Great seeing you at the Annual Meeting!

The 70s were a prime time to ski the trail. While perhaps it was not as nice as the 30s, when the range was clear, it was a decade with a lot of snow, and with three cross country ski areas that provided easy access to the higher terrain. Our favorite trip was to start at the Temple Mountain ski area, where we paid $1 in the early 70s, which went up to $3 as time went on, for a single ride up the west T-bar. From there, it was easy to access the Wapack Trail at the summit and…

President’s Note With the snow mostly gone around our house, and a few signs of new growth, it seems like Spring. However, the warmth of the nearby wood stove reminds me that we are not quite done with cold weather. For those that were able, hiking on the Wapack was enjoyable this winter. Mike reports that so far, the trail is in good shape. There has not been much ice; that can be particularly damaging. In late February I joined Matt Hillman from the US Fish and Wildlife Service and some of his staff at the Wapack National Wildlife Refuge…

One of the unique items in our archives is the 33 page transcript of an interview with Marion (Buck) Davis. The interview was recorded shortly before her death in 1985. Marion Davis and Frank Robbins created the Wapack Trail in 1923. As soon as the trail was completed they began construction of the Wapack Lodge along the trail in New Ipswich. The trail was immediately popular and hikers and visitors needed a place to stay overnight and be fed, even before the lodge was finished! The following is Marion’s story of the first visitors to the lodge, before it was…