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WATERSKI MagazineIn the late 1800s, people flocked to a remote village up among the Adirondack Mountains to live out lives that were being cut short by sickness and disease. Many times, to their astonishment, the stay in town often restored health and vitality. Saranac Lake, New York, soon became known as the place to go to cure whatever ailed you. For today's water skier, the town and its surrounding waters may hold the same rejuvenating powers.
Located in the middle of a 6-million-acre state park, the Saranac Lakes (Upper, Middle and Lower) are a world away from the hustle and bustle of New York City, 250 miles to the south. Here, the lofty Adirondacks are the only high-rises in sight, and cutting a sharp slalom turn across one of the cobalt-blue lakes to avoid hitting a canoe is as close to rush-hour traffic as you'll come. But the place is not just crawling with hedonistic Manhattan-ites. Saranac Lake's proximity to Quebec (about 50 miles) provides an eclectic mix of regulars during ski season, and brushing up on your high school French may just land you a new slalom partner while you're there.
Although the area is usually known for its winter sports – Lake Placid, home of two Winter
Olympics, is just down the road – the miles of waterways that are the end result of the Saranac River are host to some of the calmest ski waters you could hope to find. Summer air temperatures typically peak in the high 70s, with the water temps running slightly below that. The virtually untouched wilderness, teeming with pine and evergreen trees, provides a natural windshield from the northern gusts that would otherwise threaten to chop a ski session to pieces. And if one lake is unskiable, you're sure to find a glassy one just around the corner.
Other attractions:
* The Saranac Lake Water Ski Championships are the last Saturday in July. Call Wayne Feinberg (518-891-1990) for details.
* Robert Louis Stevenson's cottage is a mini-museum to one of American literature's most imaginative men.
Where to unpack:
* The Wawbeek Resort (800-953-2656) has single rooms and large cottages available at $120 and up per night.
* Adirondack Motel (800-416-0117); $75 to $85 per night.
Where to eat:
* Customers at the moderately priced Red Fox swear the cooks do something heavenly to the prime rib.
* Casa Del Sol specializes in good Mexican food and great margaritas.
Something you have to do:
* Seek membership in the “46ers.” There are 46 mountain peaks higher than 4,000 feet in the Saranac Lake region, and people who climb all 46 are in some very exclusive – and tired – company.
In case you forgot:
* Crescent Bay Marina (518-891-2060) is a fully stocked ski marina with licensed MerCruiser and OMC repairmen.
How to get here:
* From I-87 take route 9N west to route 73 toward Lake Placid, then take 86 to the lakes.
For more information:
* Saranac Lake Chamber of Commerce (800-347-1992); http://www.saranaclake.com.
– Tony Smith
