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In the woods and on the podium

Apparently, last week’s column touched a nerve among a variety of woods travelers. The story touched on how much is too much in terms of overuse of the local woods and waters.

While several readers claimed they had not seen “any obvious overload” on the trails, others claimed that “the trails are under pressure like we’ve never experienced in our 38 years of traveling in the Adirondacks.”

Others were more concerned with the crowded parking lots, explaining, “There were over 100 vehicles in the trailhead lots near the Cascade Lakes when we got there around noon. The trail looked like a rustic escalator, with a steady stream of hikers going up one side and down the other. There were also a lot of traffic jams in places where the trails bottlenecked. The trail just wasn’t wide enough for everyone to pour through the limited space, and some people were really rude!”

According to an old friend who was hiking in the region over the weekend, “The top of Pitchoff looked like a rock concert had landed on the summit. I’ve never seen so many people on an Adirondack summit. They kept coming up in waves, and I didn’t wait around to see any more of that. We left after about 15 minutes rest.”

While my friend made it home without incident, many other hikers did not. A recent forest ranger action report detailed recent rescues that included a 37-year-old woman from Thetford, Vermont who was lost with her daughter on Rooster Comb. Another report read that two women from Brooklyn were fortunately within cell phone range and called forest rangers, who were able to redirect them onto the correct trail by phone so they could walk out.

On average, the Department of Environmental Conservation responds to more than a dozen incidents every week. Fortunately, cell phone reception has improved dramatically in recent years, which often allows searchers to pinpoint the lost person’s location.

As summer advances into the depths of the season, it is important for travelers to be aware of the potential for sudden thunderstorms and the likelihood of flash flooding. Lightning is a force of nature that’s often overlooked, but it is an especially dangerous threat in the upper elevations where there is every little tree cover.

At the same time, anglers are advised to self regulate their trout and salmon angling outings, especially in the streams where the low water levels and diminished oxygen levels have already created undue stress on the fisheries.

Although it’s time to lay off the trout and salmon, there are still excellent opportunities for bass and pike. In recent years, I’ve enjoyed some outstanding days fly fishing for bass on the Saranac and Raquette rivers, especially in the rapids below the numerous falls that are to be found along these waterways. Bass are likely to be the most entertaining finned foe during the heat of the summer, especially in the rivers where they know how to use the flow to their advantage.

Surprisingly, many fly fishers have never even attempted to take them on the long rod. They don’t know what they are missing.

The phantom athletes of Rio

While sprinters, swimmers and repeat Olympians currently rank among the most visible heroes of the Summer Olympic Games in Rio, the media has largely turned a blind eye on one of the most accomplished Olympians in the history of sport. I suppose it’s due to the fact she’s a shooter, rather than a gymnast, swimmer or sprinter.

However, her Olympic history proves she has the skill and dedication necessary to compete in multiple Olympic Games. In terms of Olympic longevity, she now rules the pack, having competed in her first Olympic Games in Atlanta back in 1996.

Unfortunately, from a media standpoint, she totes a gun rather than a ribbon or a volleyball. Her name is Kim Rhode, and she’s currently competing in her sixth consecutive Olympic competition. She’s the only American athlete to ever accomplish the feat.

After winning a bronze medal in one of the very first competitions at the Rio Games, Rhode became the first Olympian to medal in six straight games. She’s also the first U.S. athlete to compete in the Olympics on five continents.

Her career began at the Atlanta Games in 1996, where she was the youngest Olympian to ever win gold. Over the years, she’s also shot trap, double trap and skeet. She won a bronze medal at the 2000 Sydney games, a gold in Athens in 2004, silver in Beijing in 2008 and gold again in London in 2012. She is the only Summer Olympian to win six consecutive individual medals, a feat matched only by Italian luger Armin Zoeggeler in the Winter Games.

Her Olympic performance in London, where she shot 99 of a possible 100 points in skeet, established a new Olympic record and tied the world record. Adding additional shine to the deed, she accomplished the task with a borrowed shotgun, after the gun she had planned to use in competition was stolen from her room.

US shooters were the first athletes to earn medals in Rio, when Virginia Thrasher captured a gold medal in the 100-meter air rifle competition and Corey Cogdell took the bronze in women’s trap.

Since those opening victories, there’s been a lot of talk in Rio about repeat Olympians, who posess the skills and dedication to compete over multiple Olympic Games. Most of the attention has focused on Usain Bolt, the fastest man on the planet, and Michael Phelps.

Although Annie Oakley was widely celebrated in her day, with extensive audiences far and wide, most modern day shooters continue to toil in relative obscurity, despite their continued success.

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