Adirondack Peeks Summer 2024

Cliff it was close to 3:00 p.m. Tom said, “Thank God we're here.” And I said, “No, we're not, this is the false summit.” We had started well before 6 and the temperature was still below zero. Tom didn’t want to go farther, and we started to argue a bit. We de cided to keep going and started up the backside in the snow. It was so deep, and we were so tired. So, we finally turned back. We hated to throw in the tow el at that point, but the reality was we had to get out of there and we still had a long way to go. I grumbled all the way down the mountain, and we came out under the starlit sky. It was clear and very cold. We were not happy campers, but we got back to the car safely. As we started out from Upper Works Road, we saw head lights coming our way, which was surprising at this time of night. Then a revolving light on top of the vehicle made it clear we needed to pull over to the side of the road. It was a rang ers’ truck. [The driver] rolled down his window and asked, “Are you Tom Rankin?” We were stunned and im mediately thought a relative must have been injured or something bad had happened. When Tom replied, “Yeah,” the ranger smiled and said, “Thank God I don't have to get out of my warm truck to find you guys.” Turns out, the proprietors had gotten worried about us after the sun went down. They had assumed correctly that we had left from Upper Works and called the rangers. We always leave communications with my son

weeks later and again we got there before a snowstorm—a very big snowstorm this time—and the next morning the proprietors were up ear ly because they knew we were going to go to Allen to finish and they of fered us their four-wheel-drive truck to use. That's the kind of people they were. We thanked them but decided to stay where we were and hang out for the day. We hiked Allen the next day. SR: That's an exciting story. I had a similar experience hiking Rocky Peak Ridge to Giant. It was one of my first high peaks and there were plenty of lessons learned but, in the end, the ranger never had to leave his vehicle; he caught us as we were leaving the parking lot in the pitch black. My mother had made the call after it got dark. Bless those rangers! How much hiking do you do these days? LR: I hike at least twice a week if my time allows. I hike the Catskill high peaks, fire towers, and other shorter hikes like Mount Van Hoevenberg. My time hiking Adirondack high peaks is limited by other 46er responsibilities and the distance that I have to travel. Often a trip north now involves a DEC meeting, a press event, or something else that limits my time. We continue to visit other states in the northeast often such as New Hampshire where we did a couple of 4,000 footers last year and we do the Flags on the 48 annually in September. In Maine we’re in search of fire towers. We are

Kansas, and New Mexico state high points. So yes, I hope to continue to hike for a very long time! SR: Regarding volunteer service hours, you've got the VW after your 46er number, just kidding, the WV number. Not to be confused with the Volkswagen car company. When did you start volunteering for the 46ers and what kind of work did you do? LR: I started out by doing trail work with the trail crew right after I finished the 46 in 2004. I worked on so many wonderful projects. At the time we were felling trees with an ax and de barking them for bridges. I learned so many new skills. I did it every year and then I came upon the women's only work weekend, which is just a fabulous, empowering weekend! I was a director when we developed the Trailhead Steward program and I've been involved with that program since its development. In this world with all the information we have, nothing compares to the informa tion given to someone who is about to climb a high peak than the advice from a hiker who's already climbed it. Cascade is a fantastic hike with great views that attract thousands of visi tors each year and people think it’s an easy hike, but there’s been a lot of rescues and I believe that steward ing the trailhead has had a significant impact in reducing the number of incidents on the mountain. I think it is so valuable and I always love my days stewarding. Sometimes you say the same thing to a hundred people,

but it doesn't get old because they all have different needs. You learn very quickly not to prejudge people. They come from all different places, and you quickly discover that your first impression of them is

I always love my days stewarding. Sometimes you say the same thing to a hundred people, but it doesn't get old because they all have different needs. You learn very quickly not to prejudge people.

when we hike. He knows the moun tain we are doing, our route, our turnaround time, and when to expect to hear from us again. However, we were so grateful to the proprietors for their care and concern. We finished on Allen a few

also state high pointers, having com pleted 38 of them and our annual va cations often center around that goal. Last year we attended the western FFLA conference, visiting Montana, Wyoming, and Utah. The year be fore that we grabbed the Oklahoma,

wrong. I remember watching an old er couple coming down the stairs to Cascade. They were holding hands and helping one another along and I thought, oh my gosh, what are we go ing to do with these two? When they got down the stairs, they were so

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