Lake George Family Trip

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Lake George has been a favorite vacation spot in our family for years. My parents have been there four times, but they say it’s a magical place regardless of how many times you visit.

Before the actual vacation part started, my family and I visited Bard College for my brother college applications. As the younger sibling, I don’t really get a say when it comes to going on college tours. This time though, the weather was good, so I didn’t have much to complain about during the tour around the campus. Soon after, we were well on our way to Lake George.

On the first night of our trip, a childhood dream of mine came true. I had ice cream for dinner. Nothing else; just sweet, sweet ice cream. Martha’s Dandee Creme was one of my mom’s main reasons for coming to Lake George. My family and I fulfilled our craving for ice cream by eating at Martha’s Dandee Creme each night of our trip. On Saturday night, we bought a huge ice cream cake to make my mom’s birthday extra special.

After our scrumptious dinner of just ice cream, we headed over to Glen Drive-In, one of the few drive-ins left in the US. The movies themselves are usually not that noteworthy, but the experience is unbeatable. The price can also be described similarly. For just 10 dollars per person, you can watch two movies from the comfort of your car and enjoy greasy foods ranging from curly fries to mozzarella sticks. Mission Impossible 6 and Skyscraper weren’t great, but I would’ve enjoyed them less at a theatre back home. Here in New Jersey, 15 dollars buys you one ticket in a smelly, crowded theater with overpriced snacks. If you ever find yourself in the Lake George area, make sure to visit the Glen Drive-In. As an added bonus, it barely ten minutes away from Lake George Village. Also, Martha’s Dandee Creme is directly on the way to the drive-in. Most shows begin around eight PM and end near twelve or one in the morning.

The next day was one chock full of adventure and pain. After a quick breakfast at a Dunkin’ Donuts, our group, which now included my cousins family, drove to the Adirondack Extreme Adventure Course. Whenever a place has the words Extreme and Adventure in its name, I tend to stay far away from it. This time, however, I partook in some physical activity and actually ended up enjoying it. From about 11:30 to 4 PM, my family and I ziplined, climbed, and complained (that might've just been me) our way through some very challenging obstacle courses while harnessed to trees thirty, forty feet in the air. The whole park is broken down into six “courses,” each harder than the last. The pricing starts at $45 which gives you access to four of the courses, and for five dollars extra, you can upgrade to five courses. For another five dollars, you gain access to all six courses in the park. To read more, visit the Adirondack Extreme Website at https://adirondackextreme.com/. I have not attempted the sixth and final course, for I do not feel that it is necessary to hurt myself that much. While the first five are doable from

what I have experienced, keep in mind that your body will be a little sore for the next couple of days after the trip.

After a nice hot shower, my family ate what is arguably the best ice cream cake ever. Period. This behemoth of ice cream, crushed Oreos, and hot fudge was large enough to feed twenty people easily. It was not an easy task for our party of eight, but by the next afternoon, we had conquered the cake. For such a size, one might expect a huge price, but $30 is all you have to give to experience cake heaven. Surprisingly, my mother, whom the cake was for, enjoyed it even though she rarely eats anything too sweet. This heaping pile of goodness definitely counted as too sweet. After a short shopping spree, my family and I still had room left for a regular dinner. So, bones aching, body tired, and stomach satisfied, I went to bed on the night before our last and best day in Lake George.

After a 7:45 hotel checkout and breakfast, we drove to Chic’s Marina in Bolton Landing, a measly 15 minutes from Lake George Village. We secured a pontoon and were headed out on the lake by 9:30 AM. Some advice for people that want to rent a boat, I would consider renting a tube to tie behind the boat and ride on. It is extremely fun to bounce around on the water, especially in July; which brings me to my next point. You probably know this already, but July is the best time to go to Lake George. The water is not too cold as in June, and the weather is too hot August. One small downside: there are a lot of people at Lake George in July. As a result, you need to book everything ahead of time as hotels fill up quickly and marinas are sold out. Back to boating. For first timers, I recommend a full day boat rental to get the whole experience. Obviously, what I’m saying is just a suggestion. In the end, you make the decision on what you want to do. If you need some help figuring out what you want to do, visit http://www.chicsmarina.com/. Keep in mind that Chic’s Marina is just one of many places to rent boats in Lake George, so feel free to do your own exploring.

As for my family’s experience, we all took turns getting on the tube and bouncing around behind the boat. Around one in the afternoon, our fun day on the water ended and we moved onto our last activity. Afterward, we drove up to Prospect Mountain for the Famous 100 Mile View. Now, whether it or not it was a hundred miles or not, I have no idea. But the view of Lake George amidst the ridges of the Catskill Mountains was just breathtaking. Entrance to the road up to the mountain is $10 for one car, but it is definitely worth it. At the visitor center near the summit is a shuttle that provides free service to the top of Prospect Mountain. On a bright sunny day, it just might be a 100-mile view. After a picnic lunch, we wrapped up our trip and drove home.

A word of advice: if you do plan on going to the Adirondack Extreme Adventure Course and renting a boat, go on the boat before the adventure course. You will feel better and enjoy the day on the water more if your whole body isn’t hurting. One last reminder: all the places I talked about above are what I think the highlights of Lake George are. You don’t have to agree with me, except on one point. You MUST go to Martha’s Dandee Creme if you wish to have a complete vacation in Lake George, New York.

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Comments

[Sachin Sharma]

Well written
Good job in writting this Milind! I You are very honest and dedicated in your writting. I like the idea of doing the boat first and then the ziplining. Short term comma from cake is certainly not a bad thing. I look forward to going there in future and visit Howie caves on my way back to NJ.