2011 Annual Report: I'll Drink to That!

What began as an offhanded remark while on a Tennessee road trip has culminated in our quest for the best bars in the Adirondack Park. Pam innocently inquired whether the Adirondack mudslide, her own creation, actually already existed. Kim, chief navigator, fact-finder and Google junkie, immediately launched a search using her iPhone. When her query yielded no valid results, we began the crusade to put it on the map, so to speak. Before we reached our destination, the idea had grown from one tasty cocktail to a year-long (and continuing indefinitely) pub crawl. Happy Hour in the High Peaks was born. Since our first review of Trapper's Tavern at the Copperfield Inn in North Creek last January, we have diligently worked (yes, it's work), traipsing from bar to bar, interviewing, fact checking, photographing, writing and blogging, and consuming countless calories that have stubbornly taken shape in the form of various bulges on which we will not dwell.

In late March, we were contacted by John Warren at the Adirondack Almanack, inviting us to contribute weekly reviews to the Almanack. The Almanack introduced us and our first review, Flanagan's in Schroon Lake, in April. Publishing weekly for the Almanack has proved to be very helpful in disciplining us to research and write regularly. As much fun as the research is, with full time jobs and families and other such distractions, it isn't as easy as you might think to visit at least one bar a week, but the Adirondack Almanack has kept us on task.

Stony Creek Inn patron. We hope to
replace this book with ours!

Toward the end of April, we were contacted by The Free George requesting an interview about our project. That interview was published in May. By then, we thought we were pretty hot stuff. We worked diligently through spring and summer, visiting as many bars as we could. In an effort to reach more readers, we added a Facebook page and Twitter account (ADK46barfly) and now have followers from coast to coast, as well as blog followers in countries all over the world.

We have traveled 1,688 miles to and from bars in the Adirondacks since last January. To date, we have reviewed 60 bars throughout the park. Our record for bars reviewed in one day was set in Old Forge this summer, when we visited and researched eight bars between noon and midnight on a Saturday in August. Visiting them was the easy part, but writing eight reviews with equal zeal was a challenge. While the 167 mile round trip to Old Forge was the greatest travel distance, the longest distance to review a single bar was 156 miles to 20 Main in Au Sable Forks. At least we stayed for two drinks!

New friends at the Great Adirondack Brewing Company.

Including this Annual Report, we have published 130 posts on our blog. Mostly reviews, with lots of recipes in between and even an assortment of general ramblings, we've tried to keep our readers interested enough to come back to us every week. Four out of five of the most popular blog views were reviews of Lake Placid bars. The Dancing Bears has garnered the most views, ZigZags second, The Cottage third, and the Great Adirondack Brewing Company fourth. Interestingly, our fifth most popular blog is Recipe Day! Rhubarb Margaritas. The tenth most popular blog, Tail O' the Pup, is a mystery to us. We do anticipate that at least one Old Forge venue will sneak into the top ranks once they get a good snow.

Pam's favorite signature drinks are the Grape Crush, compliments of The Barking Spider, Trapper's Tavern's Pumpkin Martini, Sporty's Bloody Mary and the most recently discovered Friends Lake Inn's Espresso Martini. We have created and published many of our own drink recipes, but they're too numerous to count. Pam, in an effort to keep Pammie's Pub stocked with ingredients for Recipe Night, has spent close to two thousand dollars on liquor, but refuses to do that math, nor calculate the total spent while on location.

Our drinkin' buds at the Tow Bar in Old Forge

What we have learned... It's a big park! We covered a lot of it, but we know there are still some towns and some special bars we haven't seen yet. We will carry on for as long as it takes. We got rid of the black notebooks. We each used to carry a black portfolio containing paper, pen, a place to put our business cards and carry our questionnaire. Early on our quest, we began to consider that we might look like health inspectors or sales reps upon entering a bar, so we did away with that perception. Happy Hour has been undermined by the State of New York. Some places have done away with it entirely, fearful of the regulations. Others feel confident that they are within the laws by not offering drinks for less than half price. The most rewarding fact we've learned? There are a lot of nice people in the Adirondacks! We have met so many people, both owners and patrons, locals and tourists, who continue to show us that Adirondackers are a friendly bunch, they like to entertain, and they are especially proud of their hangouts, and love their bartenders. We have featured some of them here.

ZigZags Lake Placid gets three thumbs up.

Thanks to all of our readers and followers who have supported us all year. We can't possibly find every bar that exists in the Adirondack Park and we encourage recommendations of bars to visit. Please tell us! Thanks to all of the pub and tavern owners for trusting us, answering our questions and making us feel welcome. Thanks to all of the patrons who have added insight to our reviews and also made us feel welcome. Thanks to Kim for her photography and eloquent writing. Thanks to Pam for Pammie's Well-Stocked Pub, her attention to the facts, and for getting each review started for Kim's finishing touches.

A case of mistaken identity led us to this enthusiastic trio from
Connecticut at Duffy's Tavern in Lake George.  Love the hats!

If you see us out there, please be sure to stop and say hello!
Cheers, Bottoms Up, and Happy Hour New Year to All!
Kim & Pam

Stony Creek Inn

Our most frequently frequented bar since the start of our drinking careers, something about the Stony Creek Inn just keeps luring us back year after year. As winter surrenders to spring, we count down the days until reopening, marking our calendars to keep the date free of other conflicts, and reminding our friends to save the day. This year's opening party featured Jeff Gonzales warming the gathering crowd with his country-blues, finger-pickin' solo acoustic sets. The Stony Creek Band, an Adirondack music icon, is as grand a feature act as can be found in the Adirondack Park; Sunday's Mexican menu a festive feast befitting the occasion.

Excellent food, always cooked to order at an amazingly low price, world-class musicians, a variety of friendly, happy patrons whose camaraderie and grinning faces are contagious, and a dance floor packed with uninhibited, twirling, foot-stomping glee. The scrumptious smells from the kitchen follow you inside and outside - there is no escape - you will have to eat something while you're there. Drinks are straightforward. No fancy martinis or clever shots here. A modest variety of bottled and draft beers, simple mixed drinks and an occasional margarita are the norm, priced a little on the high side. With only two bartenders on a busy night, expect to wait a little while to quench your thirst. Just relax. Listen to the music. Look around. Plying customers with excessive quantities of alcohol is not high on the proprietors' list of goals.

And let's not forget our outstanding hosts, Dot Bartell and John Fickel, owners and curators of this exhibit for over 31 years. Diminutive Dotty can be spotted darting throughout the dining area - meeting, greeting and seating diners. John is in the kitchen but makes frequent appearances, usually wearing a stained apron over shorts, a bandanna covering his head. A visit with Dottie reveals a strong sense of pride in the history of the Stony Creek Inn. Built in 1905 with locally milled lumber, before electricity made its way to Stony Creek, the interior has changed little over the years. The hardwood floor is mostly concealed by layers of wax that has blackened over the century; the only area of bare wood is the dance floor, worn too thin by countless shuffling, stomping feet to even sand one more time. A sense of community within the walls of the Stony Creek Inn is reflected in the collection of artwork, posters, photos and memorabilia hanging on the walls. An original poster, now framed and signed by local musicians was given in thanks for "Dot and Johnstock", an annual fundraiser now in its fourth year, with proceeds to benefit Cindy's Retreat and the Southern Adirondack Musicians Fund.

The local regulars typically occupy the barstools furthest from the action, where they have a wide-angle view of the activity taking place around them. The pool table is always occupied and clusters of people ebb and flow with the tide of more and more bodies. The dining room closest to the stage tends to hold those who are really there to hear the band and to dance. There's a back room behind it, nicknamed the "Yuppie Room", which accommodates up to 35 people who can still see and hear the band and dance floor. One table of folks brought to mind The Fockers at a rehearsal dinner.

Yuppies and hippies, young and old, bikers and beatniks, artists, musicians, professionals (buttoned-down and buttoned-up), intellectuals, locals, and vacationers populate the Inn throughout its season, which currently begins in mid-May and continues through the last Sunday of hunting season, this year falling on December 4. Hunters and outdoor sports enthusiasts often inhabit the upstairs rooms, rented nightly for $35.00. A step above camping, the accommodations offer no cell phone reception, no TV's or even room keys, but clean sheets and plenty of hot water.

Slipping out to the spacious front porch, recently rebuilt with the help of volunteers, offers a place to escape the din, cool off after bumping bodies on the dance floor, have a conversation, or just hear yourself think. We met a group of gentlemen who, once they inquired about Kim's camera, were eager to share a book called Nickel City Drafts: a Drinking History of Buffalo, NY. Odd they should carry it around with them.

What the Inn lacks in ambience is compensated in enthusiasm and diversity. It's loud, crowded, and just a whole lot of fun. There is a common misconception that the Stony Creek Inn is in the middle of nowhere. In reality, the picturesque drive to Stony Creek is just 15 minutes from Warrensburg and the Hadley/Luzerne area, 20 minutes from Lake George, and 30 minutes from Queensbury. People drive a lot further for a lot less. Like the sign says, "The road to a friendly place is never long".

Cheers!
Kim Ladd and Pam Ladd