Central
& Western NY Outdoors
February
2005
~~~ IN THIS ISSUE ~~~
Hike-in Yurts for Winter Backcountry Adventure
Ever See an Iceburg from Top to Bottom?
Mobster Eco Challenge Route Finalized
The Artic Wildlife National Refuge by Robert Redford
There are "less traveled" regions of the Adirondacks where winter is a paradise of frozen waterfalls, secluded ice covered, snow drift ponds and miles of untracked fresh powder trails and bushwhacks that welcome backcountry and cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and hiking. Few backcountry hike-in destinations provide a true respite from society with fewer people on the trails and the comforts of home in the woods.
Take a trip into the Adirondack Mountains and capture some backcountry winter fun at the great hike-in destination of Falls Brook Yurts. Located in the Vanderwhacker region of the Adirondacks, hike in just 2/3 of a mile on the Stony Pond trailhead for a unique backcountry stay. Easy to get to and yet, so remote, Falls Brook Yurts are tucked along miles and miles of state trails leading you to secluded ponds, day trip lean-tos and a scenic bushwhack up Green Mountain. Trails offer fun, backcountry skiing and die hard backcountry skiers can turn off the trails for pristine "through the trees" skiing. Step outside your yurt door and explore in every direction the beauty of winter in the Adirondacks. Fallen leaves from trees open up the forests for spectacular mountain range views with ponds dotted off in the distance. Take an evening snowshoe by moon light and enjoy the shadows cast on the snow as you walk through the silent wilderness at twilight. Head lamps become optional as the moon lights your way. Nature definitely surrounds you with beautiful and varied terrain to ski, snowshoe or hike.
A favorite trip is a shuttle trip from Route 28N to Falls Brook. Start at Route 28N and ski/snowshoe/hike up a gradual, meandering 2 mile trail to the Stony Pond lean-to for a perfect lunch break. This lean-to overlooks Stony Pond. At this point, either travel on Stony Pond and Upper and Lower Sherman Pond, when safely frozen, or follow the state marked trail along side these ponds. Pass beaver dams and huts along the way and catch a glimpse of the busy beaver sliding across the ice and back into the safety of heaped high, stick huts. This trail is "less traveled" and you are almost sure to find fresh powder on your voyage to Falls Brook. From the lean-to, travel 1.5 miles with the sun at your face and then travel away from the ponds to the hootin' and hollerin' portion of the trip. You'll be hollerin' with laughter as you glide down a gradual decent for over 3.5 miles (yes all that flat, yet scenic, skiing definitely pays off here) This decent takes you to the doorstep of your Falls Brook Yurts. Pass through forests of evergreens, giant oaks, white birch and maples and a waterfall that may be frozen in time. Once at Falls Brook, enjoy the comfort, warmth and Adirondack decor that each yurt is distinctly designed to offer.
Falls Brook Yurts provide a terrific way to be in nature in winter with the comfort and warmth desired after a day of outdoor winter fun. Propane heating, cooking and lighting provide a very warm stay even in the coldest of temperatures. The sun hits the yurt as well, providing warmth through the 5' skylight and windows. A nap, a good book, or a game of checkers is usually in order at this point. Put a pot of stew on the stove and your feet up. Falls Brook Yurts accommodate up to 8 guests and include real mattress sleeping, futon and kitchen/dining areas. You'll find cushy, Adirondack charm in each yurt.
Step outside your yurt door and find many short trips to waterfalls, caves and easy to reach look outs. Travel to Lost Pond, created entirely by beavers. It sits half way up Green Mountain and supplies a waterfall that flows into an old iron ore mine below. And most importantly, there is often fresh powder snow from mid December through March. The hosts of Falls Brook recommend guests use snowshoes to get around. Falls Brook is situated in a snow belt, just 15 minutes from the Northway 187 in higher elevations. Conveniently located is this unique backcountry stay, yet, very remote-and pristine. From each yurt, hear the rush of water flowing under the frozen cascading Falls Brook and only the sound of the wind from inside your yurt.
It's a place of tranquility, relaxation and adventure. Guest notes in the log book often read, Falls Brook "it is heaven on earth". This winter season, Falls Brook Yurts offers snowshoe rentals for guests. Just bring your sleeping bag, clothes, food and a sense of adventure. A great way to get out and getaway in the winter awaits you at Falls Brook Yurts in the Adirondacks.
For more information visit www.fallsbrookyurts.com Call (518) 761-6187 or email
info@fallsbrookyurts.com
Falls Brook Yurts
John Brannon Road
Minerva, NY
"Take the path less traveled"
Ganondagan State Historic Site
1488 Route 444, Victor, NY
Saturday, February 12, 2005, 10 AM – 4 PM
In the April 2003 newsletter I wrote an article about watching the snowsnake game at Ganondagan (see
“I Ran Into a Snowsnake The Other
Day”). Mark your calendar for February 12 and you can go play the snowsnake game yourself this year.
The Ganondagan Native American Winter Event includes the snowsnake demonstration, a dogsled run demonstration, snowshoeing (bring your own or rent them on site) and more.
www.ganondagan.org or (585) 742-1690
Fun Fact:
Snowshoes, historically called "shoeski," were invented in 4,000 B.C. in Central Asia.
Click to enlarge
This came from a Rig Manager for Global Marine Drilling in St. Johns,
Newfoundland.
They have to divert iceburgs away from the rig by towing them with ships! In this particular case the water was calm, & the sun was almost directly overhead so that the diver was able to get into the clear water and click this picture.
They estimated the weight at 300,000,000 tons. And now we know why they say one picture is worth 1,000 words...
We also know why the Titanic sank!
Author Unknown
Snow? What snow? Oh yeah, that white, fluffy stuff that has recently buried our world. Embrace the snow.
Head to Pollywogg Holler in New York’s southern tier any Sunday this winter for an authentic winter sleigh ride, good food, and other winter frivolities.
The 1-hour ride is in a ten person sleigh, pulled by prize winning Belgium Horses, and controlled by "The Sleigh Master" Colonel Ringelburg. Rides begin at 1 PM. The cost is only five dollars for adults and three for children under twelve.
Soooo, bundle up the children and get them to The Holler with your camera and record the thrill of a childhood adventure. As for the fun loving adults: come on out for a fun packed ride or get a group of ten together and do the Moon Light Thing. Fun, Fun, Fun. Enjoy some cross country skiing, snowshoeing, ice-skating, and general winter fun. Then load up on pizza, Deb's HOT chili, mulled cider and hot buttered rum.
For information visit www.pollywoggholler.com or call 585-268-5819 or
800-291-9668.
Horse drawn sleigh rides are also being offered every Sunday afternoon from 1-3 PM at Granger Homestead in Canandaigua. www.grangerhomestead.org (585) 394-1472.
This June 11th, 32 participants will again spend up to 12 hours moutain biking, hiking, using a GPS, canoeing, fording rivers, making rafts, encountering gangsters, law men and other characters from the “moonshine” era. The contestants will be attempting to be the first ones to find the still, hidden deep behind a waterfall and get the moonshine to the end of the Prohibition Route before the others.
The event is an imitation of adventure racing/eco
challenge but with a twist. It is designed to be fun, more cooperative then regular racing events, and emphasizes interaction and connection over victors. Despite prizes for the winners, the real winners are those who have the most fun. Contestants are usually exhausted at the end, but smiling. There is food and support throughout. Teams of 4 are encouraged.
This year the event will take place near Mt. Morris. The route cannot be disclosed ahead of time, but it will follow public areas that are seldom used, Greenway trails and one time only private lands. Contestants will be in beautiful rivers, small towns, remote woods and trails. They will encounter one large gorge along the route.
Last year was a great success! Frequently family teams enter along with mixed groups of friends. If you are looking for an ultra competitive atmosphere this is not the event for you. Handicaps are given out depending on the event and problem solving,
random events can have the last place team end up first with a final twist at the end. For pictures from last year try
INSITUPHOTO.COM. For information on this years event use
www.packpaddleski.com.
Think this would be fun? Read
what a past participant had to say
No one voted on Election Day to destroy the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. But President Bush is now claiming a mandate to do exactly that. Congressional leaders are pushing for a quick vote that would turn America's greatest sanctuary for Arctic wildlife into a vast, polluted oil field. Even worse, they are planning to avoid public debate on this devastating measure by hiding it in a must-pass budget bill.
Please go to http://www.nrdcactionfund.org/arctic0501c.asp right now and send a message telling your U.S. senators and representative to reject this sneak attack on the Arctic Refuge. And please forward my message to your friends, family and colleagues. We must mobilize millions of Americans in opposition as quickly as possible. Don't believe for a second that the president is targeting the Arctic Refuge for the sake of America's energy security or to lower gas prices at the pump.
President Bush knows full well that oil drilled in the Arctic Refuge
would take ten years to get to market and would never equal more than a paltry one or two percent of our nation's daily consumption. Simply put, sacrificing the crown jewel of our wildlife heritage would do nothing to reduce gas prices or break our addiction to Persian Gulf oil. But if the raid on the Arctic Refuge isn't really about gas prices or energy security, then what is it about? It's the symbolism.
The Arctic Refuge represents everything spectacular and everything endangered about America's natural heritage. It embodies a million years of ecological serenity . . . a vast stretch of pristine wilderness . . . an irreplaceable birthing ground for polar bears, caribou and white wolves. It is the greatest living reminder that conserving nature in its wild state is a core American value. It stands for every remnant of wilderness that we, as a people, have wisely chosen to protect from the relentless march of bulldozers, chain saws and oil rigs. And that's why the Bush administration is dead set on destroying it. By unlocking the Arctic Refuge, they hope to open the door for oil, gas and coal giants to invade our last and best wild places: our western canyonlands, our ancient forests, our coastal waters, even our national monuments.
This is the real agenda behind the raid on the Arctic Refuge and the entire Bush-Cheney energy plan: to transfer our public estate into corporate hands so it can be liquidated for a quick buck. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) admitted as much when he said this battle over the Arctic Refuge is really a fight over whether energy exploration will be allowed in similarly sensitive areas in the future. "It's about precedent," Rep. DeLay said. I take him at his word. If we let the president and Congress plunder the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for the sake of oil company profits, then no piece of our natural heritage will be safe from wholesale destruction.
Please go to http://www.nrdcactionfund.org/arctic0501c.asp and tell your senators and representative they have no mandate to destroy the Arctic Refuge. Then, please be sure to forward this message to as many people as you can.
And thank you for speaking out at this critical time.
Sincerely,
Robert Redford
Natural Resources Defense Council Action Fund (NRDC)
A Romantic Getaway
Don't forget Valentine's
Day on Feb. 14
Honeoye
Bloomfield
South Bristol
Canandaigua Lake
Do these sound like far away, exotic locales? They’re not. They’re close to home and offer quaint, unique, quiet, retreats – perfect for a romantic getaway. Enjoy time together, not traveling far and wide.
Begun as a single cabin in the Bristol Hills, “The Quiet Place” has now expanded to 4 separate properties – each outfitted with a set of Footprint Press guidebooks! Check out the
wonderful locations at http://www.thequietplace.com, then book a stay and surprise your spouse.
Staghorn sumac beside the frozen barge canal (near Schoen Place in Pittsford)
Photo by Bob Grossman
Got
a picture about the outdoors you would like to share?
Send if to us and we'll share several with our subscribers in each
newsletter.
February 7, Monday, 7 PM, a $5 donation is appreciated.
A Region of Beauty - Trails & Waterfalls of the Finger Lakes Region slide show
Genesee Waterways Center
149 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14611
Light refreshments served, call (585) 328-3960 to reserve a seat.
We live in a region of beauty. There's no need to travel far to find natural gems. Local guidebook authors Rich & Sue Freeman will share slides and stories on where to go to find spectacular waterfalls and trails for hiking & biking in the Finger Lakes region.
www.footprintpress.com
www.geneseewaterways.org
March 3, Thursday, 7 PM, a $5 donation is appreciated.
Where to Canoe & Kayak Near Home slide show
Genesee Waterways Center
149 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14611
Light refreshments served, call (585) 328-3960 to reserve a seat.
Rich & Sue Freeman want you to "Take a Paddle." They'll share slides taken while researching their newest guidebooks and show the most scenic, unique and just plain fun places you can flat-water paddle in a canoe or kayak.
www.footprintpress.com
www.geneseewaterways.org
PLEASE
FORWARD THIS NEWSLETTER
to anyone who is interested in the Outdoors.
To send a copy of this page, just click "File", then
"Send", then "page by e-mail."
BACK ISSUES are archived at http://www.footprintpress.com/Newsletters/newslett.htm
To subscribe to Western & Central NY Outdoors-
click here
To unsubscribe send a blank
email to: 71797-unsubscribe@zinester.com
NOTE: The subscription procedure for Zinester.com (Footprint Press's
subscription service) is double opt-in. This means, as a subscriber, you
will be asked to reply to a confirmation message after you have request a
subscription via email.
|
|
