chapter 541

11/19/2019

Lunch with Jonathan

a 46er extraordinaire

We did a few nights in Lake Placid for my birthday. Along the way we stopped into High Peaks Cyclery and met the up and coming 22 year old landscape photographer and ADK 46er Jonathan Zaharek . We enjoyed watching most of his Adirondack High Peak videos on Youtube [ highly recommend watching] and believe he will in the years ahead reach a very special elite status in some way. Took him to lunch at the Big Slide Craft Brewery where he shared many stories of hiking and photography (and sports cars). A very engaging chap.

He shared a secret goal he has of breaking the time record for climbing continuously all 46 high peaks unsupported in less than 7 days ( which he's mentioned in his vlogs). He also has his sights set on a prime goal of becoming a licensed Adirondack Guide.

These are a sampling of his works. Many displayed at the Lake Placid Center for Arts Gallery . My favorite is center top Lake Sally in the morning. At such a young age, to accomplish so much it's truly remarkable. What had you accomplished at 22 ? You can follow him on Instagram if that is your thing.

Going up through Route 73 past the Cascade Lakes is always a scenic opportunity. Traffic was minimal on this off season day (and I magically erase any that did show) . The lower lake is iced over pretty well already.

We'd started our journey on the nearby Cobble Hill a 2 mile round trip that starts behind the Northwood School property. Again there were few hikers around, just one group of 4 Canadians. It was supposed to be a simple hike but when we hit the steep rock cliff rope section it got a little hairy. Colleen couldn't do the rope but managed to traverse across the tree roots. I prefer the struggle shots to the smiling selfie top mountain shots. Isn't life supposed to be a struggle?

A little farther up the trail passes right through a narrow space between the boulders. Lucky we hadn't eaten yet, but boy does it give you incentive later on to enjoy dinner and drinks.

Reaching the top we can see for miles and miles. Mount Marcy and the high peaks on the horizon. The view is nice but I rather enjoy the struggle of doing the trail.

Our complimentary breakfast was overlooking frozen Mirror Lake from our lodge. The morning sun lit up the peaceful backdrop of the village's shops and stores. By stepping back and shooting telephoto I was proud to accomplish the mood in what I wanted to convey in this shot.

On the second day we had climbed Owls Head (above) in a cool foggy mist, a beautiful 1.2 mile round trip. It's on private land and only open during the week, not weekends. We shared the trip with no other hikers (except the beautiful overly friendly over excited Australian Shepherd that greeted us at the start) and even the uber popular Cascade only had a couple cars in the parking areas.

As we broke out into the near top clearing we could see back to the highway where I took the previous shot. I purposely obscured the highway behind the pine bows for effect. Normally I like full sun, but this misty gray was magical in its own way.

A little higher up this panorama revealed itself and was even nicer. We suspect some of the property owners' cabins are below.

This was quite a contrast to last week's trip to the warm Florida beaches but it's just as exhilarating.  The whole trip was a success where we really felt like we accomplished some things and I made it through another year alive. 

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