Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “It’s not the destination, It’s the journey.”. This is true of our lives but also of our travels. Many people get caught up in getting to their destination they completely miss out on the journey to get there.

I can tell you the journey to reach Maine has not disappointed. In fact the journey has been amazing. We are thrilled we are slow travelers as we truly enjoyed our trek through the northeastern states.

Upstate New York is beautiful, awe-inspiring, and a true gem. Honestly, I could have spent all summer just in the Adirondacks of upstate New York. For a bit we wondered if we would make it past northeastern New York due to rain and flooding.

After having lunch at a Chinese buffet, this was my fortune “It can’t rain all the time”. With that I said, “we will make it to Maine”. But first we enjoyed this stop in our journey to the fullest.

The Adirondacks: Saranac Lake

The Adirondacks of upstate New York are known as the 6 million acre playground. And playground it is. We choose a small section of that 6 million acres to play on for 12 days. There are plenty of spots to choose from but when making our choice I looked at best chance of internet and the number of options to land. An area on Floodwood Road about 30 minutes west of Saranac Lake fit the bill perfectly.

Although upon arrival we begin to wonder if there would be an open spot. That is always the big unknown. Will there be a spot open? Can we fit Ralphie? How about internet? Solar? Where do we get water? Supplies? As you can see there is a certain level of research and some planning involved. But it paid off as we found a nice spacious spot right before a bridge with a weight limit (one we would be over by a ton).

Tucked back in the woods with no nearby neighbors. Completely free and with a bonus. A trail down to a small creek which led out to the lake. It was kayak time! With the rig parked, we inflated the kayaks and off we went. The creek leading out to the lake was overgrown with plants and shallow in areas. But we managed to make our way through. There it opened up onto this beautiful lake. After paddling around for a bit it felt like we had our own private lake. There were no boat launches. Only kayak access from our site, a small outpost down the road, and a channel that connected another string of lakes. There were campsites along the water only accessible by kayak or canoe. It was amazing!

During our stay we kayaked two more times. It was wonderful to have our own private access. Although it took a bit of maneuvering to get out to the lake – completely worth it.

One afternoon we enjoyed a self care Sunday at our own private beach area via kayak. Paddled out with some cocktails and our chairs. The chairs in the water with a cocktail in hand – absolute bliss. Peace and quiet for the afternoon.

A day of stocking up on supplies and doing laundry at Saranac Lake was followed by a refreshing beverage (or should I say beverages). The Waterhole was perfect as they were dog friendly with delicious brews!

Meanwhile back at camp……

Did I mention the outhouse on our site? Didn’t have to use it!
Back in Pennsylvania we started using our 2 man tent to store our chairs while camped. Setting it up brought back memories of tent camping out west for 6 weeks back in 2014. Don’t miss tent camping!

Solar was tough here with the canopy of trees but we managed to get some here and there. And I made fresh bagels during our stay. They were delicious!

While parked here, Shane made the decision to order Starlink. Relying on the hotspot with our cell provider can be frustrating in more remote areas. We had AT&T at this spot but it took some work on Shane’s part to dial in the right band. With remote camping in Maine in our plans this was the time to pull the trigger on Starlink (Elon Musk’s low earth orbit satellite internet). Shane had it delivered to Middlebury, VT near our next stop as it would take up to 2 weeks to be delivered.

However, after that order went through, most of Vermont was under a flood warning. Prompting us to stay in upstate New York an extra week. Shane tried to get it re-routed to Saranac Lake but no go. So he called the Middlebury post office to make sure they were still above water, lucky for them and us they were.

Ampersand Mountain

This was a highlight of our time near Saranac Lake. Ampersand Mountain is part of the Saranac Six. Six mountain hiking trails near the Saranac Lakes. All are day hikes. Not to be confused with the 46 High Peaks of the Adirondacks. The 46 High Peaks were named because all are 4000′ or higher in elevation. Although fun fact, in later surveys 4 of them were found to be just under 4000′ but are still included to keep with tradition. And yes you guessed it, you can take on the challenge of climbing all 46 and become an official Adirondack 46er. Or hike all 6 of the Saranac 6 and get some cool Saranac 6er swag.

Due to rain and time constraints we did not take on the Saranac 6er challenge. However, I had my sights set on one in particular. Ampersand Mountain comes in at #2 for elevation out of the six. With a total of 5.4 miles roundtrip, an elevation gain of 1775′, and total elevation of 3353′. According to one local, Ampersand has the best views of them all including the high peaks.

With our camel backs full of water, some snacks packed, and sturdy footwear we set off to make the trek to the top.

Now you must keep in mind, Shane and I haven’t had a lot of hiking with elevation change in awhile. We will both admit this hike kicked our asses! Not going to lie. The hike starts out easy, with a boardwalk through a wet section and bridges crossing the stream.

After about a mile it begins a slow ascent. Then it becomes steeper at the 1.7 mile mark. The grade increases from here and becomes very steep the rest of the way. There are sections you are climbing over rocks. We were wondering if our lungs would give out before the summit.

One section we had to give Josie a bit of an assist as the rock was a bit high for her to climb over. Although she did pretty well on her own. The photos below do not capture it. But in the first photo we had to climb up the rock where the roots of the tree are. The second photo shows the roots used as an assist up.

After climbing this you are very near the summit. A bit more rock to scramble up.

Then…..the summit.

The views were incredibly breathtaking. From one side you could see the Saranac Lakes and the other many of the High Peaks.
But I’ll let the photos do the talking.

When we emerged on the summit there was one couple and their two dogs. We took turns taking photos for each other. Here we are trying to get the three of us. Merlin tried to be a part of our photos (& I’m racking my brain trying to remember the other dog’s name, not pictured). Chocking that up to middle aged brain & yes I know it gets worse.

Then it was just us. The whole summit to ourselves for over an hour! More photo shoot time.

If you continue on past the true summit you will find this plaque in memory of the Hermit of Ampersand. Walter Channing Rice was a fire observer at the top of Ampersand Mountain after his wife died.

We spent an hour and half on the summit taking in the views and enjoying snacks. As tough as the hike was I would do it again just to take in that breathtaking view once more.

Here is a short video from the top of Ampersand Mountain.

Needless to say we will be revisiting this area again on our way back through for our fall visit with family and friends. This is truly a place I could have stayed all summer as there are so many areas to explore. We barely scratched the surface of this beautiful part of New York.

Up Next: The Green & White Mountains

P.S. For anyone interested in yoga, I am offering a free yoga class along with exclusive content to help balance your body and mind. Thanks to Ampersand Mountain for the updated image on my home page.