Category Archives: Columnists

Gary Lee’s Daybreak to Twilight

Some veggies and flowers still in bloom—but not for long

Sunrise over Otter Bay, Raquette Lake

It’s not yet official, but it looks as if The One Square Mile of Hope event broke the Guinness Book record for the largest number of canoes and kayaks on the water in a raft.

I wasn’t one of the participants but I congratulate the hard work of the committee that made it happen for Susan G. Komen for the Cure of breast cancer—a most worthy cause.

I’m sure there will be posters available of the aerial photograph. Thanks to all the committee members and volunteers who made this possible in the little Town of Inlet. We are on the map again.

Our weather has been great but I hope we don’t have to pay for it later in the fall. While driving south last Friday we hit the peak leaves.

Ray Bunyan

They showed changes all the way to Saratoga and even more on the way back home on Sunday.

Though fall is in the air, I’m still picking pole beans and a few tomatoes. My gourds have outdone themselves this year.

They come in so many shapes and sizes that I’m always amazed when I pick them each fall.

I mix them all together in one location and get many different colors and shapes.

Continue reading →

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Outside the Box: A Look at Webb Sports

Webb Varsity Soccer: Boys stomp the pedal in race to the post-season; Kevin Kress scores hat trick at Adirondack

So far, the results from this season’s high school sports programs have had many scratching their heads.

What with the injuries, one-in-a-million soccer goals by opponents, and (admittedly) uneven play, it’s been no day at the amusement park.

Well, maybe somewhat… just a bit more of a white-knuckle roller-coaster ride as opposed to a relaxing journey down the lazy river than many would like.

Well, at least one group had a banner week and we’ll kick things off with the good news. Continue reading →

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Thendara posts welcome sign on Route 28

A sign welcoming visitors to the community of Thendara was put into place on Wednesday, September 28 on Route 28, just north of Adiron-dack Tall Timber Log Homes.

The commissioning of the sign was suggested a few years ago by the Thendara History Group. A committee, headed by Louise Watson, decided that the proposed sign should be of similar style to those welcoming folks to the communities of White Lake, Otter Lake, Old Forge, Eagle Bay and Inlet.

Research by the group uncovered plans for a sign for Thendara that was part of a 2005 sign grant that was never completed, according to Gail Murray. Funding for the sign was made possible by the grant.

The sign was designed by Rob Imundo of Rage Graphics.

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Adirondack Scenic Railroad welcoming riders for foliage trips

Linda Ellison, operations manager at the Adirondack Scenic Railroad in Thendara, reported that the railroad had a good summer—and so far, a good fall—with plenty of passengers riding the rails from Utica Station or enjoying one of their many scenic specialty trips.

She said the “Paddle Down the Moose River” trips held in partnership with Tickner’s Moose River Canoes in the summer and fall, have been a top ticket seller.

“We’ve been doing it for years, and it’s one of our strongest train trips. Where else can you canoe down the river and come back by train?” Ellison said.

“We start getting phone calls in the winter for reservations for the canoe and kayak trips,” she added.

The Fall Foliage trips always draw a lot of passengers, she said, with three trips daily on Wednesday through Sunday.

Al Heywood of Remsen, an Adirondack Scenic Railroad board member who also serves as conductor for the Utica and Thendara runs, agreed that the season is going well. Continue reading →

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Old Forge: Two personal growth workshops slated

Gary Gemmill, Ph.D. and Linda Valette will lead two upcoming personal growth workshops, Jump Starting Your Life: The Process of Transforming the Self.

The weekend-long workshops will assist participants in creating a better understanding of their inner selves so they can relate better in their personal and professional relationships.

The program will draw from the techniques outlined in the book, View from the Cosmic Mirror: Reflections of the Self in Every Day Life, which was co-authored by Gemmill and fellow psychologist, George Krauss, Ph.D.

The book examines how the perceptions of others affects how we see and treat others—and how others see and treat us. Continue reading →

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Growing up Adirondack by Mitch Lee


My sneakers crunched the stiff blades of grass as I wandered across the frost-covered lawn that Saturday morning in 1978.

Honking geese flew overhead and leaves rustled in the breeze, surrounding me with the sounds of fall.

Most of the trees were blanketed in fall colors and shimmered in the morning sunlight.

I was surprised how quickly the white-frosted ground had turned to a wet carpet once it was hit by the sun.

I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do that day. I knew if I went back inside there was homework to finish and my room to clean, so it was more fun to stay outside and do nothing.

My dog Mutt was pretty good at keeping me company when I was doing nothing which we both thought was a pretty good arrangement.

All of a sudden I heard a crashing sound coming from the brush behind the house. Mutt and I decided to go investigate.

Mutt’s ears were perked as she led the way into the woods. We saw a ruffle of white tail bound away from us.

Mutt looked up at me as if she was pleading for my permission to give chase. I reached down and touched her nose. Continue reading →

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Gary Lee’s Daybreak to Twilight

Tomorrow is the first day of fall, so get out and enjoy it. If you were in an area that dodged the effects of last week’s storm that brought wind, rain, and a possible tornado, you were lucky.

View Crew: Karen, unknown, Mary Jane Rogers, Elise, and Jennifer

Karen was on the phone when the storm hit the White Lake area and the lights and phone went out instantly. I told her that someone must have hit a pole, then we heard a rumble of thunder.

The storms rolled by for over an hour but nothing hit that close to us.

There was a light frost in some areas this week. I had 32 degrees overnight which didn’t appear to have hit my bean and gourd patch very hard.

Perhaps I will have another opportunity to pick some beans.

Retired Rangers Tom Eskin, John Slefts and Mark Kralovic.

The roads to Squaw Lake and Rock Dam in the Moose River Area have been opened this weekend.

The first eight miles of road in from Limekiln is quite rough but passable.

Many birds have beat it out of this area, including a few flocks of Geese that have already gone south. What does that mean? Should we be on the lookout for an early winter?

Many of the birds—Blue Jays, Nuthatches, Chickadees and Woodpeckers—are working the beechnut crop and not coming to feeders very much.

My Hummers have left. The last one was seen at Stillwater Restaurant on Sunday, September 18.

I saw a flock of bluebirds in the fields at the end of Higby Road, also on September 18. And I’ve had several flocks of mixed warblers and vireos working the trees along my driveway in the past couple weeks. Continue reading →

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