I was leading our group coming down to Avalanche Lake when I saw her. Perched a couple of hundred yards off the trail at the edge of the lake, minding her own business. As the group leader, Sophie, would come to tell us, the black bear’s name was “Yellow-Yellow,” and she just happened to be the most infamous black bear in the region. Known for having no fear of humans, noise, rubber bullets, and especially bear-proof canisters, she was not a bear to mess with. Thankfully, yellow-yellow did not seem to pay us as much attention as we were paying her and as we reached the edge of the lake, she disappeared into the wilderness. This would be the first and last time I ever saw a bear in the ADKs, and sadly for yellow-yellow, one of her last interactions with humans in the park as well. This 2011 interaction I had with her, would come one year before her death at the hands of hunters in the fall of 2012. But what is most remarkable about yellow-yellow, is that it shows the importance of bear tagging, despite its dangers to the taggers. This coordination system has helped to protect both humans and the bears of the park while providing valuable information to biologists.

Bear tagging has come to be an essential part of mapping and tracking the ADK bear population as it not only helps keep track of the number of bears currently in the park but also is a way to identify them and learn their habits and lifestyle compared to others. Typically, bears in the ADKs are tagged at a young age with both a tracking collar and tags in their ears. This process is performed by DEC wildlife biologists who place tags in each ear to identify the bear and a tracking collar around their neck to observe and study its movements. In the case of yellow-yellow, she was tagged in the early 2000s in the first two years of her life with two yellow tags, one in each year, thus leading to her nickname of yellow-yellow. For years, people and DEC biologists alike were easily able to identify yellow-yellow thanks to her tags. Unlike most bears, she was never scared of humans; However she never showed aggression towards them, but she possessed the uncanny ability to unlock supposedly bear-proof food canisters. Over the course of her life, she was tracked with ease thanks to the countless sightings and her not too stealthy stealing of campers’ food. What ultimately lead to her demise, was the inability of a hunter to recognize her tags, a sign that is supposed to tell hunters not to shoot as their target is a state monitored animal.

Sources:

Wichelns, R. (2016, October 20). The Legend of Yellow-Yellow: New York’s Most Infamous Bear. RootsRated. https://rootsrated.com/stories/the-legend-of-yellow-yellow-new-york-s-most-infamous-bear

Crane, D. (2012, November 14). A Yellow-Yellow Obituary –. The Adirondack Almanack. https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2012/11/a-yellow-yellow-obituary.html

In the 1960s, one of America’s most treasured and symbolic animals was declared an endangered species. The Bald Eagle, made our nation’s national animal in its founding days, was nearing extinction leading up to the 1970s thanks to its consumption of DDT. However, when the pesticide was banned in 1972, bald eagles were given a new lease on life and in 1976 the New York State Bald Eagle Restoration Project began. Without this project, the bald eagle population would never have recovered in the northeast, while also serving as an example of how to rejuvenate a species population efficiently and with minimal human interference.

In 1976, the restoration project began. Through a breeding process called hacking, meaning hand-rearing to independence, nearly 200 nestling bald eagles were introduced to the ADK region from Alaska over a 13-year time span. After these 13 years, the project had reached its goal of establishing ten breeding pairs and was able to transition into preservation and protection-based goals instead. Ultimately, this project was an overwhelming success bringing the population from near extinction in 1970 to 173 breeding partners in 2010, which produced 244 baby eagles that year. Every year since 1989, around 10% more baby eagles are born than the year before. This healthy and consistent rate represents the overall success of this project in saving one of the most majestic animals in the world. This project’s success cannot be overlooked either, as it led to creating one of the two regions in the lower 48 states that have breeding resident bald eagle populations. In the map below, in the upper portion of New York, the red shading represents a population of breeding resident bald eagles that only three other states can claim. The map highlights the importance and success of the project in creating a lasting and thriving environment to resurrect the bald eagle population when it was at its worst and allow it to spread to states across the US.

This past summer at the end of August, I was able to witness the long-lasting effects of the project firsthand when I saw both my first and second ever bald eagles in the high peaks wilderness perched on two rocks in a lake (pictured below). Looking back at this, I find it fascinating that without the 1976 restoration project, I most likely would not yet have encountered a bald eagle in my lifetime. It is really awesome to be able to see the impact and success the project has had in the region, while also serving as an example of how to reintegrate a species back into the wilderness.

Sources:

“Bald Eagle.” Bald Eagle – NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation, https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/74052.html.

“Bald Eagle Restoration in New York, 1976 to 1989.” Bald Eagle Restoration in New York, 1976 to 1989 – NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation, https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/9380.html.

“Adirondack Bald Eagles: Facts, Photos, and Where to Find Them.” Adirondack.net, https://www.adirondack.net/wildlife/bald-eagles/.

“How the hell do I take these things off,” I yelled out to my visibly annoyed dad.

“I showed you four times this morning. How can your fourteen-year-old brother figure this out, but you can’t.”

“Fine, but you’re gonna be waiting a while if you won’t help me.”

After a good ten minutes of my younger brother and dad watching me struggle to rip the skins off the bottom of the skis and click into the bindings, I was ready to finally enjoy the rewards of our work. It was time to ski down our trail and back to my grandfather’s front door. The dream of making a ski trail by spending our summer trimming tree limbs, taking out dead trees, and moving fallen debris to form a homemade trail was about to be realized in the purest form.

This type of skiing is considered backcountry skiing only accessible with special gear called Alpine Touring gear. This form of skiing has been becoming increasingly popular recently and experienced a boom over Covid. This is how my family and I got into it and began to explore other parts of the ADKs known for backcountry skiing. Backcountry skiing has become an increasingly growing sector of the ADK winter activities, and this past winter continued growing thanks to restrictions on the number of skiers allowed at regular ski mountains.

The ADKs, can offer this activity all winter long and have some of the best late-season backcountry skiing conditions in the northeast. While not solely specific to the ADK region, the Guardian reported the boom in backcountry skiing, which saw gear sales up 76% from the prior year and an estimated more than one hundred thousand new skiers. In a year where most sectors of the economy regressed, the backcountry skiing community saw increases in sales and number of skiers, an impressive feat. My family was among the new community of backcountry skiers and was able to see parts of the ADKs we don’t usually explore during the year. Two of the main attractions for backcountry skiers in the ADKs are the whiteface memorial highway and the Bennies Brook Slide (pictured below). This winter, I tried purchasing an uphill pass to Whiteface but was unsuccessful as they had already sold out, something they had never done before. Bennies Brook Slide saw an increase in viewership of its website of nearly 50%. Both of these things are signs of dramatic increases in this now-not-so-secret way to explore new parts of the Adirondack wilderness.

Sources:

Guardian News and Media. (2021, March 5). Backcountry skiing sees resurgence – and the deadliest week for avalanches since 1910. The Guardian. Retrieved November 2, 2021, from https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/mar/05/avalanches-deadliest-week-skiing.

Lynch, M. (2015, November 17). 5 backcountry ski trails in the Adirondacks Worth Exploring. newyorkupstate. Retrieved November 2, 2021, from https://www.newyorkupstate.com/adirondacks/2015/11/backcountry_ski_trails_adirondacks_ny_winter_skiing.html.

Tucked in the middle of the Adirondacks near no major cities lies the small town of Lake Placid. Perhaps the location to the most memorable Olympic moment ever, this town continues to thrive and live off its name and history. However, when looking at the towns of the ADK park surrounding Lake Placid, none can attract tourists on a year-long basis as Placid can. Lake Placid is different as it has become a thriving year-round tourist destination in all four seasons. This is primarily thanks to its unique combination of year-round activities as well as seasonal activities.

When looking at a successful tourist destination, the most crucial factor is whether it can persuade visitors to come throughout an entire year and not just during one season called tourist season. Lake Placid fits these requirements. In the summer, there are countless hikes, water sports, restaurants, tours, and so much more to do in the village. This season sees over half a million tourists each year and helps contribute a significant fraction of the $240 million generated by tourists in the town. However, when looking at winter activities, the foundation of its tourist base comes through its access to ski resorts (pictured below) and the use of old Olympic venues such as the bobsled course, the outdoor skating rink, and the Herb Brooks hockey arena. These two seasons collectively help contribute to the million visitors the town sees each year, which helps keep this beautiful, historical village a functioning and desirable tourist destination.

I have been able to visit Lake Placid many times in my life and can say with no doubt that it is my favorite town in the ADKs. It has the feel, nostalgia, and history of a small town yet has modernized with the years and can easily support visitors. Strolling down Main street and walking past countless restaurants, Olympic stores, family businesses, and Olympic venus, all while overlooking Lake Placid, creates one of the more pleasant environments in the ADKs when not in the wilderness. During my last winter visit to Lake Placid this past year, I was shocked to find so many tourists there in the middle of March. The line to the outdoor skating rink was 200 people long, while the wait for a table at the popular BBQ restaurant, Smoke Signals, was over an hour long. This surprised me, as I had always presumed that the tourist season dropped off after the summer, where most activities could occur. However, the duality of the town allowed for a second wave of tourists to visit and experience the town in a completely different setting. This is a unique feature of town, and is the main reason why it is the most popular and successful tourist town in the ADKs.

References:

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Pat Bradley. “Updated Adirondack Tourism Study Released.” WAMC, 24 July 2018, https://www.wamc.org/north-country-news/2018-07-24/updated-adirondack-tourism-study-released.

Venturing off the summit with my little brother, we had one goal in mind, to find a souvenir from the crash to bring back home. I had just turned thirteen and for weeks had been looking forward to our hike from the ADK Loj up to Algonquin, Iroquois, and Wright Peak. I had already completed 22 of the 46ers, but these three were special as Algonquin would be the highest mountain I had ever climbed, Iroquius would be the first herd path I ever hiked, and Wright Peak would be where I could see and hopefully collect remnants of the 1962 plane crash into its summit (pictured below). While my brother and I found these scattered, twisted remains of the B-47 bomber was a joyous day, the story behind why the rubble is there is not a joyous one.

On a cloudy January morning in 1962, a B-47 bomber crashed into the side of Wright Peak during a routine training mission. The day was particularly cloudy, causing the pilot and his three crewmates to accidentally veer 30 miles off course, unknowingly finding themselves in the High Peaks region of the ADK park as opposed to in Watertown, NY (image below). Just after 2 am that morning, disaster struck as the plane slammed into the summit of the mountain, instantly killing the four men on board without leaving them time to eject and deploy their parachutes. Sadly, after five days of searching, the wreckage was discovered by a fellow army pilot who spotted the debris during a flyover of the park. While this crash is not the only one to occur in this region of the park, it is the most well-known because it occurred on a popular and accessible mountain.

During my trek up to Wright Peak, I was not fully aware of why the debris was there but purely excited to try and find pieces of what I believed to be “treasure.” While walking down from the summit, I passed by and ignored a plaque (pictured below) carved into the side of a rock wall near some of the larger debris from the crash. Not thinking much of the positioning or meaning of the plaque, I began seeking out a piece of rusted old metal or just anything small enough to fit into my pack. And while I was successful in bringing home two rusted screws (which I have since lost), I did not appreciate how real and tragic this crash was to so many people. So while myself and many hikers alike have found it fun and adventurous to seek out scraps to bring home, to the families of the crew, this crash site is a place to mourn and they are reminded of that each time they step foot on the mountain.

References:

Wikimedia Foundation. (2021, May 19). Wright Peak. Wikipedia. Retrieved October 11, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wright_Peak.

Jan 18, 2012 — by C. K. (A. C. (2012, January 18). Twisted remains Mark Site of 1962 mountaintop plane crash. NCPR. Retrieved October 11, 2021, from https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/19141/twisted-remains-mark-site-of-1962-mountaintop-plane-crash.

In the 1960s, one of America’s most treasured and symbolic animals was declared an endangered species. The Bald Eagle, made our nation’s national animal in its founding days, was nearing extinction leading up to the 1970s thanks to its consumption of DDT. DDT was a pesticide widely used in crops to repel insects but inadvertently caused reproductive impairments for bald eagles and many other birds of prey. However, with the 1972 ban on DDT, bald eagles were given a new lease on life as they could safely eat their prey without causing damage to themselves (shown in the graph below with the increase in population after 1970). One of the main areas which saw a significant bounce back in population numbers was upstate New York in the Adirondack Park. Bald Eagles all but disappeared from the park in the 1960s due to their inability to reproduce and were presumed never to return. However, in 1976 the New York State Bald Eagle Restoration Project began. This project started three years after the ban on DDT and lasted up until 1989. Without this project, the bald eagle population would never have fully recovered in the northeast and served as an example for how to rejuvenate a species population efficiently and with minimal human interference.

In 1976, the restoration project began. Through a breeding process called hacking, meaning hand-rearing to independence, nearly 200 nestling bald eagles were introduced to the ADK region from Alaska over a 13-year time span. After these 13 years, the project had reached its goal of establishing ten breeding pairs and was able to transition into preservation and protection-based goals instead. Ultimately, this project was an overwhelming success bringing the population from near extinction in 1970 to 173 breeding partners in 2010, which produced 244 baby eagles that year. Every year since 1989, around 10% more baby eagles are born than the year before. This healthy and consistent rate represents the overall success of this project in saving one of the most majestic animals in the world. This project’s success cannot be overlooked either, as it led to creating one of the two regions in the lower 48 states that have breeding resident bald eagle populations. In the map below, in the upper portion of New York, the red shading represents a population of breeding resident bald eagles that only three other states can claim. The map highlights the importance and success of the project in creating a lasting and thriving environment to resurrect the bald eagle population when it was at its worst and allow it to spread to states across the US. Overall, the the ADK region was a perfect setting to bring back the bald eagle population due to the natural bald eagle habitats and rural, isolated setting away from human interference.

References:

“Bald Eagle.” Bald Eagle – NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation, https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/74052.html.

“Bald Eagle Restoration in New York, 1976 to 1989.” Bald Eagle Restoration in New York, 1976 to 1989 – NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation, https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/9380.html.

“Adirondack Bald Eagles: Facts, Photos, and Where to Find Them.” Adirondack.net, https://www.adirondack.net/wildlife/bald-eagles/.

While the Adirondack mountains have been around for the last 5 million years, they were not formally named until 1837, when Ebenezer Emmons was given the honor after summiting Mount Marcy. Up until this point, the range had been referred to as the “Rontaks” as spelled by a French missionary, Joseph-Francois Lafitau (pictured below). He explained that this term was derived from the Mohawk word “haderondah,” which meant ‘eaters of trees’ and was a derogatory term Iroquoians used to describe Algonquians who struggled to farm and thus had to eat tree bark to survive in the winters. However, the irony in Emmons being given the honor to name the mountain range and name Mount Marcy is that he was not responsible for the expedition’s success, and he blatantly ignored the preceding name of Mount Marcy.

Up until the 1830s, Mount Marcy had been called Tahawus, meaning cloud splitter, as it was named by the Mohawks many years before. However, Emmons ignored this earlier name and paid homage to governor William Marcy, who approved Emmon’s expedition. This decision is still widely criticized for many reasons, with the most common reasons being that William Marcy never saw this peak and now has his name etched there forever. And the second most significant reason for criticism is that another part of the native’s history was taken away from them and disregarded by white explorers who had just discovered the land and could not lay claim that they had been living in this land for hundreds of years. Emmons did choose to keep the name of the range similar to its last name electing to keep it as is, just with a more defined spelling. But he was given the honor to do so because of his partnership with William Marcy. For a brief moment, Emmons would have had the power to erase even more of the history of the land by changing the name of the region.

On top of this, Emmons took the credit for the expedition as he had been the man hired by the state to lead the trip, but the men behind the scenes were just as if not more responsible for the trip’s success. When looking at the group makeup from the trip, there were fourteen other men, yet only some of their names live on. Emmons and a few others had mountains named after them, and some had their names engraved in a plaque atop Mount Marcy (pictured below). However, arguably the three most crucial men in the group, the guides, were only referred to as “three unknown woodsmen” and whose names have been overlooked by all since their first trip. So even though this had its pros and cons, the Adirondack region likely would not exist in its state today without the work of Ebenezer Emmons, and perhaps that is why he was tasked with naming the region.

References:

December, & Cameron, S. (2019, April 22). What’s in a name? Lake Placid, Adirondacks. Retrieved September 27, 2021, from https://www.lakeplacid.com/story/2011/12/whats-name.

Mount Marcy: The high peak of New York. Adirondack Explorer. (2013, March 7). Retrieved September 27, 2021, from https://www.adirondackexplorer.org/book_reviews/mount-marcy-the-high-peak-of-new-york.

Wikimedia Foundation. (2021, May 5). Ebenezer Emmons. Wikipedia. Retrieved September 27, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebenezer_Emmons.

Mount Marcy: The name, the climb, the legacy –. The Adirondack Almanack. (2020, December 18). Retrieved September 27, 2021, from https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2020/12/mount-marcy-the-name-the-climb-the-legacy.html.

Wikimedia Foundation. (2021, September 20). Adirondack Mountains. Wikipedia. Retrieved September 27, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adirondack_Mountains.

While the Covid-19 virus has had widespread effects across the globe, one area in particular that has managed the crisis effectively has been the counties of the Adirondack Park. Thanks to its rural setting, spread-out population and strict guidelines, counties in the Park have continuously been among the lowest infections rates in New York spanning from the start of the pandemic and through this past summer. Even with the never-ending flow of tourists from near and far, counties have continued to report extremely low infections rates, with Essex county (shown below) being the most notable with a state low rate of 4,242 infections per 100,000 people. In an article published by the Adirondack Explorer this summer, they looked back at the start of the pandemic recounting how dire the situation looked with thousands of people traveling to their second homes to escape the dangers of the big city, but consequently bringing the danger with them to the otherwise safe upstate counties. With fears of overrunning hospitals and spreading the virus, Public Health Director of Essex County, Linda Beers, knew something would have to change. Through her tireless work, Linda formed a partnership between Essex County, the Trudeau Institue, and Adirondack Health in Saranac Lake to establish the region’s only high-end covid testing facility. With this million-dollar testing facility, tracing possible covid exposures and cases became exponentially more efficient and easy reducing the spread of the virus right away and keeping the region among the safest in NY.

While the numbers on the low spread of the virus itself are impressive, it may not have been the most remarkable statistic. Across New York this past year, the second quarter of the business year saw on average a 27% drop in sales and revenue tax income. Over the course of the year, the drop averaged out to around 10% in most places, but many counties north of NYC, especially in the Adirondack region ended up seeing small increases when compared to projections and prior years. In North Country which envelops the Adirondack Park (5 on the map below), the region saw a 2% increase in its revenue income. It is largely reported that this region did so well thanks to the increase of tourists to the region. In an interview conducted by Adirondack reporter, Emily Russell, she spoke with the NY State Comptroller, Tom DiNapoli, to understand why that was the case. Tom explained that the increase in sales and tax revenue to the region was thanks to the tourist season which saw increases in numbers by people seeking some form of normalcy and escape from the virus. These visitors help to revitalize small businesses which in turn, helped pull the region back to even and eventually exceeding the expected state tax revenue. The unnoticed efforts occuring behind the scenes in so many counties, were the reason so many counties in the Park were able to come out on top of a dire situation.

https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/43193/20210211/adirondack-tourism-helps-drive-north-country-2-sales-tax-growth

https://www.adirondackdailyenterprise.com/opinion/guest-commentary/2020/05/on-visiting-the-adirondacks-in-the-time-of-covid-19/