Chair

Chair’s Report
January, 2012
Chair John Barron
The chapter has taken on a major project: hosting ADK Spring Outing 2013, an all-club event. The center of activity will be SUNY Potsdam, where out-of-town visitors may stay in residence and meals and a variety of entertainment will be offered for visitors and local members alike. Our committee consists of Marianne Hebert, registration organizer and liaison with SUNY Potsdam; Tom Ortmeyer, with David Katz, as publicity coordinator; Bill Mueller as outings coordinator; and me as overall coordinator. We hope to run a large number of outings in all disciplines (hiking, paddling, road and mountain biking, for example) from easy to challenging. We are counting on broad support from the chapter to lead these outings. The dates will be June 14-16, 2013.
It has been another season of major effort in trail maintenance. We are grateful especially to many students from local colleges and universities, who gave great support to the four events this fall. These included Red Sandstone Trail maintenance; two days of diverse work at Stone Valley; and a large contribution to an all-club cleanup based out of the Adirondac Loj after Hurricane Irene. Blair Madore led a group, with energetic support from students, faculty, and alumni of SUNY Canton, in establishing a portage trail access to the Raquette River near Moody Falls in cooperation with the DEC. We hope this last, besides being a wonderful destination in its own right, will set an example for how to take advantage of conservation easements New York State has established for the recreational benefit of all.
There will be some continuity and some renewal in our executive committee in 2012. David Trithart will be continuing for another two-year term as director and I will be continuing for a second two-year term as chair. Betsy Tisdale will replace Blair Madore as vice chair, education; she has long experience in the chapter and it is wonderful to have her back. Blair is taking a breather to attend to other obligations but we happily expect to see him on the trails often as an outing leader. We welcome Dana Chudzinski, succeeding Marianne Hebert as secretary. Thanks to our nominating committee of Armond Spencer, Blair Madore, and Tom Ortmeyer.
Congratulations are due to Peter Blood and Toni Towle, who completed their tour of the 46 High Peaks at the summit of Whiteface on November 7. You can see their photo and a brief account of their exploits in this news item.