My first hiking trips into the mountains in Upstate NY called the Adirondacks were on trails maintained by the Adirondack Mountain Club, from parking lots maintained by the Club, and lodges owned and maintained by the club. It was these trips that fuelled by passion for the mountains and led to great mountaineering adventures in Alaska and The Cascades. Since then I've returned to the Adirondack Mountains with a renewed appreciation for everything the ADK has done and look forward to introducing a new generation of yougsters to the magical inspiration that can be found there.