7 high peaks now (it doesn’t count that I hiked Algonquin twice this year) and I want to hike more. I also have 2 sections of the NPT done and I want to do more next year. I am not a winter hiker I think that I will concentrate my efforts this winter on keeping and getting in better shape and in the early spring to take care of the preserves and once mud season is done, hit the trails. All I need is that little thing time.

Being in the Season

2008-10-18T18:20:00.003-07:00

When I graduated from college I took a job as a land surveyor. It started out as an outside job and that is just what I wanted as I was looking for that type of job. One of the features that I liked about working outside was I became more in tune with the environment: Really the seasons. I felt the bite of winter, the explosiveness of spring, the lushness of summer, and the abundance of fall. I lost that for a while.

Summer for me even when I was young always met work and I really didn’t like summers back then or up until 5 years ago. Summer met hard work in hot conditions whether it was in the field as a surveyor or in the inferno of a bread bakery that I worked at for ten years. I first was in a hurry for time to pass as most young people are because I and they seem to be in a hurry to pay their dues so they may attain an artificial goal that they have set for themselves. Then I would wish summer away as it was so hectic and hot. There is a point to this I promise please read on. I found myself watching the seasons go by faster and faster and now at middle age I would like them to slow a bit. I am sure that the feeling of time slipping by too fast is very common among people of our age.

Up until 5 years ago I would look forward to the cooler weather of September and could not wait for my favorite month to come, October so I could enjoy the cool weather, Halloween and all the stuff that goes with being in fall in the Northeast. Until 5 years ago I let this time be too busy, and all of a sudden it would be late October and our Halloween decorations were not put up and we hurried to decorate and then, poof it was Thanksgiving and I remember thinking to myself, “Next year I will enjoy the season more.” Next year came and went and I would repeat this phrase.

When I hit 40 I basically said enough of this crap! I am going to enjoy each an every season regardless of work and whatever became an obstacle in my enjoyment of the outside in the season. How did I do this one of you may ask?

I first took charge of physical self. I started watching what I ate and walked more. It was during these walks, once I was in better shape that I began to pay attention to the entire environment. I noticed the trees; the birds; animals; smells and a plethora of other outdoor stimulations that tickle the senses and made me aware of my surroundings. Besides my physical self I at this time seemed to work on my mental self with regards to immersing myself within my surroundings. One of the actions that I have taken for myself was to become a volunteer for the Lake George Land Conservancy as a Preserve Steward for a local land preserve. I would go up and do work on the trails, or just go up there for some exercise, I make sure that I go up there once a week. This has helped me immerse myself in the seasons again almost the same way I was in tune with my environment when I was a surveyor 15 years ago. I feel the seasons change because I now notice the strength of the sun when it shines on me or notice the different smells of the season. Each season has a smell and feeling to it. Something that outdoorsman, farmers, loggers and the like know and understand. I now, even when I take my Newfoundland for a walk in the neighborhood just simply immerse myself in the moment of the walk; to take in the seasonal sensations and not think about anything; to exist and observe in the moment. I think that this is just another way of living the old saying “Stop and smell the roses.” I would like to add to that stop and smell the roses before your life passes you by.

All I can say is that I am enjoying each season now for what it is. Even when I drive to work I will roll the windows down so I can get a hint of the smells that the world gives to me. That way I am enjoying the world much more.

Pooping in the woods...

2008-10-09T17:20:00.001-07:00

Pooping and for the ladies peeing in the woods the wrong way I think is the reason the DEC is developing such stringent regulations on camping in the High Peaks to control the human impact on the Flowed Land Corridor. On a recent trip into the campsites around Uphill lean-to I found a lot of unburied toilet paper close to the campsite and even within the campsite proper. Come on people even a dog doesn’t crap or pee where it sleeps. With all the hiking I did this summer and the trail work that I did on the Lake George Land Conservancy’s preserves, I spent a good amount of time on the trails, and 98 percent of the litter I saw was tp.

If you are a newbie to the woods tp is biodegradable, but will be visible for months after it is dropped on the ground. Also, please do your business off the trail. You never know who will be walking around the corner.

I would like to put forth and idea. The hikers of the area will hate it but I think that this idea would be better than what the DEC seems to be doing in the Flowed Lands Corridor, namely limiting where you can camp.

The idea is to make hikers and campers take a hiking course to allow them to purchase a hiking license. This course would be similar to a hunter’s safety course and would be taught by the DEC or approved organizations like the ADK. There are many other items that could be taught that could actually save people lives. I also think that if hikers are more comfortable with the woods they will be a little more comfortable going off the trail to take care of their personal business.

Information that could be covered:
-Proper clothing
-being prepared
-proper gear
-how to poop in the woods
-bear safety
-using a map and compass
And many, many other topic that would be important for the new hikers

Wright and Algonquin

2008-10-05T18:05:00.000-07:00

Today a friend and myself climbed Wright Peak and Algonquin in the Adirondacks. This was my second time up Algonquin this summer. My buddy hasn't climb Algonquin yet and the first time I climbed it we didn't have an opportunity to climb Wright so this time up I bagged that peak.

One of the things that I was a little concerned about was the tops of the High Peaks above 4500 feet were covered in new snow. We had the right cold weather gear but didn't have any creepers. Actually, there was a little ice on Algonquin, but the snow was only a couple of inches at the top. It did make the peak beautiful and it gave us the feel of the coming winter. Here are some pics.

The Flowed Lands from Algonquin

Lake Colden

Algonquin from Wright

The Heart Lake Vally in it's Fall splendor

Skylight!!!!

2008-09-27T10:50:00.000-07:00

On Saturday the 20th of September my trail mates and myself went on a little adventure into the Flowed Lands to climb Skylight and Grey peaks in the Adirondack High Peaks. We went in at the Tahawus trailhead and planned on either staying at the Uphill lean-to or the Feldspar lean-to or in one of the campsites around these two shelters. The hike into Lake Colden was not bad, a sight steady climb, and the trail is in good shape. Near Lake Colden we passed a new Lean-to and a new designated campsite.

Lake Colden looking N, early the second day.

At this time we were noticing that all the lean-to's and campsites that we had passed were filled right up and it was at this time that I was a little worried about where we were going to stay.

Now the trail became difficult, especially with backpacks on. While difficult it was rewarding with some of the views that this route afforded us.

In fact some of the gorges were 150 feet deep in spots.

We made camp at a tent site just before the Feldspar lean-to. It was a bit off the trail and we had to move some logs to make room for our tents. We had our site set up, had lunch and headed off to climb Skylight with our light packs. Just before we reached the Four Corners we arrived at Lake Tear of the Clouds. At the outlet we found the cairin that marks the beginning of the trail to Grey Peak.

Outlet of Lake Tear of the Clouds

Skylight was just about .75 mi. ahead and we were on top of the summit before we knew it and we were greeted with spectacular views. Also, there were very few people as it seemed that Marcy had all the rest of the hikers in the region. (We found out from a ranger that most of the hikers actually went up Algonquin Mt.)

Redfield Mt???

Mt Marcy

Mt Colden and the Mac Intyre Range

When we were ready to leave we decided that we didn't have time to do Grey and headed to the camp as it was pushing 4 pm when we started off the mountain.

We arrived hungry and immediately began making dinner. During this time two parties walked up to our site and one asked if there was room and the other, well that SOB just marched right into our site and looked around and said "Well no room for us." and walked out. That pissed me off, but our more experienced hiker said that's the way it is here since the DEC is limiting where and how you can camp. In all that was the only little cloud to a literally cloudless day.

When we were getting ready to call it a night we noticed odd old scratches on the trees, which turned out to be bear claws as they climbed the tree for the bear bags. We use a bear canister. We slept, no incidents, but we slept lightly.

There were a lot of these marks on all the trees in the camp

The next day we hiked out and even though the trail up beat us up a little we had a great time. Another glorious adventure.

Day 4 The Hike Out

2008-09-26T19:00:00.000-07:00

All that rain that we had didn't go anywhere before we hiked out. The trail was covered with water. The little dried up stream beds were now fill with 2 and 3 feet of water. My trail companions were very resourceful at keeping their feet dry. There were more industrious than a platoon of SEABEE's and could build a bridge out of thin air. After about 3 miles into our odyssey, I had enough with the high wire bridges and started to slog through the water and once my feet were wet I just marched in a straight line. Guide saw things my way and followed suit, but Trailblazer, must had walked an extra 3 miles to keep her feet out of water.

Even though the extra water made the travel more difficult, it also made the woods more beautiful. We stopped many times to gaze at the small waterfalls that were normally the providence of the spring runoff and not common in mid-August. We also stopped many times to see the huge trees, some 4 and 5 feet in diameter. I have never seen so many trees so large.

We made it out tired and footsore, but very happy. This 4 day trip into the heart of the Adirondacks was a very fulfilling experience for me. One that I will remember and repeat soon.

Day 3 17 Aug 2008 Spruce Lake

2008-09-01T18:37:00.000-07:00

I woke up first to a beautiful morning. I really wish I had a fishing pole right at that moment as the lake was like glass and I knew it was full of hungry trout. We petty much had the same routine that we did the previous day, only I felt even better than the day before. We headed out to Spruce Lake along the NPT.

The weather was nice and the trail, though muddy at first dried out and we had an easy walk into Spruce Lake. The woods were as interesting and full of variety as the last two days and I really enjoyed the walk into the lake. Just before we reach the Spruce #3 lean-to we found a couple of boats chained to trees. We wondered how the hell some determined person got these in. We stopped and had lunch at Spruce #3, which was gorgous and would have made for a nice place to camp, but Guide and Trail Blazer wanted to go to Spruce # 1 at the S end of the lake, so we headed S. we made a quick visit to Spruce #2 to check it out and moved on to Spruce #1.

We were very disappointed when we reached Spruce #1 as the Lean-to was set far away from the lake and was built in an area that water would drain if it rained. You could tell by the way the ground looked. We had to make a decision here as we did not like the site but it was 9.5 mi from the trailhead, while not only would we have to back track ¾ mi, but we would have a 10.3 mi walk out and for my footsore companions there were not happy about either choice, but they thought it was best to go back to Spruce #2, which was a nice site, but the lean-to needed work as some of the floorboards have no support underneath. The decision proved to be the most correct one and is a reason why it is good to hike with experienced people.

We didn’t get much sleep that night as, just after dinner and right when we were settling down to a comfortable night in camp, we heard thunder and saw flashes of lightening. The first storm was the most violent and only lasted for 20 minutes, but we had straight-line winds, a lightening strike 150 feet away from the lean-to, ½ hail and torrential rain. We were dry and comfortable in our lean-to. We had a brief respite and we watched trout jumping just off shore. Oh I wish I had a damn pole. About 45 minutes later another round hit, but it was not as intense, but it rained for another 10 hours. We didn’t sleep much, but we were snug as a bug in a rug in our shelter.

Day 2 Cedar Lake to South Lake -17 Aug 2008

2008-08-25T16:33:00.000-07:00

I woke up early and felt great! The mist on Cedar Lake was just clearing and the loons were still calling to each other from time to time. We actually all got up at the same time, about 6 am, started a fire and began breakfast. Which for me was oatmeal that I packaged myself with brown sugar and salt. I would boil my water and place it in the pot an let it sit until it thickened. This worked well. My trail mates had coffee and croissants. In fact they had a remarkably varied diet. I on the other hand had a remarkably same diet. The oatmeal was fine each morning, but I need to work on lunch.

We were not in a hurry and took our time packing up and simply enjoyed the fine sunny morning. It was at this time that we met our first hiker, a tall Canadian solo hiker who was loaded down and moving fast. He stopped for a moment and warned us about the trail conditions south of Cedar Lakes. He told us that the trail was muddy all the way to Spruce Lake. He moved on and we started on our way South. He was right the trail was muddy, but manageable. One of the things that we enjoyed was how fast the forest and habitats changed. One minute you are in an old growth hardwood, the next you are in an area with stunted spruce, that are densely packed in a lowland wet area. A half mile later it would change again. We would take a moment to notice this and anything else that we saw. That is yet another thing that I really admire about my trail mates; they stop and observe and notice the littlest things. This is something that I really like about being in the woods. It really was nice being with people who were not as worried about getting from point A to point B, and enjoyed the trip as much as the destination.

We reached the trail head for section 5 at a clearing at the West Canada lakes area. This was the location of a DEC interior outpost. All that was left was some rocks marking the foundation. An exciting moment for me was to see and touch a fireplace built the 19th century Adirondack character French Louie, whom I had read he biography as a teenager and I was very happy to walk some of the woods that he trapped and made a living off the bounty of the Adirondacks.

Now a little story. Before we left my two companions made tuna sandwiches with packaged mayo and pre-drained tuna. Now Guide mentioned that they must eat them within 4 hours to be safe. On the trail you can loose track of time and time actually goes by a lot faster than you would think. Trail Breaker yelled back that it was 2:15 and that 4.25 hrs have pasted since the sandwiches were made. Guide said that they could not eat them. Now is that splitting hairs? NO! That was the wise and right decision 10 miles away from anywhere. They were a little cranky for a bit, but had enough other food that it was not even a blip in the day. In fact not very far down the trail we crossed a long bridge across Mud Lake and were all treated to one the best views in the Adirondacks as we looked out onto Mud Lake to the East and South Lake to the west. The tuna was forgotten. A short way past the bridge we found the South Lake Lean-to and this was a beautiful spot. This night I had plenty of energy to go and find a large amount of fire wood and we enjoyed a fine fire that night. While I was gathering firewood Guide went out and picked a mess of fresh wild blueberries that we were going to have with our breakfasts. After dinner we spent the remaining time looking at the birds and enjoying the wonders that this majestic forest was allowing us to enjoy.

Day 1 Wakely to Cedar Lake

2008-08-23T17:13:00.001-07:00

Day 1 15 Aug 2008

We have spotted a car at our end point in Piseco 32.5 miles south and began our treck at the ranger station at the Wakely Dam. For the sake of anonymity one of my hiking partners I will us the name Trail-Breaker because this person was lead on the trail for the entire trip; not only to keep us on the trail but most importantly to remove all the spider webs from the path. The other I will use the name Guide as this person has been to these places and many more in the Adirondacks. I give these names showing the greatest RESPECT to these two awesome people!

As I was saying we started down from Wakely Dam down a dirt road for a little ways before the dirt road turned into a path. This path took us through open hardwoods for the most part. One of the amazing things that we saw was a forest of huge birch trees. Some had a 30” DBH. I have never seen birch trees this large and there was a forest of them! We also saw a great deal of animal sign in the muddy trail during our 9.5 mile hike into the second Cedar Lake Lean-to. We saw coyote tracts, moose scat and a fresh large, clear bear track. The trail was muddy, but the path mostly level with some rolling, but for the most part it was an easy hike in…if I was wearing a 20 pound pack, but oh no I was loaded down, baby…I had everything including the kitchen sink. I made it to the Lean-to in fair shape, but I was shot. No side trips today and now I know why they laughed at me. I barely had the energy to collect wood and at that the fire was small by my standards.

We set up our tents and stowed our gear in the lean-to and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon sitting quietly taking in all the Adirondack beauty that this little place had to offer. That afternoon the Adirondacks were very generous and for that I am thankful. We were entertained for hours by a mother loon teaching a young loon to fly. It was very interesting listening to the juvenile loon try and call like a loon. Trail-Breaker is very knowledgeable on birds and taught me a couple of calls to listen for like a chipping sparrow and geckos. Trail-Breaker also pointed out to me that the birds flitting around an island in the lake were least flycatchers, which would fly out, catch a bug and take it back to a tree and eat the bug and then fly out again…

We spent a nice evening made our freeze-dried meals, which are very good. I also saw where I could have lost 2.5 pounds of weight, I have an old school stove, while my two partners used a Pocket Rocket which weighs 14 oz and cooks all their meals. We sat around the fire and turned in at 9 pm. I was out at 9:01. I was a little worried about the next day as I was very, very tired. I woke a couple of times during the night to loons calling to one another, but I didn’t mind a bit.

I woke up at…

The Preperation for the NPT

2008-08-22T18:30:00.000-07:00

I just returned for one of the most wonderful experiences of my life. I just completed a 32 mile stretch of the Northville-Placid Trail (NPT) on a four day backpacking trip. This was so big that I will have to write about in sections in order to do it justice. I went on the trip with two incredible people that I would go hiking anywhere with. I think that instead of just being a narrative of the experience I will also write about my feelings and the many, many things that I learned.

Let’s start with the pre trip packing. This is real funny now, but then I was very tense and very worried. I wanted to make sure that I brought everything that I needed. I really did not want to get out there and not have something, especially when hiking with people with such experience. My experience is old school and really one or two night adventures. I had not done anything thing like this before. When I checked the weight of my pack it weighed 65 pounds. I really did not worry about my pack weight when I was in my 20’s. The max weight I was given was 55 pounds. I had to make some cuts. So, the ax, camera, GPS, some of my GORP and a shirt, lowered my pack weight to 57 pounds with 2 qts of water. That is what I had to live with.

You will see and with many chuckles from my trail-mates, I could have lowered the weight a lot more and would have been able to take my camera. That will have to wait.

Next I will write about the trip from Wakely Dam to the Lean-to at Cedar Lake.

One last thing. I had mentioned that there were some side trips around the different places that we were staying, including looking for a geocache in Fench Louie's Cave. My trail-mates just chuckled and said "sure."

Took a quick run up Black Mt.

2008-08-09T19:31:00.000-07:00

Today day was a rare day here in the Southeastern Adirondacks this summer...it didn't rain. I had an opportunity to hike Black Mt from the Lakeside trail and I took it. I used the opportunity to check a letterbox that I planted at the summit, but in July a boxer said that they were unable to locate it.

The air was cool and crisp and the blue sky was only sprinkled with the harmless clouds when I started. I hit this hard as I didn't have a lot of time, plus I wanted to get a good aerobic workout. I made it 3.3 miles up in 1 hr 20 min, without much problem. Actually it took me almost as long to hike down as the rocks were very slippery. I usually don't like to hike this way but since this was such a short hike, and I have a major hiking trip later this summer I needed the workout more than the scenery. HOWEVER! I was able to spend a beautiful and quiet 25 min on the top alone enjoying the views of the Adirondacks and White Mts in stunning solitude.

Also, I am happy to say that the Black Mt Firetower letterbox is sound and in great shape. Infact no one has found it as yet.

A couple of days in the woods

2008-07-12T19:30:00.000-07:00

I had a couple of great days outdoors. Yesterday I took a trip to the Great Sacandoga Lake to do some letterboxing. After stopping at the Saratoga County park in Edinburg to find four of the five boxes of the Seven Narnian Lords, we headed up to the Racquet Lake area and did a little searching up there. Found two more boxes there in the Limpkin Lake area. This region is a real nice part of the Adirondacks that is a great place to visit. We scoped out some future kayaking areas, which are plentiful in this region. I hope to return later this summer to do a little paddling.

The two letterboxes I found in this area were Beaver at Fawn Lake and Bear at Babbling Brook.

Now today I spent a little time hiking 5.25 mi into the Lake Colden from Tahawus at the upper works trailhead. Had a great time hiking in and as you will see the scenery was beautiful. It was a little humid today and me and my hiking partner thought it would be nice to do a little exploring. Saw a bear cub print and there is a monument erected in 1845 to honor the accidental death of a family member during a hunting expedition. I didn’t take a picture of that out of respect.

This is an image looking toward Avalanche Pass from the flowed lands

This is from the Lake Colden Dam.

Mount Colden. Steep Hike in from this side.

A cloud capped Algonquin in the distance.

Old Dam at the upper worksOld Blast furnace. It is bigger than this image indicates. Sorry nothing to give it scale.

All and all a real nice two days in the Adirondacks!!!

Algonquin!!!!

2008-06-21T20:17:00.000-07:00

Today I did a High Peak, finally! Algonquin Mt near Lake Placid, NY to be exact. Number 2 on NY highest mountains…Marcy is next. I want to talk about a couple of things about this hike as while it was a perfect adventure, it had moments that remind us why we hike prepared and today illustrates the importance of preparation.

The hike itself was wonderful. We began at Heart Lake and hiked up a well marked and well used trail. We started early and we had the trail to ourselves. The trail as you get within 1.5 miles of the peak becomes steep and very rocky. Both boulders and some of the trail is along exposed bedrock greeted each footfall. As you break through the tree line, well before the summit you are treated with spectacular views. The views from the summit are nothing more than stunning. There was a Summit Steward up there, basically keeping you off the fragile alpine vegetation. We sat down out of the wind and ate our lunch and were sitting back to relax and enjoy the scenery. That is when I saw the rain coming and we sat and waited out for a 20 minutes but decided to head back down the now wet and slippery rocks. The hike down was uneventful, but the entire hike was nothing less then wonderful for me.

I was even going to attempt a letterbox that was placed at the summit. However, as we were the only ones up there the Summit Steward kept his eye on us, so it was hard to look for the box. Then we were chased off by the rain. What can you do?

Today gives me an opportunity to discuss a little the importance of being prepared when you are going out and hiking. The weather forecast for today was sunny, warm 80 F with a slight change of showers. Remember that the weather man lies. When you are hiking into the high peaks you have to have rain gear and a fleece jacket. Both are a must. These summits above the tree line are windy and chilly and you can get hyperthermia quickly if you are not prepared. I didn’t bring some gloves and when my hands got wet they really got cold and from now on I am going to pack a light pair of gloves with me. This can happen even in July on a hot and humid day and remember that the weather is always different on the tops of those mountains. Bring extra food, clothes, water, rain gear and anything that you can think of that you may need up there.

Lastly, I didn’t spend a great deal of time trying to describe the scene that I saw up there on that mountain and for good reason. There is and never has been alive a wordsmith, photographer, or canvas artist that can even on an infinitesimal level capture the scenic vista that was laid before me. The feeling of the scene can only be felt and absorbed by your senses first hand. Any description or image is nothing more that a faint shadow of what is reality. Go and hike it and see for yourself!

Water is soooo important

2008-06-08T17:54:00.000-07:00

I just finished a post on some heavy trail work that I did on my Pilot Knob Ridge Blog, and I thought that it would be a good time to remind people that when they go out on an insanely hot day to bring and drink lots of water. When I was doing this trail work it was HHH and 90 F and I was moving heavy logs and cutting wood with an axe. In 5 hours I drank 4 qt of water and without being too graphic I sweated all, I mean all of it out. Now what is important is all the time I drank my water I was not very thirsty, but I made myself drink. When it is that hot when you feel thirst and you get that headache it is too late you are dehydrated.

I learned my lesson two weeks previous, I had brought only two qt with me and when I ran out I kept going for another 1.5 hrs until I had a headache and my legs began to cramp and I still had a 3 mile hike out. This time I made myself drink and drink a lot and when I ran out I was done with the trail work. 90 deg F and HHH weather is not something you want to mess with.

If I wish to stay in the woods longer next time on a hot day and work the way I did I will have to bring more water or plan my activities around where there is water more than I would if the weather was cooler.

Drink a lot and drink often.

Battling Black Flies

2008-05-26T17:27:00.000-07:00

Its black fly season here in the Northeast and they are annoying. Do not let them keep you from enjoying the outdoors and doing some of your favorite hobbies. I personally have high tolerance and can deal with them, but even I have my limits and have to go to the bug spray. Here is how I apply it. Since I am in the woods I can guarantee you that I am sweating and I don't like bug spray in my eyes. I apply the bug spray to my hat, yes wear a hat, wear a hat, wear a hat, to the back of you neck and on the side of you head including your ears. I don't apply it to my face. I then hit my arms, and even though I wear long pants and gaiters, I still spray there to keep the ticks off. This works fairly well with black flies and misquitos, but not deer flies, you will need a hat to stop them. Hat! Hat! Hat!

Now, even if its hot, you can wear long sleeve shirts, especially those made out of spots fabric that wicks moister away. It really is not that much hotter and you don't have to worry about your arms getting gnawed on.

Wear a bug head net. I am seeing more and more of them and no they are not a fashion statement, and you may look funny, but you won't be choking on black flies so who is the cool one now?!!!

Lastly, they are a pain but you are human and you have the ability to mentally prepare yourself and NOT let this little pest ruin your outdoor adventures.

A nice Hike on the Cat

2008-05-18T15:14:00.000-07:00

I had a nice adventure on Cat and Thomas mountains in Bolton Landing, NY. I went early as we were expecting bad weather later in the afternoon in the Southeastern Adirondacks. The trail up was covered with the orange newts that are common to the area.

The hike straight up to Cat Mt. was fairly clear and easy. This followed the orange and yellow trail markers. The blue ridge trail was an adventure as there were a lot of trees down on the trail making a rugged trail even more difficult to follow. I had to use my Adirondack senses to find the trail a couple of times so beware. Once this trail is cleared by the LGLC, it will be glorious. Not so much elevation gain, but a nice woods trail. It is not for the novice hiker at this time however.

Had a good time, Cat Mt offers some very scenic views. Oh and I found 4 geocaches up there…just a bonus.

Gas saving tips

2008-05-12T20:11:00.000-07:00

Wow! The price of gas is beginning to make everyone rethink what you are going to do when you go boxing or geocaching. In fact it may even prevent many from enjoying these hobbies as much as the wanted to.

I was thinking about this today and here are some ideas that I am going to try to incorporate into my boxing and caching excursions.

Instead of just going after a box or two after work in a location that is more than 30 minutes away, plan on visiting that area when you have more time and do as many or all of the boxes in that area if you can.

Also, maybe you can drive out to an area and park and ride your bike around the area to search for the boxes. This way you will get to know the area a little better and you will get a little exercise to boot.

Plan your outing and trip to be as efficient as possible. Try not to back track

Combine letterboxing or geocaching with other reasons you are traveling to an area. For instance when I took a course at the CIA I had free time in the morning to cache and box and took advantage of it.

I am sure there are many other gas saving tips, please use the comment button on this post to let me know what they are and make this a two way conversation.

Sterilite's Ultra-Seal in the Field and testing

2008-05-10T05:32:00.000-07:00

Current Container rating PENDING

I used two Sterilites Ultra-Seal containers last week to see how they hold up. I made one modification to them as they have a steam vent on top of the lid. I just used a good outdoor sealing glue to shut it and seal off any possible leaks. This is the only lock type container that I can buy in the local stores right now, that is the size that I prefer to use. Snapware has a larger container, that I actually am using on a remote place, but it is a little large for most of the places I would like to hide.

Anyway at this moment the Sterilite Ultra-Seal has a rating of .....Pending

A Day Off Geocaching and Letterboxing

2008-05-06T17:19:00.000-07:00

I played hooky today as I really need a mental health day. So what did I do I went geocaching and letterboxing maintenance. I hiked into Fish Brook Pond today in Fort Ann New York and had a wonderful time. I found two Geocaches, Are We There Yet? GC17MND and A Little light at Bumps GC1786V on the way to way up, but I did run into a multi-cache that I could not find the first part of. O well the day was too nice and I am up here all the time so I will try again.

A while ago I stumbled upon some old topographic maps that are online and you can pint sections of them right off the net. Some were from the 20’s, 50’ and etc. When I was looking at the 20’s map I noticed that there was a building at Bumps Pond, but when I looked at the 50’s map, that building was gone. I being the nerd that I am, figured out the coordinates and went to see if I could find the remains of the building and voila I found a chimney within 75 feet of my GPS coordinate, and of course someone had placed a Geocache in that area. I thought that it could have been a secret find, but it seems that the fire place is a favorite camping spot.

Chimney at Bumps Pond Just off the trail

There are some interesting sites on the way to Fish Brook, the small kind that are interesting to look at but hard to describe. Like an old beaver pond, a stream flowing along a cliff face and etc. There are a lot of these along this route.

Some differnt sites

I went to Fish Brook to replace my Rubbermaid letterbox container with a Snapware container that will be more weather proof as the Fish Brook Letterbox LbNA #: 24673 is remote and not visited often. In fact to date it only has had one visitor in two years.

When I hiked out I when to my Inman Pond Letterbox LbNA #: 23911 and replaced the container with a lock and lock. I was surprised to find that the box has had a few visitors. One thing about the trail to Inman Pond was there are a few trees down across the trails. Not blocking access, but the DEC trail crews need to do some work in there.

All an all I really had a nice day.

Sleeping Beauty

2008-05-04T15:13:00.000-07:00

Today was supposed to be rainy, but of course the weatherman was a little wrong and it looked like it was going to clear up by noon. I called a friend and on impuse decided to hike Sleeping Beauty in Fort Ann and circle back via Bumps pond. We had a very nice hike, but saw a lot of blow down on the whole mountain. Also all the trails were very wet.

One of the real little treats is when we reached he summit we were all socked in by fog, but while we were up here it cleared off leaving us we some nice views of he mid-Lake George Region.

A bad day in the woods beats a good day at work

Letterbox hiding Advice

2008-05-02T19:29:00.000-07:00

When I began letterboxing a couple of years ago, one piece of advice that some letterboxing websites gave was to make sure that you take your time and find a good secure hiding spot. This simple suggestion that on the surface seems easy to follow, but for me and I am going to bet for most beginners, more difficult to put into practice. First, what makes a good hiding spot? I am not talking about the destination spot for the letterbox, but the actual hiding location for it.

1 A place that is hidden from accidental discoveries by muggles
2 One that protects the box from the elements and animals
3 A location that gives the boxer a little seclusion so he/she may box quietly and undisturbed away from curious onlookers.

I am sure that many boxers out there can add to this list but even with just these three items it sometimes can be difficult to satisfy all of the criteria. One little nugget of advice I remember reading was that you need to make your box as small as possible because hiding spots are hard to find and they are right. Especially about the hard to find part.

When I first started to box and made my first plant, I could not get the box planted in the woods, run home and write the up the clues fast enough. My first hide was under a log. Not too bad of a location, but the box did not get much protection from the elements and after the first winter it had a little water in it. Now, the box is in a more secure site and I am using a lock and lock to keep the box dry so far, but it still could be in a better location.

Ok, ok where am I with this? Using my experience I would like to make some recommendations on what you may try when you decide to plant a letterbox.

Number one, either go by yourself or make sure that the people that you are with are as into letterboxing as you are. Two cases in point: First I took my kids hiking to an interesting pond (Inman Pond Lb) and did not see a good hiding place jump out at me and began to search for a spot and as you may expect 10 minutes later they wanted to get moving and I had to literally make a hiding spot, one that I will change this year the next time I go up there. Another example is when I was hiking into a secluded pond (The Fishbrook Lb) with some friends and went to hide the box. Again the same problem, impatience and I found an okay spot, but not one that you want for a box that is not going to be visited that much. And yet again I will be changing the hiding position on that one also.

Next I would say to the perspective hider, be patient yourself and don’t become too focused on planting the box in an exact location. Go to where you want to bring the finder and then begin to search around that area, literally circle the area in an expanding spiral until you find a good hiding spot that meets all the criteria or as many as possible that you have set for the plant. This I just did when I planted my Prospect Mountain Environmental Series last weekend. On my third box I had a lot of trouble finding a spot where I wanted to bring people and with the larger container that I used, made finding a good hiding spot in that vicinity impossible. So, I used the area that I wanted to bring people to as a landmark and found a more suitable location for the plant a little further up the road. That entire process took me about an hour There were potential locations in there target area, like under a log and such, that I could have used, but really were not good locations.

A last little bit of advice is to use containers that are water tight, like Snapware, Lock and Lock and such, and make sure that there are only as big as you need. I personally use the 6x6 boxes or 5x7 sizes deep enough to allow a stamp and the Strathmore 3x5 art pad with a little room for hitchhikers. Yes, if you can, make sure your box is large enough to fit a hitchhiker in it, because some boxer will put them in your box whether it fits or not. (I am beginning to not like hitchhikers anymore.) Also, buy yourself some black spray paint for plastic. And spay a little on the box, especially if there are any bright colors on the box. This will help if an inexperienced boxer finds your letterbox and does not place it back as good as they should. This way with a little camouflage on it will be more difficult to be seen by muggles.

This blog article has gone on longer than I anticipated so I will end it here. So to sum up the important points when planting a box:

1 Be patient
2 Box with real boxers when planting
3 Take the time to find a good secure planting location
4 Be a little more flexible and creative when a target site does not have a good hiding spot.
5 Use only the size box that is necessary for your purposes and camouflage it a little.

Sterilite's Ultra-Seal possible letterbox container

2008-04-30T18:14:00.000-07:00

This is a food storage container that is the right size for letterboxing and seals like a lock and lock, but has a steam vent. Our local big box only carries this brand now and I cannot find lock and lock or snapware anywhere so I decided to give Sterilite's Ultra-Seal a try. I sealed the steam vent with glue and sealer and I know have two in the field right now.

I just checked on a snapware container that is semi-out in the open on a mountain top and after a tough northeast winter all the contents inside where bone dry and the box seemed in good shape. So right now it receives a 4-Stars rating as I indicate in my side bar. I will let you know how this item fairs. I personally like lock and lock the best.

The Prospect Mountain Environmental Series

2008-04-27T16:10:00.000-07:00

The boxes are ready

After about 5 months of thinking of this plant I have finally found the time to plant it.

My goal at the concept was to make it environmentally themed. I made 4 of the five containers from recycled food containers. I also am not going to include a logbook in all of the boxes as I am using the boxes in the series as a way to bring up some environmental point of issue and to help lead the boxer up the trail...like a trail of bread crumbs.

The issue of logbooks in all the boxes of the series was inspired by my doing a 13 box series and realized that when the boxes are just leading you along that a logbook in every box was a little redundant to me. That is why I only put the book in the first box and the fourth box. I place a log book in the fourth box and not the fifth because the fourth box had already been there and I was incorporating it into this series.

The tunnels at the trailhead

Another issue that came up in a forum was that some boxers would feel a little more comfortable going on a woods trail if there where landmarks and the boxes act as landmarks and a sort of trail marker for the boxer.

This area really changed from last year. When you get south of the second reservoir I immediately saw the damage from last winter's storms. A lot of beech trees were blown over. This will create some young habitat that will attract a lot of different animals.
Nature is the Boss

As I used older food containers, that were a little big, I really had to search to find good hiding spots, in fact I was not able to plant one of the in exactly where I wanted to as I really was searching for secure hiding spots that protected the containers from the elements. I am not as confident with the old food containers as I would be with a lock and lock. I really am a fan of the 6x6 lock-n-lock as they are easier to hide and secure from the elements. This experience helped teach me to find better hiding places for my future plants. I think that I will relocated two of my older plants some time this year.

An empty second reservoir

Well anyway I hope that you enjoy this series.

Gull Bay on Lake George

2008-04-26T19:26:00.000-07:00

Today I had a trail work day at the Gull Bay Preserve, owned by the Lake George Land Conservancy. This is one that I had never been to before and I had a great day working hard.

I had an opportunity to work with one of the LGLC’s professionals and was given a little training in waterbar maintenance. We also worked a little on a new yellow trail that took us along a ridge with some excellent views of a Blue Heron rookery. There also was some fresh beaver activity. In fact this area just teams with wildlife.

I was working today, but I am looking forward to taking the kids back to this wonderful preserve.

Prospect Series Ready to Plant

2008-04-13T12:21:00.001-07:00

Finally, I am ready to place the Prospect Mountain Environmental Series. I have an assortment of recycled containers and an idea of where and how I am going to place them. All I need is that all important and hard to come by ingredient: time. I am planning on releasing this series within the next three weeks. That will add 4 new boxes to an existing box planted on the back of Prospect Mt in Lake George NY. It also will connect to a separate box that I planted near the summit of Prospect Mt. Making a nice 6 box grab for box baggers.

My goal is to bring boxers up an alternative route to the top of Prospect Mountain that I have hiked all my life. It is up an access route that was use to service the long removed fire tower years ago. I also have another objective that I would like to achieve and that is to give people a cross section of what is going on environmentally in the Adirondacks. There will be splendor and beauty and a little ugliness that is both man made and from nature. I want to make the hiker aware of some of the problems that exist in this region, but make it fun while doing it.

I will post when planted.

LGLC Owl Prowl

2008-03-23T15:10:00.000-07:00

This last Saturday the LGLC had a program called the Owl Prowl that they originally scheduled at Pilot Knob Ridge, but due to icy trail conditions decided to hold the program at the Cat and Thomas Preserve on the west side of Lake George in Bolton Landing.

Our leader took us in to the preserve at twilight to a few locations that she had called owls before and had us wait off the trail, quietly, while she tried different owl calls. She was attempting to have them call back and hopefully get them to fly in and investigate. She explained that this time of year owls were beginning to pair up and mate for the season and by using certain calls they are more likely to call back.

We stopped at a few spots along the trial from the kiosk to a point about 0.75 miles in. Now while we didn’t have any luck, it gives you a different perspective being in the woods after dark on a clear night. The stars were beautiful and while the moon had not risen yet, the woods were still illuminated by the bright star lit sky. I camp in the late spring and summer and know what it is like to be in the woods after dark, but I don’t go camping in the winter and this experience just reminds me on how different and beautiful the woods look at different times of the day and year.

If you get a opportunity to go on a program run by the LGLC…go you will learn something

Pilot Knob Ridge

2008-03-16T10:27:00.000-07:00

I unexpectedly began my 2008 patrols at the Pilot Knob Ridge click the link in my sidebar for details...still not letterboxing yet...but soon!

March and still snow bound

2008-03-02T06:13:00.000-08:00

I haven't had much opportunity to enjoy the outdoors of late. There is 4 feet of snow on the ground right know and I have had to work on weekends to give my coworkers some vacation time. I also am not well outfitted for winter hiking...so what I am saying is that I have cabin fever real bad and I want the snow to go away.

Now I have been getting together my latest letterboxing project. I am going to turn the two letterboxes I have on the back of Prospect Mountain in Lake George, NY in to a 5 or six box multi place. I am going the theme it with and environmental educating color. This area really runs the gamut of abuse of the environment to nature at it's best and beautiful. I have the stamps carved and mounted and I am getting the containers prepared. I am going to place them as soon as the snow allows me too...sometime in late April????

See you then.

A New Year

2008-01-01T08:03:00.000-08:00

Another one came and went and for me I think it was a good year. One of the things that I did this year that I haven't done in the past is volunteer some of my time. It felt and feels great. This coming year I am planning on giving more time to the LGLC at Pilot Knob Ridge and I really want the trails there to be something that people really enjoy.

Letterboxing this year will be more finding and less planting. I am going to plant a series up on Prospect Mountain with a theme. What that theme is...well you will have to wait, but I have the stamps done and the containers all ready. I am just waiting for the spring. One thing that I am a little disappointed with letterboxing is the lack of letterboxes in remote locations and the lack of letterboxers who look for letterboxes in remote locations. I don't mean to say that I am down on letterboxing and many boxers have brought me to real special locations, but I will be searching for the mountain top and harder hike boxes this year and let the parks go and grab and go's be. Quality. Geocachers seem to place more in the areas that I want to go...well some will say why don't you geocache??? I will! But geocaching lacks the stamp which is one of the things that keeps me interested in letterboxing.

Buck Mt in November

2007-11-25T17:13:00.000-08:00

I went back up Buck Mountain, in Fort Ann NY today for a general hike and to see if I could find the Leaf Letterbox, that my son and I were unable to find this past May. I found it! It was exactly where the clues said it was, except you have to pay a little more attention to the landmarks and less to the pacing. One treat was I found a Hitchhiker there that was launched 2003! The logbook had many beautiful stamps in it and was wonderful to look for. I will hold on to the HH for the winter as there are not many boxers out there now and I want to get it into an active box so others will move it along.

The trip up Buck Mt was fairly good some icy spots and I went down in a stream and got wet, but it wasn't too bad. About 1.5 miles from the Katskill Bay trailhead the DEC has rerouted the trail to the summit due to erosion. I think that the new trail will be just as bad in 5 years as the DEC only cleared the trail thread but there are spots that need to be stabilized.

Here is a Late Fall view from Buck Mt.

Pilot Knob Ridge

2007-10-28T15:44:00.000-07:00

I patrolled the trails today and left my tools at home as it has been a while since I have just enjoyed the trails. I took a couple for pics for your enjoyment.

First though the trails are clear and is great shape. Take some time to hike the blue trail to the falls, the water is flowing.

A view of Lake George from the Gazebo

The Gazebo

Some fall color, even if it is on the ground

And yes with all the rain we have has in upstate New York, the falls are flowing.

Invasive Species how Letterboxers and Geocachers can help!

2007-10-21T03:42:00.000-07:00

I have been working as a volunteer trail steward for the Lake George Land Conservancy for over six weeks now and I love it! One of my responsibilities is to keep an eye out and destroy any invasive plant species that may invade the preserve. The LGLC has compiled a list of the top five most invasive plant species in our area and the list is at:

http://www.lglc.org/media/Terr-inv-chart.pdf

Right now purple loosestrife and shrubby honeysuckle are the two that I have seen and have had to deal with the most. The LGLC prints the brochure that I have linked to above and distributes them in their trail kiosks and also is making a concerted effort to educate homeowners as to the benefits of removing invasive plants and planting native plants on their properties.

You should read the brochure that I have linked to see the problems and issues regarding these plants and most importantly what you can do about them. Also, these are the top five most invasive plant species in my area. You should look to see what plants or animals for that matter are invasive problems specific to your region. One of the main problems with invasive species is they tend to out compete native plants or animal and can have an impact on other parts of the ecosystems. For instance, the fruit of shrubby honeysuckles tend not to have enough protein for migratory birds that feed on them and may impact their migratory success rate.

I know that many of us letterboxers and geogachers like to do things that shine a favorable light on our hobby. I think that if you educate yourself on this problem and then find a way to take some action in your area. Being out in the parks and nature trails as we are we can be the eyes for those who would like to remove and mediate the impact of these plants and animals. Do not cut or remove any plants on public or private property unless you have permission. One thing that you can do is contact those in charge of the property and tell them where the infestation is and if you could help in any way. Make sure you obtain permission first before you act on the ground.

Pilot Knob Ridge Preserve

2007-09-26T06:12:00.000-07:00

While this blog has been mostly about letterboxing, it really is supposed to be about all of my outdoors exploits. Recently I have not been letterboxing, as I have become a volunteer Trail Steward for a little preserve in Lake George, New York. It is the Pilot Knob Ridge Preserve managed by the Lake George Land Conservancy. I have been a Trail Steward for about a month and I am finding that I absolutely love working on this beautiful piece of land.

I am not going to bore you with all my responsibilities, but keeping the trail clear, clean and well-marked sums up most of them. What I am finding interesting though is I have gone up there each weekend for the last month, and each time I go up there I see something different. When I go up know I try and go up with a fresh pair of eyes and just observe nature, and I am seeing or I should say rediscovering the importance of visiting a trail or hiking area repeatedly to really get to know that land. The way hunters get to know a hunting ground.

I have for a long time concerned myself with visiting and hiking new trails and felt a certain amount of disappointment when I only had time to hike an old trail to “train” for the next great hike. I think that going to new places is fun and exciting, but it’s importance has diminished for my, and now it is more important to visit the old trails looking for something new each time I go there. To go off the trail and discover what most people miss.

What I do now is not only look for wildlife, which is exciting, but also looking and learning about the habitat’s plant flora. This I must say is new to me, but since becoming a Trail Steward we are supposed to look for invasive plant species and remove them. In order to do this I had to get a good tree and shrub identification book and learn friend from foe. By taking the time to do that I discovered that I have a shrubby honeysuckle in my backyard (now removed) and that the preserve has an area that this weed has a foothold in, and needs to be dealt with.
Anyway, I hope to write some interesting happenings that are going on at Pilot Knob Ridge Preserve and encourage people to visit this wondrous place.

Work has me tied up

2007-09-07T18:21:00.000-07:00

I have not been able to do anything outdoors in a week. This week is always busy at work and keeps me from running wild in the great outdoors. However, I have found some time to carve some stamps for my series I plan on planting on the backside of Prospect Mountain in Lake George NY. I have the stamps carved and actually I have the locations for my places and have even thought of a theme for the entire series which will include a single letterbox and tie another one with the series.

I think however that I will wait until spring to release it. This are is heavily used by hunters and I really don't want to start it a couple of weeks before the season opens. This is one area that I would recommend people not to go into during deer hunting season. But, we'll see. I have other things going on right know that I will talk about next week.

A Geocaching Adventure

2007-08-24T06:49:00.000-07:00

I know that I have posted this blog a few too many times this week, but I need to talk about a wonderful experience that I had last week while camping of one of Lake George’s (New York State) beautiful islands.

I love exploring the mountains on the eastside of Lake George and I noticed before we left for the camping trip that there were a few geocaches hidden along a trail system that I wanted to hike. So without interest from my family I headed out solo from a lakeside trailhead located near Red Rock Bay on Lake George.

The trail going up was worn, but in good shape and the RED ROCK BAY VISTA geocache was an easy find. I then set out on the ridge trail that looked like it was hardly used and these are the ones that I like to hike, especially on a cool breezy day that I had.

The next geocache was The Narrows Lookout, which was located off the trail near old forest fire. This was a cool place, and I enjoyed the views.

The next and the last geocache that I found that day was In the Shadow of It's Tail , which is a really fun multi-cache. The first part I made a lot more difficult than I had to. When I was walking down a rock outcrop and the ridge trail again picked up it’s north-south direction I noticed that this cache may have been a little out of the way and it looked like some serious climbing get to it. However, after I descended off the outcrop and walked a bout 0.25 mi. south along the ridge trail, I noticed a trail intersection and it led in the general direction of the cache, so I went after it. Recorded the waypoint of this intersection and before set off. After awhile I noticed that the cache must be to my right up hill and that the trail was taking me away from the cache, so I bushwhacked for about 1000 feet until I hit a rock face. The cache was only 136 feet away from me, but it might as well have been a mile. This rock face ran perpendicular to the first 800-1200 feet of the trail I just walked down, so I headed back toward the trail, along this rock face until I found a spot where deer had gone up the face and even for a chicken like me I was able to scramble up and find the micro. This one will make you laugh, but I will not spoil it. The second and final part was easy, just maintain your elevation. I wanted to practice my compass skills so I took a direction on the trail intersection waypoint and compassed out, almost stepping on a yearling deer in the process. By coming up the rock face, I was able to get behind her with her noticing.
I made it to the intersection and set out to find one more geocache, but when I reached the spot where the first micro was, there was a group of muggles having lunch, so I decided that that one would have to wait.

All and all I had a fabulous 7-mile loop through some beautiful country that offers a wonderful array of habitats and a plethora of photo opportunities. The hike actually was not that difficult either. Fun Fun Fun!

Col Williams Monument is Back!

2007-08-24T06:42:00.000-07:00

After I gave this one up for lost a persistent Letterboxer found it about 6 feet from the original place. I am not sure why someone felt the need to move it, but its was dry and in good condition. I brought it home and replaced the Rubbermaid box with a Lock and Lock and camouflaged it a bit and set out this morning to place it in a better spot. I spent about 20minutes searching and ended up near the original spot, but a little better hidden. Hopefully this new location will keep it safe.

The clues for this box are at the following letterboxing.org link

http://letterboxing.org/BoxView.php?boxnum=21263%26boxname

2007-08-23T20:19:00.000-07:00

This poll is closed and here are the results.

Would you feel more comfortable on a longer hike with a series of boxes to bring you along?

Yes, it's like having trail makers 29 (59%)

No, I will hike anyway. 19 (38%)

Don't care, just want more finds. 1 (2%)

What this has told me is that from now on that I am going to use series and better trail descriptions for those remote letterboxes that I may place. I think that it is very important to help people who are looking for your box, feel comfortable and to have fun looking for your place. By using a series in an imaginative way, that is possible. My goal with my first series is to bring people to a fairly tame area, but wild all them same. To give them a taste of the Adirondacks.

Thank you to all those who participated in the survey and to those who left comments regarding this survey. I listened and really appreciate all of your input.

My Letterbox was Found

2007-08-22T17:37:00.000-07:00

My Col Williams Letterbox was found the other day after I had retired it a month ago. The persistent letterboxer found the box about 5 feet from my original place. The irony is that I would have found it if I was searching for it, but since I placed it I knew where it was supposed to be and when I didn't see it I actually searched around for evidence that it was muggled, not that someone moved and hide it. I didn't think that another boxer re-hid the letterbox in what they thought was a better location. I will remember that if it happens again.

I have it ready now to be placed again. I am going to place it in a better, more secure spot as this box gets a lot of traffic, so I am going to try and find a hiding spot that will be a little more out of sight of possible muggles. It is in in a new lock and lock and has a 100 page logbook. I even camoed it. I hope to have it back in commission by this weekend.

Would you feel better with a series of boxes on a long hike.

2007-08-10T06:41:00.000-07:00

This is something that I am curious about. I have noticed, and I have talked about this before, that many letterboxes are located in nature trails, close to the parking area when they are solo, and also, even of easier hikes, if I locate a single box more than 1 mile from the road that it does not get visited very much.

I thought that it was more of a physical thing, but I thought a little and I'm am thinking that maybe a may be a comfort thing. That is hiking in on a new trail that takes you into the WOODS, may be uncomfortable to some. I didn't think about this as I grew up in the woods; raised by, well not wolves, but close; and I am very comfortable going in to new places. I just know how to prepare.

So my thought was, and I have posted a poll that asks if a series of boxes will make you feel more likely to go on a longer hike of not. I am figuring that if I gave detailed descriptions to the boxes along the trail, that other boxers will be more likely to look for them and enjoy these areas as they will have a "trail of breadcrumbs" to follow. But, maybe I am way off.

Please cast your vote and if you have more to say, please commit on this subject, as I would like use this information to customize my series a little better.

I will also post the fianl results on the Yahoo group so that we can take a look at the results.

Thank you.

Thoughts on Series Plants

2007-08-10T06:15:00.000-07:00

Over on the LbUSA Yahoo group there was quite a discussion on whether or not there needs to be a logbook in each box in a series. There were a few people who stated that if the box is to be considered a letterbox that it must have a logbook. Many others stated that they felt that in a series that there did not need to be a logbook in each box and that there only needs to be a logbook in the final box. There were yet a few more that thought there should be a logbook in the first and the last letterbox. This discussion generated a lot of heated discussion, and there are a few ideas that I took from this discussion.

First, and foremost that letterboxing is all about fun and that there are really no rules in how to go about planting your boxing. Also, from this discussion and from reading the FAQ's on Letterboxing.org and the book The Letterboxing Companion that the most important item in letterboxing is the stamp. That is what makes letterboxing what it is; what makes it unique.

So, my personal thoughts on whether there should be a logbook in each box in a series are that it really depends on what you are attempting to do. I think that if you are locating a series and that each plant is really independent of the other then yes I think that having a logbook in each in important. However, if you are using the boxes to bring people to places or along a trail with some sort of theme and these boxes are dependant on one and other, then I really think that you don't need to place a logbook in each; I feel that the experience becomes too redundant. You must have a logbook in the final box and maybe one in the fist box, again that really depends on what you want the finder's experience to be.

What makes this activity so interesting is seeing how creative people can be with their stamps and their plants and that is why it is important to not have a set in concrete rules, that would kill this hobby faster than anything else.

Black Mountain Letterbox is Placed

2007-08-05T17:04:00.000-07:00

I had a great day yesterday! We had great weather and it was perfect for a hike. I love hiking Black Mt. from the lakeside as it offers the so many opportunities to see Lake George from different perspectives. My reason for this hike was to finally get my Black Mountain Fire Tower letterbox in place. Which I did although there really weren't that many places to hide it as I needed to stay away from an in place geocache. But I was able to place it is a fairly secure and semi protected location. I used a lock and lock container that I camouflaged to help keep it away from the muggles.

I also upgraded my Black mountain Point letterbox with a lock and lock container also...I feel so secure now!

Today I picked up a letterbox, Orra Phelps, and a geocache, Orra Phelps' secret at the Orra Phelps preserve in Wilton NY. It is a nice small nature preserve with a stream running through it. It is known for its large variety of ferns.

Well anyway I really had a nice letterboxing and geocaching weekend.

Fort George Letterbox Maintanence

2007-08-03T05:58:00.000-07:00

I finally was able to find some free time to replace my container at my Fort George Lb place. I found the box in great shape, well hidden and dry. My logbook was full, so the timing was perfect. I am using the Snaplock brand container to try it out in the field. The size is what I like, maybe a little large. I am using a 100 page sketchbook, instead of the 24 page one that I have been using as this box is getting a lot of traffic.

What has pleased me the most is that there seems to be a lot of young letterboxer finding this box as it is easy, but has a lot of clues, and the box has been very well taken care of! Baker Happy!!!

I have camoed this box like I have with my newer ones and I plan on doing this to all my plants from now on. My camo technique is simple. Just a light coat of black plastic adhering spray paint. It helps to make the box a little less obvious if it is not re hidden with care.

Now if they will just invent muggle repellent ;-)

The Good and the Bad of it

2007-07-28T18:38:00.000-07:00

Today letterboxing for me was a mixed bag. Good over all, but with some bad news. My daughter joined me today on my letterboxing adventure and we bagged six great boxes and really enjoyed some nice places. Also learned a little local history. I think I got her hooked.

The bad news happened when we got back and I decided that I had time to upgrade my Col Williams Monument Lb planted near Lake George, NY, with a new box and logbook as I was informed that there had been a lot of activity recently. When I went to retrieve it, it was gone! This is my first box that I have lost. This was a high volume Lb that was in a fairly guarded location but a tree came down near the box and removed a lot of the covering brush. If the box had not been re hidden carefully it would have been seen. I am hoping it was just a muggle, but I didn’t see any evidence that the box was scattered. So I don’t know.

I am not going to replace this one. It is a good location for a box that maybe could be planted a little more cleverly. This was one of my first boxes I planted and it had a white lid so if it was not covered, especially after the tree took out some of the understory near the box, it would have stood out like a beacon. Now I camouflage my plants with black paint so they are a little more difficult to see.

I am a little disappointed as I had a lot of nice stamps impressions in the logbook and received a lot of positive complements on the placement but that’s the nature of the game. It had to happen sooner or later.

Some nice caches

2007-07-20T16:44:00.000-07:00

Today I went on a nice hike up Sleeping Beauty Mountain in the Southeastern Adirondacks. I went to just enjoy the hike, but ended up finding two great cachers Sleeping Beauty Cache and Sleeping Beauty's Prince Charming. The second one is probably the best geocache I have ever found. It was in a great location, great clues and real a nice cache.

Also, I really had fun on my hike. I had the top of the mountain all to myself. I also did the loop hike, in that after I hiked to the summit, I took the trail down to Bumps pond an then back to the trail head. It was fun . Total trip was 7.8 miles of some real quiet Adirondack hikin.

Here are some pics.

This are the remains of the old Dacy farmhouse.

A view from the summit of Lake George.

Bumps Pond

LPC and Micro's I do not like them I say

2007-07-19T13:06:00.000-07:00

I was listening to latest installment of the Podcacher, when Sonny mentioned his dislike of LPC’s or lamppost caches. A dislike I also strongly share. This is geocaching’s version of a mico box that is just placed somewhere by someone who just wants to place a cache or box someplace. Letterboxing micro’s and boxes for that matter still are being placed as far I can tell, at places of interest, but geocaches seem to have a higher percentage of caches that are hidden for the soul reason to hide them. The place has no historical or scenic attributes. This seems to be what the LPC really is.

I not a numbers guy, in fact I really don’t have that much time to myself where I can cache and box, so when I do I really want to be taken to an interesting location or learn some history or something! All my found letterboxes so far (27) have been that. I would say 5 of the 40 caches that I have found have been just a box in the woods somewhere, with no redeeming features. However, I have been noticing some letterboxes being listed that look like the quality of the place is decreasing, but I don’t know for sure until I look for them. I will say this though. If a cache or a letterbox says up front it is a micro I will not look for them, as I feel that most of these are in locations that are not to my personal liking.

I like to visit a nice nature preserve and look for a box or a cache off the beaten trail, so you can open them box up and read the logbook and take your time without having to look out for muggles constantly. That is where I attempt to place all of my boxes. That is fun and relaxing to me. The James Bond thing is not for me and a location looks too mugglely, I will pass the Lb or cache up.

I think that each person who is thinking of placing a box or hiding a cache should think very hard about the interest that the location will generate, where the container can be placed in proximity to the muggle world, then the quality of the box itself and how well you can maintain it. I think that one of the reasons I don’t have, as much time as I would like to find boxes and caches, is I spend some of the precious time I do have, maintaining my boxes. I check of them twice a year and I up grade the containers and such, so that when the box is looked for the seeker has a better chance of finding my box and really enjoying there experience.

I think though, later I will discuss my maintenance practices of my boxes and how I think I can reduce the number of times I need to check on them…but later.

...A little later in the day...I have just read a couple of responses to the letterboxing news group and I think that one of the things that I am saying in those posts and this blog is I just want to see that the new boxers and cachers stay true to the tradition of connecting the box to the locaction.

Podcacher

2007-07-18T04:44:00.000-07:00

As I said in my first post on this blog, I have been away from the blogging world for a while and in my previous blog I mentioned a podcast that I really enjoyed. Well, I have rediscovered this podcast and I am very happy to see that it is still up, fresh and thriving while I was away. Of all the different podcasts that I have listened to this is the only one that I have found that has continued for as long as it has and has improved with every show. This has become a weekly program that I can count on and look forward to listening to and leaning from every week.

The name of this podcast is Podcacher, and if you are interested in geocaching you really want to listen to this program. It is fun, interesting and a classroom that you will enjoy! You have the Baker's guarantee!!!!

Had Some Time!!

2007-07-15T12:55:00.000-07:00

I had a couple of free hours today so I grabbed my letterboxing gear and my gps and headed out to the Great Sacandaga Lake to find a letterbox that I have been meaning to get for a while know. I drove in from Hadly of County Rte 4 and had some great views. The box was and easy find, with a real nice hand carved stamp. The Park that you park at is a nice place to have some lunch and just relax.

I also found the geocache whose container has been chewed by and animal. This cache is easy, and in a nice location, but it needs some work. I TNSL and STAMPED IN:-)

Geocachers Should have Personal Stamp

2007-07-10T20:26:00.001-07:00

I was thinking today on how close letterboxing and geocaching really are. I was also thinking about how much I have learned from each of these activities, and have been able to apply some of the techniques of one to the other. For example, I have been taking a little more time to camouflage my letterbox containers better, so that if they are not re-hide well, at least they will not have a glaring red lid beaming its location all about. I am doing this mainly form seeing many of the geocaches I’ve found camouflaged well and they seem to stick out less.

One thing that I would like to see geocachers do is carry a personal stamp to stamp the logbooks of the geocaches they have found. I have one for letterboxing and a separate one for geocaching. Here is my reason for this. I am seeing a lot more cachers not exchanging items with the caches anymore. I am seeing a lot of TB’s getting moved around and messages like SLTN, in the logbooks. So why not leave a stamp imprint in the logbook? The cacher who hides the cache pays a lot of money and goes through a lot of effort to hide a good box. And when they come to check on the cache, more times than not the box needs more good swag and a new logbook. Wouldn’t it be a nice gesture to leave something for the person who hides the box in the logbook? I think that it would show that the finder appreciates a good hide and the effort that the hider is going through to maintain the box. I think that TN, but stamped in, would be much better than SLTN.

Your stamp can be hand carved, store bought or custom made, it just needs to say something about you, or mean something to you. Letterboing.org talks a lot about this if your are interested.

Made a New Plant

2007-07-08T17:33:00.000-07:00

This letterbox I planted yesterday, is one that I have been planning since I visited the Pilot Knob Preserve. (http://www.lglc.org/NaturePreserves/Pilot-Knob.asp) this past spring. This little hike is a gem. With just a little effort you will be rewarded with gorgeous views, waterfalls and a lot of opportunity to see wildlife. The blue trail is especially full with a pleura of bird species singing and flying around. I was really happy finally get the time to plant this box.

The clues for this letterbox can be found at:

http://letterboxing.org/BoxView.php?boxnum=32698&boxname=Pilot_Knob_Moose

The Changing World of Letterboxing Containers and the weather :-)

2007-07-06T20:15:00.000-07:00

Today was a frustrating day for me. First, the weather was as usual not cooperating with my letterboxing plans. We had multiple thunder boomers roll through today and I am not even going the think about trying for a few boxes. I have my son onboard as far as enthusiasm, but the rest of my family is not really interested in Letterboxing. So I don’t have many days free to go and letterbox and with most of the letterboxes found near me, I have to venture out which takes time that I don’t seem to be able to find.

The other thing that I found frustrating today was while visiting my local target to purchase a couple of Lock and Lock, or Snapware containers to begin replacing my Rubbermaid boxes, that the do not carry Snapware anymore and the Lock & Locks are not the size I really want. They are a little small and I have to cut down my favorite size logbook, the Strathmore 4x6. Target replaced the Snapware with a Sterilite container that has a steam release vent on top with a depression to allow your finger room to open it. If I had to use them I would have to seal this with silicon. These containers seal like lock and locks so they would be nice and they have some of the sizes that I like to use. I just don’t like that there is a hole in the lid. I should just plane ahead and order the lock and locks or Snapware directly one a year. I don’t really plan on make a ton of places, but who knows?

Non Stampers

2007-07-03T04:50:00.001-07:00

I have begun to start my early summer checks on my boxes I have placed in my area and I have noticed more people are just signing in and not stamping. Also, of the boxes I checked one was not hidden very well and the other the top was left unsealed. I hope that this is just a fluke, because I would think that if you want to join in on this activity that you should at least carry a store bought stamp.

On another note my Black Mt Point letterbox needs a new container. The lid on that one is very hard to reseal and it looks a little warped. This was one of the old creamed colored lid Rubbermaid's, which have worked well, but I think it is time for a lock and lock for this place, as it is a little more difficult for me to check in the off season.

That's it for the Adirondacks

Later

Noonmark Mt, Keene NY

2007-07-01T17:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had a great day for hiking. We took a little trip up Noonmark Mountain in Keene, NY and had a blast. The last mile was very steep, but worth the views that we were treated too.

I ended up finding an old geocache up here the Leonid Cache (GC28E5). The cache was in very poor shape, it was in a plastic container, right out in the elements. The cache was very wet as were much of the contents. The log book was intact, and I was able to sign in. If a cache needed some attention, this one is it. It really needs an ammo can to hold up the the harsh conditions that this poor cache has to live with. I had one, I just didn't think to bring it. :-( Someone had at some time brought up the current containers , but left the original container right next new one???? We packed out the old container and disposed of it.

Poor Island

2007-06-25T19:17:00.000-07:00

We just returned from our camping trip on one of the little islands on Lake George in New York State. This island is about 125 by 225 feet and it lost 26 trees from a freak local thunderstorm last month. All of the large tree are gone. They either snapped in half, half way up the tree or they where simply tipped over as the soil is so shallow.

When we arrived on the island, I was struck with how different it looked and it took me a moment to grasp the violence that occurred here. One tree was blown apart by a lightning strike. I am glad that I was not camping they on that day!

Now all the old 100 year old plus trees were cleared out, but almost all of them were rotted inside and really should have been cut down years ago. Also, with some of the smaller trees now in full sunlight, their time now has arrived and they now will be making the shadow instead of living under one. Thankfully this storm happened outside of the busy camping season and nature must had felt that a little pruning was in order.

I think that it will be interesting to visit this Island in ten years to see how it is progressing. I hope to visit it every year for a long time.

Good times for Letterboxing

2007-06-21T20:26:00.000-07:00

I was looking through the list of letterboxes on LbNA and realized how much letterboxing has grown in the last couple of years. When I starter there were only a few letterboxes in my area, now there are a ton and they are growing as more people find out how fun this activity is. Just in my immediate 4 county radius I have been brought to some beautiful areas that I would never have heard of, and now I enjoy visiting again and again. I personally enjoy carving and placing as well as finding letterboxes.

A couple of things that I am noticing is that I am seeing Lb’s being placed in so-so locations and I am seeing Lb’s that are not being maintained by the placers. One of the things that I try to do to help other boxers is to help them maintain their boxes that are close to me and far from them. I think that this is important to keep the interest going and we must make sure that the prizes out there are in good shape to make sure that the finders experience is a good one. My Col. Williams Monument Letterbox in Lake George NY has had 3 boxers find it that it ended up being their first experience finding a box. That is why I feel that it is all of ours responsibility to maintain boxes. Similar to when you stay at a lean-to in the Adirondacks, when you leave you must leave the site better than you left it and do things like leaving a nights worth of wood for the next camper. That is the type of thing that I like to see and see from many other boxers in the Letterboxing community. I would just like to see a little more. Many times my boxes are not re-hidden well and sometimes left open or the Ziplocs are not zipped and the logbook gets damp. Same junk all placers have to deal with, but would like some help with. I think that when teaching a new boxer, you really need to emphasize the letterboxing ways.

Rubbermaid Premier Containers

2007-06-15T21:45:00.000-07:00

Current Rating: Not Yet rated

Rubbermaid Premier Containers

I would like to have people from the letterboxing community to take a moment and write a review about this product if you have used it. Then please give it a rating of 1 to 5, with 1 being the worst rating.

Please write your comments in the comment section at the bottom of this post.When I get five responses I will post the rating on my sidebar for easy review.Write your experiences with this item and what size you used and please give any recommendations so that other boxers may learn from your experience.

Thank you

Baker

Rubbermaid Flex and Seal Containers

2007-06-15T21:44:00.000-07:00

Current Rating: 4-Stars

Rubbermaid Flex and Seal Containers

I would like to have people from the letterboxing community to take a moment and write a review about this product if you have used it. Then please give it a rating of 1 to 5, with 1 being the worst rating.

Please write your comments in the comment section at the bottom of this post.When I get five responses I will post the rating on my sidebar for easy review.Write your experiences with this item and what size you used and please give any recommendations so that other boxers may learn from your experience.

Thank you

Baker

Product Review Rubbermaid Durable Containers

2007-06-15T21:42:00.000-07:00

Current Rating: 1-Star

Rubbermaid Durable Containers (Red Top)

I would like to have people from the letterboxing community to take a moment and write a review about this product if you have used it. Then please give it a rating of 1 to 5, with 1 being the worst rating.

Please write your comments in the comment section at the bottom of this post.When I get five responses I will post the rating on my sidebar for easy review.Write your experiences with this item and what size you used and please give any recommendations so that other boxers may learn from your experience.

Thank you

Baker

Product Review Lock & Lock

2007-06-15T21:39:00.000-07:00

Current Rating: 5-Stars

Lock & Lock

I would like to have people from the letterboxing community to take a moment and write a review about this product if you have used it. Then please give it a rating of 1 to 5, with 1 being the worst rating.

Please write your comments in the comment section at the bottom of this post.When I get five responses I will post the rating on my sidebar for easy review.Write your experiences with this item and what size you used and please give any recommendations so that other boxers may learn from your experience.

Thank you
Baker

Product Review Snapware

2007-06-15T21:30:00.000-07:00

Current Rating: 4-Stars

Snapeware

I would like to have people from the letterboxing community to take a moment and write a review about this product if you have used it. Then please give it a rating of 1 to 5, with 1 being the worst rating. Please write your comments in the comment section at the bottom of this post.

When I get five responses I will post the rating on my sidebar for easy review.
Write your experiences with this item and what size you used and please give any recommendations so that other boxers may learn from your experience.

Thank you

Baker

Fishbrook Pond

2007-06-11T19:51:00.000-07:00

I really love this little pond. The hike in from the Lake George Shore Trail is short, but steep. We ended up following a moose all the way to the pond. I don't believe the trail was more that an hour old. At one point I thought we could smell him/her.

I also checked on our Fishbrook Letterbox and it survived the winter, but was a little damp. I will bring a lock and lock up on the next trip. This is one of the boxes that is really located in a very nice area and it is worth hiking in and enjoying this little slice of paradise.

Nature's Destruction

2007-06-09T17:30:00.001-07:00

We were sad to find out today that our favorite camping island on Lake George was the scene of a large blow down that closed the island for a while. We are sad that we are going to miss our camping trip, but it is so sad to see such a nice island wrecked.

It looks like this island will be closed for half the summer. The island next door lost 100 trees! The storm was just a small localized pop up that generated 82 mph winds! A warning to us all to be aware always when in the outdoors.

Fortunately no one was hurt.

Plan ahead

2007-06-08T09:48:00.000-07:00

Today I had a good morning of letterboxing and geocaching. I picked up two letterboxes and one geocache. I was hoping to get more, but I had to plan B two of my locations as there was too much company. The Story of Micky and Lasher Letterbox and the Karner Blue Lb at the Wilton Wildlife Preserve was going to bag me 6 boxes, but when I rolled up I saw a school bus dropping off kids. So I plan B'ed it and went and 0 found a quickie at Bryants Bridge (LbNA#31441); I went on to the Starks Knob Letterbox and met with success. It really is a quick find, but a really neat place. Mookie had also hidden one in the same area, but she stumped me. I could not find it for the life of me.

I moved along to the Lock 5 Lb, but there was a whole bunch of motorcycles parked there, with about 50 people milling around where I thought the box was.

Plan B time, I whipped out my GPS and lo and behold there was a geocache located about 0.25 mi away. A few minutes later I had a geocache and yet another nice place to go for a little walk. I saw huge carp jumping in the old canal there, something that I didn't expect to see.

That was it. When I go out know I bring a loose leaf binder full of nearby (within 20 mi) boxes and I load up my GPS so if some of the places that I want to search are loaded up with muggles I always had a Plan B.

A day on Buck Mt

2007-05-27T12:28:00.000-07:00

Had a great hike today with Border Collie up Buck Mt. He hid a series of two boxes along the way up to the summit. The views from the top made the hike worth the work up the mountain. The day was a little warm, but very clear. We could see some of the high peaks and some nice views of Lake George.

We looked for the Leaf Letterbox, but didn’t have much luck. I am not certain that we found the right spot, but I am 60 percent sure that the box may be gone. The top got very crowded when we were looking for the box so after trying for another 20 min we bagged it. I have to come up again to get a geocache so I will look then.

All and all we have a great day!

Been Out of town

2007-05-24T08:18:00.000-07:00

I have been attending a continuing education class at the Culinary Institute of America, in Hyde park NY. What a beautiful area. I have until about Noon to myself so I have been exploring the Norrie State Park a little north of here and found a geocache and two nice letterboxes. Saw deer, rabbits pilieted wood peckers and no people!. Nice.

I even went behind our quality Inn and found a nature trail there where I found three more geocaches. (The where and who's I will list when I get home if anyone cares). That trail system seemed big and I bet that there were a few letterboxes on it. It was quiet and a lot of places to hide stuff. I don't know where the trail head is, but I believe it is referred to as the Hyde Park Nature Trail. When I reached the trail from a private access trail it was well marked, and looked like there were loops, but without a map it was hard to tell.

I also went over into New Paltz to a trail called the Rail Trail. There is a serious called the Riverdale Series, that the carving was great, but the trail is straight and the boxes were right near the trail, so it was a little hard for me to look for them even at 6 am as there were a good amount of people out taking their morning contitutionals. It was hard for me not to look suspecious and I didn't want to alarm some of the ladies that were walking on the trail by themselves. The boxes are easy to find. If I really wanted to get these boxes I would have come out with another person to act as a lookout. I only found 4 out of 13...I stopped at the fifth.

That's it from my baking adventure.

Prospect Mountain Fire Tower Letterbox

2007-05-19T17:57:00.000-07:00

Well I got up at the crack of Dawn and placed this letterbox up on Prospect Mountain. I went up the backside and checked on my Lost Farm Letterbox and it was in good shape. Had a great hike and I think the new box is in a pretty good location. I also am using a lock and lock type container. I hope that it takes the elements better than the newer Rubbermaid containers.

Boxing and Graveyards

2007-05-19T17:56:00.000-07:00

I was able to go after a letterbox on Friday. The Sunset on the Bog Lb by Scout and found it, but the stamp was missing. I contacted scout and him/her will carve one and send it to me to replace the missing stamp. I don’t mind going to this site as it is close to work and you have a lot of wildlife to see. I just noticed that there is a Hybrid geocache within 300 feet of the Lb so I’ll get that when I replace the stamp.

I also went after a couple of boxes in the Victory graveyard and I found the location of one of them, but I did not feel right stamping in that sacred ground. I have a great grand father in the Prospect Graveyard across the street. It just didn’t seem right. I am not going to even attempt graveyard boxes. Not right.

My Inman Pond Letterbox

2007-05-17T05:11:00.000-07:00

When I visited my Inman Pond Letterbox I was a little sad to see that it only have one visit since July 2006. The location is wonderful and offers a good opportunity to see wildlife. This really is a perfect little hike with a nice pond at the end of the trail that will provide mom and dad with a way to keep the little one interested.

Porspect Mt

2007-05-16T05:19:00.000-07:00

I have a new stamp carved and I am waiting for my artist drawing pad to arrive from Misterart so I can go a hide this box.

At LbNA I opened up a slot for this box, even though I didn't hide it yet as I missed hiding one on this mountain 2 years ago when hungery joe arrived. But that box was lost so now I can hide the new stamp I just carved in this location. I guess I am sort of saying dibs. If someone else hides one in the mean time I will still hide this stamp as I will link it to my Lost Farm letterbox that is about 3/4 of a mile away.

Spring 2007 Looking good

2007-05-14T19:06:00.000-07:00

I have checked on three of my six hidden letterboxes. The Fort George Park, Col Williams Monument and Inman Pond are still in good shape and are waiting for boxers to find.

The Inman box was a little damp. I don't like the new Rubbermaid containers with the red lids. They don't seem to seal as tight as we would like. I am going to switch the two red lidded hides I have out there with Lock-n-locks as most boxers I have seen seem to like these the best and I would like to try them out.

I'm Back

2007-05-14T18:38:00.000-07:00

I lost my letterboxing and geocaching blog over the winter. I was editing it and for some reason I deleted it. Dumb!, but shit happens right?

I have been very busy this week. I have carved three new stamps and found four geocaches so I have had a little fun.

I have also found some intesting new hiking areas that I will talk about in future posts.

So for a little while I will work at rebuilding my new blog that will hopefully be read by someone.

I will work hard at not deleting this one. ....I hope