Lake George offers more than just fishing

Look beyond sitting by the lake with a fishing pole and discover other activities available at Lake George

Fishing for lake trout on Lake George, riding the rail bikes of Revolution Rail on the tracks along the Hudson River at North Creek, a luncheon cruise aboard the Lac du Saint Sacrament on Lake George, viewing colorful autumn foliage around Lake George and the Hudson and Sacandaga Rivers, and muzzleloader hunting are a lot to fit into a four day weekend. Add a gourmet dinner of wild game, meeting with top DEC personnel and local officials from the Lake George area, visiting with special guest Jim Zumbo, the former Big Game editor of Outdoor Life, and exploring the scenery, programs, and improvements at Gore Mountain ski area and you have some of the highlights of the NYS Outdoor Writers’ Association (NYSOWA) Conference and 50th Anniversary at Lake George two weeks ago.

It was a great weekend enjoying one of the most beautiful places in the state. All of the above activities, and more, deserve more detailed attention in a future column. Dan Ladd put together a great four day conference to showcase his home area with a variety of activities in addition to the business and information sessions of NYSOWA.

Revolution Rail is a new company that uses rail bikes on the old D&H Railroad. Participants spend approximately two hours pedaling along the scenic upper Hudson River above North Creek on tracks never before open to passengers. Plan on experiencing this next year when they resume operation in late May.

Emily Stanton, the energetic marketing manager of Gore Mountain Ski Area, explained the many programs, improvements and potential of the area to our group before treating us to a gondola ride to the top of the mountain. In addition to being a great ski destination, there are many activities and attractions year around. If Nordic skiing is more your style, Garnet Hill Lodge and Ski Center in nearby North River is under new ownership and has made some significant improvements.

Naturally I jumped at the opportunity to sample of Lake George’s great fishing. On Friday

day morning Al Benas, Wayne Brewer, and I fished with Captain Jeff Johnson (“JJ”) of Rod Bender Charters aboard his 28 foot Baha. Fishing in late October is slower as trout and landlocked salmon are moving into spawning areas. Nevertheless, JJ’s knowledge and skill put us onto some nice lake trout using just small spoons fished off downriggers.. They put up a good fight on lake tackle and make for some tasty meals. You will hear a lot more about Lake George fishing and Rod Bender Charters in time for next season’s fishing action.

Some of our group opted to fish at nearby Glen Lake where panfish, rainbow trout, and bass provided the action. That was followed by a great luncheon at the Docksider Restaurant on the shore of the lake. After visiting with Jim Zumbo, local guests and supporting members of NYSOWA. There were informative seminars on Lake George Park Association combatting invasive species and conservation writing. One evening we enjoyed a gourmet meal provided by the SUNY School of Culinary Arts featuring striped bass, venison, wild boar, and other excellent dishes.

There were the usual business meetings and informative sessions for writers to attend. In the meantime, spouses and guests enjoyed the many attractions of Lake George, nearby Bolton Landing, as well as the amenities of Dunham’s Bay Resort. The writers also enjoyed these attractions as well as relaxing in the beautiful and comfortable setting and catching up on news with old friends or meeting new ones.

Dunham Bay Resort is a modern resort on the eastern shore of Lake George. In addition to the beautiful view, it offers great meals, modern conveniences, and the friendly personnel service you would expect to receive at a bed & breakfast rather than a motel and resort. It offers modern motel rooms, enclosed pool, and outlying cabins with kitchenette and two bedrooms.

For more information on some of the attractions mentioned check the following sources: Warren County Tourism Dept. – visitLakeGeorge.com (800365-1050). Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau – www.lakegeorgechamber.com (518-668-5755). Revolution Rail – RevRail. com (518-251-2345). Dunhams Bay Resort – DunhamsBay.com (518656-9242). Rod Bender Charters – captjj.com (518668-5657). Docksider Restaurant – docksiderrestaurant.com. Gore Mountain – goremountain.com.

In addition to hunting, fishing, boating, and sight-seeing, there is hiking, camping, biking, birding, skiing, snowmobiling, whitewater rafting and many other attractions. Even spending five days there was not enough time for us to enjoy all the area has to offer. So naturally, we have to make plans to return soon.

Short Casts

Vote No For Convention: Sportsmen and oth- ers who care about the Adirondacks are urging New York’s voters to vote NO on the question of a constitutional convention on the November 3 ballot. Despite some disgust with Albany politics, a constitutional convention would not change that. The same people are very likely to be chosen as the delegates. In addition to the danger to education, pensions, and other issues, these people are prone to removing many of the constitutional protections for the Adirondacks, such as the “Forever Wild” clause. Those who love the Adirondacks are concerned and want people to vote NO on this proposition.

Deer Hides Wanted: The bow season has been open for several weeks and the northern zone rifle season opened last. Saturday. For the deer hunters who have been successful and are wondering what to do with the hide, Jim Ward of Oneida Trap Supply is again buying hides. Call Jim at 363-2913 for information and hours.

Say It All Deer Call: During many years of deer hunting or observing I have sometimes heard deer make unusual vocalizations that I did not know the purpose of. I’ve also heard some calls or sounds that I had no idea how to reproduce.

By good fortune earlier this year I met Dave Oathout and his nephew Cameron who introduced me to the Say It All Deer Call. Dave learned all of these vocalizations while growing up on his family deer farm at the Avery Hotel near Arietta. Dave learned the difference in the calls and learned how to reproduce them. He made a very successful call and patented it.

Now he has developed a new and improved deer call that reproduces all of these sounds in one instrument. His nephew, Cameron, is taking over this business and in the process of developing a new website to go along with the marketing. Their website – Sayitalldeercall.com – explains different calls, what they sound like, and howto make them on their call.

This is the most amazing call that I have heard. The quality hardwood call is versatile and makes the most realistic sounds. It produces calls that no other one can. Sounds of fawns, does, young buck tending grunt, mature buck tending grunt, snort wheeze, and more are all possible. Check Sayitalldeercall.com