Bald (Rondaxe)
Mountain
Fire Tower Restoration Project
2011
Report from FoBM
July 17, 2011 - Cloudless Day on Bald Mountain
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ORANGE SPRAY Paint - Removed From the Rocks! |
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Camp
Mark Seven Group from Fourth Lake Among The July Visitors |
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| In other NEWS -
Patches are still available by contacting us online
and at Kiefer's Souvenir Village Store & the Old Forge Hardware
Store in Old Forge, NY. FoBM were sadden to hear of the destructive
vandalism in October at Mt. Arab Fire Tower near Tupper Lake. The FoBM Executive Committee Board voted to send our
Friends at Mt. Arab a $200 contribution to assist with the repairs to
their tower and ranger cabin. Please consider sending a donation to
Friends of Mt. Arab, Box 185, Piercefield, NY 12973
Officers for our little group remain the same for 2012: Co-Presidents Ann McBride & Barb Ball, and Sec't/Treas. Peg Masters. Volunteers are always welcomed - send a note if you would like to help with a 2012 workday. |
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Frank W. Plummer, a long-time resident of
Keene, NH, died on Thursday, July 21 at age 79 while hiking Bald
Mountain with members of his family. Frank passed away on the trail
"with his hiking boots on and his walking stick in his
hand" stated family members. "The Plummer family wishes to express a very humble and
heartfelt thank you to everyone who assisted in responding to the call
for help that day. We are so grateful for the assistance, support and
caring we received on the trail and in the days afterwards. To those of
you on the trail who jumped in and helped, thank you for your generous
spirit and the gift of your skills, physical strength and desire to help
a fellow hiker. To the rescue personnel and emergency responders, thank
you for your professionalism, and your commitment to the well-being and
safety of your communities. What everyone did that day was exhausting
and difficult. Thank you so much. As a family, we are blessed with
years of memories of hiking, paddling, camping and loving the
Adirondacks. We thank you for your help and support. You can bet you
will see us next year. We have to finish our hike to the fire tower. |
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Now - for a bit more of our illustrious HISTORY |
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Peg Masters has located several Historic Documents about Bald Mountain - Links Below in PDF Format 1859
Trip To Brown's Tract & Bald Mountain 1880
North Woods Trip to "Foster's Observatory" 1891
Hike to Bald Mountain by Railroad Builder Dr. William Seward Webb |
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Thousands
of visitors registered at the kiosk again this year, even using a second
sign-in book in the high summer season. The FoBM made several trips to
the tower since spring for trash pickup and maintenance. A small amount
of graffiti was covered over inside the cab and VERY little trash is
ever found
FoBM
Extend our Condolences to the Plummer Family
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On a spring survey trip to the summit April 17th - a FoBM volunteer was pleased to see that our beloved tower had made it through a good old fashioned winter here in the Old Forge area. A few projects will be put on our list for a spring workday, but overall, the tower looks great. The trail was still snow covered and muddy in many places and a few trees will need to be cleared to keep hikers from eroding the path along the edges. But . . . sad to report that MORE ORANGE SPRAY PAINT was found defacing the rocks in several places along the trail. How disheartening for the thousands of us who respectfully hike to these beautiful places in the Adirondacks! We have contacted DEC and were informed that this wanton act of vandalism is under investigation. PLEASE - if you witnessed this act of vandalism or have information to contribute, send us a note and we will pass this information on to DEC authorities. |
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Click on the photos for an |
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Photo above at the 1st elevation along the trail; Photos below at the 1st vista of the lakes, about 3/4 of the way up the trail - with names on the rocks in the close-up. |
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Check Back
Again in 2012 for more Updates
Back to Friends of
Bald Mt. Homepage