LOCALadk Magazine

50 Spring 2015 LOCALadk Magazine I t's early morning, summertime. Dawn's buttery light fills your tent, and the air is infused with the sweet smells of August in the Adirondacks: sun-dried grass and meadow flowers, green leaves in full growth, cool mist from the water. The birds sound so close you feel you must be among them in the branches. Your imagination drifts to the day ahead. What surprises are in store? Perhaps a dip in a mountain-fed stream? Maybe road-side ice cream? Or a visit to an out- of-the-way art gallery? Today, will you pass lakes and glide through forest, or will it be meadows and wide-skied views? Perhaps today you'll see that Bicknell's thrush you've been on the look-out for – or catch a glimpse of a bobcat. There are tantalizing unknowns in the day ahead, but there is also much that you can be sure of: you will certainly pass miles and miles of spectacular views, you will meander through a sprinkling of small towns and hamlets, and you will be going at a pace that ensures you are immersed in the experience – both in the beauty of the landscape and the small-town feel of the communities. Along the way you will have access to information about all you're experiencing, as well as tips and guides to help you experience it to the fullest. Also, you can be sure that at the end of the day you will have an excellent meal and a chance to relax in the beer garden with your favorite local brew while you enjoy both live music and informative programs. You'll be staying in a new community, so there will be streets and stores to explore, vendors' booths to browse – and perhaps you'll enjoy a massage before you retire to your bed to rest as only those who have exercised well and eaten well can. Then, tomorrow – a new day, and a new chapter of this adventure. This, more or less, is the experience that hundreds of bike riders will enjoy this summer, August 23 – 29, on the first ever week-long guided bike tour of the Adirondacks and North Country region. Cycle Adirondacks is a program developed by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and its goals are two-fold: one, to give participants a luxurious, thorough, and educational tour through a range of ecosystems and communities of the North Country. The tour will highlight both environmental and cultural features and emphasize the interconnections between the two. Secondly, the program aims to give residents of North Country communities the opportunity to showcase, highlight, sell, and otherwise celebrate their work to this large contingent of visitors. The Cycle Adirondack program is emblematic of a community-based approach to wildlife conservation. Community-based conservation, along with science and research, is central to WCS's mission in the Adirondacks. Community-based conservation presumes this: that there is a symbiotic relationship between cultural / social / economic health and the health of the environment and ecosystems. In the Adirondacks, the natural world is our greatest asset – it is the reason people want to live here, it is the heart of our quality of life, and it Perfect Pedaling Cycle Adirondacks for Community and Environment By Sarah Hart Photos by Kurt Gardner

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