It was a chilly 9 below zero morning, but the full moon and clear skies made for an amazing sunrise. And now the trail is broke, so check it out for yourself.

A frigid and snowy day made it tough, but this is always a favorite hike. A nice fire at the lean-to warmed things up.

A sunny Sunday made for a fine day of snowshoeing at the James C. Frenette Sr. recreational trails, in Tupper lake. This is on the north side of Mt Morris, below the Big Tupper ski slopes. The original NYS fire tower is visible from Cranberry pond. Today it serves as an antennae tower. The groomed trails are a nice change of pace. It's well worth your time to give these trails a visit.

Just to far away for good photo!!! But happy they are back near nest.

Thank you for everyone who was able to make it to our Snow Stravaganza at the Wachtmeister field station! We had a fun-filled time building cardboard sleds, skiing, drinking hot cocoa and enjoying the beautiful day outside! Pictured is one of our digital media interns teaching kids how to Nordic ski, kids enjoying a sleigh ride during a nature walk and everyone enjoying the beautiful fire outside the field station. 

The beauty that Christ manifests in nature is astounding. I've always said that walking out into the wilderness is like walking with Him. This trip reflected it once again as Phil Brown (formerly of ADK Explorer newsmagazine) and I trekked into Avalanche Pass and climbed the magnificent gully across from the Trap Dike. The climb is accessed up the slope from the hitchup matilda across from the Trap Dike. A climb of a few hundred feet up a semi-firm glad of neve led to a short ice step and the base of the climb.

Great day snowshoeing up Phelps Mountain!

First time heading up Lyon, which is just about an hour and 45 minutes from Canton. It was around a 2 hour moderate hike or skin up to a lookout slightly below the summit, with beautiful views of the Adirondacks to the south and Chazy Lake and Champlain to the east. The forest was mostly birch at lower elevation transitioning to evergreens higher up. Definitely a hike worth checking out! One thing to note, if you are looking to winter hike/skin up, drive about a mile straight past the marked trailhead parking lot to find a pull off on the right with a skin track heading up. 

God was good on groundhog day this year and allowed things to finally work out. Devin Farkas and I swapped leads on Power Play today--one of my goals before the end of the season (now the goal is to get on it again). I led the first 180' to the terrace and Devin took the last 40'--the money pitch. Then it was on to Rhiannon which has formed nicely from bottom to top. I was on that in December, but it was good climb again in less delicate conditions--nice lead by Devin. Good to see Don Mellor today a well :)

A few inches of snow overnight and a bluebird morning made for a great trip up Azure. We skinned up and skied back down, and it was probably the most filled in that I've ever skied it. I'm always surprised by how great the views are for a relatively short hike.