Breakfast At Eagle Mills
This week I’m on a third shift so I leave work around 8am. When I get home on Sundays while on this schedule, I like to go out and get some breakfast. Today we went to the Eagle Mills Cider Company. It’s located in the foothills of the Adirondack mountains in Broadalbin, New York. During the Spring season, they have an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet from 8am to 1pm on Sundays. It’s only $6.95 for adults! The buffet is outside with some seating under a pavilion. We sat under the sun overlooking the “Old Mill Stream”. They also have a bakery, gift shop, train ride, and a bunch of other stuff for kids (including me) to do.
Thanks Ray for taking this photo!
Lake Placid Toboggan Ride
In downtown Lake Placid, there is a tower set up on the edge of Mirror Lake. Two icy tracks, wide enough for a toboggan, start at the top. The line for the ride runs up the side next to the tracks. So people are screaming by as you wait! Once on the toboggan, a guy pushes you off. You can gain a lot of speed and shoot way out onto the lake! It cost $5 per person and a toboggan rental is another $5. You can stay and ride as much as you want.
Dog Sled Ride
Back in Lake Placid, Jennifer and I walked out onto the frozen Mirror Lake for our first dog sled ride. The ride itself wasn’t very long, but was worth the ten dollars. We sat on the sled while the musher stood on the runners that stick out from behind the sled. We were both very surprised on how fast the sled dogs could get us moving.
Lake Placid Ski Jumps
After Jennifer and I finished the bobsled ride, we stopped off at the Olympic Ski Jumping Complex to watch some of the jumps for the Empire State Winter Games. It’s just a few minutes from the main strip in Lake Placid. Once the competition ended, we took the elevator to the top of the 120 meter ski jump tower. At the top there is a sky deck for some incredible views of the area. Don’t forget to check out where the skiers jump from. It’s one thing to watch from the ground, but quite different when you get to see what they see right before take off.
Lake Placid Bobsled Ride
After some coffee and breakfast, Jennifer and I drove to the bobsled course at the Mount Van Hoevenberg Olympic Sports Complex. It’s a short drive outside of Lake Placid, just past the Olympic Ski Jumping Complex. The tickets are a little pricey at $65 US a person, but I think it was definitely worth it. Before you can ride, you basically have to sign your life away on a waiver. The wait wasn’t long at all. After about 15 minutes our number was called. They drive you up the course to the half mile mark just after the “Shady Corner Curve”.
The entire course is about a mile, but they only let the tourists do the half mile course. They provide a driver and a brake man. I sat just behind the driver. Jennifer was behind me and in front of the brake man. The whole thing is over in less than a minute, but we still went over 50 miles per hour! The g-forces were incredibly strong and tried to pull my body down during most of the ride. Into the turns, the bobsled went up to where we were parallel to the ground! Everyone should get a chance to try this out!
Snowshoe Hike After Dark
By early afternoon we arrived in Lake Placid. Our first stop was the hotel. We unloaded all our gear and got changed for our first adventure. We drove north through Saranac Lake, just past Paul Smith’s College to the Adirondack Park Visitor Interpretive Center. Here they had a guided snowshoe hike from 6 pm to 8 pm. Including Jennifer and I, there were about twenty of us. We started in the main building where our guide showed us where we will be going on a huge map of the area. We geared up and headed out. The moon was barely visible behind the clouds and the snow showers, but it did provide enough light to see once our eyes became adjusted. The whole trip was over an hour. Along the way, our guide made calls for an Eastern Screech Owl, a Barred Owl, and a coyote. All are native to the Adirondacks. Follow these links to see my Eastern Screech Owl Flickr Photo and my Barred Owl Flickr Photo. After the hike we warmed up next to a campfire with some hot chocolate. I had fun blowing bubbles in the below zero temperatures. Some of the bubbles will actually freeze before hitting the ground. This was my first time on snowshoes and I am definitely hooked. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the whole thing was free! They even included the snowshoes!
Whiteface Mountain Gondola Ride
A great way to experience the Fall foliage in the Adirondacks is on top one of the area’s highest peaks, Whiteface Mountain. You can drive the Whiteface Mountain Veterans Memorial Highway or take a gondola. We decided to take the gondola ride to the top of Little Whiteface. The ride is a little over 15 minutes. As the gondola climbs its way to the top, the views just keep getting better. At the top there are picnic and viewing areas. Here you can see many of the Adirondack High Peaks and some of the areas lakes including Lake Placid and Mirror Lake. The day we went, visibility was almost unlimited. The colors of Fall were in full display.
After the gondola ride, we spent part of the afternoon walking around Lake Placid checking out the many shops. One of our favorites was the Adirondack Decorative Arts and Crafts store. This place had three floors of great Adirondack style furniture and decorations.
At the Adirondack Museum on Main, we picked up some Balsam Fir Incense for our little log cabin burner. The distinct smell of Balsam Fir is an Adirondack original, and no one does it better than Paine.
We worked up a bit of an appetite, so we went looking for a place to eat. We didn’t want to eat at a normal boring restaurant. We found a place called Cameron’s just off the main strip. The place had tons of character. It was filled top to bottom with all sorts of eclectic antiques. The special for the evening was a home style turkey dinner with maple glazed carrots, stuffing, homemade mash potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. Delicious.
We drove around a bit, checking out some back roads through the Adirondacks for some great views of the Fall foliage. Soon the night came bringing with it the Harvest Moon.
Warrensburg Garage Sale
We spent the day at the Warrensburg Garage Sale. You cannot possibly imagine how big this is. We spent about 6 hours there and didn’t even see half of it. This thing literally goes for miles! No wonder it is called the “World’s Largest Garage Sale”.
If your coming from Saratoga Springs, take I-87 north. You don’t want to get off the northway at the Warrensburg exit because it will be backed up. So get off at the Lake George exit and take 9 going North. This will still be slow going, but not nearly as bad.
We found some great parking in the middle of town. Once you get to Warrensburg, there will be a small bridge that you cross. Just a few blocks later, there is a left turn with another small bridge. Beyond the intersection after this second bridge is where the parking is. You take a gravel round up a hill to the Kit N Kin ranch. People on horses show you where to park. It costs just $5.
There was just about anything and everything here. We found some great deals on restaurant quality cooking utensils for a fraction of the cost. Even the wool socks were cheap at 2 pairs for $3!
One booth we really liked was for South Mountain Photos. Ed started taking photos as “therapy” after a life changing accident in 2001. He definitely turned an unfortunate event into something great. The photos are fantastic. Check some of them out on his website.
Another booth we really enjoyed was the J.R. Watkins Apothecary. They have been around since 1868. They were one of the first companies to offer natural remedies. They were far ahead of their time offering herb and vitamin supplements back in 1922! In 1928 at the Paris International Exposition, their vanilla and black pepper products were judged to the best in the world. Jennifer, being the baker, picked up the double strength vanilla and cinnamon still packaged in an old style tin. I got some of the red Liniment. It was the very first product sold. All their products are of the highest quality. In fact, they were the first company in America to offer a money back guarantee. None of their products have changed since then. Check out the CNBC video on the Watkins story.
After getting a bite to eat at one of the hundreds of food vendors, we needed a little coffee. We found a place called “The Coffee Room”. It was a small little coffee shop with a lot of character.
There are hundreds if not thousands of booths, but don’t forget to check out some of the local businesses. Some of our favorites featured authentic Adirondack furniture like the Adirondack Pack Basket.
The garage sale last for two days. So if you missed it today, check it out Sunday. Make sure to wear some comfortable shoes and bring lots of cash.
Helms Aero Service
This is one of the oldest seaplane services in the Adirondacks. Located on Long Lake, the business has been flying for over 50 years. Walking around the small building you will discover some great photos that were taken throughout the years, including one of Mick Jagger who they flew into the Adirondacks. They can land on any lake that allows gas powered engines. Next summer, we will be using them to drop us off for an extended camping trip.
