After a three hour drive we started off the day snowshoeing in Lake Placid. The trail we started on was the section of the Jackrabbit Trail where the Ho-Jo's used to be. Once we came to the connection to the Brewster Peninsula trail we switched to get a view of the lake shore. After we were done we returned to Saranac Lake to watch the fireworks at the Ice Palace.

A bitter-cold day on the St. Lawrence River called for a little ice-fishing exploration. Cole's Creek and Brady Brook were chock-full of icefishermen and women, who offered lots of advise and wisdom regarding the elusive way of the fish.

Most people have been to Lampson falls, and if not you should go. Easily the most popular and one of the easily accessed waterfalls in the region, and it's on the main branch of the Grasse river.. It's an easy 6/10th mile (each way) trip, and there is wheelchair access to a very nice overlook of the falls. The last part of that section is cribbed in and filled with stone for a easy grade. You can also go to the bottom of the falls, and up onto a stone outcropped facing the falls head-on. I don't know how many times i have been here, but it never get's old.

Harper's Falls is on the Downerville road, about a half mile off of C.R.27. This is the North branch of the Grasse river. The hike is 6/10th of a mile from the yellow gate at the parking spot on the left. It's a nice hike through the scrubby hardwoods common to the area. Where the trail meets the river,there were not a lot of views, as the falls is pretty well frozen over. Walking upstream a hundred yards gives you much better views. You can see the stone walls from the sawmills flume still. Very nice hike on a February day.

It was great to see so many folks out enjoying winter at the Rideau Canal Skateway in Ottawa!

We spent the perfect chilly morning at Higley Flow State Park. Conditions were just right for skiing, and snowshoers, snowmobilers, and ice fishermen thought the same as well!

Out for a quick morning ski with the pup. The river was loud in the quiet of the morning, and Tigger had trouble containing his excitement. It may have been an early start for us, but not for some, several fresh white-tailed deer tracks already criss-crossed the field.

Rainbow falls trailhead is located 6.1 miles from the Degrasse end of the Tooley pond road. The trailhead is unmarked, it's a line of boulders on the right blocking off a small landing. When you pass the canoe carry signs on your right- you are fairly close. The trail is .71 miles round trip, and moderately easy for most. When you get to the river, there is a small footbridge across a side channel. Follow the herd trail (and your ears) a little further and you will find the falls. We did this in winter, so be cautious of the ice, a fall here could be ugly!

Great day for a quick (and brisk- only 9 degrees!) hike back to Hart's Falls on the Grasse river. The property is now part of the St. Lawrence land trust. I'm sure because of their acquisition, you'll see some property improvements in the near future. It's only about a quarter mile from the road, but worth the trip. For more info on it, please check out these links................................ http://www.stlawlandtrust.org/content/harts-falls ..........................................

With all of the state parks located in the 1,000 Islands region it is easy to over look this preserve. Located on Route 26 in Alex Bay the preserve is just outside the main portion of A-Bay. Otter Creek has one thing going for it that many of the state parks can't match, it is open from dawn to dusk year round. This means that you can enjoy the trails anytime you want, even in the middle of winter. While some of the trails were flooded from melted snow, most of the preserve is wide open and easy to cross over.