It still amazes me the people God brings into our lives.  I was walking back up to Graybeard when two hikers came around the corner of the old mine shaft building.  I thought to myself how in the world did they get here?  More to the point who were they?and What in the world were they looking for?  Meet Erica and Evan

They are currently hiking what is known as the Trans Adirondack Route also  known as the Blue Line (shown in the picture below) and were looking for a place to rest for a while.   So I gave them a couple of chairs and struck up a conversation.

Being the curious type, I of course, asked them, Why do something like this?  Erica stated that she likes the physical challenge, the sense of accomplishment when the trip is done, and discovering the beauty of the world around her.  Evan stated that he too likes the physical challenge, but also the idea of carrying your whole life in a knapsack on your back, and he too stated that he enjoys discovering the beauty of the world around him.  Another interesting fact about Erica is that she owns a 15 year old Nissan Pathfinder that is just a few miles short of 200,000 miles and which has been driven to all the lower 49 states – just recently she came back from a trip to Alaska.

Back to the current route that they are on.  The Trans Adirondack Route, I discovered, is 236 miles long, running from the northern boundary of the Adirondack Park near the Canadian border to its southern boundary just outside of Albany.   Overall, the Trans Adirondack Route uses approximately 185 miles of trails, 50 miles of roads, and five miles of trackless woods to get from one end of the park to the other. Yet, it encounters only three small settlements. Five life zones, scores of picturesque campsites, more than fifty bodies of water, and hundreds of streams and mountains are passed along the way. The route is designed for long-distance hikers seeking an extended walk on the wild side, though most sections can be covered via a series of day hikes.

Also, if you’re not familiar with the Adirondack Park – I know I wasn’t – here are a few facts about it that are amazing.

• it’s the largest state park in the lower 48 with an area of 6.1 million acres, roughly the size of Vermont, and greater in size than Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Glacier, and Great Smoky Mountain National Park combined.
• there are more than 3,000 lakes in the park with 30,000 miles of streams and rivers, including 2,000 miles of hiking trails comprising the largest park trail system in the United States.
• the park has 130,000 people who live within its boundaries scattered in small towns and hamlets
• about 1 million acres of the park are designated as Wilderness, while another 1.7 million acres are managed as Wild Forest. The remaining 3.4 million acres are privately owned but very sparsely developed.

Now, I also discovered that this is not their first in terms of wilderness hikes.     They are also proudly known as Adirondack Forty-Sixers.  During the past two years they have climbed the forty-six traditionally recognized High Peaks in the Adirondack Mountains.  Again, doing some research, I found out that this accomplishment is no small feat.  I discovered that with the exception of Whiteface Mountain, which you could summit by walking up its awe-inspiring scenic road to the top, I discovered that the majority of the routes to the tops of these peaks are remote, rocky, and downright nasty. The trails are not walk-up, jog-up pathways with packed dirt or pine needles beneath your feet. Rather, the paths to the summits of the 46 are overwhelmingly directed over and around pure granite that has been arranged in a beautifully sadistic manner, just navigable enough for you to keep telling yourself that it’s not going to kill you. The majority of the routes are comprised of some combination of rocky creek bed staircases, wooden ladders, muddy bogs, sheer rock faces, river crossings, and vertical scrambles over giant ledges and boulders.  Erica and Evan, I salute you, what you’ve accomplished and what you are doing now is not something I would ever even think of doing!

That was the first part of the day.  The second part was just as great.  We all gathered at Graybeard for  the evening meal – Barbara’s contest winning chili and cornbread.   We ate until we could eat to more.  It was another fantastic meal with family, another one of those precious moments I’m so thankful for.

Since the family was here I took some more pictures of everyone.  First of all here is a picture of the two builders of the Lake House, my sister Cindy, and her husband Charlie.

 

And here is a picture of my mom who is flying back to North Carolina tomorrow.  I miss her already.  She continues to amaze all of us, at 92 years young she is still traveling and doing just great.  She keeps reminding us Don’t forget I want a party when I turn 100.

Here is Barb, myself, and mom on the living room couch.

After supper it was my turn to be surprised.  Though my birthday is not until July 18th, my mom didn’t want to leave without celebrating it.  So out came the birthday cake which did indeed catch me completely off guard.  Thanks one and all!

Then, of course, I had to blow the candles out.  Yes, I got them all on the first try!

It was in all respects another wonderful day.  A chance to meet two of God’s beautiful people and an opportunity to again be with family.  Life doesn’t get much better than this.  I thank the good Lord each and every day for the wonderful life He has blessed us with.

Time now to call it a wrap.  Thanks again for coming along with us on our journey.  We hope your day was just as wonderful, that you also had a chance to make some fantastic memories that will last a lifetime.  In closing, a thought for all of us to ponder:

As always,  if you are coming to the end of your day with concerns and worries, let me suggest that you turn them over to God.  After all, He is going to be up all night so why not let him handle them for you.

Time now for our evening prayers and eventually some shut-eye.  Till tomorrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s occupants, four paws and two humans.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before

We awoke to another beautiful day in paradise.  Clear blue skies, reasonable temperatures, a slight trace of a breeze, and, of course, that wonderful view.  But I’ve been told I have my lakes all wrong.  The lake I’m looking at is not Chazy Lake but Chateaugay Lake.  Well, how about that.

My sister Cindy and Barbara had planned the menu for the week when we first arrived here and this morning it was Barbara’s turn to make breakfast.  My sister, after reading several of my blog posts and the wonderful breakfast that Barbara always made for me, was feeling a bit left out.  So she wondered Would Barbara be up to making a big and delicious breakfast for all of us?  Of course!

So we gathered everything up and went off to the Lake House aka my sisters cabin for breakfast.  How can you not feel welcomed when a sign like this greets you.

And this is the Lake House at Chazy Lake.

Unfortunately, the picture does not do justice to this beautiful home.  My sister and her husband started out with an empty shell and have transformed it into a home that is truly fantastic.  They’ve put untold hours of work into it and the end result is a home  and grounds around it that are amazing. This is a picture of the fire pit and the lake off in the background.

And here are the ladies in the kitchen getting breakfast ready.  Take a look at the interior and remember when they started, this was just an empty shell.  Now it is, as I’ve stated, absolutely beautiful.  The light fixture by the way hanging from the ceiling was especially made by Charlie, my sister’s husband.  He took several glass insulators, that are typically found on electric poles, drilled them out and then installed light fixtures inside of them.  What he can do, always, continues to amaze me.

So it was breakfast ala Brabara and all agreed it was delicious and tummy filling.  But the day was not over.  My sister, Cindy, took the evening meal and we had another delicious meal this time of potatoes, corn, sweet potatoes, and ham.  We are by all counts, eating good!

Here’s the best part, we’re doing it together as a family.  Moments like this are so special and we’re all loving it.  We’re so grateful for these times together, memories are being made that will last forever.

So that’s what our day was like.  Thanks for sharing it with us.  I’ll be back tomorrow with more.  Monday night it will be chili for all at Graybeard.  We hope you had an opportunity to do something special today as well, hopefully with someone you love, maybe your family.  In closing, a thought for all of us to ponder:

As always,  if you are coming to the end of your day with concerns and worries, let me suggest that you turn them over to God.  After all, He is going to be up all night so why not let him handle them for you.

Time now for our evening prayers and eventually some shut-eye.  Till tomorrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s occupants, four paws and two humans.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before

Home Is Where We Park It and home for us for the next week is the Iron Mountain Campground.  This campground is located on the site of one of the abandoned iron mines that dotted this area from 1935 to 1967.  It is another story of a boom town dependent upon one industry that went bust when that industry moved out of town.  More about that tomorrow.  Here is our home as of now.

This is a view of Chazy Lake off to our right.  This is the lake that my sister and her husband have their cabin on.  It is an absolutely gorgeous view to say the least.  I never get tired of views like this that remind me of the beautiful world that God created.

Today we spent unpacking and getting settled in.  We also went shopping and did some sightseeing.  On the subject of shopping once Barbara learned that there was an Aldi only 30 minutes from our home there was no holding her back!  If I didn’t know better I’d swear she either secretly owns stock in the store or believes that it is heaven on earth.  Take your pick, though I don’t think either is quiet likely.  She just likes the store – a LOT.

We also did some sightseeing today but time doesn’t permit my putting everything together right now.  In the coming days we’ll share with you our visit to The Museum of the War of 1812, The Plattsburg Air Force Museum, as well as some of the history that we’ve discovered regarding Iron Mountain and Republic Steel.  Suffice to say I’ve been like a kid in a candy store with all the interesting historical sites we’ve already visited and the historical information I’ve already unearthed about this area.  My cup of tea for sure.

Tonight was one of the precious moments in that we were able to share some more time with my sister and her husband and my mother.  We were treated to supper out at the Owley Out which is the local hangout in this area.  A great place, great crowd, and great food.  We came away with full tummies and satisfied appetites.  Even better I made some new acquaintances, one who also served in Vietnam and another who like me was really interested in the history of the area.   All in all, my kind of night.

 

Here is a picture of my sister, my mom and Barbara together at the table for supper. Three more beautiful ladies you would be hard pressed to find anywhere.  I dare you to guess my mom’s age.

What makes this place so special, beside the food, is the fact that the building was hand made by the owner using timber he himself cut and milled for its construction.  Take a look

This is a close up of just one section of the bar.  The bar, the stools, the tables throughout were all hand crafted by the owner and are absolutely beautiful.

Also speaking of age, here is our waitress for the evening, another of God’s beautiful people by the name of Brie.  Anyone want to guess her age?

So yes, there is much more to share with you regarding our day today.  But that will have to wait till tomorrow or the day after.  Suffice to say our time here has already been fantastic in so many different ways.  Time with family, time to discover new and interesting things, time to see interesting sights, life doesn’t get much better than this.

Thanks again for sharing our day with us, it’s been fun having you along.  We are truly trying to live up to our motto, explore as many new states as possible, seek out new acquaintances, make new friends, boldly go where we have not been before.  And we’re doing it the best way possible, traveling along, singing our song, side by side.

Before I go as always a thought for each of to ponder:

As always,  if you are coming to the end of your day with concerns and worries, let me suggest that you turn them over to God.  After all, He is going to be up all night so why not let him handle them for you.

Time now for our evening prayers and eventually some shut-eye.  Till tomorrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s occupants, four paws and two humans.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before

 

 

 

 

 

Sometimes they get it right, but I wish they had been wrong.  I’m talking about the weather report.  They said it was going to rain Friday morning and it was when we woke up.  Yet, thankfully, it ended by the time we needed to get on the road.

Per our usual method of operation, we were on the road by 10 am.  The skies had cleared, the sun was beginning to come out, but the wind, oh the wind, was really blowing.  It was wasn’t that bad until we were on the interstate and then we felt it big time.  Yet, overall, it was an easy trip.  A lot of mountains to climb but Graybeard handled each and every one of them without a problem.

We were eager to get to our new home for we knew who was there waiting for us – my sister and her husband and my mom who had flown up from North Carolina.  Knowing this made the miles just sort of fly by.

In due time, we were there.  We’re at the Iron City campground in Lyon Mountain, New York.  Pictures of our new home will be posted tomorrow.  We have a nice site, grass, reasonably level, full hookup.  We were thrilled when we discovered that it appeared we were going to be able to get some over the air TV channels.  Until we discovered that they were in French!

Our first night was spent visiting my sister at her new cabin on Chazy Lake.  It is a beautiful and cozy place and my sister, as always, was the gracious and hospitable host.  The visit was made even better by the fact that my mom was there.  Time with family is so precious so I’m cherishing these next few days that we’ll be able to spend together.

Well, enough for now.  Just wanted to let every one know we are safe and sound at our new home.  We’ll spend Saturday getting settled in and doing some shopping.  Then in the evening we’ll get together as a family once again.  Yea!

Oh, one little interesting fact.  Remember yesterday it was a record 91 degrees?  When we got here the temperature was 69 degrees!  The temperature during the evening was supposed to go down into the 40’s.  Guess we’ll have to pull our blankets out once again.

As always,  if you are coming to the end of your day with concerns and worries, let me suggest that you turn them over to God.  After all, He is going to be up all night so why not let him handle them for you.

Time now for our evening prayers and eventually some shut-eye.  Till tomorrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s occupants, four paws and two humans.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before