Don't Let This One Get Away

You know you have a pretty special and unique event when people plan their vacation around it. And that's what folks do each year so their kids can enter the Annual Schroon Lake Kids Fishing Derby.

"I get calls from people wanting to know the date of event so they can be up here for it," one of the organizers, Joe Steiniger told Schroon Laker.

So mark your calendars now for July 28. As always, this year's event is co-sponsored by the Schroon Lake Fish and Game Club and the Chamber of Commerce.

And it's easy to see why this event is so popular. Every kid is guaranteed a fun day out, thanks to Joe and his co-chair, Mary McDonald. There's free hotdogs, drinks, chips and a coupon for a free ice-cream cone, courtesy of Stewart's.

"All the kids that enter get a tackle box, free worms and a hand made lure or spinner. They are made by the former DEC Ranger for this area, Fran Murdock, who is retired now and lives in Florida," Joe said.

No one knows precisely just how long the event has been staged, but Joe estimates it's well over 20 years.

"We have kids who are teenagers now who come back and help the little kids."

Each fish -- no matter how small -- is painstakingly weighed. The event is held at the Town fishing pier, where surprisingly, a large number of fish are caught.

"The area is at the end of a pier, so I assume there is debris down there," Joe theorized. "That would give shelter to small fish which would attract larger fish."

The fish that a caught range from crappies, to perch, bass and blue gills.

"There was one kid who each year managed to catch a cat fish and won several years in a row. This year he is to old to enter the contest. I ran into his mom the other day and she told me he was really disappointed about not being able to enter"

The event goes rain or shine. There are prizes awarded in multiple categories. Open to kids 12 and under. For more information call Joe at 518-532-9768.

Got memories of fishing derby's of yesteryear? Share them with us in comments.

The Wild West: It's Right Here

The moment you enter the Word of Life Ranch for the Friday night Rodeo, you are transported back to the Wild West.

That's when you see the cowboy hats worn by the staff and dozens of kids. Folks are drinking sodas from cowboy boot shaped, plastic mugs. And we spotted several youngsters wearing sheriff's badges.

For years we had been meaning to go to this Friday night tradition, and with house guests and their young daughters in tow, we had finally had our chance last week.

And we all had a blast at this fun, family event. How much fun?

Well, the girls -- Ana and Demi -- measure fun on their fun-o-meter, and after the night was done, that meter was “broken, but in a good way," because they'd had too much fun.

Before the rodeo begins, there's a Family Fun Hour. There's face painting for kids, a bounce house, a playground and a petting zoo, a.k.a the Rodeo Zoo. This is not your typical petting zoo. Kids (and adults) get to mingle with the animals in a large pen. Ana and Demi made friends with a baby goat, its mother, various rabbits, a Llama and sheep.

Then there was a rambunctious, squealing and very spirited piglet, Penelope, who was on a leash being socialized by Schroon Laker Dan Hay. Dan told us Penelope would eventually be a breeder, and it's important for them to get acquainted with humans.

Then it was off to tour the small Wild West town, where the girls posed for pictures in the stockade. There’s a general store for western gear and souvenirs and an amazing snack bar, featuring the famous Rodeo Burger (That burger is so amazing, it’s gonna get it’s own story!)

Throughout the family fun hour, the rodeo's announcers are counting down the start time. At 8pm sharp, the rodeo began. There was a parade of flags before the crowd, made up of locals, tourists, campers from the WOL Ranch, nearby Family Campground and WOL Inn. The crowd is divided into Blue and Red fans, cheering on the rodeo riders who are divided into Blue and Red teams.

 For the next hour the riders on each team put themselves and their horses through a series of races, skill courses and herding challenges. 

Between events the crowds is entertained by the back and forth banter with the rodeo announcers, including Jon Nazigian, who is also the Director of the WOL Ranch and Ranger Camp.

Jon and his wife Debbie

We learned from Jon the rodeo began in 1955, around the same time as the camp was established.  Until a few years ago, the rodeo was held on a Thursday afternoon before camp administrators installed lights at the arena and moved it to its Friday night home.
"By having it on a Friday night, the whole community can come out," Jon told us.

Around 20 wranglers, who work at the camp -- and half a dozen locals -- ride in the rodeo.  Jon is no stranger to the rodeo or camp. His parents met there in the1950s.  And as long as Jon can remember, he’s spent most of his summers here.

As a teenager he got to work in the rodeo as a rodeo clown. Jon, now an educator in Fredericksburg, Virginia, spends the school year there before coming up to run the camp over the summer.

“We are very proud of what we do here. People love the rodeo. We have families who come back year after year. For information about the rodeo click here.  For more information about the ranger camp click here.

Where and When. The Rodeo is located on Route 9 in Pottersville. It runs every Friday night until the end of August. For directions, click here

Arty Anne

Anne Gegson with student Deb Philp

Inspiration comes to artists at odd times. Just ask Anne Gregson, who came up with the idea for an 8 week long art class in the Town Park this summer, while taking a yoga class.

"I was laying in yoga class one night, when I was supposed to be focusing on what I was doing when I realized I had all these fun art projects I knew from teaching art for 23 years and I thought, I'd do that in the park that summer, " Anne told Schroon Laker.

Anne got approval from the Town, bought art supplies and started getting the word out.

At last week's art class, Anne was teaching a gathering of locals and holiday makers -- from Massachusetts, Virginia and Pennsylvania -- how to make a mosaic. The classes are not just for kids. The adults were having just as much fun. And I might add that Anne has a wicked sense of humor: think class clown channeled into a zany, creative teacher.

In that class we met a very enthusiastic young artist, Liam Sullivan, who was vacationing here with his grand parents who are year 'round residents.

Liam was making a dog, which Anne suggested needed a little tweak. "It would make those eyes really come alive if they had al little bit of black in them."

Anne's class this Thursday (July 12) will feature Killer Laleidoscopes. Upcoming classes include faux stained glass, fancy pants bookmarks, pivoting paper design, and tantalizing extruded landscapes, made with food, like pasta noodles, coffee and cereall.

Could marshmallows be involved?  "Yes, but they might get eaten," she says with a laugh.

Art In The Park. Every Thursday in July and August. At the top of the park at the Town Beach. Call Anne at 518 532-0275 for more information and to reserve a spot.

Schroon Lake Kids Fishing Derby Winners

Photos and Story By Joe Steiniger

Seventy seven young anglers participated in last Saturday's Schroon Lake Kids Fishing Derby, held each summer for children under twelve years of age. The event is co-sponsored by the Schroon Lake Fish and Game Club and the Schroon Lake Chamber of Commerce.

Prizes were awarded in multiple categories. The largest catfish was landed by Tyler McLaughlin of Latham, NY. Val DeCesare of Glenville entered the largest crappie. Brennan Halbohm of Balston Spa entered the largest rock bass. Skyler Johnson of Brunswick, NY, entered a sunfish that won that that category.

The largest perch was caught by Noah Armstrong. Schroon Lake's own four year old Shane Aikan entered the largest fish of the tournament, a 2.4lb largemouth bass. Entrants who landed the three largest fish in each of the six categories were awarded rod and reel combo outfits.

Kids Inspire Their Own Shakespeare Show

When ADK Shakes set up shop in Schroon Lake last year, the company was amazed by the number of kids that were turning up at their performances. Kids as young as four were "mesmerized" by the performances, recalled Tara Bradway, the show’s Artistic Director.

"They were wrapped. The kids got it. They are a lot smarter than a lot of adults give them credit for in understanding Shakespeare."

That experience led to a special commission of an adapted Shakespeare work just for kids, "Theseus And The Minotaur", two of the characters from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. True to their roots, the performance Wednesday will be in “raw” form, where the focus is on the words --- not the sets or costumes. Says Tara:

The play encourages children to use their imaginations -- which they are so wonderful at doing. We are using simple props -- a ship is made from two dowels and a swath of fabric. The same fabric is used to veil the Minotaur. The actors employ considerable energy in order to bring the story to life, but it's really the children who provide that final step of creating the play.

Tara says adults will enjoy the show just as much as the kids, and actor Celeste Moratti gives this heads up:  “Listen closely for the David Bowie reference. That one is just for the grown ups.”And if you haven’t seen an ADK Shakes show, did we mention how much fun you’ll have?  "This is in my top-ten favorite stories about bulls", says Bennett Fisher. "In all seriousness, this is such a fun play for kids. They're going to have a great time!"

"Kids are so much better with Shakespeare's language than we give them credit fo," Tara says. I challenge the parents to bring their children to our full production -- not only will your children understand the play, but they'll be able to explain it to you!”

11 am The Boathouse. Wednesday, July 27. $5. The show runs about an hour