Dispatches from the Adirondack Core

Before Substack I made videos that I posted to YouTube. I continue to post there occassionally and you can view them here.

The Adirondack region is unique. There are spectacular mountains, lakes and rivers but it’s the forest that sets this place apart. Ecologically distinctive and “forever wild”, protected by a provision of the New York State constitution, the largest intact forest east of the Mississippi.

I’m Kent Stanton, a naturalist, photographer, and writer living in Long Lake (NY) and through these dispatches I will share my observations and reflections on the beauty of this place. Much of nature operates at scales that challenge our human senses and perception: too big, too small, too fast, too slow. I try to capture and share the beauty we so often overlook.

My background is in science education and software, especially Geographic Information Systems software. Putting data “on the map” will be a common theme of this site. Here in the Adirondacks the management of a mix of public and private lands, at a time of political and cultural division, is not without controversy. I look for a middle ground.

It doesn't all have to be wilderness, but some places need strong protection. There are resources to be used, but let's be smart about it. People live here, they need to be able to make a living. But the millions of New Yorkers who have paid to keep this place as it is have standing as well.

My hope is that the knowledge held by residents, visitors and stakeholders who have ideas about what the Adirondacks can, and should be, holds the key to moving us forward.

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