Lampson Falls, Late Winter

Lampson Falls

Difficulty: Easy

Distance: 2 Miles Round Trip

Date: March 24, 2013

Weather: Cloudy, low 30s, snow on the ground

Lampson falls, in the Town of Clare is our go to short, easy, walk in the woods, with a great payoff.  We have been here on probably 10 different occasions, but we enjoy it every time. On March 24, with an 8 year old finally recovering from his cold/flu, my wife decided we needed to get out of the house, and I am so glad we did.  

The six of house (my wife and I, two boys (8 and 5) and two dogs) set out in the early afternoon.  After the ~25 minute drive from Potsdam, we pulled into the parking area and began to walk.  It is a flat easy walk, handicap accessible in warm weather.  On this day, it was snow packed, but easy to navigate, as usual, as we walked along the old logging road.  After reaching the falls (the guidebooks say about .25 miles from the parking area) we walked down to the base (this section was a bit slippery) and continued to walk along the low cliffs facing the falls.  This is where the trail used to end.  It is now marked to make a 3.5 mile loop to Harper Falls and back along the logging road.  We set out down that path, but retreated when the boys began to get a bit tired.  All told we walked about 2 miles round trip. 

On the way out we stopped at the top of the falls for more pictures and to marvel at the water and ice curving and flowing around the rocks.  

Our 8 year old got to take lots of great pictures and everyone enjoyed it.  Lampson Falls is always worth the short drive for a quick retreat into the Adirondacks.  

Azure Ascent #3

Wooden steps leading up to Azure's firetower

Azure Mountain (2518 ft)

Difficulty: Steep, slushy, and snowcovered

Date of Summit: 3/8/09

Trailhead to Summit: 1 mile

Trip Time: 2.5 hrs

Ascent: 700 ft

Temperature: High 30's

I know I've said it before, but I never get tired of Mt. Azure. It's a quick hike to the top (1 mile) and the views of the surrounding area rival what one would find in the heart of the Adirondacks. I've found that this hike must be the un-official "Peak of Potsdam", as nearly half of the trail register is composed of people hailing from Potsdam - this is in no doubt thanks to the large college student population (SUNY-Potsdam and Clarkson University) that call Potsdam home.

Byron Bennett, taking some photographs

It must be something about the accompaniment of the Bennett bloodline which draws me back to Azure, time after time. My first two ascents were with my wife, Emily, who was an amazing (and patient!) hiking partner. This time I was accompanied by her father, Byron Bennett (who is now a grandfather to my new baby girl, Eleanor Irene Beck), who I've had the pleasure of hiking (and canoeing) with on previous excursions. I've done this peak before in both the winter and summer months, but this winter/spring ascent was a new experience altogether. The snow was wet and slushy, due to the balmy high-30's temperature for an early March day.

The view, atop Azure

Because of the snow pack being so temperamental (we found that, even though we were wearing crampons, two steps actually equaled about half a step forward in this wet 'n' white mess), our ascent took roughly an hour and a half - about 50% longer than normal (while our descent took roughly 50% less, due to our ability to slide down the trail by using our poles to stabilize while our boots did the "skiing"). Many of you are probably rolling your eyes at this, stating that I must be quite the amateur for not utilizing snowshoes instead of crampons, but I assure you - it unfortunately would not have solved many problems, due to the rapidly-melting and slippery snow.

Me, looking a bit small against the backdrop

Once we made it to the top, it was all worth it, for we had a wonderful, 360-degree view of the surrounding area. Byron was able to take a few good black and white pictures, thanks to the early-afternoon sun light that was casting its rays on the nearby hillsides. After taking a short climb to the top of the fire tower and using the round-table map to pick out distant peaks and ponds, we started back down the mountain. As all Adirondack hikes tend to fare, this was a wonderful experience that provided great exercise, beautiful views, and new memories.

Map roundtable inside the tower