A few days relaxing and recovering in the Adirondack Mountains is just what we needed after 8 days of cycling and I knew the perfect spot for it from our trip up here in 2019. The North Pole Campground in Wilmington, NY is just outside Lake Placid near Whiteface Mountain. It was just a couple hours drive and the scenery is beautiful.
We found our site and got Charlie all set up, then figured we’d better dry out the tent before mushrooms started to sprout. Riley strung a clothesline and hung the rain fly, tent and miscellaneous damp items up to dry. Naturally, big drops of rain soon made everything even wetter. I’m just glad we don’t have to sleep in it tonight.
A couple loads of laundry later, we rested and enjoyed the cool evening before walking to dinner at Pourman’s Tap House. Either their food is excellent or our appetites haven’t yet diminished because the margherita pizza, wings and Caesar salad were delicious!
We watched tv for a bit and were sound asleep by 8 PM. It felt good to stretch out on a real mattress and to not need to zip the door shut for a change.
We woke up to sunshine and clear skies and the sound of the neighbors beside us packing up to leave. I heard the woman mutter “This is the first time I’ve seen the sun all week.” I know how you feel, lady.
All of the things on the clothesline finally dried out so we could pack up the tent one last time. I don’t think I’ll miss it for awhile.
Wilmington is a bike friendly town with wide bike lanes on all of the main roads making it easy to get around on two wheels. Ironman Lake Placid is coming up this weekend and we’ve seen several cyclists previewing the course. Those are tough cyclists! They’ll ride 112 miles in two laps, culminating with an 11-mile climb “up the notch” from Wilmington to Mirror Lake. And that’s after they swim 2.4 miles in the lake and before running a full marathon (26.2 miles) to finish. I can’t imagine.
We rode our bikes to the Adirondack Wildlife Refuge just a couple miles away and saw some very chill wild animals lounging in their habitats in the late afternoon heat. I guess they’re more active earlier in the day or maybe they’re just bored with nothing to hunt or be hunted by.
Later on we cycled to Rudy’s Scar Bar a few miles in the opposite direction for dinner. The food was great but it took a long time to get. We weren’t in a hurry so it wasn’t a problem. Our server was brand new to the job but what she lacked in experience she made up for with good intentions. I had a “real Maine” lobster roll and Riley had a fried seafood platter. Neither of us finished our dinner so we stuffed a to go container in Riley’s bike bag.
On the way back we stopped and took a short hike down to a waterfall on the Ausable River just off the road. The soft mossy trail wound through the woods down to the river. The water is high from all of the rain and snow melt making cascading waterfalls down the canyon.
Several people were swimming and jumping off boulders into the cold water. It looked like fun but not something I really needed to do myself. I zipped my jacket up and hiked back up to the bikes.
It’s been a great couple days. I’m not sure where we’ll be tomorrow, we’ll figure that out then.
On Tuesday, we decided to drive up to the coast and follow the St Lawrence River. The drive up was beautiful. We drove by Paul Smith’s College where I stopped to text a photo to my friend Paul Smith, of course.
We took Highway 30 North to Malone stopping at a Farmer’s Market where we bought fresh produce for meals for the next few days, then followed Highway 37 West along the St Lawrence Seaway.
Lots of lakes and waterways dotted the very rural, green landscape. At one point the road went under the St Lawrence Seaway near the Dwight D Eisenhower Lock where we stopped to watch a sailboat travel through. It took about 8 minutes for the water to lower 42 feet and the lock gates to open for the boat to continue sailing down river.
We continued to Thousand Islands, a chain of 1,864 islands that straddle the Canada-US border in the St Lawrence River just before it emerges into Lake Ontario, where we found a nice spot at Wellesley Island State Park.
The park is really large and beautiful with several campsite loops, cabins, cottages, camp store and marina. Some of the sites like ours are in open, flat areas and others are tucked into the woods right on the edge of the river. Our site (F-43) is located next to a path through a meadow that leads to the main road, giving us a beautiful view and lots of open space. We definitely lucked up on this one as it was the only spot available for two nights and I think it’s the best around.
A brief thunderstorm blew through right after we set up camp. Once the rain cleared, little children on bicycles streamed from every camper around, smoke rose from campfires and the aroma of grilled meat filled the air. Riley cooked steak over a wood campfire and grilled veggies from a local farmer’s market while I made salad and corn on the cob.
After dinner we walked over to the river and watched the sun set over the water. We saw an osprey swooping down to catch a fish and a few fisherman trying their luck too. Across the water you can see several of the thousand islands the area is named for. This is such a beautiful place.
The temps are nice and cool at night and the daytime high is only 72 degrees. Perfect weather with clearing skies and a cool breeze.
We had a lazy morning on Wednesday. Riley fixed sausage and eggs for breakfast, then we spent a little time exploring the atlas and camping apps on our phones for places to go next. We decided to return to Amish country in Millersburg, Ohio where we’d stayed for one night last fall. The place we’d stayed before was all booked so we made reservations for a couple nights at a place just down the road.
Having figured out the plan for tomorrow, we hopped on our bikes to explore the island. Riley’s leg looks more bruised every day but the swelling is finally going down and he says it’s beginning to feel better. I’m very relieved about that. Yesterday was the first day he’s taken a break from riding since he injured it.
The paved roads are great for biking. Not too much traffic and not too hilly. There are actually 3 state parks on the island, one accessible only by boat, and a smaller one with just 14 campsites. Wellesley is by far the largest with hundreds of campsites. The Minna Anthony Nature Center is located at one end and a large area of privately owned land marks the park boundary. We toured the Nature Center and relaxed in the shade overlooking Eel Bay.
Later on we walked over to the river with our books and a picnic lunch and enjoyed the beautiful view and cool breeze. Osprey chicks looked over the sides of huge nests built on top of telephone poles and peeped loudly when they spotted their parents nearby.
After dinner we listened to the loons call as we sat beside the campfire and watched a small gang of young school aged kids riding their bikes and scooters around and around the campground. Some had strings of lights wrapped around the bike frame, others had illuminated helmets or wheels. All were having the time of their lives. It made me nostalgic for those long, summer days and nights of childhood when staying out with your friends past 9 PM was such a thrill.
Spoonfeed 
Life is good!
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