MAGAZINE OF THE ADIRONDACK FORTY-SIXERS WINTER 2025 Vol. LXIII No. 2
CONTENTS President’s Report - Dave Pawlick #12803 2 Editors’ Ramble - Sherry Roulston #12512 4 TALKING POINTS 100th Anniversary of First 46ers’ Finish – June 10, 1925 - Suzanne Lance #1802WV 6 A Toast to Evelyn Schaefer Greene #110 – Barbara Marshall 10 Centennial Hike with Laurie Rankin - Tom Rankin #5444WV 11 Centennial Hike with Ron Konowitz - Ashleigh Livingston #ASP31018 11 100 ROUNDS OF THE 46 HIGH PEAKS Gary Koch #1137WV & 100 Rounds – Sherry Roulston #12512 14 MOUNTAIN VIGNETTES Basin, Saddleback, Gothics Hike, 1991 - Margaret Jacobs #3576 26 Saddleback Cliffs - Jim Graham #8346 29 I Dream of Snowdrifts - Brian Hoody #4410WV 30 From Survivor to 46er – Jessica Zuhlsdorf #16560 How the Adirondack High Peaks Helped Me Heal 32 3 Haiku Poems – Maria Rush #3210 33 IN MEMORIAM 34 CLUB NEWS 38 IN THE PACK 44 LETTERS TO THE EDITORS 45
ADK Gridders on Whiteface summit for the celebration of Gary Koch’s 100th round.
When I think about my most memorable days of hiking, the day in 2020 that my wife, Judy, and I finished on Whiteface is at the top of that list. We were, and are, proud of hiking the 46 peaks together in our late 50’s. Our plan had been that family and friends would be able to drive up Whiteface to meet us at the top, but those plans got nixed by COVID. Fortunately, there was another couple on the summit that day and they took pictures for us — of course, using plenty of hand sanitizer and keeping a proper social distance! I’m glad that there were no COVID protocols in effect on September 3, 2025, when Gary Koch completed his one-hundredth round of the 46 peaks. That’s an amazing accomplishment . . . congratulations Gary! It was fun to see so many people on the summit that day. I’m sure everyone up there, including me, has a story about hiking with Gary or meeting him on the trail. He’s not only a hiking legend, but a very kind and thoughtful person. Driving home that day, I thought about how grateful I am for my hiking experiences, including the people I have met along the way. After Judy and I finished our 46 in 2020, my friend Carson Sorrell wanted to give the 46 a shot. He had done a few of the peaks many years ago and was still in very good shape, but he was 70 years old when he, my brother Mark, and I, hiked up Giant. Carson quickly got hooked and we hiked through two winters and summers. Less than two years after we hiked Giant, the three of us found an absolutely spectacular day for Carson’s finish on Mount Colden. While I was an acquaintance of Carson’s before we started hiking together, walking hundreds of miles together created a special relationship that didn’t exist before, and I’m grateful for that. AdirondackPEEKS Volume LXIII No. 2, WINTER 2025 OFFICERS David Pawlick, President Felicia Neahr, Vice President Laurie Rankin, Immediate Past President DIRECTORS Brant Schneider, Cindy Palumbo, Bob Harvey, Brent Pierce, Jen Black, TJ Michon APPOINTED OFFICERS Treasurer Philip Corell Recording Secretary Emily Staley Assistant Secretary Debbie Bedard Outdoor Skills Workshop Coordinators Bill Lundy, Dan Auwarter Office of the Historian Lee Nesbitt, Siobhán Carney-Nesbitt Trailmasters Mark Simpson, Doug Varney, Thomas Caruso, Curt Snyder, Brian Hoody, Michele McCall, Tom Armstrong, Victoria Challingsworth Website Liaison and Content Manager Joe Ryan Merchandising Donna Merrill, Brian Coholan Membership Jim Houghtaling Editors Mark Obbie Sherry Roulston Editorial Offices Manuscript and photographic submissions for PEEKS should be mailed to Sherry Roulston at 24 Layman Lane, Plattsburgh, NY, 12901 or emailed to PEEKS@adk46er.org. Correspondent Program Kristen Peek, adk46ertrailswm@gmail.com Orders and Payments Jim Houghtaling, Membership Coordinator, PO Box 4383, Queensbury, NY, 12804 treasurer@adk46er.org Outdoor Skills Workshop osw@adk46er.org Trailhead Steward Program Joe Ryan, trailheadstewards@gmail.com Volunteer Trailwork trailcrew@adk46er.org For additional information on club activities and to register to become a 46er visit the club’s website, adk46er.org, or send an email to officeofthehistorian46@gmail.com. Adirondack PEEKS is published twice a year by the Adirondack Forty-Sixers, Inc., a nonprofit organization. PEEKS is free to members in good standing. To receive a copy, register to become an Aspiring/Contributing member of the 46ers by creating a website account at adk46er.org. Adirondack PEEKS is printed by Walsworth PRESIDENT’S REPORT Cover Photo Credit – Taken from Ampersand Mountain by Janet Thomas #10198 Mark Pawlick, Carson Sorrell #14098, and Dave Pawlick #12803 at the outlet of Lake Tear.
Dave Pawlick #12803, Gary Koch #1137WV, Judy Bechard #9645 - Photo Credit - Nancie Battaglia, #3543 It seems inevitable to me that people who have spent a lot of time in the High Peaks will develop a tremendous sense of respect for the Adirondack wilderness, and appreciation for the efforts of so many people and organizations, like the 46ers, that work on trails, provide hiking education, and walk along the highway picking up litter. Members of the 46er organization give about 5,000 hours per year to those causes — truly amazing! Additionally, financial contributions from our membership have allowed us to support other organizations. In the 2020s, we have donated more than $500,000 to Adirondack not-for-profit organizations to support trailwork, education and other important initiatives. I’m so grateful for my relationship with the 46ers and to be a part of a team that does such incredible things. Thank you, thank you, thank you, to all of you who make this possible. While I have been hiking for less than a decade, I’m sure that I’ve been out hiking several hundred days during that time, and have met thousands of people along the way. It’s heartwarming how quickly those casual meetings result in a friendly smile, or easy conversation, or funny story and, not infrequently, compassion or willingness to help another hiker through some issue. There were many days when I needed some assistance and it’s been my pleasure to help others when they needed it. I think being outside for these chance encounters and being off the grid causes us to focus on how we are alike, instead of different opinions that we may have. Our world needs more of that. Who knows? Maybe it’s possible that two winter hikers with different opinions on the best brand of microspikes could find common ground on the joys of winter hiking. Well, that might be a high bar to set! During this busy holiday season, I wish you much health, happiness and togetherness and, if some of the conversations become too intense, turn off your phone, don your boots and winter gear, and go for a nice peaceful walk in the snow. Happy holidays! WINTER 2025 | 3
EDITORS’ RAMBLE Sherry Roulston, #12512 Greetings and Happy New Year! We have packed a massive amount of Adirondack inspiration between these covers to fire you up! Since the last PEEKS magazine, two picturesque seasons have passed and we have several worthy milestones to report on. For anyone who missed out on the weekend celebration in August recognizing the 100th anniversary of the first three 46ers, check out Talking Points for highlights (pg. 6). Fortysixers commemorated our three “guiding lights” with a communal meal and toast, centennial hikes, trail work and an evening at the The Strand theater in Schroon Lake watching The 46ers movie presented by the film’s producer, Blake Cortright. The documentary was powerful and the booming applause at the finish intense. Tribal! We all left the theater two inches taller. Speaking of booming applause, let’s give it up for Mark Simpson, trail master, otherwise known as the event planner! Thank you Mark and centennial committee members for organizing such a fun weekend. On September 3, 2025, on top of Whiteface Mountain, Gary Koch did what most deem impossible when he celebrated his 100th round of the 46 High Peaks. Gary’s been climbing the High Peaks since the early 1970s, and volunteering throughout the years. Through acts of integrity, courage, and service to others, he’s esteemed as an icon in the hiking community as well as a helpful friend to all. Will there be a 101st round? Read the article to find out (pg. 14). Warning! Feelings of inadequacy may arise when reading this article. Don’t feel bad if you’ve only completed one round of the 46. Be sure to read Margaret Jacobs’ poem, Basin, Saddleback, Gothics Hike, 1991 (pg. 26), “… Proceeding on all fours in fits and starts, Catching my breath and then making a dart. Not looking up or down, nor left or right, I climb the whole stretch clutching every rock tight . . .” When Margaret shared her poem and her Adirondack 46-R book with me, I dived in immediately, unable to put it down. It’s a page turner. The dust jacket flaps themselves are captivating to read and the ADK map on the front and back covers are ingenious. Margaret’s book captures the essence of the 46ers’ journey. She dedicates the book to her lifelong friend and hiking partner (and swim partner) Connie Stone, #2550. Margaret writes, “I was going through my files and came across letters written some 30 years ago between Grace Hudowalski and me. . . . The letters brought back memories of a wonderful time in my life, and I felt a need to put them in some form where they would not be thrown away and lost forever.” Margaret preserved these documents to share with her grandchildren who are now pursuing the High Peaks. The writing process also was retrospective. Margaret writes, “We depended greatly on Tony’s [Goodwin] ‘Guide to Adirondack Trails: High Peaks Region’ and the guide maps included. . . . You will notice on every hike during the course of my 46, there is someone with a book or map in hand while I took the picture. Even this book cover has Connie with a ‘green book’ — the informal name for Tony’s seminal work — in her hand.” Margaret’s story is our story! The pictures on each page convey the struggle, the preparation, the anticipation, and the thrill of each summit. I was transported back to my own journey with my friends. The faces on the pages were different, but the summits were all the same. Our journey is a shared journey yet also a personal encounter with the mountains and ourselves, as Ruth Riford’s quote above from her poem on page 46 informs us of the universal wisdom that the mountains belong to each one of us who climbs them. Do you journal or record your climbs? I know Margaret’s book has inspired me. Grace Hudowalski thought it was important because of the life-changing self-discoveries that were made: “It’s important for hikers to write about For I belong to the mountains, and they belong to me. —Ruth Riford, #85 PEEKS Magazine is looking for assistance with: • Typesetting -Adobe InDesign • Creative Content Design Please send your resume to: PEEKS@adk46er.org 4 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
Tupper Lake Boys - Ben Ten (Tennyson) # 2180W, Gary Koch # 1137WV, Gerry Gnann #1732, Nathan Shaheen # 6937 - Photo Credit Sherry Roulston #12512 what they saw and felt as they climbed and to share that experience with others.” Thank you for sharing your story, Margaret Jacobs! Where would books and magazines be without pictures? Three cheers go out to the talented photographers who have given this issue wings with dazzling photographs that speak without saying a word. Thank you for your contributions, Nancie Battaglia, Gabe Dickens, Randy Fredette and Janet Thomas! PEEKS magazine is an instrumental branch of the 46ers, chronicling organizational growth spurts and steady development since 1964. Like every staff position, PEEKS too is managed by volunteers. We are grateful for the help of our new volunteer, Mark Obbie, #6513. He comes to PEEKS with decades of experience in journalism as a reporter, editor, publisher, and teacher. Google Mark and you’ll be impressed with the many articles he has written on hiking, such as Backwoods Brotherhood in Adirondack Life, as well as on other topics. We are excited to grow our team. PEEKS Magazine is looking for a magazine designer to design and produce the magazine using Adobe InDesign. Send an email and your resume to: PEEKS@ ADK46er.org Ramble On! WINTER 2025 | 5
TALKING POINTS Sunday, August 3, 2025, Paradox Brewery, North Hudson NY Welcome. Thank you all for coming to celebrate George and Bob Marshall and Herb Clark and their pioneering, inaugural round of climbing the 46 Adirondack High Peaks. I’m going to turn back the clock 100 years or so to trace how we have arrived at this event today to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the completion of the very first round of climbing the 46 Adirondack High Peaks. This “Cliff Notes” version of the somewhat complicated story of a century of Adirondack history includes numerous direct quotes from George, Bob, and Herb. So you can imagine they are telling their story directly to you. George and Bob were born and raised in New York City. The Marshall family included parents Louis and Florence, and siblings James and Ruth. Beginning in 1904 — when George was 5 months old and Bob was 3, the family spent their summers at Knollwood. Knollwood was a great camp compound on Lower Saranac Lake, jointly owned by the Marshalls and five other New York City families. Louis Marshall, a distinguished attorney and advocate for environmental conservation, played a significant role in drafting the “forever wild” clause in New York State’s constitution, which has safeguarded state-owned land within the Adirondack Park since 1894. In the summer of 1906, Louis hired Herb Clark to be his family’s guide during their summers at Knollwood. On August 15, 1916, Herb took 12-year-old George and 15-yearold Bob up Ampersand, their first mountain hike. Two years later, George, Bob, and Herb, along with Carl Poser, another Knollwood guide, climbed Whiteface on August 1, 1918. It was their first climb of a High Peak. The Suzanne Lance #1802WV at the Paradox Brewery sharing historical information about the first three 46ers - Photo credit Gabe Dickens. 100th Anniversary of First 46ers’ Finish – June 10, 1925 Suzanne Lance, #1802WV 6 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
group took the train from Saranac Lake to Lake Placid, walked to the lake and took a motorboat to Whiteface Landing. Fourteen-year-old George wrote a brief description of the trip in his diary: …we climbed the mountain and ate our lunch at the top. We got a fine view. There were three other parties and the ranger on the mountain besides us. We walked and ran down the mountain, and near the lake we took a trail which led to Connery Pond to the State road. Bob, who was 17 at the time, wrote a rather harsh summary of the Whiteface climb. His comments about the trail conditions more than 100 years ago sound very familiar. We had a very good time, but we did not have as much fun as we expected in climbing the most advertised peak in the State. … The trail is both long and steep, and exceedingly rough. It is very wet, for not only do numerous unbridged brooks cross it low down, but there are also several swamps and mudholes which it crosses, while high up springs kept the rocks constantly wet and slippery. … With all the people who climb Whiteface annually, it is remarkable that the trail is kept in such poor condition. The view from the top was beautiful … . But we were somewhat disappointed, for it was not all it was cracked up to be by any means. At the end of August 1918, Bob, George, Herb, and Carl climbed Marcy, McIntyre (the mountain we call Algonquin), and Herbert (which we know as Iroquois). George and Bob had a hard time deciding which mountain provided the most impressive views. After climbing the Upper Range plus Skylight in 1920, Bob and George scrutinized their Adirondack maps to determine what other peaks might be worth climbing. They set an arbitrary standard for what they would consider to be a distinct peak. They decided a summit must rise “at least 300 feet on all sides or be at the end of a long ridge threequarters of a mile from the nearest peaks, and the elevation must be 4,000 feet and higher.” Based on those criteria they identified 42 peaks, of which only 14 had marked trails. They set out to climb them all. Herb proved to be the perfect companion for Bob and George. Bob wrote that he “was more than just a nameless guide. He is just about the most distinctive and individual person I have ever known and also just about the grandest human being I have ever met.” George described Herb as “the last of the great Adirondack mountain guides” who had “a genuine love of the woods and high summits, and … a most unusual sense of humor.” That cheerful spirit and watchful eye sustained the boys on their often arduous journeys. Herb invented silly poems and jingles to entertain the boys. He penned an ode to “cripplebrush,” a term he invented for the thick, nearly impenetrable mass of scrub balsam: Don’t let the golden moments go, Like sunbeams passing by. You’ll never miss the cripplebrush ‘Til ten years after you die. Phil Corell #224WV, Dave Pawlick #12803, Ron Konowitz #487V SKI, Suzanne Lance #1802WV, NY Senator Dan Stec # 7348 – Photo Credit – Nancie Battaglia Centennial Committee Members - Mandy Applin # 9142, Jeff Klein # 13752, Mark Simpson #6038V (Chair), Ally Ryan #14000 and Ron Konowitz #487V SKI WINTER 2025 | 7
Another one of Herb’s ditties touted the virtues of sleeping on the ground: Oh for a mountain bed, a good old mountain bed! With rocks for a pillow, and a mattress of stones, And a bunch of sharp sticks poking into your bones. Oh for a mountain bed, a good old mountain bed! Bob, George and Herb climbed most of the 42 peaks they had identified during the summers of 1920, 1921, and 1922. Bob wrote a summary of their climbs. He gave the manuscript, which was titled The High Peaks of the Adirondacks, to the newly formed Adirondack Mountain Club. The Club published it in 1922, the year of its founding. Bob’s book caught the attention of Russell Carson, owner of an insurance agency in Glens Falls and also an Adirondack historian. In a letter to Bob he wrote “no book large or small, ever quite thrilled me as did yours. It … obsessed me with the Adirondacks.” Carson began researching the Adirondack High Peaks and in 1927 published a book called Peaks and People of the Adirondacks that presented the history of how each peak was named and who made the initial ascent. Both George and Bob were instrumental in providing Carson with research assistance as he was writing his book. Carson convinced George and Bob to add four peaks to their list of 42 peaks: Gray, Cliff, Blake, and Cold River Mountain, which we now call Couchsachraga. Happy to have some additional adventures, the trio climbed those four. In 1923 Russ Carson encouraged the New York State Committee on Geographic Names to rename the Adirondack peak known as North Seward after Alfred Donaldson, author of a comprehensive history of the Adirondacks. When the renaming was approved in 1924, Carson asked George and Herb if they would take him and his friend Charlie West to the summits of Seward and the newly named Mount Donaldson. Of course, they agreed. Their climb on August 11, 1924, resulted in an unexpected discovery. In a letter to Bob, George explained: …We reached the summit of Seward at 11:50 a.m. Russ soon asked me which one was Mt. Donaldson. I pointed out the one we had called North Seward. Russ questioned if this was the correct mountain as it did not … seem right to him on the map. …I got out my maps and compass and studied the matter. I was convinced that Russ was right …. What we had called South Seward was really North Seward (Mt. Donaldson), so in 1921 we were never on South Seward (which was renamed Emmons) … . From Seward’s summit the group “cut directly to the true summit of Mt. Donaldson” navigating through a considerable amount of that pesky cripplebrush, which made traveling very slow. George concluded his letter to Bob, saying: “We will have to find some chance to climb South Seward (Emmons) in the near future…” George, Bob, and Herb cleared their schedules for a trip on June 10, 1925, to complete their climbs of the 46. George described their trip in a letter to Russ Carson: On Wednesday we took a car up the Old State Road with our packs [which was the only time they rode in an automobile to a trailhead] … we foolishly took a yellow taxi, and it got stuck less than a mile beyond Axton. … Having learned a lesson, we took up our packs and walked beyond Blueberry Pond where the tote road crosses and goes up the mountains. Having left our packs there, and taking out our haversack, canteen and some lunch, we climbed Mt. Donaldson, taking almost the same route we did on the way back last summer. … We did not remain on Donaldson very long, but worked our way over to the highest and farthest peak of South Seward (Emmons). We arrived there at 2:30, having left Donaldson at 1:50. Ned Fletcher #13644, Jonathan Zaharek #11171W - Photo credit - Gabe Dickens Suzanne Lance #1802WV, Photo credit - Gabe Dickens 8 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
Interest was added by a storm that threatened and a heavy wind that added to the feeling of wildness. I liked the view a bit better than from Donaldson, but Bob and Herb thought otherwise. We returned to Donaldson again, … and started our descent at 3:38, and returned to our packs at 5:31, … I feel pretty sure that we now have climbed all the Adk. Mts. over 4,000 feet. It is interesting to note that there was no mention of a celebration for their accomplishment — no pats on the back, no champagne cork popped. George, Bob, and Herb celebrated by spending another two days in the woods climbing the mountains in the Sawtooth Range and MacNaughton and exploring Wallface and Scotts ponds. So how did we get from the trio’s climb of the real Emmons on June 10, 1925, to complete their list of the 46 peaks to where we are today? Bob’s book The High Peaks of the Adirondacks and Russ Carson’s book Peaks and People of the Adirondacks caught the attention of a small group of outdoor enthusiasts from Grace Methodist Church in Troy, New York. In 1937, the group formed a club known as the Forty-Sixers of Troy, whose members endeavored to duplicate Bob, George, and Herb’s climbs of the 46 High Peaks. The club was led by Rev. Ernest Ryder (46er # 7), and Grace and Ed Hudowalski (Grace 46er #9 and the first woman to climb the 46 and Ed, 46er #6). As more and more people, beyond the confines of Troy, took up the challenge of climbing the High Peaks a new, more inclusive, club was formed in 1948 — the Adirondack 46ers, our current club. Grace Hudowalski, the club’s first president and long-time historian, began the task of officially recording those individuals who had climbed all of the 46 peaks. She recorded Herb, George, and Bob, as the first 46ers and assigned their climbing numbers alphabetically: Herb Clark #1, George Marshall #2, and Robert Marshall #3. Throughout the past 100 years, nearly 17,000 hikers have literally followed in the footsteps of Herb, George, and Bob to climb the 46 Adirondack High Peaks. And most of the climbers embrace the challenge for the same reasons as the first 46ers: curiosity, adventure, personal challenge, a spiritual connection to the wilderness, and for the sheer joy of sharing the adventure with their climbing partners. George and Bob Marshall’s early hiking experiences in the Adirondacks led to lifetimes of advocacy for wilderness preservation. The 46ers club also has adopted the Marshalls’ dedication to environmental stewardship. Its members have volunteered countless hours on hiker education projects and trail work to protect the natural resources and wilderness character of the High Peaks region. As we celebrate the climbing accomplishment of Bob, George, and Herb let us, as a club and as individuals, renew our dedication to environmental conservation as we continue to embrace the sheer joy of climbing. Let us toast the first three 46ers, using the words of Grace Hudowalski, who once wrote in a letter to George: I do not think it amiss to say here that to the 46ers, George, Bob, and Herb have been “guiding lights” to us who aspire to climb Adirondack’s High Peaks. So raise your glasses and toast our “guiding lights,” 46ers Nos. 1, 2, and 3 — Herb Clark, and George and Bob Marshall. © Suzanne Lance 2025 Ron Konowitz #487V SKI, Phil Corell #224WV - Photo credit - Gabe Dickens Jason Albertson #15131V and Jessica Dardano #16458 – Photo Credit Gabe Dickens Vice President Felicia Neahr #9331, Past Vice President Brian Sutherland #6759W - Photo credit - Gabe Dickens WINTER 2025 | 9
A toast to Evelyn Schaefer Greene, 46er #110. We lost Evelyn in May of this year. Her first High Peak was Mount Marcy in 1950 at the age of 10. She completed the 46 six years later. While her father, Paul Schaefer, was involved in his advocacy for Adirondack wilderness preservation her mother, Carolyn, determined that she would lead all her children to become 46ers. Some may remember Carolyn as the owner of Ma Schaefer’s Skyline Outfitters in Keene. Evelyn was a botanist, keen observer of all things wild and fierce protector of the wilderness. The Schaefer and Marshall families’ connections run deep and continue through the present day. It began in 1932 when Paul happened to be on the summit of Mount Marcy and encountered Bob Marshall on one of his multi high peaks hikes. That meeting was brief but important. It resulted in Bob saying to Paul, “We simply must band together — all of us who love the wilderness. We must keep in contact.” In 1945 Paul attended an organizational dinner for the Adirondack Mountain Club in New York City. He was introduced to George Marshall by Russ Carson. George mentioned seeing maps regarding the damming of the Moose River Plains. Paul had not heard that before but went on to lead the grassroots campaign that saved the Plains and many other areas from being flooded. They remained friends, and through George and Howard Zahnhiser’s work with the Wilderness Society, Paul’s work took on a national scale. Fast forward to the last few decades during which George’s son Roger and Paul’s daughter Evelyn formed a deep friendship. Roger and his wife enjoyed many outings with Evelyn exploring geological formations, ice meadows and bogs. She will be sorely missed. A trail that runs from the train depot in North Creek along the Hudson River that Evelyn helped to create will now be known as the Evelyn Schaefer Greene trail. Ron Konowitz #487V SKI - Photo credit Gabe Dickens Barbara Smorgans Marshall and Roger Marshall, son of George Marshall, Ron Konowitz #487V SKI A Toast to Evelyn Schaefer Greene #110 Written by Barbara Marshall, daughter-in-law to George Marshall #2 Read by Ron Konowitz #487V SKI at the 100th Year Celebration of the First Climbing of the 46 Peaks 10 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
On Saturday Aug. 2, 2025, as part of the centennial celebration of the Adirondack 46ers, Laurie Rankin led a “Legacy Hike” to Hoffman Notch. We met at the parking lot off the old Frontier Town, at about 8 a.m. The 46ers provided donuts and coffee! After some introductions, 11 hikers carpooled to the trail head, a few miles west on the Blue Ridge Road. The hike starts off down a gentle grade, following a drainage. Soon, the register box is reached. Parts of the trail are apparently a very old road, perhaps used for logging. This might explain the “artifacts” that we encountered along the way, including parts and pieces of old cars, tires, buckets, oil cans, bed frames, and even the remnants of a “half-track” machine (part tank, part automobile). More natural items included moose prints, several different birds, and mostly dry feeder streams that lead into the Hoffman Notch Brook. Laurie stopped at several bridges that spanned the side streams and explained that the bridges were built by a group of women (including Laurie) a few years ago during a Women’s Only Work Weekend (WOW). The bridges still look great! There are a fair number of blowdowns that need to be removed, as well as vegetation that needs to be cut back, perhaps on a future outing. The hike proceeded at a more or less leisurely pace, gently uphill, with participants hopscotching back and forth, chatting among themselves. The weather was cool to start but warmed up into the upper 60s to low 70s as we went along. At about 11 a.m., we decided that we needed to head back, so that participants could be back in time for other events that were part of the celebration. We returned safely to the trail head around 1 p.m. Centennial Hike with Laurie Rankin Tom Rankin, #5444WV I haven’t climbed them all — yet. As I write this, I’ve earned exactly half. But I was drawn to the 46ers organization before I even consciously set out to climb them all. I think my first direct encounter was with the Trailhead Steward Program at the Cascade trailhead lot in late summer 2022. I had climbed Cascade earlier in the season and was back for Porter. Really, I was just out for a hike with a friend. But I understood that the logo on the Steward Program sign meant the people who greeted us had climbed them all. And I understood that they were part of something bigger than me. Bigger, even, than themselves. This was reaffirmed later, when I had a few more High Peaks patches pinned to my cork board and found myself reading a copy of Heaven Up-h’isted-ness! I was soon inspired to register as an aspiring member. And, a year later, I was elated to secure a spot at the annual Outdoor Skills Workshop I had read about. That’s where I first encountered Ron Konowitz, a guest speaker at the workshop and — according to one fellow workshop attendee — an Adirondack living legend. I had never heard of Ron before that, but after hearing his stories, I knew I wanted to hear more. So, naturally, when information graced my inbox about the 46er festivities planned for the first weekend in August to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the first High Peaks finishers, I signed up for the group hike led by Ron at Elk Lake Lodge. We were a small group — just six in total, including the editor of this very magazine, Sherry Roulston. It was revealed early on that my friend, Gabe Dickens, and I were the only non-finishers in the bunch. It was also immediately clear that it made no difference to anyone else. Everyone was welcoming and, like me and Gabe, eager to tap into Ron’s extensive knowledge. Before we hit the trailhead, Ron brought us to the floating dock in front of the lodge and pointed out the peaks comprising the landscape beyond the lake’s opposite shore. It was a perfect day for our outing — not too hot and only a few nonthreatening clouds in sight. Ron explained that we were on private property owned by the Ernst family, as was the trail we would be hiking, and that Centennial Hike with Ron Konowitz Ashleigh Livingston, #ASP31018 L to R Ron Kon #487V SKI, Sherry Roulston #12512, Ashleigh Livingston #ASP31018, Adrienne Scivolette #12235W, Kim Fortin #16119, photo credit - Gabe Dickens WINTER 2025 | 11
he had acquired special permission for us to be there. He described the Adirondack Park and its mix of private and state lands as an experiment. But he assured us that as a result of its complex and unconventional oversight, it is among the most protected land on the planet. This topic lent itself well to Ron then recounting the saga to rename East Dix for Grace Hudowalski, an effort in which he was passionately involved. With the peak under the purview of several entities, Ron explained, many had to sign off on any change of name. Meanwhile, Fred Schwoebel was making a documentary about Grace, The Mountains Will Wait for You. He needed a narrator for the film and just so happened to be married to Tara Cash, daughter of the late, great Johnny Cash, who was not yet late at the time. “The Man in Black” agreed to voice the film. It seems, according to Ron, that the documentary brought Grace back to life and positively impacted the decision to rename the mountain in her honor. After our visit to the dock, we hopped in our vehicles and drove back down the road we had come in on, stopping before we reached the end to park in a small lot with access to the Old Military Trail, where we would officially begin our hike. The flat and aptly named wooded trail had once been a passage for troops during the French and Indian War, Ron said. I began to imagine that we were walking in the footsteps of hoards of battle-worn soldiers, hauling loads far more stifling than our day packs. We stopped often along the way up Grandpa Pete Mountain — not so much to rest, as the journey wasn’t particularly strenuous — but simply to appreciate the view from the shore of Clear Pond and to learn more from Ron. In addition to riveting recounts of his own Adirondack adventures and cautionary tales from his volunteer work with the New York State Forest Rangers, Ron is a seemingly endless source of information about the history and politics of the Adirondack Park and the 46er organization, as well as the natural sciences at work in the mountains. A question from the group about whether Ron planned to ski the newest slides on Mount Colden, which had appeared just a few weeks prior, led to a short lesson in what causes these magnificent mountain features. The High Peaks are largely composed of granite, he explained, and the trees and other growth that keep hikers encapsulated in forest for much of their climbs are rooted in a relatively thin bed of soil that blankets the granite. According to Ron, when large amounts of moisture are able to penetrate the underside of this bed — such as when a tree uproots and creates an opening in the forest floor, coupled with periods of heavy rain — the bedrock becomes saturated and is no longer able to cling to the sloped rock beneath it. That’s when it slides down the mountain, taking all of the embedded flora with it. And, in case you were wondering, yes, of course Ron plans to ski the new slides. L to R Gabe Dickens, Sherry Roulston #12512, Ashleigh Livingston #ASP31018, Adrienne Scivolette #12235W, Kim Fortin #16119, Ron Konowitz #487V SKI - Photo Credit Gabe Dickens 12 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
When we reached the top of Grandpa Pete Mountain, we all engaged in the customary summit pause — that moment when you realize you’ve reached your destination; you’re there; and you can finally afford to take your eyes off your boots and discover what “being there” actually looks like. Ron pointed out and named each of the peaks that flanked us in the distance. And while I couldn’t tell you now which names he rattled off, I can tell you that, as always, I felt lucky to look at them. We sat enjoying a few summit snacks from our packs, while Ron told us of the private gathering Grace held for him at Boulders in recognition of him becoming the first to complete the 46 on skis. He told of how sweet she was and genuine. “Grace toasted me using special liquor glasses and pouring from a bottle of Cherry Herring that hadn’t been touched since her husband, Ed, had passed away three decades earlier.” Ron spoke candidly on many more topics that day. Among them were how he got the nickname Ron Kon; his theory on why Leo DuFour was unable to safely return from Allen Mountain; and Fred Hunt, a man who hiked the High Peaks at night, signing in at trailheads under the pseudonym “Cat Eyes.” But the topic Ron spoke of most was Grace. Whether he actually stated them in so many words, I can’t be sure, but somewhere along the way, I came to believe two things about Grace Hudowalski. For one, she was more than an important figure in the histories of the 46er organization and the Adirondack High Peaks. Grace was Ron’s friend. His admiration and respect for her — along with a subtle sadness, presumably caused by her absence — are evident not only when he speaks of her directly, but also when he speaks of anything to do with the organization, the peaks or the park. And second, Grace was the embodiment of her name. She was a woman who could command a room without contributing to the brouhaha. When in the presence of others arguing, whether on a hike or during an official meeting of 46ers, she was nonreactive, according to Ron, and would remain silent while everyone said their piece. Then, when they were through, he noted, Grace would speak her words of wisdom, and everyone would listen. Though our itinerary had called for us to continue on from Grandpa Pete Mountain to Clear Pond Mountain, we talked it over as a group and decided to skip the latter in order to allow enough time for people to get to the next 46er anniversary event, a showing of The 46ers at the Strand Theater in Schroon Lake. As we exchanged gratitude and goodbyes back at the parking lot, Ron mentioned he had a bunch of patches commemorating the renaming of Grace Peak, featuring her motto, “Good Climbing!” embroidered in her handwriting. He said he would bring them to the anniversary party the next day for anyone who wanted one. So I made sure to go and get one. Two weeks later, Gabe and I climbed Grace Peak, marking the halfway point in my quest for 46. On our descent, about 5 miles from the trailhead, I tripped and fell, busting my left knee open. My blood pooled within a gaping wound, revealing tissue so deep that for selfpreservation’s sake, I felt it best not to look closely. Prompt stitches would have been ideal, but they weren’t an option. So I reached in my pack for antiseptic, ibuprofen and an Ace bandage, all of which I now carry on every climb, thanks to the Outdoor Skills Workshop. As we hiked out, my blood soaking through the bandage, we reflected on what was otherwise a magical day in the mountains. At some point, Gabe — who is familiar with my ability to unravel when things start to go sideways — noted how well I was handling the situation. I reminded him that I had recently learned a lot about grace. Ron Konowitz #487V SKI talking on top of Grandpa Pete Mountain, Photo credit - Gabe Dickens WINTER 2025 | 13
Gary Koch’s 100th Round Celebration on top of Whiteface Mountain - September 3, 2025 - Photo Credit Nancie Battaglia #3543 14 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
We don’t need no stinkin badges! ~The Treasure of the Sierra Madre September 3, 2025 — You know you’re hiking with a professional when he chooses the ultimate weather day to finish his 100th round of 46 high peaks: bright skies, cool temps with the possibility of light rain showers. I’m concerned to see only one hiker among a lot full of empty vehicles when I arrive at the Atmospheric Sciences Research Center trailhead. Am I late? “The crew just left,” Gridder, Jay Brooks, #11245W announces. Hikers are strategically advancing up the mountain in small groups so as not to overcrowd the trail, he informs me. While we pack up last-minute keepsakes that will be added to the three-ring binder that Donna Merrill, #10361WV compiled and will present to Gary on top, a white pickup truck pulls in and Tony Goodwin, #211 hops out. When Nancie Battaglia, #3543 arrives, I sprint back to the car and off-load my 35 mm camera. No need for that now! The first leg up Marble Mountain is invigorating and unrelenting with lively conversation while gaining 800 vertical feet over 0.8 miles. One mile later, we converge with some groups near the top of Marble Mountain. Gary is munching on a granola bar and surrounded by friends: Suzanne Lance, George Sloan, Brian Hoody, Barbara Place, The Tupper Lake Boys — Ben 10 (Tennyson), Gerry Gnann and Nathan Shaheen. Dave Gomlak and others are returning from Esther. We down liquids and share snacks. Sherry Roulston #12512 Glossary: CHUMPS - Cadyville Hiking and Ultimate Mountaineering Pedestrian Sect CLO - Canine Liberation Organization Grid - Climbing all 46 High Peaks in each month of the year. 552 (46 X 12) high peaks! SCUMBAGS - Senior Citizens Underhanded Mountain Baggers and Adirondack Geriatrics Society (AKA – Sunday Hiking Group) Snack break near Esther junction - Photo Credit Nancie Battaglia 100 ROUNDS OF THE 46 HIGH PEAKS Gary Koch #1137WV & 100 Rounds WINTER 2025 | 15
Gary wears a custom yellow baseball cap with a purple beak and a pinkish purple “46” on the crown. He received the hat as a party favor over 20 years ago while attending a gala event at the Ausable Club celebrating a 46er milestone. Phil Corell, #224WV had guided the 46er while Gary hiked with the aspirant’s family and friends who were tagging along. Phil adds, “He has outfitted himself with clothing and equipment found on the trail or at the trailhead for years. It’s amazing what perfectly good items will randomly appear where least expected.” Gary didn’t start climbing the high peaks until his early 20s. He thought they were beyond his skill level and that the 46ers were crazy. When he did eventually hike Cascade Mountain in July of 1973, he was all in and finished on Nye in October the following year at age 24. Fourteen years later he finished his second round. By that time, he had adopted the Ouluska lean-to from the newly formed Adopt-A-LeanTo Program, founded in partnership by ADK and DEC. One year later he acquired the Seward lean-to along with two others, Cold River #3 and #4, located by the cable-strung suspension bridge a half-a-mile from Shattuck Clearing. Gary was known to paddle 14 miles on the Cold River over three days to inspect his lean-tos in the spring and fall. Motivated by a logbook he saw in a lean-to along the Ward Brook trail, Gary followed suit and left one in the Ouluska lean-to so that hikers could document their visits. And did they ever! Later, ADK embraced this practice, and logbooks became the standard within all lean-tos. At the Ouluska lean-to between 1986 and 2008, logbooks detailed hikers’ trials and tribulations. Once the logs were full, Gary took them home and transcribed the handwritten scribbles into a typed booklet. He typewrote three booklets, over two decades of hiker communications. Gary recites one entry where the hiker is wet. He says, “I’m wet, I’m wet, I’m really, really, wet.” Gary took it upon himself to remove swear words and even one man’s phone number from the books, as the entry was soliciting “close company.” These were the days right before social media! Below are a few quotes from the Ouluska logbooks: 8/31/1986 — “This is day 9 of 10 of our Northville to Placid trek. . . . We’re really going to make it! Joan Robertson, #2233V.” 9/14/2001 — “The post-terrorist attack world seems quiet. We have only seen 1 or 2 planes in the sky. . . . It is good to be away from all the bad news. Hope all is well in the world when we get out.” 2003 — Daniel Cleveland wrote, “I wish my teacher [Carlton West] was still alive so I could tell him that I visited. He hiked in here in 1976 and died of a heart attack in his tent with a camera on his chest.” Gary also preserved herd paths. “He was the unofficial herd path adopter for every trailless peak,” Phil Corell recalls. “Each spring on his first seasonal round, brush would be picked up, routes would be re-established if blowdown had occurred, and possibly a little brown sign with yellow writing would appear to mark a summit or a little arrow at a confusing point on a path.” Tony Goodwin adds, “There was a time when Gary was known as the ‘Mad Marker’ because he would add trail markers where he felt they were lacking. At first these markers were carefully hand-painted to look like the other markers on that trail, and he even produced a few ATIS markers along with the DEC markers.” DEC is a very hot topic along the trail. Many stories are recounted, such as, who’s been warned, who’s been ticketed, who’s even been rescued. Spicy indeed. Gary’s been ticketed for hanging unauthorized signs — signs the DEC gave him to hang. Since the trail they asked him to mark was flooded out and had been so for a while, Gary marked the work-around trail. Soon after, DEC phoned, requesting Gary meet up at this trail. Upon arriving, he was ticketed and instructed to remove all the signs. Gary quickly adds, “Tony Goodwin was ticketed for an unleashed dog, and the ranger requested that the judge inflict the maximum penalty on Tony due to his bad behavior.” “Dogs should be off a leash whenever possible so that they can be happy just being dogs,” Tony responds. Oftentimes when he is in an area where leashes are not required, he informs hikers that no regulation requires them to keep their dog leashed. Tony calls himself the oneman CLO. Phil tells me Gary had to be rescued once. Gary explains that when hiking Bear Den Mountain one Sunday, he started having back spasms. When his friends asked if they should call for help, they were surprised when he said yes. “They thought I would rather die than ever call for a rescue,” he says. “I told them I would rather live.” Charlie Platt was the first ranger to arrive. Gary says, “Looking down at me he said, ‘I knew someday I’d be coming for you.’” Phil Corell #224WV and Gary Koch #1137WV on Klondike trail to Phelps -Photo Credit Dave Pawlick #12803 16 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
Gary spent his childhood between Bloomfield, New Jersey, and Tupper Lake, New York, where his family spent the summers. Upon retiring in 1999 after managing a family retail business, Gary moved into his ancestral Adirondack home and unplugged — literally, meaning no Wi-Fi or electronic devices. Can you imagine? He says that’s when the hiking really began. “I calculated how many rounds I could do each summer, determined to complete 46 rounds.” Phil Corell, who’s logged over 100 hikes with Gary, says, “It was 2005 when we both completed our 21st round of the 46. My climbing continued at a glacial pace. Gary’s didn’t. I attended his 46th round celebration five years later [2010] on Phelps (25 rounds in five years).” That’s 1,150 mountains! While hiking to accomplish this epic milestone he completed seven winter rounds of the 46! Phil adds, “Fifteen years later [2025] and 54 more rounds, Koch recorded his 100th round on Whiteface.” That’s 4,600 mountains! Gary’s also a gridder, surmounted 14 winter rounds of the 46 and completed the ADK 100 Highest. Barb Harris recollects, “Gary hiked with me towards my goal of the ADK 100 Highest. He has good map and compass skills, but the man has no technological devices. No answering machine to call to set up hiking dates. No computer, so it goes without saying, no GPS. On a hike into Wolf Pond Mountain with Gary and Tony Solomon, I was using my new Garmin for the first time. I had forewarned Tony the night before because he has a computer! At the beginning of the hike, I showed Gary the Garmin, my chosen route, and we studied the paper map. At a stream crossing Gary indicated that this is where we should start going up. I explained that the Garmin said we still had 1/4 of a mile to go to another stream crossing. Gary questioned the intelligence of my ‘gismo.’ There was some debate, and Tony put in a vote to follow my route. So, on we went. It was not long before we Gary Koch #1137WV, Ken Ryba #1661WV and Phil Corell #224WV - Photo Credit Dave Pawlick #12803 From L to R - Linda Harwood #2793W, Tony Goodwin #211, Diana Wardell, Suzanne Lance #1802WV, Gary Koch #1137WV, George Sloan #2651WV, Sue Virostek #4486, Chris Dresser #3166W, Barb Harris #2824WV, Judy Bechard #9645, John Bauer #10211 - Photo Credit Sherry Roulston #12512 WINTER 2025 | 17
heard water running. Gary literally started sprinting ahead and yelling ’that stream was not on the map!’ On future hikes Gary liked the ‘gismo’ especially at 1/10 of a mile from the summit because that’s when the ‘gismo’ starts using feet for distance!” Tony Goodwin recalls, I have known Gary for many years as a trail volunteer who helped me in my maintenance of ATIS trails. And not all these trail maintenance efforts involved his adding another ascent to his list. Given Gary’s reputation for marking trails, I didn’t hesitate to call on him to help me when the DEC directed ATIS to remove all their ’private’ markers from state trails. On longer stretches such as the Dial-Nippletop loop and the Pinnacle Ridge we teamed up and marked in reverse direction so that each person only had to mark in one direction when removing the old markers and placing new ones. One such effort was marking the Bartlett RidgeHaystack-Haystack Brook loop, starting from the Upper Lake Warden’s Camp. I was somewhat surprised when I found myself going faster than Gary up to the junction where we split and then reaching the summit of Haystack well before Gary. I even started down the south side to meet up with him. It was then that I learned that he had climbed all four Sewards the day before, which perhaps explained his slower pace that day. I agreed to reverse course and mark back down the Haystack Brook Trail, but Gary asked if he could at least reach the summit before marking back down the shorter Bartlett Ridge route. So, for Gary it was one more ascent in the record book after a previous day’s hike that would have left me with my feet up all day.” Phil explains, “Gary’s one of the original light-weight hikers. He brings one bottle of Gatorade and isn’t afraid to refill it out of whatever water source is available. His meals tend to be on the Spartan side — dried prunes, nuts, energy bars, and always M&M’s.” Ben 10 (Tennyson) adds, “It’s the Ty-D-Bol blue Gatorade! And Gary also enjoys eating donations from the group and gladly accepts any posthike beer, no matter the brand, but of course, he prefers Genny Cream Ale.” George Sloan boasts, “Gary loves my sandwiches!” He tells me, “Suzanne and I store our food in a box. When hiking with Gary, we’ve always offered him one of our sandwiches. After a while, I started giving him the sandwich at the beginning of a hike, so he could carry it instead of me!” As we get close to the top of Whiteface, Gary resembles a stoic Olympian. He shows no signs of having climbed a high peak — no sweat dripping from his brow, no huffing or puffing, no dirt smudged on his cream color kakis. He casually sits on a rock and removes his boot to shake a pebble or two from it while continuing with his story, not concerned in the least that his 4,600th summit waits for him just a few yards away. I look up to the summit and know George Sloan #2651WV, Ben 10 (Tennyson) #2180W, Gary Koch #1137WV, Jay Brooks #11245W, Suzanne Lance #1802WV George Sloan #2651WV and Gary Koch #1137WV snoozing - Photo Credit Suzanne Lance #1802WV Gary Koch #1137WV drinking his Ty-D-Bol blue Gatorade, Brian Hoody #4410WV – Photo Credit Nancie Battaglia #3543 18 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS
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