2014 Adirondack Classroom Class Photo

We have now all come down "off the mountain."

Here's a class photo of the participants:

Here's a photo of most of the participants (one had to leave a bit early to appear as part of the bridal party in a wedding) and also appearing is "Andy the Intern" who is a most excellent fire builder and sauna operator:

Friday, July 11, 2014 - Last Day

After an evening of music at St. Williams Church, we returned to Camp Huntington for an evening of conversation at the fire ring on the main boat dock.

After a surprise breakfast this morning of breakfast pizza, we had camp cleanup and the final presentations of the course projects.

There will be one final blog entry by the course participants and then the course will conclude.

We will be having a final meal together in the Glass Dining Hall on the shores of Racquette Lake.

Here is a link to a short Flickr album with select photos of the week:
Course Participants and NY State Master Teachers

Thursday, July 10, 2014 - A Day For Hiking

We awoke to a more typical cool Adirondack morning.  After breakfast of eggs and sausage, we took our packed lunches and hit the road to the nearby Ferd's Bog where we had an excellent guide, former DEC Park Ranger Gary Lee, who gave us lots of good information about the wonders of the bog and the region.

After the bog slog, we headed down Uncas Road a short distance and climbed up the back side of Black Bear Mountain.  It was a perfect day for hiking and even though it has rained quite a bit recently, the bugs were nearly non-existent and we had a great view from the top and near top.

In the evening we are anticipating attending a concert at the most carefully restored, St. Williams Church at the former site of the Village of Racquette Lake, just off the college property.

Gary Lee at Ferd's Bog

Wednesday, July 9, 2014 - Museum Day and Sauna

After a hearty breakfast the entire troupe Master Teachers and Graduate students set out for our visits to two of the best museums in the area.  Our first stop was The Wild Center in Tupper Lake where we saw many exhibits and live animals.  It's great to go there each year because there is always something new and this year they had replaced some of the technology-based exhibits in the center core of the museum with an art exhibit  It's great to see how some artists can capture even the finest details nature's beauty here in the Adirondacks.

Our second stop after a delicious bag lunch was The Adirondack Museum at Blue Mountain.  The cultural history of the region is fascinating and a visit to this museum always reminds one of how tough those early settlers in the region had to be to survive the rigors of nature and climate.

At the museum we were treated to a lecture about the origins of the Adirondack Park and how difficult it is, even today, to figure out how to actually operate the for the benefit of all the creatures who live there - human and all the others.

Moose Antlers at The Wild Center

Tuesday - July 7th Master Teachers Arrive

We awoke to a cool morning, but the sun was shining.  Sort of.

After a hearty breakfast, we spent the morning class time talking about the broad issues of sustainability and what it means and how might we arrange our lives in support of humans living more sustainably - especially from the perspective of our descendants looking back on our western lifestyles.

Then we watched a presentation about the resources issues facing us and then how two Cortland faculty members are trying to arrange their lives to live lighter on the planet.

At lunch a group of award winning New York State teachers arrived and we all went canoeing and then had a lesson by another SUNY Cortland Professor who presented a lesson on using the aquatic life found literally right outside our door to determine the general water quality level of Raquette Lake.

So far, at this point the weather has cooperated very well, but the forecast for this evening is for some potential rough weather to pass through.

Hopefully, it will not limit our planned evening activities.

While in Camp,  You Are Usually Never Far From a Comfortable Seat

Monday July 6 - Course is now in Progress

Everyone has arrived safely at Camp Huntingdon despite passing through some rainy weather on the way.  The boat ride across the lake was fun but there was evidence of changing weather with the choppy waves.

After lunch we met, got acquainted,  and talked about the course goals and objectives and the expected course outcomes.

In the evening we spent some time talking about the pre-course readings and assignments and had a nice discussion about the materials.

The Intern for the summer, Andy, prepared a great campfire for us we enjoyed a nice evening chatting around the fire.

Your Adirondack Chair Awaits Your Presence

Welcome to the 2014 Adirondack Classroom!

As June 2014 winds down (hard to believe this is happening already - it seems like winter just left us), the faculty and staff for The Adirondack Classroom are gearing up for another iteration of this course.  If you are seeing this, it's probably because you have decided to join us for this adventure.

This is a fantastic way to obtain 3 graduate credits from SUNY Cortland and also experience something completely different than most classrooms.

We are looking forward to spending most of a week with you and we hope that you will find the experience to be a unique and professionally invigorating experience.

As you may know, Camp Huntington/Camp Pine Knot is on the National Historical Landmark list of significant places and you will have the privilege and pleasure that few people get to experience.  You will be spending nearly a week at a place that most of the public will never get to see.  So, please take advantage of every opportunity to look around and see what surrounds you in this most beautiful and significant New York treasure.

Every Adirondack Classroom session is different because of the weather, staff, resources and other factors, but for a taste of what to experience, you can scroll through earlier blog posts here and see what has happened in the past. In addition, when we get together we will ask you to create your own blog for the week and these will be put where the earlier student blog links are.

Again, welcome to the course and we can't wait to see you in person!

Beth and Karl

Sunset at Raquette Lake Looking Across the Back Bay

Dr. Beth S. Klein

Lacey Slekar (daughter of one of the course originators, Dr. Tim Slekar) and Karl Klein

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