Adirondack Peeks Summer 2024

LETTERS TO THE EDITORS Thank you for another great issue of PEEKS . I'm hoping I can add a bit to the comments on the elevation changes at the start of Chris Martin's account of his winter ascent of MacNaughton. Chris says that MacNaughton was "remea sured in 1970", but in reality MacNaughton has never actu ally been "measured" by the U.S. Geological Survey. All the elevations (3,976 in 1902, 4,000 in 1953, and 3,983 in 1979) are merely contour elevations. For the 1902 maps, the surveyors could only try Tony Goodwin, #211

contouring wasn't able to take the time to determine the height of the coniferous trees near the summit. The goal in contouring is to show the actual ground elevation, but the trees at 4,000 feet are naturally shorter than those growing lower down. (The early May photography ensured that the deciduous trees were bare so the ground was visible.) The one actual measurement of the elevation of MacNaughton was done on Memorial Day, 2016, by Domi nic DeFazio. He lugged surveyor-grade GPS equipment to the summit where it sat for an extended period of time while remaining in contact with area base stations through T-Mobile and the internet. DeFazio determined that the summit was 4,005.3 feet in elevation. I asked my son, Rob, who is a licensed surveyor, to confirm that Mr. Defazio's equipment and procedures were sufficient to obtain an ac curate elevation. The response was that he was justified in expressing the elevation to the tenth of a foot, but couldn't have expressed it to the hundredth of a foot. Well, just to the foot should be good enough for us peak baggers, and maybe this finally ends the debate. Note from editor Sherry Roulston: Chris Martin's unedited article indicated MacNaughton was over 4000 feet. I ed ited the piece to reflect the height of MacNaughton as documented in Heaven Up-h’isted-ness! The History of the Adirondack Forty-Sixers and the High Peaks of the Adiron dacks (Lance et al., 2011, p. 336). Power and Sensitivity and Good Fortune and Fun to you. Sincerely, George Wingate #2196 Hamilton, MA PS. My 46er number does not coincide with the year I com

and find a good vantage point from which to "sketch" the view with contour lines with only a few benchmarks in the valleys to guide them. With the obvious exception of Couchsachraga, it's amazing how close to reality these 1902 maps were. By 1953, the surveyors/map makers had aerial photos and more benchmarks, which made for far more precise contouring—including adding a 4,000-foot contour to MacNaughton. The 1979 series of metric maps were based on aer ial photos taken in early May, 1976 and then field-checked that summer and fall. I participated in that survey for three months in the fall of 1976. I learned that this survey was considered a "rush job" with the goal of producing metric maps in advance of the major international event, the 1980 Winter Olympics, being held in the Adirondacks. In that rush, the contouring was perhaps not as carefully done as for the previous map. I have speculated that MacNaugh ton "lost" 20 or so feet because the technician doing the It’s been hard to toss the Summer 23 PEEKS maga zine in the recycle bin. The stories of Tanager Lodge and Chateaugay Lake bring back many memories. In 1951 at the age of 9 my parents sent me to Tanager Lodge. Later I be came a counselor there. Last year I connected with the Warner family in nearby Ipswich and on their wall hung a familiar image of Chateaugay Lake with Norton Peak and the “W” range. We were both amazed. The Warners have roots in the area and were married on Panther Mountain at the end of Upper Chateaugay Lake. I loaned him your great-grandfather’s book; Charlie Merrill’s, The Old Guide Story , edited by Fay Welch. You revealed your connection with the area; God’s country “An early summer morning on Chateaugay Lake.” It’s hard to get across the Blue Line these days and the Whites are getting distant. Monadnock is a worthy hike within reach. PEEKS is now my connection—“Armchair Mountaineer.” The longer I live the more I realize the truth of the old saying, "Youth are the future of tomorrow." Whoever you are, I'm glad you are there. Dear Sherry Roulston,

pleted the slog. I scoffed at making known I was a Peak Bagger for a long time and played the game. Don Greene #1949, a great woodsman, a fellow Tana ger counselor, prompted me to fess up. As he always closed his letters—Cheers!

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