LOCALadk Magazine

22 Summer 2015 LOCALadk Magazine LOCALadk JESSICA: After leaving Pisceo, we did not encounter any other people un- til arriving at Wakely Dam two days later. Although I'm not sure this reg- istered with the kids, I found it to be one of my favorite aspects of the hike. This degree of isolation can be a rare treat during summer in the northeast, but it's not unheard of on the NPT. We were passing through the West Canada Lakes region, arguably one of the more remote areas of the Adirondacks. It's also incredibly beautiful, and more than worth the long trek to get there. I'm not sure Casey was as touched by it as I was, but he did notice various things. CASEY: In a few miles, we got to a two-log bridge at Sampson Bog. It was pretty, so we decided to stop for a snack break there. I was eating my snack mix on the bridge, and then dropped it. I lost some to the fish, but we rescued most of it. Even so, the rescued mix was un-eatable. Soon, we got to a lean-to at South Lake. It was a nice place for lunch, so we stopped. Watson flopped down for a nap while we got out the food. We played in the lake. The lean-to even had its own two tiny beaches! After we left, we crossed a bridge over the South Lake outlet. It crossed an enormous, deep-looking stream. The bridge curved all over the place. Instead of two railings, it had a piece of thin cable on each side, held up by a few sticks. JESSICA: The NPT also features a handful of places with historical inter- est. These include the Rondeau Hermitage in the Cold River region, and French Louie's fireplace in the West Canada Lakes. CASEY: We got to a large field full of wild flowers. This was where an ambitious trapper had started to build a lodge. His name was French Lou- ie. He trapped furs in the forest and then brought them into the towns. He would sell his furs, visit people, buy supplies, and drink alcohol. Then he would return to the forest. But when he tried to build a lodge, he didn't get past the fireplace. JESSICA: We had to temporarily halt our trip at the Lake Durant camp- ground. We'd been unable to string together ten consecutive days for hik- ing, but we did manage to organize six days in June and four more later in July. We ended our first leg during a rainy spell and the kids in particular were grateful for a break from the weather, but everyone was up for go- ing back to finish the trail in July. CASEY: We hiked north from Lake Durant through normal terrain; a few hills, a few bridges, a few snacks. When we looked across Tirrell Pond we saw a mountain. On one side of it there were some cliffs! They were streaked, as if water had flowed down them. Finally, we got to a nice, big bridge over the Salmon River. We crossed it and we were at our campsite! We set up the camp and played on the big boulders in the stream. They were so tall that I could reach the tree branches! While Dad cooked dinner, I banged on the bridge with some sticks, using it like a drum. After dinner, we went to bed, ready for the next day of hiking. JESSICA: We reached Long Lake on a rainy day. In this area we ran into more people than on all our other days of hiking combined, but they were all boaters. The NPT itself remained lightly populated. Desiring the con- venience of a lean-to, we stopped slightly earlier than planned when we encountered an empty one. This set us up for an 18.5 mile hike through the Cold River country the next day, which was more than the kids had ever walked at one time. They accepted the challenge for the sake of a roof over our heads. CASEY: The lean-to we stopped at that day was at Kelly Point. We played cards and watched some crazy canoers out on the lake, paddling about in the storm. I often went out on some enormous boulders by the water to slide around and watch the canoes. Mom constantly told me to be careful not to fall in the water. Jenna Demayo

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