Photograph by Jamie West McGiver
Sometimes we need a little nudge. Our first Adirondack Life Challenge, in 2019, was a lot of fun—and not just for our readers. It was a blast looking at all those pictures of families living park-perfect summers. (We were especially tickled by your visionary recipes for wacky new s’mores—S’morito, anyone?) Adirondack Life(rs) came through again in 2021, posing next to phone booths, sporting lumberjack beards—real or an “interpretation”—even howling at the moon. But then 2023 came and went without a biennial reboot. We forgot to frolic.
The Schaller family, of Virginia and Ohio, was having none of it. They wrote in, explaining how much their clan had enjoyed the first two challenges and wondering why we’d stopped. Some among them thought we might have run out of ideas, so they were kind enough to offer a list that they’d brainstormed around the brunch table. Below you’ll find 15 “tasks”—some that are the Schallers’ suggestions—designed to put more play in your summertime days. Finish all of them by Labor Day and receive the official Great Adirondack Life Challenge patch. See below for details.
1. Picnic on a Mountaintop
Nothing makes a PB&J taste better than the sweet view from a summit. But why stop there? Challenge your crew to tote an over-the-top spread up the trail—who says you can’t serve an elevated meal among the clouds? Just remember to Leave No Trace of your picnic, and watch where you spread your blanket, as vulnerable alpine plants call some higher elevations home. If a leg-busting hike doesn’t work for you and yours, lunching on a hilltop perch or overlook is fine by us.
2. Identify an Adirondack Wildflower*
What in the world is cow-wheat? Or spotted touch-me-not? Pipssissewa? If you find out, let us know. A good reference is Wildflowers of the Adirondacks, by Anne McGrath, available at libraries around the region.
3. Show Off Your Local Love
Represent with your favorite ballcap, T-shirt, mug, poster or other Adirondackana. Don’t have anything in your collection? You can craft a homemade accessory to celebrate that special place in the park.
4. Visit Three Adirondack Lakes or Ponds
There are, after all, more than 3,000 of them, from little Star Lake in the northwest to sprawling Lake George in the southeast. Try to visit one or two new-to-you waters. And don’t forget to jump in.
5. Identify an Adirondack Critter*
Meet a red-spotted newt on the trail—look but don’t touch!—catch sight of a gray jay at Bloomingdale Bog, watch a luna moth flutter around the campsite, encounter an ermine in the forest—it doesn’t matter if it flies, swims, crawls or scurries.
6. Make Forest Art
Use twigs, leaves, pinecones—whatever you can recycle from Mother Nature’s compost—to make your next masterpiece. Remember to respect our plant friends’ boundaries; don’t peel bark from living trees and leave moss where you found it. Bonus: add more color to your designs with some bits and pieces of old Adirondack Life pages.
7. Visit a Historic Site or Museum
The Adirondacks is the ancestral home to both Haudenosaunee and Algonquin, as well as a frontier for European settlers, a pivotal battlefield in two wars, and a resource-rich playground of the Gilded Age. So there’s no shortage of spots to explore. A handful of suggestions:
–The Six Nations Iroquois Cultural Center (www.6nicc.com), in Onchiota, home to more than 3,000 artifacts.
–Crown Point State Historic Site (parks.ny.gov), Fort Ticonderoga (www.fortticonderoga.org) or the Fort William Henry Museum (www.fwhmuseum.com) in Lake George.
–The Essex Village Historic District—an entire community on the National Historic Registry.
–Great Camp Sagamore (www.sagamore.org) or Santanoni (www.greatcampsantanoni.com).
–Tahawus/Adirondac (www.openspaceinstitute.org), where interpretive trails take visitors through a 19th-century mining community.
–John Brown Farm State Historic Site (parks.ny.gov), the North Elba homestead of the famous abolitionist, which is also home to nature trails.
8. Make Up a New Constellation*
And give it a tall-tale backstory. Don’t worry if your chosen stars turn out to be a little camera shy—you can draw a picture instead.
9. Eat at Your favorite Adirondack Diner
Here are a few tasty options:
–Chef Darrell’s Mountain Diner, Blue Mountain Lake (www.bluemtdiner.com)
–Foote’s Port Henry Diner (on Facebook)
–Noon Mark Diner, Keene Valley (www.noonmarkdiner.com)
–Prospect Mountain Diner, Lake George (www.prospectmountaindiner.com)
–Reandeau’s Swiss Kitchen, Tupper Lake (518-359-3513)
–Tamarack Cafe, Inlet (www.tamarackcafeandputterfingers.co)
–Adirondack Mountain Coffee Cafe, Upper Jay (adkmountaincoffee.com)
–Walt’s Diner, Old Forge (waltsdiner.com)
10. Cook a Meal over a Campfire
Think outside the bun for your next fireside nosh. Sticks can skewer more than just hot dogs, and aluminum-foil packets are perfect for loading with anything from all-dressed nachos to apple crisp. Set your imagination on fire. But be careful around those flames, kids.
11. Read an Adirondack-based Book
You’re in the Adirondacks—you know there’ll be drizzly days. Luckily local library and bookstore shelves are stuffed with rainy-day distractions, such as E. L. Doctorow’s classic Loon Lake, Bill McKibben’s hopeful Wandering Home, the fan-
favorite Adirondack Kids series and lively picture books from Wilmington-based author Maxwell Eaton III.
12. Sing a Song around a Campfire
“There Ain’t No Bugs on Me” is a good choice—even if it is wishful thinking.
13. Hang Out in a Hammock
Under the pine trees or on the porch, there’s nothing like rocking away a lazy afternoon.
14. Watch the Sunset
Catch the sun’s colorful disappearing act against one of the park’s million-dollar views. And don’t miss the double feature: lightning-bug aeronautics after the curtain falls.
15. Take a Tour
Hop aboard with the Lake George Steamboat Company (www.lakegeorgesteamboat.com) or Raquette Lake Navigation Company (www.raquettelakenavigation.com); catch a scenic train (adirondackrr.com) or railbike (adirondackscenicrailbikes.com); or sign up for a nature walk, like the ones hosted by Paul Smith’s VIC (www.paulsmithsvic.org), Newcomb’s Adirondack Interpretive Center (www.esf.edu/aic) or Adirondack Experience (www.theadkx.org), in Blue Mountain Lake. If all else fails make up your own tour, and become our guide to your favorite spot.
HOW TO PLAY
Before September 3, 2024, post photographs of yourself (except for tasks that specify photographing something else, denoted with an asterisk) completing each of the tasks to Instagram or Facebook, using the hashtag #GreatAdirondackLifeChallenge.
Once you’ve finished all the tasks, send an email to challenge@adirondacklife.com with a link to your social media profile. Not on social media? You can also send a link to a non-password-protected gallery on a photo-sharing site.
