ADK spring trip

Our first Adirondack excursion of 2013 took place this past weekend. Our favorite ADK campground, Old Forge Camping Resort, offered a BOGO deal for Mother's Day weekend: buy one night in a camping cabin, get one free. Spring weather can be very iffy particularly at higher elevations, so the cabin seemed a much better option than our pop-up camping trailer. Our friends Kelly, Mike and Ryan also rented a cabin for the weekend.

The camping cabins are simple one room structures with a double bed, bunk beds, electrical outlets and a heater. You still have a short walk to the bathhouse, but it was good to have a roof, solid walls and the heater because it rained Friday night and into Saturday morning. It rained HARD. The weekend was looking like a total washout when the rain finally let up late morning. We took advantage of the improved weather by going on a hike.

I scoped out a hike ahead of time by reading through the West-Central Region volume of Adirondack Trails. I chose the Humphrey Hill, Lock and Dam Loop because it was nearby (trail head in Thendara), fairly level and only about two miles round trip. Although the trees were dripping, it was a pleasant walk:

As you can see, the trees are just starting to leaf. I enjoyed seeing all the different shades of green in the forest. We also saw all kinds of budding and blooming plants, including this beautiful trillium:

We soon reached the lock and dam:

 

While there is the small dam, there is not a lock; kayakers and canoeists portage around the dam. Aidan, James and Ryan poked around the rocks below the dam:

There were some fascinating rocks that displayed very clear and regular striations:

It was an excellent hike - long enough to stretch our legs and enjoy the sights and sounds, but not so long that we tired ourselves too much. We had a late lunch at Tony Harper's in Old Forge, then returned to the campground for fishing, napping, exploring and/or wine drinking - bonus points if you know who did what!