Live from New York

Round Lake Outlet

2009-06-01T06:14:00.000-07:00

Jamison took some time out of being a new father to accompany me to the remote region of the park to get some Class IV-IV+ boating in. We paddled the three miles of flat water that is Round Lake to get to the outlet, where the action quickly picked up. The first mile drops over 150' and is ended with a sweet quarter mile long continuous rapid with some nice drops. We gauged it to be IV+, and thought with a bit more water, it could jump up to a fiver. Wouldn't want to get hurt back here, as we were miles from anything. We finished with a paddle through the bog, and finished with a sweet drop under route 30 right into Tupper Lake.

The pics are from the first rapid we had to scout, and the rest we took video with Jamison's camera. Hopefully I will get my hands on the film and post that.

enjoy.

Doin her thing

2009-05-19T20:27:00.001-07:00

Heather and I went running to get some photos for her story on local waterfalls. Who gets paid to run and take fun pictures? Must be nice. One picture is her on the Ausable Club property with Giant Mtn. in the background, and the other is her getting a photo of Roaring Brook Falls.

Enjoy.

Jenkins 5/18

2009-05-19T20:16:00.000-07:00

On Monday I ran up Jenkins Mtn. in Paul Smith's, NY. Training for the Great Adirondack Trail run which is one of the last weekends in June, I felt I needed to start running some climbs. This race will have over 3000' of vertical gain and almost the same in descent. It was a cold, gloomy morning, which isn't the most condusive for photos, but I did what I could.

The trilliums were out in full bloom on this run, which made for some great sights. I also ran past an impressive beaver swap, where the beavers are still hard at work.

It ended up being 8.4 miles round trip, and I finished at about 1 hr 15 min, hopefully next time I will have some sun for a better view from the top.

Enjoy.

ADK Trail Running Club

2009-05-19T19:44:00.000-07:00

Just joined the ADK Trail Running Club and trying to find some others to trail run. Go to the website http://www.adktrailrun.com/ and sign up. It's $40 bucks for the year, which also gets you a fancy new patagonia capaline shirt with the logo, and 10% off all trail running gear at the Mountaineer in Keene Valley.

So come and join!

CO Part V: leaving winter park

2009-03-31T20:28:00.000-07:00

Leaving Winter Park and headed to Frisco. Great drive and more scenic vistas the the last drive. Just a few shots from the road.

Colorado Part IV: Grand Lake

2009-03-27T19:38:00.000-07:00

After the Hot springs we headed to Grand Lake, CO. It is a lake based recreation tourist town with a small main street lasting about a half a mile, which is also part of the continential divide trail. The picture of the map shows you where you are at on your trek through the Colorado Section. We ate some lunch at the brewery in town. Great beers, a fun atmosphere, and the best chicken sandwich of my life made a perfect cap to our relaxing day.

Enjoy the pics of main street, and parts of the brewery. Take notice the true Colorado Mountain Man putting a few back.

Colorado part III a day at the Hot Springs

2009-03-27T08:10:00.000-07:00

After riding at Winter Park for two days we decided to take a break and head to some hot springs. This is a natural hot spring where they pump the water to different pools at the resort and they can range from 100-120 degrees. The day was relaxing, and I even got a sun burn. I never thought I would get burnt in the middle of winter.

The photo of the feet is taken underwater with my Olympus Stylus 1050SW on underwater mode. Pretty neat.

If you ever are near Frasier, CO check out the hot sulphur springs! Its worth the trip.

Enjoy

Team in Training

2009-03-20T08:08:00.000-07:00

Rachel Johnson, who was on Heather's swim team in college was our host while we were in Denver. In May of 2008 she was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. She completed her treatments in September, and is now a member of Team In Training. Rachel is training for an Olympic distance triathlon to raise funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from taking more lives. Any and all help is appreciated.

Here is the link to donate to her cause: http://pages.teamintraining.org/rm/llltri09/rjohnso5eo

for more on team in training click: http://www.teamintraining.org/

Donate to help a good cause and a great person!

Colorado Part II

2009-03-20T07:53:00.001-07:00

After a night in downtown Denver, we headed into the mountains to do some riding at Winter Park Resort. We were graciously hosted by Dave and Julie in their cozy apartment. Lots of sun and a fresh snow fall made the two days here great for the slopes.

We enjoyed a brewery, had some great pizza, and ate some Thai food while in winter park. I can't say that I had a bad meal while on vacation.

Enjoy the photos.

Colorado Part I

2009-03-17T20:54:00.000-07:00

Heather and I ventured out to Colorado last week to visit some friends and do some snowboarding. It was a much needed late winter break from Lake Placid for the two of us. We both made a note how it was so nice going through days without worrying about the time or being anywhere. We didn't really have a plan other then our arrival and departure dates, but it worked out really well.

Colorado is amazing, and with this being my first trip, Heather volunteered to drive. She said she wanted me to be able to appreciate the view, but I think she worried I would crash if I was driving because of the scenery. It seemed around every corner of road was another breath taking view, something I just couldn't capture with a camera.

These first set of pictures is of our drive to Winter Park from Denver.

Enjoy.

Raquetball

2009-02-28T17:14:00.000-08:00

My new winter sport, it is a grea workout and a ton of fun. Josh and I play almost every Saturday night at the local court. Thanks to Mark T. for taking the photos, due to an injury. I still have the title, but Josh has been training hard to take it away. Can't wait until the next match. Anyone looking to play let me know.

Another part of the Jackrabbit Trail

2009-02-28T15:37:00.000-08:00

Heather and I did some skiing before the most recent rains on a portion of the Jackrabbit Trail between River Road and Craig Wood Golf Course. The day was perfect for some shots so I brought along my D40x. Here are some shots of Heather skiing.

From the new lift

2009-02-09T20:40:00.000-08:00

I stole the idea for the shadow pic from a good friend, but it was the perfect day. The pictures are a bit less in quality. I shot them with my point and shoot Olympus Stylus 1050 SW. Not the best for photo quality, but this new camera is not only compact, but water proof, shock proof, and good to -20 F. It is the perfect camera for the adirondacks. I took the pictures from our new lift up Lookout Mtn.

Enjoy

Sunny Day

2009-02-08T06:35:00.001-08:00

Snapped this shot the other day from Craigwood Golf Course of Whiteface Mtn.

The best fisher on the river

2008-09-30T07:21:00.000-07:00

Ever try to open your pelican case and pull out your camera all in a tipsy canoe, with a student scared that he is about to take a swim in the Ausable River? Its all in a days work.

Not often do you get to see such a display. I didn't have my camera out right away for this one, but after some fumbling in the canoe I managed to get these two shots.

Our subject here is an Osprey, and with a wingspan up to 6 ft I wouldn't want to be a trout in his home range. This is the only raptor that plunges into the water feet first for fish.

I feel lucky, and have only witnessed this one other time when I was working at Shaver's Creek Environmental Center in Petersburgh PA.

This encounter came while canoeing at work (yes, I know my job is tough) on the Ausable River right here in Lake Placid.

Lake George Tri

2008-09-22T06:21:00.001-07:00

Its been a long time since my last post. I have started bar tending, and my recreation time as seen a swift downhill, and when I do get the chance, I usually forget to lug along the camera. Last weekend Heather competed in the Lake George Triathlon in beautiful Lake George, NY. The race was Olympic distance, and she finished 5th in her age group. We went with a good size group all from Lake Placid, and everyone had a good time. My favorite part was staying in the comfort suites a brand new hotel with a sweet water slide into the pool, and very nice mattresses.

Race morning was cold and rainy, but by the time the bike finished the rain was gone for the day. I didn't get any pics of the swim because of the wetness. Here are pics of Heather and one of Travis on the bike.

So hopefully this is back to posting for this kid, I will try and stay diligent.

Enjoy the pics, and until next time.

Matthew

Hole Brothers

2008-06-25T07:51:00.000-07:00

Josh recently returned back to the north country in favor of better weather and natural rivers. To celebrate his return we headed to the only thing running right now, Hole Brothers on the Black River. Located in Watertown, NY it is about 2.5 hours from the house. The day was beautiful and we surfed all day. These shots were taken around sunset, so we didn't have the best quality light. There are some pics of Josh blunting, and his classic one handed spin. The others are of me going big, looping and throwing some airwheels.

Enjoy.

Hulls Falls

2008-05-28T07:02:00.001-07:00

Just upstream from Champange Falls is Hulls Falls. There is a lead in rapid followed by the big drop. When Champange is getting a bit on the low side, this is the place to be. Michelle nailed the line. I was a bit to far right on the drop on one of my lines and ended up upside down in the middle of it. Luckily I still have my face.

Gotta love park n' huck.

The Cottage

2008-05-28T06:49:00.000-07:00

Heather and I just moved to Lake Placid from Saranac Lake. Here is our nice little cottage. Enjoy hiking, paddling, running, biking, or just relaxing in the mountains? Come pay us a visit!

Our local creek playground.

2008-05-28T06:27:00.000-07:00

In Keene, NY just 10 minutes from my front door lies our little creek playgroud, the upper east branch of the Ausuable River. This little gem is the only thing running right now while all other runs are near summer flows. The creek offers good lines from boofs to slot moves at all levels. As they go up, the holes get stickier and the lines become a bit more technical. Class IV+ at lower levels up to class V+ when the rain dumps on us or early in the spring. Its just a great spot to get out in your boat and get some laps on.

The pics are of Michelle in the Champange Falls section. Consists of 5 drops in around .5 miles.

Enjoy

Turkey Season

2008-05-27T06:29:00.000-07:00

Its been quite some time since my last post. I've finally got the internet set up in my new place, so I going to make an effort to catch up on some posts with things I've been up to in the past month. For this entry, I traveled back to Bluestone to do some spring turkey hunting. It was the second Saturday and I set up for the morning. Nothing was happening, I spooked a bird off the roost around 5:45 am, so my hopes for the day were diminishing. Around 8:00am I decided to move up the mountain and call some. Around 8:15 only 200 yds from my original location I let out a few yelps and this big tom gobbled back at me. After exchanging in some calls with him, about 10-15 minutes later he came running in to my decoy. The big tom was hot, and I wasted no time taking him with my Winchester 1300 (AKA the turkey slayer) somewhere between 25-30 yds. Examining the bird, I realized it had a double beard. The big one is about 9.5" and the small one is 8". I heard a rumor it might be the first double bearded takin by a hunter at Bluestone. It weighed to my guess about 20lbs and the spurs were over an inch long.

It was good to visit the cabin and hunt with my father, and taking the tom made it even better.

Enjoy the pics.

morning shot

2008-03-27T11:08:00.000-07:00

Recent shot I took right before the sun was coming up the other morning. Taken from the lodge road.

Rents pay a visit to the SL

2008-03-16T11:18:00.000-07:00

Recently my parents finally made it up to the Adirondacks for a visit. We were busy and the time just flew buy. It was great seeing them, and sharing some of the things I love to do with them. I find myself lucky in that aspect. All and all we they were here for 4 days. We went to Whiteface, where my mom got the best spill award for the day. We did some wine tasting, visited the ORDA museum, and did some cross country skiing at Dewey Mtn. I wish I was able to take more photos while they were here, but here are some of the fun ones I got. Until next time.

2008-02-18T10:20:00.000-08:00

Yesterday there were 5500 people at Whiteface so I opted to check out Azure Mtn. for some
glade action on my snowboard. When I arrived at the base, it was warm and sunny outside, a
great day for photos I thought. By the time I reached the summit the wind was blowing around 30 mph and it was sleeting. I was able to get some shots of the road there, the fire tower, inside the tower, and what was left of the view from the top.

Azure Mtn. is located near the town of Santa Clara, NY and near is a stretch, about a ten mile drive down a snowmobile trail, which made me glad to have the Rav4. The elevation is about 2700 feet, and the hike to the top is short a bit over a mile. This gave me the opportunity to do 2 laps of the glades, which are the better then I have found at any resort.

I was there by myself, so I didn't get any action snowboarding shots, but I hope you enjoy the pics posted.
Until next time.

Giant Mountain

2008-01-28T15:36:00.000-08:00

Today Lauren and I hiked to the summit of Giant Mountain, the 12th highest peak in NY state. The day was perfect, with great visibility, and a warm sun, we couldn't ask for much more. The slides on Giant don't have enough snow to board down due to our recent January Thaw which had me a bit depressed, but the view from the top put me in a much better mood. This only #4 on my list of 46ers completed, and I'm going to try and bag a new one every other week from here until I leave the Adirondacks.

The views here can't be matched in the east, and goes to show that a little land preservation goes along way.

Until next time, Enjoy the winter.

Matthew

Molly and Murph visit the Dacks

2008-01-14T21:16:00.000-08:00

Molly and Murphy came up for a weekend visit, we went to whiteface, got drunk, then did it again. The sun was out, the temps were great, but we could use a bit more snow after the January thaw.