The Adirondack Lean-To

There is something very Adirondack about the simple open camp pictured here, the lean-to. This structure was used when the Adirondacks were just being discovered and developed, by builders and loggers and hunters. Today, they are used by local landowners who hold barbecues or sleepovers in them. As a child, I begged my parents to let me sleep in our lean-to, but I was usually spooked by something and scurried up the hill back to my warm bedroom. On the occasions that my mother supervised the kids sleeping in the lean-to, she usually woke up alone! The lean-to affords a closeness to nature and yet provides shelter from the elements. It is eminently practical, useful, Adirondack.

The Snow Returns to Old Forge

Old Forge is in a state of crisis. The snow has returned! Having spent only the warm and beautiful months at Penwood growing up, I did not understand the degree to which having an Adirondack home is - a battle. A battle with nature, with time. This photograph is of the lean-to and fireplace at the shore of Fourth Lake. As a child, I camped out here from time to time. It was frightening and exhilarating - unprotected from the elements, anything might happen. The roof of the lean-to had been replaced with an ugly metal roof at some point along the way. Last year, we had cedar shingles installed again. Though we don't use the lean-to very often, I love to look at it and stop by to visit: it's our sentinel - watching over Penwood, gazing out at the lake, waiting for us to return.