June 2, Day 2

You should be very proud of your children—they have been wonderful. Today we woke to 60 degree temperatures and cloudy skies. We enjoyed a buffet in the Terrace Room at the Georgian which is set on the shores of Lake George. It really is a very beautiful spot. We left at 8:00, right on time and headed for Natural Stone Bridge and Caves. This natural geology attraction is located in Pottersville and has been in the family for five generations. We broke into four groups and explored the complex of trails, caves, bridges and natural stone features which have been shaped by water. The gift shop is the best on the whole trip and your present probably will have come from there. We also had fun on their climbing wall which was really challenging!

We drove through the back roads to Tupper Lake where the Wild Center is located. This is an eco-museum which is beautiful to visit and is a series of hands on exhibits which teach the flora, fauna and animals found in the Adirondacks. A favorite are the otters which put on quite a show (they love hard boiled eggs, as well as the trout tank, turtles and fish. We also enjoyed an award winning documentary movie—A Matter of Degrees which explains how with only a 9 degree difference in temperature the earth has been through ice ages to global warming. We had a great lunch and completed a scavenger hunt prepared for the visit.

We drove to Lake Placid and checked into the Comfort Inn which is a very nice hotel. They needed to relax so we took over the indoor pool and let them jump around. Dinner began at 6:30 and the DJ was all set up. They danced and danced and danced (and so did the chaperones) until 10PM and finished with our traditional Stairway to Heaven for the last dance in grade 8.

We taped them in and tomorrow we will wake them at 6AM, pack and be at breakfast by 7AM. We will head to Ausable Chasm where we will hike in and raft out to be followed by a cookout on top of Ausable hill. After we ferry over to the Burlington side we will explore Ben and Jerry’s and head home from there. We will attempt to email you from the road using the school listserve if our time is different from our expected 7PM arrival time.

It has been a total pleasure to be with them on this trip. They are respectful and responsible and sensitive to each other. We will miss them as they move on to high school.

See you tomorrow evening with tired but happy kids.

Cheryl Forster-Cahill