Military Choppers Buzz Schroon

Sunday could potentially have been the nicest, sunniest, winter's day Schroon Lake has seen for a while. On the ice yesterday, as we hiked over to the beach at the Word of Life Island -- from our launching piont just south of Witherbee's Carriage House -- we saw ice fishermen, cross country skiers, snowmobilers, ATV riders, dog walkers and others out enjoying a walk in the warm sun.

And in the sky over our heads, at around 12.15pm, we snapped the above photo of three military helicopters, flying from the north to the south, straight down the middle of the lake.

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Who Won The Great Chili Cook Off? Everyone!

Pictured: Ruthie Peterson and her People's Choice Award with organizer Shelby Davis

At today’s inaugural Schroon Lake Chili Cook Off there were winners everywhere. From the benefactors of the event, The Schroon Lake EMS Squad, to the all of those lucky enough to sample the terrific chili from the home cooks and local area restaurants, the smiles on everyone’s faces today said it all.

Dozens came out for the event and sampled 11 varieties of meat and veggie chili. Organizer Shelby Davis, who came up with the idea of the cook off, was very happy with the turnout.

“For our first year out, this was a huge success,” Shelby, said today. “Everybody had a good time”.

Prizes were given in three categories: Best Meaty Chili, Best Veggie Chili and The People’s Choice Award.  A panel of four judges awarded points in three categories: flavor, color and texture.

The trophy for the Best Veggie Chili went to Patty Christian for her Witherbee’s Carriage House Vegetarian Chili. Patty also picked up top honors winning the Meaty Chili Award with her Witherbee’s Buckboard Chili, which featured ground beef.

“I’m sweating,” a stunned and smiling Patty (above) said after winning the awards.

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Chili Outside? Then Come On In And Get Some

After a lifetime of perfecting the world's best chili recipes -- and hours in the kitchen getting ready for this weekend -- it has come to this: The Great Schroon Lake Chili Cook Off is just hours away on Saturday.

"All of the cooks entering are very excited," event organizer Shelby Davis said today.

A total of ten restaurants and home cooks will be showing off their meaty and veggie chili and vying for one of three awards: Best Veggie Chili, Best Meaty Chili and the People's Choice Award.

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Ice Boating and Schroon Lake

We recently reported on ice boating on Schroon Lake, after reader Tom Fallon sent us the above photo of a sail boat gliding over our frozen lake at quite a clip. This was the first ice boat we'd seen and our interest was piqued about this unusual winter sport. Now reader Bill Bernhard shares with us some history of ice boating  -- both here in Schroon and the sports origins.

For those of you who might be interested, the iceboat pictured is known as a South Bay Scooter. They had their origin in the early 1900's as a working class boat for Bay Men on the Great South Bay of Long Island NY. What makes them unique compared to a typical Ice Boat is that they have no tiller or rudder. They are steered by trimming the Jib and Mainsail along with shifting the weight of the crew. There also is no runner or blade typical of most ice boats, instead they have strips of metal on the bottom of the hull. Lastly and most importantly they will float and sail like a normal soft water sailboat when the ice gives way or runs out. They are still actively raced today. 
On the south end of Schroon Lake there are three more conventional iceboats sailing until the snow comes.

More Gore For Less

If ya love skiing at Gore and want to save a few bucks, then let us introduce you to a great way to ski your favorite mountain at a discount.

We recently discovered Liftopia, a website which lists unpublished deals for ski resorts across North America and which often features deals at both White Face and Gore.

Liftopia offers several ways to save, but you have to lock in your deals early. As of this writing there are several deals at Gore for next week.

To ski next Monday and get a $10 food voucher, it wil cost you $67.99 -- a 20 per cent saving. To ski next Tuesday or Wednesday the deal will cost you $55.99  -- a 28 per cent saving! There are also deals on two and three day passes with savings up to 15 per cent.

The skiing at Gore over the last few days has been terrific. Lots of room to move with lots of fresh (machine made) snow.