A Classic Adirondack Weekend

Hoo boy. What a weekend! After all the snow we got last week, it was time to get out and enjoy it.

Lake Placid was still buzzing with Olympic fervor, fueled by Bill Demong’s Nordic combined gold medal and the “welcome home” parade for Lake Placid’s own Andrew Weibrecht. Underdog Weibrecht earned a bronze medal in the Super G, and on Friday afternoon Lake Placid welcomed him home in style. Dave and I raced along Main Street to catch up to the parade (things sure are prompt around here) and we were lucky to catch a glimpse of Andrew and his medal.

Andrew Weibrecht with his bronze medal.

A number of future Olympians were out supporting him as well.

The next generation. Good luck in 2018.

After the parade, we cruised back into town for an early dinner and drinks. Main Street was alive. And it was then that I’m pretty sure I discovered the key to perpetual happiness. As we sat down for dinner, surrounded by people enjoying the town, the weather and the Olympics, it became obvious to me: surround yourself with vacationers. Vacationers are almost always having fun and are rarely in a bad mood. As someone who is very sensitive to the energy of those around me, I can’t believe this didn’t occur to me before. Well, I’m sure it occurred to my subconscious at some point, which is why I had the desire to move to Vacationland to begin with… Anyway, moving on…

We had a couple of fun things on the agenda for Saturday. We attended a lecture at the High Peaks Information Center on Moose in the Adirondacks. Ed Reed, a wildlife biologist at the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), talked about the history, current status, and future of moose in the Adirondack park. Pretty interesting. In short, moose are the comeback kids around here.

The Adirondack Mountain Club has a great lecture series with weekly talks at the High Peaks Information Center in Lake Placid, the Member Services Center in Lake George, and the John Brooks Lodge in Keene Valley. For more info, visit adk.org. This Saturday’s lecture at the High Peaks Info Center will be: Goat Packing in the Adirondacks. Apparently it’s totally legal!

Speaking of activities of questionable legality, our next stop on Saturday night was the Full Moon Party at the Cascade Ski Center. I’ve been DYING to check out one of these parties and this weekend was the last one of the season. So we had to go. It’s basically a giant keg party in the woods, complete with bonfires and hot dogs (we’re SO bringing veggie dogs with us next time). They also have a great band and raffle inside the lodge. Pay $15 for a ticket, slap on your skis (or snowshoes), follow the lighted trails, drink a beer, roast a hot dog, rinse and repeat. It was such a SCENE, but in a totally fun, carefree way. We kept expecting the cops to come break it up and everyone to take off running into the trees. It was hard to get any decent pictures, but this will give you an idea of what it was like.

Cops! Just kidding.

We’re dying to get some of our Boston friends up for it next year. Guaranteed they’d be like, “Where the HELL did you guys move and can we come live with you?”

Dave at the Full Moon party.

Sunday, of course, was the USA vs. Canada gold medal hockey game. We ventured over to the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery, bellied up to the bar with our new Mug Club membership, and hyperventilated our way through the game. Watching team USA tie it up with 24 seconds left was one of those moments. Everyone leaped from their seats, strangers were hugging, pretty sure there were a few tears. Though the outcome wasn’t in our favor (despite our proximity to the Canadian border), it was a great night to be in Lake Placid. There’s something magical about watching Olympic hockey in this town. As Dave put it, “That had the potential to be the BEST NIGHT EVER.” Instead, it settled nicely into the top 10.

So that’s the weekend recap, folks. Hope you all had as much fun as we did.