Author: Peter Minde

Are you the manager? I’d like to speak to the manager, please. My name is Karen, and I really need to complain about the Deer Brook Trail. How can you even call this a trail? I broke the heel on one of my Jimmy Choos. My Kate Spade bag is covered with mud. I want a refund.

After the heat wave earlier in the week, we expected various amounts of rain every day in the Tri-Lakes. Friday looked like the most benign weather, so I drove to Keene Valley with Snow Mountain and the Rooster Comb in my sights. As I descended Route 73 into Keene, rain came down like water from a bucket.

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On Sunday morning, I got my backside moving a bit earlier than usual. Breakfast for Ziggy and me? Check. A hydration reservoir full of sports drink? Check. A clean litter box for the Zigmeister? Done and dusted. After stopping at Nori’s for a supplemental coffee, I lit out for Paul Smiths.

A hundred yards down Keese Mills Road from the VIC’s Black Pond trail head, the Saint Regis Mountain trail head is on the other side of the road. At 2838 feet, it’s far from the biggest peak in the Adirondacks.

In fact, it’s the 213th biggest mountain up here. With snow remaining up at high altitude, I wanted to continue climbing bumps like Jenkins Mountain, that I’d never summited.

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Rain poured out of the sky when I woke up on Sunday. Ugh, it would be a gym day. By the time I fed Ziggy and sat down to my own breakfast, it was sunny. Maybe a run was in the cards after all. Half an hour later, the sky clouded over. One thing I’ve learned since moving to Saranac Lake: If you don’t like the weather, just wait.

The sun came out again; I checked the weather forecast. Fifty percent chance of showers. The heck with this, I was going out. I mixed up a batch of sports drink, made a recovery sandwich and headed for Paul Smith’s Visitor Interpretive Center — the VIC.

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