Love in the Adirondacks

 In which we get away to the Adirondacks for a few days...

Our ten-year wedding anniversary was last month. It just so happened that Andrew and Amy, who were in our wedding, were getting hitched just two days later. 

Andrew is one of Mike's childhood best friends. He and Amy started dating shortly after we did and the four of us spent a lot of time together in our younger years. There were plenty of nights around bonfires at The Farm, and we infamously worked Haunted together for several years. 

Andrew and Amy moved to Michigan a few years ago so we don't see them as much as we'd like to. We would have gladly traveled to Michigan for the ceremony, but they chose to get married in a place nearer and dearer to their hearts. They got married near their lake house in Big Moose. 

Mike and I took the opportunity to extend the weekend into a getaway in the Adirondacks to celebrate both occasions. It turned out to be a wonderful week. 

Oversharing details of someone else's wedding feels strange so I'll try to focus this entry on us, even though it was obviously about the bride!

We drove up to Old Forge, NY on Wednesday. The drive was about six hours and took us in a direction we don't usually go. 

Sidebar: we should go that way more often. It's so beautiful up there!

We stayed at the Great Pines Lodge on Fourth Lake. Amy is a vet and they had their dog, Piper, with them. Amy's sister, the maid of honor, also had her dog. This meant a dog-friendly resort was a must, which simplified things tremendously. Bonnie got to come with us!

The check-in process was contactless and we found our room easily. It was rustic and adorable and just big enough for the three of us. We didn't have a lake view, but the entire property was beautiful and we were only using the room to sleep so it didn't matter. 

One of the glorious views from the lodge.

Bonnie was unimpressed.

Our digs for the weekend.

While most of the guests wouldn't arrive until later in the week, most of the wedding party was already at the lodge or staying nearby. 

We met up with Andrew, Amy, and some other favorite people for dinner. There was a restaurant on site called the Lean-To. There were a ton of deep belly laughs, excellent food, and an old-fashioned that went right to my head. The bartender for the weekend was a hoot and kept us thoroughly entertained throughout our meal. 

We had the place to ourselves so nobody was disturbed by the rowdiness.

After our meal, we toured the grounds, saw the other rooms some of our friends were staying in, got a sneak preview of the reception tent, and took Bonnie for a nighttime stroll down to the docks.

By the time all that socializing was done, we were definitely ready to tuck in for the night.

Bonnie was disappointed that there was no formal tub.

The beds were very comfy.

The next day was our anniversary and we spent a large portion of it doing our own thing. 

We started the day with coffee on the Adirondack chairs overlooking the lake, followed by complimentary breakfast in the lodge. 

Pro-tip: bring your own coffee maker and preferred coffee for traveling! 

We were serenaded by loons as we soaked in the surroundings. Perfect.

Loon.

Lodge.

Lake.

Mike and I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate our anniversary than by doing one of our favorite things: hiking! The Adirondacks are certainly a beautiful place to do that. 

After scrolling through seemingly endless options on AllTrails, I picked the Castle Rock Trail about an hour away in Blue Mountain Lake. This trail promised an amazing view, fewer crowds than some other local hikes, and a moderate walk that would be just under 3 miles. It sounded very reasonable. 

For a brief moment, I thought we could drive up to the Blue Mountain Fire Tower along the way, but it turns out that road is gated off. The tower is only accessible via a long and strenuous hike. 

We parked at the Syracuse University Minnowbrook Conference Center, a short walk from the formal trail head.

They had a horse statue inside a wood shed. For a moment, I thought he was taxidermy because he was so realistic from a distance.

Even in mid-September, there were already signs of fall in the mountains. It felt like fast forwarding a few weeks. 

Bonnie was delighted to be exploring a new trail. It wasn't long before she was doing the zoomies, during the course of which she cannonballed right into a muck pit full of thick, black mud. 

 A filthy dog is a happy dog.

A short while later, we found a trail that detoured towards the lake. We couldn't resist. Besides, this would be a good way to get the dog rinsed off.

Fun things along the way.

We spent a long while on the shore just taking in the view and watching Bonnie splash around in the crystal clear water. It was well worth the half mile detour. 

Look at her getting in the water like a real dog!

The water was so clear!

Soon we were back on the main trail and things got serious in a hurry. I knew getting to the top of a mountain to see the view would involve some climbing. I even knew it would likely be more challenging than advertised because New York be like that. 

The trail started off with a gentle slope, then got gradually steeper until we were at about Round Valley level of difficulty. It grew steeper still and I eventually took a break to catch my breath and let some faster hikers pass us.

As this group of uber fit human beings rounded the next corner, one of them exclaimed, "Holy shit! It goes straight up!" 

This was followed by his girlfriend responding, "Babe, I thought you said this was supposed to be moderate...."

I looked at Mike. "I don't even want to see it."

Sure enough, the trail basically went straight up the side of the mountain for half a mile. At least at that point it was still a trail.

Eventually we reached the base of a large cliff. I looked at my map, looked at the rockface in front of us, and told Mike, "Don't quote me on this, but I think our final destination is up there."

It sure was.

Bonnie for scale.

Notice the rock wall directly where the arrow is pointing.

The trail grew more gnarly until it became a rock scramble, at which point I leashed Bonnie for her safety. Next we had to scrabble basically up a rock face. Then we walked between some huge boulders that required me to suck in my gut. 

At one point, a tree fell blocking part of the trail. If I had been five pounds heavier, I wouldn't have fit. Mike had to find a way to climb up and over to proceed. It was intense.

Rugged but doable.

If you zoom in, you can see Bonnie in the middle of this photo.

This is the "trail". Bonnie is looking back to see what the holdup is.

I turned 180 degrees from the previous photo and captured Mike climbing behind me.

I like the cheerful little trail marker guiding the way like this isn't insanity.

Believe it or not, it's steeper than it looks.

Bonnie checks in again.

The view from the top was 100% worth it. We could see almost 360 degrees around us with Blue Mountain lake to the front and left and the mountains rolling away to the right. 

There were a few other people at the top and we made small talk while we took in the view. One man even shared his bag of chips with Bonnie. It was very sweet.

From there, we had the option to go back down the way we came or make the hike into a loop, which would be slightly longer. We decided that new is always better and chose the latter. 

After the initial descent, it turned out this route was by far the easier of the options. We mostly followed a gradual downhill stretch of doubletrack all the way back down to Chub Pond. There were no cliffs, rock scrambles, or other obstacles along the way.

It's good to know there is a much easier way to get up to the view. I think our way was more fun though!

Plus Bonnie had the time of her life sproinging down the trail while visibly shouting, "PARKOUR!" as she went. I wouldn't want to rob her of that.

What goes up must come down.

In the end, we wound up doing a little over four miles. I think even the dog was tired at the end of it. Mike and I had definitely worked up an appetite, but we agreed we wanted to shower before going out to eat so we headed back to our room first.

There are a million great places to eat in the Adirondacks, but Mike and I kept things simple by picking the one closest to the lodge. We headed over to the Mountainside Smokehouse & Grill, where we had some beers and ordered food. 

Lunch ended up being extraordinary. I got their BBQ shepherd's pie and I would have literally licked the bowl if it wasn't scalding hot. Everything we had was delicious. I could have taken a nap right there on the floor if they'd let me. 

We did end up taking a phenomenal afternoon nap that day. It was reminiscent of our patented Snacks & Naps vacation from back in the day and may have been a highlight of this trip. 

Afterwards, we rejoined the wedding party at Andrew and Amy's lake house for a night of grilled food, Fireball, laughs around a campfire, and riding around in a tricked out golf cart that you'd have to see  hear to believe. 

The groom and his Schmoo. ❤

Needless to say, I slept very well that night. 

Friday was the day when things started to shift into wedding mode. Because we had arrived early, we didn't get caught up in the bustle of moving into the lodge. Instead, we found ourselves with some more free time.

The morning started with coffee overlooking the lake and breakfast in the lodge again. We had picked up some creamer of our own so the coffee was like a touch of home.

We also found time for another hike. Mike and I both agreed that we'd had enough true exercise for one weekend so we picked an easy two and a half mile loop at Moss Lake, right around the corner from the lodge. 

The walk was leisurely and beautiful with fall colors starting to pop on some of the trees. We even met a sweet mini Aussie named Buddy. He and Bonnie enjoyed a short game of chase which they both enjoyed immensely.

Bonnie got to splash around in another Adirondack Lake and get all the zoomies out of her system before being forced to endure a boring wedding day.

Loved this bridge along the way!

The ears never get old.

She still isn't grasping the concept of swimming LOL

Many fun things to see along the way.

This rock was huge.

That is one determined tree.

After our walk, we touched base with Andrew and Amy. They were still in the throes of prepping for their big day so we were on our own for lunch.

We went down the street to Daiker's where we enjoyed more fabulous food on the deck with a view of the lake. It was actually chilly which I relished.

Before we knew it, we had to head over to the chapel for the rehearsal. I threw on my fancy shoes and Mike dropped me off at the door. It was a gorgeous building, though being in any kind of church always makes me uncomfortable.

It was starting to feel real for Amy!

Since I wasn't in the wedding party, I just sat quietly in my pew and watched the rehearsal. I noted that I would definitely need the good mascara the following day since I was bawling my eyes out already. Weddings always make me cry. 

After the rehearsal was the rehearsal dinner at a golf club nearby.

And then it was back to the lodge, where Amy had to bury a wiener to stave off bad weather. (Hey, I don't make the rules...)

Meanwhile, we made good use of the fire pit in front of our room and got a fire going. There, we were joined by many faces, some of which were new, but most of whom meant a trip down memory lane. My best buddy from The Farm days was there. Juice and I haven't seen each other in years, but we picked up right where we left off. 

Let's just say the whole thing was very... erm... rock 'n' roll.

The next morning, Mike was up early and I was... not. 

It was go time!

I spent the day with Amy and her bridesmaids. All weekend we had a running joke where I was her Linus. For those of you not in the know, this is a How I Met Your Mother reference. Basically, whatever the bride needed, I did.

The other running joke was DON'T LOOK AT ME because the second any of us made eye contact, the waterworks began. 

The day ended up being absolutely perfect and I am just so thrilled for our friends.

After spending the morning getting ready, we took the party bus over to the chapel. This was my first time in a limo. It was a little... touch and go with the super windy and bumpy back roads, but we can laugh about it now.

Once at the chapel, I slipped inside where my new friends from the night before had saved me a seat in the back row. 

The men came over on the boat and the ceremony began. 

It was beautiful and I sniffled as quietly as I could the entire time. 

Then there was bubble blowing and professional photos followed by another ride in the party bus, which took us to the lake house and then back to the lodge, with stops for more photos along the way.

While the wedding party posed for photos, I performed my duties as Dog Governess for the day, then assisted with carrying various items and offering support as needed.

Then it was time to get the party started! 

We schmoozed during the cocktail hour and tried the signature drinks. Then we were ushered back into a private room with the bride and groom to enjoy some hors d'oeuvres before the formal reception started. 

Mike sat up at the high table with the rest of the wedding party, and they wisely seated me with Juice, his wife, and Joe's family. They knew they could count on our table to bring the noise! 

Dinner was absolutely delicious and then we hit the dance floor. There were foam glow sticks available which were a super way to kick things up a notch. I found myself dancing around and handing them out to other guests while pulling them onto the dance floor.

Mike and I love a good reception and we went all out on the dance floor. It was such a fun group and buckets of Fireball did nothing but help loosen everybody up! It has been a long time since we partied that hard!

I was very sad when the DJ announced the last song and informed us that the noise ordinance was about to kick in. Andrew and Amy thought of everything, though, and the afterparty continued in the Lean-To with even more food and drink!

The wedding was everything a good wedding should be: beautiful, fun, well-organized, full of laughter and good food. Mike and I are so glad we eloped without all the planning and stress, but we love celebrating love! This was a blast.

I couldn't resist sharing this photo by the photographer, Sam. 

The men riding over to the chapel on the boat! I didn't get to see this part in person.

All the flowers were so stunning!

We still clean up once in a while.

We're getting so old! The photographer asked if I was the mother of the groom. And then told Mike not to jump with the rest of the groomsmen. (She meant because he's tall, but he asked if she was worried he'd break a hip.)

The 402nd time I cried was when they took pictures of Piper.

The weather was perfect.

Should I wear this green dress for a photoshoot with my chestnut horse? I think maybe yes...

We got to party with the vet who has taken care of all our dogs over the years!

A picture of everyone who was left on the dance floor at the end of the night!

And then, as happens with weddings, everything was suddenly over. The last of the guests trickled out. The last remnants of laughter drifted out over the lake and silence fell over the lodge. Mike and I took Bonnie for one last midnight walk before crawling into bed for our last night away.

And our friends went to their suite to enjoy their first night as husband and wife. 

The next day, Mike and I packed our things, helped the bride and groom with a few last minute tasks, and made the long drive home on a rainy day. 

We aren't usually the types to make a big deal out of dates. Birthdays and anniversaries come and go, and we try to live every day to its fullest whenever possible. Still, ten years of marriage feels like a pretty big milestone. So much has happened in the last decade, and I don't think we would have spent much time reflecting on that if this weekend hadn't given us a reason to. There was something especially fitting about celebrating our anniversary at the wedding of two people who have been there to watch our relationship grow from the very beginning. In a way, their wedding gave us the perfect opportunity to celebrate our own marriage, too.

After a joyous few days of celebrating, relaxing, and just enjoying ourselves, it would be hard to reintegrate back into society.