'Driven' to Argyle

     "Whoa!"

     "That rut was deep enough to swallow a dump truck!"

     I was driving a dump truck down Saunders Road in Argyle and having second thoughts about it. A lovely dirt road for most of the year, it turns into a nightmare during mud season. Obviously, mud season had arrived.

     I have Drive and myself to blame. This is going to take some explanation so let's get to it. Drive is a 2011 movie starring Ryan Gosling. For some inexplicable reason I'ld gotten the notion that I should watch it. Checking DVD availability, I found that the Argyle Library had a copy. This aligned perfectly with my plan to visit all the libraries in Washington County so off I went.

   

     Which would have been fine but for the fact that I never go in a straight line to a destination. I like to turn even the most mundane errand run into a mini exploration adventure. Now be aware that there are good roads (Rts. 40 and 197) that will get you to Argyle. Those are what I'ld recommend. But there is also a maze of glorified cow paths (called town roads) that you can use. These I would also recommend. Except in mud season.

     Since I don't always follow my own advice, I'll share a few sights from my recent mud season trip on the backroads of Argyle. We'll start with a spot on Duer/East Road that's in the Town of Fort Edward, just shy of the Argyle line. Mike Huggins pointed out this location to me years ago and whenever I'm in the area I like to stop and contemplate the geologic processes at work here. The road runs several miles level on the clay bed of former Glacial Lake Albany. It's rather unremarkable. But if you stop a little to the east of the Anthony Road intersection you're at what may become a future crime scene. Believe it or not there could be an act of piracy at this very spot. 

On this map the Moses Kill is to the top and Slocum Creek to the bottom

The two watersheds are kissing each other at the road

     As in 'stream piracy'. That's when one stream headwater erodes until it intersects another stream and, if the gradients are right, captures the flow of that second stream. Quite the swashbuckling event except that, like most things geologic, it happens over very long periods of time. If you look closely here you will see wooded gullies opposing each other on both sides of the road. The one on the south side of the road leads to a branch of Slocum Creek while the north side gully drops down to the Moses Kill. If these two ravines were to connect and continue to deepen thru erosion there could eventually be a channel for the flow of the Moses Kill to be diverted into Slocum Creek. Stream captured! Of course, the two gullies are up against the formidable forces of the Town Highway Department at the moment. But in the near future, when we're no longer around, watch out for a blatant act of piracy right here.

A Google Earth image with Duer/East Road running horizontal

O'Brien Road and Anthony Road are to the left

The two gullies are where woods are on both sides of the road in image center

          

At the stream piracy site looking east to the Taconic front range hills

     I took a minute to admire the view of the Taconic front range of hills before heading east to a left on Lick Springs Road. For several miles this road parallels the thrust fault that brought the hills here. Eventually I turned right on Harper Road which, along with Coon Road, wiggles thru the hills towards Rt. 40. Stopped where a small stream flows toward the road on the north side and then abruptly plunges into a gorge on the south side. Scenic any time of year but now completely encased in ice and snow but for a couple of small windows of rushing water.

The photo doesn't do it justice but it's a long way down to the bottom of these falls

     Past a cluster of spiky spruces that made me wonder...a natural swamp or an abandoned plantation?...before crossing Rt. 40 and eastward to North Greenwich where I found myself on the afore mentioned rut-aholic Saunders Road. My reason for stopping here was to see the future site of the Ag Stewardship Associations Argyle Community Forest. I think it's around 80 acres of forested hill with a small stream on the east side of the road. Not open to the public yet but will be a fun place to explore in the future. Complements their Cambridge Community Forest but in a more remote area where the ATV and snowmobile are the preferred forms of recreation. It will be interesting to see how this shakes out...

The future Argyle Community Forest will be between

Saunders and McClay Roads on this topo map

 

Saunders Road

The ASA property is not yet open to the public

An old stone wall leads into the future Argyle Community Forest

 

     Having survived Saunders Road I moved on to a loop around Summit Lake. The pavilion and beach here was the scene of so many good times when I was a kid. Now, I can't even tell where the long gone structure was located. Did enjoy a conversation with a guy heading out onto the ice to do some fishing. There's no good public access so people just use places where the road hugs the shoreline. Maybe I'll try putting a canoe in later this spring. Do a little paddling tour for old times sake. 

Google Earth view of Summit Lake

Ice fishermen were accessing at the upper left corner

 
     Finally it was library time. Argyle's is located in a small house near the fire station. There is everything you'd expect: stacks, a reading table, computers and a children's room all downsized to fit the available space. They have a shelf of Argyle focused books and an impressive display of locally found arrowheads. Thru loans, town patrons have access to the larger resources of the Southern Adirondack Library System. It's a cozy place and a favorite after school hangout for kids.

  

Shelves of local history

The view from a reading table

SCREEN TIME...

     Was Drive worth the drive? All I knew about Ryan Gosling was that he had played Ken (Barbie's squeeze) in last summer's blockbuster. He's no 'Ken' in this movie. His character doesn't even have a name. He's an enigmatic loner with a soft side that intwines him with a woman, her son and eventually, the mob. The music, visuals and criminal violence reminded me of the TV show Miami Vice on steroids. There is definitely a pulsating 'drive' to the film but it's not for everyone.

Ryan Gosling ready to Drive

   

     Chalk it up to the power of association but while at the library I couldn't resist picking up a couple of other titles. Drive My Car is a Japanese film from 2021. There's actually more driving here than in Drive but it's at a very slow pace and serves as the stage for deep conversation as the characters struggle with how to go on living when you've been drained of the will to live. Not as morbid as it sounds, a long thoughtful story that is actually quite uplifting.

     A rich, white Jewish woman and a poor, uneducated Black man become best friends in the pre-civil rights South. Probably happened all the time, right? Well, it did happen at least once in 1989's Driving Miss Daisy which won the best picture Oscar that year. Morgan Freeman and Jessica Tandy give memorable performances in this feel good story. Maybe a little too saccharine but there are worst ways to spend a couple hours. 

Book Tour ... Vermont Edition

     Breakfast and books. Is there a better way to start the day? Especially when you can get both in scenic Manchester, Vermont.

     Books were meant to be the day's focus, but not on an empty stomach. That lead Gwenne and I to those steep stairs that take you Up for Breakfast. Not exactly handicapped accessible but everything else about this venerable eatery always pleases. Incredibly, we had the place to ourselves as we didn't get there till almost noon on a weekday. Be advised that it can be quite busy earlier in the day and especially on weekends. 

How bad do you want those pancakes?

The Up for Breakfast stairs.

Closing time

As quiet as it gets

     Fueled with French Toast, omelets and coffee, we were ready to move on to books. When in Manchester Center the Northshire Bookstore always comes to mind, and it is a fun place, but today my goal was to check out the Manchester Community Library. It's located on Cemetery Avenue off 7A as it heads north. Look for a relatively new building modeled after the architectural style of connected house, barn and sheds popular in snowy New England.

     Many will remember the Mark Skinner Library a mile or two south in Manchester Village. After the institution moved several years ago to the new building in Manchester Center, the former site was remodeled to become the Silver Fork Restaurant. For an interesting history of that building click here. 

The Silver Fork, inside and out.

From fine literature to fine dining. 

     The new library building is spacious and airy with lots of natural light. Sliding barn doors can be opened or closed according to need. The stacks and a pleasant reading room are to the right of the front desk while a children's section and craft room extend straight ahead. There's a cavernous gallery space in which the current exhibit, Jacqueline Evans' "More than a feeling", almost gets lost. This room probably functions best for programs and large gatherings. An elevator gives access to the basement where the local historical society and the Vermont Room's collection of older reference material share space with a meeting room and small reading nooks.

The Reading Room

The Gallery

     Community is an essential element of this library's mission. This isn't just a place to house books and such. Rather, it's a central gathering place and hub of activity with a long list of groups and programs that use the building. It compares very favorably with the Saratoga Springs Public Library and Crandall Library in Glens Falls even though Manchester serves a smaller (although quite affluent) population. It's one of those places that leave you feeling upbeat and hopeful and that's a feeling we could all use more of. 

     Man can not live by libraries alone. While in Manchester we decided to get a little outdoor exercise by walking the trails at Hildene. This is the 412 acre estate of Abraham Lincoln's son, Robert. The visit was especially meaningful to us because during a cross country trip last year we had stopped at Abraham's childhood home at Knob Creek in Kentucky. Quite a difference in the elder Lincoln's log cabin home and his son's elegant mansion. Talk about upward mobility...

The cabin at Knob Creek

 

The mansion at Hildene

     You could easily spend a day or more touring the grounds here. There are numerous trails that are pleasant to walk or cross country ski. Look one way and the Green Mountains form a long ridge, look the other way and Mt. Equinox towers above. Short on time, we chose the short stroll from the visitors center to the goat dairy. Was great to be around animals that I didn't have to milk!

Mt. Equinox from Hildene

Walking the plank at Hildene

It's a goat thing 

     We finished up our layer cake day of alternating activities at the Martha Canfield Memorial Free Library in Arlington, Vermont. This is a friendly, small town place that feels more like someones book filled home than a large public institution. What's really neat is that it shares a campus with the community's schools, making it easily accessible to students after class. That and the lovely views of the Taconic Mountains make for a memorable setting.

Arlington's Martha Canfield Library

     The Canfield name is well known in Arlington. Martha (or Mattie as she was known) started loaning books from a brick building (now the Arlington Community House) sometime around 1900. Eventually the Russell Collection of Vermontiana was also stored here. Martha left the house to her niece, the well known author and social activist, Dorothy Canfield Fisher and from those beginnings the library evolved to its present location on the road to East Arlington.

  

The Arlington Community House

     The library has a charming interior with a sunny reading room, a balcony above the foyer, open stacks and a children's room off to the side. Downstairs is a small gallery space where there's currently an exhibit on Vermont minerals and mining. The collection of Dr. George Russell, for many years the town physician, is here and open on Tuesdays or by appointment. The staff is so welcoming and the surroundings so inviting that you want to settle into a comfy chair with a good book and just let the hours drift away.

 

Native American artifacts collected from the Battenkill Valley

Displays from the current minerals and mining exhibit

 

The Martha Canfield Library

       Finally, the hours did drift away. Time to head for home and chores. Time to chase the setting sun thru the mountain gap that the Battenkill had carved for us. I'm not claiming to have invented 'library tourism' but I certainly can recommend it. We'll close with a poem by Emily Dickinson:

Skate Away

     I've had a long love/hate relationship with skating. Started many years ago when the local Gansevoort gang of underaged hoodlums would clear off some farm pond to hang out, start a bonfire and enjoy an illicit beer that someone had filched from their parents frig. Problem was, most of us were so poor that we just had a rag tag collection of hand-me-down skates. My old pair fit so tight that it was an excruciating ordeal to wear them. Cold, sore feet pretty much sapped all the fun out of the day to the point where I eventually just slid around the ice in my barn boots during our free-for-all hockey games (worn out brooms for sticks and a frozen cow pie for a puck).  

 

Screen shot from Small Axe Farm Reel

     That's why seeing a recent Facebook Reel from Small Axe Farm felt like an epiphany. It follows a skater on clear, black Lake George ice as he makes his way past shoreline and islands in the south basin and on up into the narrows. This is the skating I've always dreamed of. None of the violence of hockey, the convoluted intricacy of figure or the go go of speed skating. Just seemingly effortless gliding for mile after mile. Indeed, watching the video it would seem that Lake George end to end would be a matter of a few hours.

Luke Dow's amazing shot of a recent Lake George sunset

     Viewing the various reels on their page it seems that they have been skating since late October, starting with small, high elevation ponds. This is called Nordic Skating and uses a long bladed skate, some of which seem to attach to cross-country type boots. Some other equipment to consider would be ice picks, probes and poles, helmet and padding and a pack. Even completely outfitted it is a relatively cheap sport compared to downhill skiing and not even close to snowmobiling. More on equipment and technique here. 

     Of course, the big consideration is getting the right conditions. This year seems golden. Some recent years the big lakes haven't even frozen over and other times they will be covered with snow making them more suitable for X-C skiing. The other point is to find experienced people to go with. Obviously, falling thru the ice is deadly serious, so never go alone and learn from those who know more than you. 

Early morning start to a nordic skate

(from small axe farm facebook page)

     I don't know if this link to the Small Axe Farm's Facebook page works but I hope you can find it to enjoy the exhilarating videos. Till then here's a link to Dire Straits Skateaway. It's not nordic skating but Roller Girl is fun to watch and the guitar isn't bad either.

A Rock and Two Trees

     A rock and two trees play a prominent role in this post. They are landmarks of Israel Putnam's adventures in our area. But we'll also need to visit a cave and a waterfall. Ready for local history that plays like a Hollywood movie?

     First, let's meet the star of the show. Israel Putnam is probably best known for commanding the Americans at the Battle of Bunker Hill where the quote "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes" is attributed to him. With the beginning of the Revolution he became one of General George Washington's most trusted officers. But before that he had spent many years in the upper Hudson/Lake George area fighting in the French and Indian Wars. It was these years that produced a thrilling litany of close escapes and derring-do. 

Israel Putnam statue

     Putnam was born January 7, 1718 in Salem Village (now Danvers) outside Boston. In 1740 he moved to northeast Connecticut with his new wife Hannah and began farming. They raised sheep but like their neighbors had problems with wolf predation. After concerted effort the farmers had reduced the wolf pack to one wily old female holed up in her lair. Dogs, smoke and reluctant slaves proved ineffective in flushing the beast out so it fell upon Putnam to crawl into the cave and resolve the situation. The passage extended 40 feet back into the hillside. Putnam crawled in with a flaming torch only to have the cornered animal lunge at him snapping and snarling. 

The wolf den in Connecticut's Mashamoquet Brook State Park

Anyone care to crawl in and take a look?

     The other men quickly pulled him out by a rope tied to his leg, thoughtfully providing a loaded pistol for a second attempt. This time when the wolf came at him he got off a shot and was once again yanked out of the cave backwards. Finally, there was no avoiding a third trip in to see if his shot had found it's mark. Fortunately, it had and when Putnam emerged from the cave for the last time he had become a folk hero.

Putnam's farmhouse in Brooklyn, Conn.

(web image)

     Both Putnam's farm and family grew over the next ten years but by 1754 France and England were rattling the sabres and in late August of 1755 the 37 year old father of six answered the call to go to war. He immediately headed north but arrived too late to be a part of the September 8th Battle of Lake George in which a French raiding party ambushed British forces a few miles south of the present day village. The Warren County bike path traverses the site of the battle with the Williams Monument and Bloody Pond being prominent local landmarks.

      

Williams Monument, bike path with historical panels and Bloody Pond sign.

Battle site south of Lake George Village.

     Soon after arriving at Lake George Putnam met Robert Rogers (of Rangers fame) and the two men took an instant liking to each other. By the end of October they had already gone on several scouts together north towards Ticonderoga. Putnam quickly became acquainted with the area after paddling down the lake and then bushwhacking thru the woods for seven or eight miles to the summit of what is now known as Cook Mountain to observe French activity. In another instance Rogers was trying to kidnap a Frenchman who fought back with a knife and was only subdued (and killed) when Putnam struck him a blow to the head. A few days later Putnam and another soldier named Durkee were spying on the French when they were discovered and chased thru the dark woods. The lead was flying and when Putnam stopped for a swig from his canteen he found it empty courtesy of several bullet holes. Later he counted fourteen holes shot thru his bedroll! Finally, upon reaching Roger's camp a brisk firefight erupted and the French were driven off just long enough for Rogers, Putnam and company to make a quick retreat back up Lake George. 

Present day view from Cook Mountain.

Called Bare Mountain in Putnam's time.

Would have been completely wooded with no development visible in 1755.

(web image)

     Putnam spent the winter of 1755-56 at Fort Edward with only a few scouts and skirmishes for action. Later in the summer of 1756 there was a French raid on a British supply train at Halfway Brook between Fort Edward and Fort William Henry. It was quickly decided to try and intercept the French as they made their way back north towards Fort Carillon. To that end Rogers, Putnam and a hundred men rowed hurriedly down Lake George before stashing their boats and scrambling up and over the mountains to set up an ambush on Wood Creek at Pulpit Point (now considered a part of Lake Champlain).

     Soon enough the French rowed by and were caught totally by surprise as Rogers, Putnam and company rained fire upon them. But several French boats managed to escape to Ticonderoga and the British knew this would soon bring enemy reinforcements from the fort. This lead to a headlong retreat back over the mountain to their boats on Lake George and a small naval battle when the anticipated French retaliatory party arrived. The British were able to fight them off with only one man killed and two wounded before escaping back to Fort William Henry. Obviously, boating and hiking around Lake George wasn't the relaxing pastime then that it is today.

The rugged country between Lake George and lower Lake Champlain

Putnam and Rogers world 

     After several fall scouting missions to Ticonderoga Putnam was able to return home to Conn. over the winter of 1756-57. Spring of 1757 found him back in Fort Edward and in late June he lead a scouting party to the Whitehall/South Bay area. On the evening of June 30th Putnam and 40 rangers had set up an ambush in anticipation of a large party of French and Indians heading south in canoes from Crown Point. The rangers initial volley caught the enemy by surprise but with over 200 Indians the numbers were against Putnam and his men. After a long night of fighting a retreat was ordered but even this proved dangerous when the rangers came under mistaken 'friendly fire' from a Provincial scouting party. It wasn't until late in the day when Putnam and his men made it back to the safety of Fort Edward having lost several soldiers in the battle.    

 

Put's Rock where art thou?

While frequently mentioned as being along Wood Creek near South Bay

I've never found the exact location. The two photos were taken on a paddling 

trip north from Whitehall. Put's Rock? Maybe, maybe not.

     Following several skirmishes near Fort Edward Putnam was sent on a scout down Lake George in late July of 1757. He was the first to see and warn of Montcalm's approach towards Fort William Henry. Unfortunately, not enough was done to reinforce the fort and its commander, Lt. Col. Monro, was forced to surrender with an infamous massacre following. These events were subsequently immortalized in The Last of the Mohicans book and movies. 

     Shortly thereafter, Putnam was sent on a scout and was the first to reach the still smoldering ruins with butchered bodies lying everywhere. It was a gruesome sight but no French were to be seen as Montcalm and his army had retreated north rather than launch an attach on Fort Edward as had been feared.

     While the fighting tapered off with the approach of winter, danger still lurked. On December 25 a fire broke out in Fort Edward near the powder magazine. Putnam rushed to the scene and manned a bucket brigade pouring water on the blaze and suffering serious burns as a consequence. A week later the Hudson River flooded inundating the rangers camp on Rogers Island. Such was a provincial soldiers life: many dull days, much discomfort and moments of life threatening terror.

     The major event of 1758 was Abercromby's disastrous expedition against Fort Carillon at Ticonderoga. Putnam was scouting the dense woods ahead of the main army with Lord Howe, the field commander. Putnam pleaded for Howe to stay back but the staunch soldier refused and in the first engagement with the French, Howe was shot dead. Things seemed to unravel for the British from that point on with the main battle of July 8th leaving as many as 2000 men dead and wounded. Putnam was in the forefront of it but his and others bravery was not enough and a defeated army soon found itself retreating back up Lake George.

Reenacting the Battle at Fort Carillon

       Shortly after returning from Ticonderoga Putnam and fellow rangers were in canoes scouting the Hudson River near Fort Miller when soldiers on the opposite bank shouted out a warning. A large band of Indians were seen on shore ready to attack the boats. Putnam had to make a quick decision: to land and fight thou hopelessly outnumbered or to run the downstream falls and rapids. To the Indians astonishment he chose the latter, navigating the whitewater amidst a hail of bullets and using the swift current to escape his pursuers. 

Scene of the escape.

A modern dam has somewhat tamed the falls and rapids from Putnam's time.

     Incredibly, after a major battle and a narrow escape, Putnam's 1758 trials were just beginning. On July 27th the French had attacked a British supply train. Putnam, Rogers and fellow soldiers were roused from their sleep that night and ordered to go after the French. The rangers rowed down Lake George in the dark and then took off cross country to South Bay where they just missed the escaping marauders. Several days later they were near Fort Ann when they fell victim to a French ambush.

     There was fierce fighting (the French lost well over 100 men) with Putnam being captured and tied to a tree by an Indian. Bullets from both sides hissed by him, an Indian repeatedly threw his tomahawk at the tree and a Frenchman tried to shoot him but settled for striking his jaw with a pistol butt when the weapon misfired. Eventually the British got the best of the action and the French retreated with several hostages, including Putnam.

While no one knows for sure, some believe this is the scene of Putnam's capture.

The field is off Goodman Road looking north towards Welch Hollow.

This would have been all woods at the time.

 

Historical photo

     The French and Indians with their captives had reached a spot just north of present day Crown Point when they decided to stop and have a barbecue. Putnam was tied to yet another tree with brush piled around which the Indians then set on fire, intent on burning their victim alive. According to some accounts a rainstorm came up putting the fire out while other versions have the Frenchman Marin kicking the brush away, repulsed by the savage's idea of fun. In any case, Putnam once again avoided death by the skin of his teeth. 

This monument is on Lake Road just off Rt. 22 north of Crown Point

The second Putnam tree would have been in the RV park behind The Crab Shack

Today it's a fun place with no captive roasting allowed

         The prisoner of war was marched to Montreal and then on to Quebec. Several months later he was freed in a prisoner exchange arriving back in Fort Edward in November before continuing on home to Connecticut. After a 'busy' 1758 Putnam would live to fight another day. And fight more he did. The colonial wars dragged on for several more years before the British finally took Montreal and the French surrendered. Putnam was in the thick of it but most of the action was beyond the Lake George area. Later he would go to Cuba when Britain was fighting Spain, to present day Ohio to put down Pontiac's Rebellion, to the lower Mississippi scouting out land grants for veterans and then to Bunker Hill and the Revolution, this time fighting against the British.

The Battle of Bunker Hill

(web image)

     Israel Putnam's legacy lives on in our area with several historical markers as well as Putnam Pond and Putt's Creek in southern Essex County and the Town of Putnam in northern Washington County all named in his honor. Presumably, Putt's Rock is still out there somewhere but the two trees he was tied too are long gone. 

Putt's Creek

     * I'm indebted to Michael Shay's book The Whites of Their Eyes for much of the information in this post. It is available thru the local library system. There are other biographies of Putnam and references to his exploits in local histories. Some of the information is conflicting but all portray an extraordinary man.