closed. We took pictures of the notable summit sign and rushed back down the mountain. Later, Bruce and I celebrated at a brewery in Lake Placid then returned to Washington, DC, exhausted and elated. Thankfully, within three weeks my body recovered. It took me 54 years and help from many kind folks to become 46er #14140, and I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything! In addition, the wonderful DC Department of Motor Vehicles furnished me with the license plate ADK46ER, which has most of my neighbors baffled—but not the real hikers. Be sure to honk if you see me on the road! Editors’ note: Tanager Lodge was in operation from 1925 to 2022. Its founder, Fay Welch, was a licensed Adirondack guide, on the board of directors of the National Audubon Society and an active member of several Adirondack conservation These two illustrations of Upper Chateaugay Lake and the surrounding Adirondack mountains are by Tad Welch and grace the bookends of The Old Guide Story. 28 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
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