Adirondack Proud
We’re an accounting firm, so perhaps it’s appropriate to introduce the Adirondacks through facts and figures.
Six million acres. Bigger than Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon combined. A state park established in 1892, nearly half the land is owned by the state—and much of that is classified as “forever wild,” perennially off-limits to developers. Over 3,000 lakes, 30,000 miles of rivers and streams, and thousands of miles of trails for hiking, biking and skiing.
The lure of the outdoors is strong here. This area is a world-class paradise for nature lovers. In fact, in the 19thcentury, so many people vacated cities to spend time here that they coined a new word—vacation—to describe the experience.
The same things that drew people here more than a century ago still exist. But the real charms of the Adirondacks, and our hometown of Saranac Lake, go deeper than numbers. People come here to explore, and relax. They stay because of the people.
This is a place where, in the depths of every winter, citizens spill out onto the streets for a Winter Carnival parade, and flock to a palace carved out of hundreds of blocks of ice.
It’s a place where local residents, when faced with the departure of the one department store in town, established a non-profit, community-owned store.
It’s the kind of place where the relationships you make in business frequently spill over into real life. This is a small community. We’re a little off the beaten path. And we know that we’ve got to look out for each other.
But off the beaten path doesn’t mean in the middle of nowhere. Lake Placid, which hosted the 1932 and 1980 Olympic Winter Games (and home to the Miracle on Ice), is just down the road, and so is Whiteface Mountain, which boasts the biggest vertical of any ski area in the East. Albany, the state capital, is less than 2.5 hours away, as is Montreal. The region is home to several colleges and universities. And you don’t have to go anywhere to enjoy stellar dining, art and museums, such as The Wild Center in Tupper Lake, and the Adirondack Experience in Blue Mountain Lake.