As every trail must reach its destination, as every tale must come to its end, so too our Adirondack adventure must draw to a close, and we must bid adieu to the carefree Adirondack life.

Adieu to the paths we traveled, winding ways through wooded glens and beaver swamps.

Farewell to the cascading streams, and the myriad of ponds and lakes.

Adieu to the small joys of the forest, to the wildflowers, the fairy pines and the ferns…

…to the birds and the butterflies, the chipmunks and the delightful red squirrels.

Farewell to the moose, unseen but ever present.

Adieu to the majesty of the mountains, to the peaks now etched upon our hearts – Cascade, Pitchoff, Whiteface, Ampersand.

Farewell to the alpine tundra…

…to the strange, twisted Krummholz, the dark, lovely spruce-fir forest, and the sunny spaces in between.

Farewell to the rocky trails…

 

…the boulders, slabs and open bedrock that fascinated and challenged us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adieu to the easy lakeside living, to morning mists and merganser ducklings mirrored on the still water.

Farewell to the haunting calls of loons echoing from distant coves as the sun dropped golden-pink behind the hills.

Adieu à la vie sans souci…

Farewell to the Adirondacks carefree.