Flashback (Boot Camp)

     If you are familiar with our blog you are probably saying to yourself "I saw that picture before".  And your are right.  This photo has been published in the right hand column of random photos as "Our favorite spot in the Adirondacks".  We've been there twice, and we have never been disappointed.   Before I tell where this special place is let me tell how to get there.  From Paul Smiths, take NY Rt  30 north, turn left onto NY Rt 458 , go a very short distance and turn left onto a dirt road, drive  for about 8 miles to a small parking lot.  As you travel the dirt road, rub your good luck idol that no one is traveling in the other direction for there  are very few places to pull over and let another vehicle pass.  From the parking lot, you have about a 1 mile hike with your kayak. Note - we strongly recommend the use of kayak dollies to access this body of water.  Once you have launched your kayak, the paddle to Boot Camp Island is about 2 hours up the flow as the channel snakes through the aquatic vegetation.   Although there are other locations that are more remote, this  was by far the most remote location that we paddled in the Adirondacks.  This waterway is far off the beaten path of publicized places to kayak for the average Joe.  The place is Quebec Brook flowing into Madawaska Pond, also referred to as the Madawaska Flow. If you have a Adirondack Paddler's Map, you will find Madawaska Pond NNW of Paul Smiths.   If you have the time, this is a very good remote paddle.  Be prepared for an all day adventure, starting with the off road excursion by vehicle, a short hike, a great paddle to the cabin, and the return trip.   We do not know of any approved camping sites on this body of water.

     The second photo sums it up very well as to how we named the spot Boot Camp.  Yes, in the center of the photo is a boot that has been hung on the wall.  Having built and lived in a log home for 18 years, I was fascinated with the design and construction of this old log cabin, vertical logs instead of horizontal logs.  The vertical logs would shed water quickly and also dry faster.  We never did go inside because the floor was ready to collapse, and the cabin was probably a haven for snakes.  Rumors from the locals was that a crazy ol' trapper lived here many years ago.  I don't know about the being crazy part.  Was he deemed crazy for where he chose to live - remote location, beautiful scenery and no people!