The Adirondacks Is

The Adirondacks is the place where I live and work,

It’s called a Park but is open 24/7/365,

And doesn’t cost anything to enter or leave,

It’s an ancient mountain range,

It’s a place where there are a lot of trees,

But not many people.

The Adirondacks has more part-time than full-time residents,

It’s a place where those who don’t live and work here,

Are constantly telling those that do what they can and cannot do.

Some call the Adirondacks a wilderness but all I see is

A lot of trees, many mountains, hills, rivers, streams and lakes,

Speckled with a few towns and villages.

I see deer, turkeys, chipmunks, a variety of birds and billions of bugs,

Every once in a while, I’ll see a bear or a coyote.

But what is the Adirondacks, really.

It’s whatever you believe it is.

For many it’s a fantasy, a let’s pretend it is farther north and more wild than it actually is.

The Adirondacks is closer to the Equator than it is to the North Pole.

It’s farther south than most of Europe.

The Smokey Mountains are higher.

And yet, there is something haunting, even mystical about the place,

Even its name has a nice ring to it.

Deep in the woods along the shore of a pond, you can imagine you are in the far north, thousands of miles removed from the nearest human being.

You can actually hear the quiet.

And if you let the quiet sink in and forget about how close you are to a town,

You might be tempted to strip down and jump in for a skinny dip.

Try it and you might just find these old mountains can make you feel young again.