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  • What's a good town for a base?

    My husband and I will be in Schenectady for a family event on Memorial Day, and we're staying until the following Saturday to explore the Adirondack area.

    We have reservations in Albany the night before our event and the night before our flight home to Chicago, so we need suggestions for the four days in between.

    We're not familiar with upstate New York at all, so it's hard to narrow down our options from the mass of information online. We'd really appreciate some suggestions for a starting point and what to focus on.

    We'd like to find a town with a reasonable selection of affordable motels (we're not campers, we like electricity, private baths and Internet access), where we can reach interesting hiking trails and historical sites no more than a 45-minute drive in any direction.

    We did survive Bryce and Zion last spring, but we're really not up for anything quite that strenuous this year. We're looking for good photo opportunities and good food -- we're not into theme parks, water slides or shopping malls.

    Any thoughts?

    Thanks!

  • #2
    Originally posted by ffranny View Post
    We're not familiar with upstate New York at all, so it's hard to narrow down our options from the mass of information online. We'd really appreciate some suggestions for a starting point and what to focus on.

    We'd like to find a town with a reasonable selection of affordable motels (we're not campers, we like electricity, private baths and Internet access), where we can reach interesting hiking trails and historical sites no more than a 45-minute drive in any direction.
    I think you just described the village of Saranac Lake. Not as "touristy" as nearby Lake Placid, but with quick (15 minute) access to it. SL has several smaller motels at more reasonable prices and good restaurants too.
    Last edited by Wldrns; 04-15-2008, 10:31 AM.
    "Now I see the secret of making the best person, it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth." -Walt Whitman

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    • #3
      For late May/early June, you might want to consider a stay in Lake George Village. You'll be just an hour north of Albany Airport. There's lots of history in the area (French and Indian Wars in LG and American Revolution in Saratoga area). Good food in Glens Falls and Saratoga Springs. Take a boat ride on Lake George. There are many moderate hiking trails in the area--Hadley Mountain, Buck Mountain, Sleeping Beauty. And it would be easy to take a day trip to Lake Placid and include a hike up Cascade or a drive to the top of Whiteface.

      Pat T

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      • #4
        Lake Placid would work to, its a little more crowded than Saranac Lake but has more lodging options. There are many motels in Tupper Lake too. All three of these towns are close to each other and have lots of attractions anyone is a safe bet. I suggest going to the Adirondack Natural History Museum in Tupper Lake.

        Find new ways to connect with nature through experiences like Wild Walk, Climate Solutions, Forest Music, Patrick Dougherty’s Stickwork, Birdly, and get to know some of the Adirondack animal ambassadors that call The Wild Center home.

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        • #5
          Don't miss the ADK Museum in Blue Mt.Lake, which is also centrally locataed. Buttermilk Falls near Long Lake, Goodnow Fire Tower Hike near Newcomb.Hiking trails are too numerous to get into right now. A seaplane ride with Helms Aero Service in Long Lake,Which is also centrally located.Rent a canoe in Newcomb and paddle the flat waters of the Hudson River. Rent a boat from the Emporioum Marine in Cranberry Lake, then hike to Slideing Rock, a nice short hike accessible by boat only, or a long overnite hike.HIke on the Nortville Placid Trail just east of Long Lake, go out and back as far as you want, both north and south.Visit Placid and look at the Olympic ski jumps,
          Explore Tooley pond Rd and the many short hikes along the river.
          Be careful, don't spread invasive species!!

          When a dog runs at you,whistle for him.
          Henry David Thoreau

          CL50-#23

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          • #6
            I'd second Saranac Lake - centrally located, nice town. From there you can check out Tupper Lake, Lake Placid, the Wilmington/Whiteface area, Ausable Chasm, etc., etc. There's a million hiking trails in the area, and a wide choice of restaurants. Enjoy!

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            • #7
              I agree with Lake George area since you mentioned history. Not much happened west of Hudson-Mohawk River Valley. If you settle on this, also visit Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain and take a ride on Ferry to Burlington, Vt as well as steamships on Lake George

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              • #8
                For Adirondack history you can't beat the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake, a high class but still folksy, nationally recognized award winning regional museum. It's slightly beyond your 45 minute limit from SL, but not by much and would be well worth the extra minutes. Plan to spend most of the day there to take it all in. A quick late afternoon hike up Blue Mountain or nearby Castle Rock would complete the day with great summit views.

                Spending a night in nearby Long Lake at the rustic Adirondack Hotel might be an option if the museum interests you.
                "Now I see the secret of making the best person, it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth." -Walt Whitman

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Wldrns View Post
                  For Adirondack history you can't beat the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake, a high class but still folksy, nationally recognized award winning regional museum. It's slightly beyond your 45 minute limit from SL, but not by much and would be well worth the extra minutes. Plan to spend most of the day there to take it all in. A quick late afternoon hike up Blue Mountain or nearby Castle Rock would complete the day with great summit views.

                  Spending a night in nearby Long Lake at the rustic Adirondack Hotel might be an option if the museum interests you.
                  Yep I second the museum and the Blue Mountain Hike. And if you do go there, you really need to stop at Hoss's in Long Lake.
                  "If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt, we must leave them more than the miracles of technology. We must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning, not just after we got through with it." Lyndon B. Johnson

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                  • #10
                    A third vote for Saranac Lake. Very central to the Wild Center, other towns, and it sounds like what you would like. Ditto the Adirondack Museum. It's really the premiere history attraction. As for Saranac Lake, agreed that the lodging options are more plentiful in Lake Placid though. Devlin's motel in Lake Placid is great - clean, not expensive, and always rated very high in reviews.
                    Enthusiastic Part-Timer

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                    • #11
                      If you are not familiar with the Adks...know that memorial day is bug central in the woods.

                      Hey Law...is that Peaked Mtn Pond in your avatar?
                      NYSB: NYSkiBlog.com

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                      • #12
                        Along the lines of Lake George, Schroon Lake Village is more of a low calorie version. At Exit 28, you are striking distance to all points.

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                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Hammondville View Post
                          Along the lines of Lake George, Schroon Lake Village is more of a low calorie version. At Exit 28, you are striking distance to all points.
                          I'll second Schroon Lake. It meets my needs. Of course I'm not into the normal fried or fast food fare so I get a kitchenette or cabin and bring up my food. The food store and Stewarts are good for immediate food needs. It makes for an easy Friday pm drive up. Then I can do a reasonable drive to Upper Works, Elk Lake, St Huberts or the Garden. Even the Loj is not too too far, but I try to avoid it. Of course there is not much to do in Schroon but Im there to hike.

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                          • #14
                            A great way to figure it all out is to use Google Earth Software. You can scan the area quickly and get directions (mileage and drive time) quickly and see it all together. Unless you like the paper maps and string...

                            Lake George is an excellent base camp. The further north on the lake, the less tourist-traps you will find. Unless you like nightlife full of bars and t-shirt shops. I would suggest a place on route 9L along the lake near Bolton Landing or Hague. Easy access to the major roads that lead to all the great suggestions above. Plenty of access to I-87. Route 8 will get you to the Blue Mountain Lake region. The greater Lake George area is really not more than 1 hour from Albany...considering catching your return flight.

                            Schroon Lake is a good option, too.


                            Blue Mountain Lake Museum is and ABSOLUTE MUST. It's amazing. Fort Ticonderoga is a pretty powerful place. Make sure to walk the grounds and read the plaques. My hair bristles whenever I go there.

                            The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls is impressive, too: http://www.hydecollection.org/ (Rembrandt, Renoir, Picasso, El Greco...et al)

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                            • #15
                              Just one little directional correction for AlSara's post:

                              Route 9N travels north from Lake George Village to Bolton Landing, Hague, and Ticonderoga. It is on the West side of the lake. Route 9L goes from Route 9 by Water Slide World up the East side of the lake to Cleverdale and then makes a 180 degree turn and heads south all the way back to Glens Falls.

                              There are many motels on 9N but only a couple on 9L.

                              Pat T

                              ps There are also Routes 9W and 9J to explore in New York.

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