Lake Placid, NY 

I headed up to Lake Placid on July 21 with the intention of doing some camping and hiking, and volunteering at the Ironman triathlon the following Sunday.  Below are some of the photos from my trip. 

Mt. Marcy, High Peaks region of the Andirondacks.

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In the background is Mt. Marcy, the highest mountain in the state of New York.  I was told that the 7.2 mile trail to the summit was a gradual climb and all but the last 2 miles was runnable.  So I decided to give it a try.  It took me two and a half hours to get to the summit and nearly that long to return.  Actually only about three and half miles of the trail (7 miles of the total trip) were very runable.  I wore my Camelbak with about 100oz of water and had the pockets stuffed with various necessities (e.g. jacket, iodine tablets, flashlight) and didn't have any room to carry my camera. The view from the top was stunning but it was very chilly and windy so I didn't stick around very long before heading back.  I had a few slips and stumbles but managed not to leave a face print on the trail.  But I guess I have to confess that I lost my balance climbing up one of the several thousand boulders and as i put my hand down to catch myself on another boulder I guess I stubbed my pinky finger.  It felt like I bent it back too far but I heard a pop and when I looked down it was bent in an odd direction.  I immediately thought "damn, I just broke my finger."  I grabbed it with my other hand and gave it a quick yank and it popped back into place.  It was just dislocated.  Never had that happen before.  It swelled up a bit and became stiff but otherwise seemed fine and I completed the run without any other mishaps.

Hiking along the west branch of the Au Sable River.

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Whiteface Mountain

Images to come.