Sam’s Photo Blog

Train, work, train, home. Life can quickly turn into a routine.

It was fun to take out the camera, take a detour and be reminded why I love taking photos in the first place.


This photo looks like the cover to a video game.


Fluffy plant highlighted by the sun.

Intense blue!

Continuing from Part I of our hiking trip in the Adirondacks Park.

In the 4 days we experienced all sorts of weather conditions. On the 3rd day we woke up with 2 inches of fresh snow on the ground, here is Ludwik defrosting his boots. I dreaded putting on my frozen boots, as my toes would be freezing for the next couple of hours.

Unsure of the weather forecast we packed everything and returned to the visitor center for some updates.

In the snow covered forest, it was so quiet.

Taking a break to enjoy the scenery.

With a promising forecast for Monday we decided to stay in the park. In the afternoon, we decided to challenge Cascade Mountain.

However, we had driven too far and spent 45minutes climbing up a waterfall and wondered why it was so difficult….

As we neared the peak. It was snowing hard with strong winds.

Last push to the peak in the deep snow.

White-out at the top of Cascade Mountain - 4098 ft (1249 m). It was an amazing experience even with the snow blowing sideways and very low visibiity.


That night we had a nice campfire and had a huge success making popcorn (usually it ends up being a giant fireball…).

Brian reviewing some of the footage from the peak.

Our last day at the park brought fair weather, we were very excited.

We packed everything into our rental Ford Flex. It was a tank.

Ludwik leading the way looking for trail makers in the snow covered paths.

It was quite slippery with snow and ice covering the rocks. But going up was easier than going down.

Taking in the panoramic view at 3352 ft (1022 m).

The brothers being silly.

The lookout to the other mountains in the region.

Kenny living on the edge.

Brian and his best friend. I still don’t know how he felt safe letting go of the tripod.

Chief Hojo.

Back to the ground level and start on the journey home.

Adirondack Park is located in the northeastern part of New York state that covers approximately 6.1 million acres (24,700 km²). It is part of the Appalachian Mountains and contains the 46 High Peaks.

The planning came together pretty last minute, since when we had meetings they quickly turned into a night of boardgames.

After we crossed the border, we found a Wal-Mart and loaded up on groceries. The food was so cheap and 4X the normal servings.

All packed up and good to go.


We arrived at the camp site rather late and had to setup camp, filter water, and cook before it gets dark.



Oh, warm food, so tasty!

This was the first time we have ever used a lean-to. It was very convenient and kept our gear dry throughout the night.

Starting back up the next day. We left most of our gear behind and only carried our daypacks.


It had rained steadily throughout the night so the ground was very muddy. And in the open areas it was very windy!

We had to cross a lot of streams along the way from the spring run-off.

Breaking for lunch just below the tree-line. Layer up then push for the summit.

The weather started to clear up.

And just as we got through the treeline the sun peeked out from the clouds.

Without trees, we were being bombarded by 40-50mph winds as we were scrambling up the slippery rocks. In the background is Algonquin Peak at 5114 ft (1559 m), we were at 4059 ft (1237 m) on Porter Mountain.

After a brief stay to enjoy the view we had to carefully make our way down.

Kenny doing his thing.

Going down was even more dangerous. Especially for Horace, who deferred his knee MRI appointment to go on this trip.

Stay tuned for Part II…

During the Chinese New Year celebrations, many of the believers paid homage at the temples or the local shrines.

I took this opportunity to visit and learn more about the many rituals and the idols for the worshipers. The belief is that by when the offerings are burnt it will ascend up to the heavens for them to enjoy.

Generals form the famous historical novel “Three Kingdoms” guarding the gates.

An old shrine untouched while new buildings have sprung up around it.

Buddha’s on a hilltop, I guess they each have their own specializations?

Burning incense with their wishes at the top. Each incense can burn for about 10 days.


Everyone under the same roof.

Fruits and offerings for the crew’s safety.