Adirondack Trail Mix

Environmental and Geo-Tourists -

A New Breed of Adirondack Visitors

By Persis Granger

The older trees tower majestically.

The southern Adirondacks' Lake George Region is a well-known tourist destination in New York, and has its share of traditional tourist businesses—amusement parks, T-shirt shops, hotels, bars and restaurants, motorboats, museums and historical sites. But there is a new breed of traveler that seeks more than personal gratification and relaxation. They are interested in understanding the regional ecosystem and the societal and economic challenges threaten them. They participate in a tourism that celebrates and respects the distinctive geological, cultural, historic and aesthetic character and the traditions of a region. These vacationers have been alternately dubbed "environmental tourists" and "geo-tourists". It is these tourists who shun traditional attractions and blacktopped strip malls and turn off the Interstates to meander into the countryside to rub elbows with the authenticity of the region.

The Adirondacks' history with its forestlands is long and colorful, covering an early period of unbridled logging by the wealthy lumber barons from downstate who clear-cut virgin timber from mountain slopes, wreaking devastation on the ecology by leaving slash to feed forest fires, erosion to fill rivers with silt, and bald mountains that would take centuries to recover. To the early Adirondack settlers, the Adirondack forests must have seemed to be an inexhaustible resource, but by the mid-1800s advocates for stewardship began to make their voices heard, and in 1885 the state Forest Preserve was established, to be followed by the formation of the Adirondack Park. To pioneers trying to carve farms out of wilderness, these spokespeople for the environment must have seemed like silly idealists. But now, over a century later, with 2,600,000 acres of state-owned forest, the need to preserve this resource is well understood. Today's foresters have become keenly aware of their role as stewards of our privately-owned forests, as well. Likewise, tourists, who in the late 18 th and early 19 th centuries regarded the region simply as a playground, its fish and game to be harvested wholesale, now show a growing awareness of the importance of our environment. They are coming to understand not only the value of these resources, but also their importance in regional history, the economic needs of residents, and the delicate interrelations of all of these factors.

Gary & Wini Martin with grand'son Miles, and Bill Good

Those are the kind of tourists who find their way to Martin's Lumber, in the small southern Adirondack town of Thurman, NY. They learn that Gary Martin's own fourth great-grandfather, Caleb Reynolds, was said by Wm. F. Fox, author of History of the Lumber Industry in the State of New York, to have owned the first sawmill in Thurman. Generations later, Gary's grandfather preached sustainability before "sustainability" was a term bandied about. Gary says, "He used to say, ‘Take care of your woodlot, and your woodlot will take care of you.'"

Gary himself came to the lumbering business in a roundabout fashion.

Nine years ago, he was let go from an office job he had held for several years. After having worked well into his fifties with a file full of favorable performance reviews, this father of two found himself suddenly unemployed, with no new employer at hand.

What was at hand was his recently purchased portable band saw mill. That, and a dream. He and his wife, Wini, had often talked about turning this part-time hobby/business at their Thurman home into a fulltime venture when he retired. The pink slip forced them to ask a question: Could they fast-forward to their "someday" dream and begin immediately to sustain themselves with what they could produce from their mill? It was now or never, and they dug into the project with fervor.

There was no time to lick the wounds caused by the loss of his job. There were so many things to learn—not only about sawing, but about forestry, business management and marketing, as well. They found workshops and seminars to help them acquire the skills they needed, and discovered all around them people who enthusiastically shared ideas to help them succeed. Family solidarity was the lifeblood of the effort.

Gary and Wini established a Certified Tree Farm, which entailed enlisting the help of foresters in locating the boundaries, identifying the "inventory," establishing their priorities, building roads that follow contours of the land and disturb the soil just once, and creating a map of it all. They selectively cut, thinning out diseased or injured trees to release growing room around healthy specimens. All was geared to preserving the land and its natural resources, creating a sustainable industry on their property.

G. Martin measures log to obtain maximum yield per log

Although Gary had worked with wood all his life, sawing boards is a specialized skill that requires training. Over the years he had sawed with a neighbor, a long-time sawyer in Thurman, learning the fine points of getting the most usable board feet out of each log. Part of the neighbor's mentoring eventually involved stepping back to allow Gary to solo at the job, helping him gain the skill and confidence he enjoys today.

Gary speaks with a group of visitor during a sawmill tour.

Gary has become a passionate spokesperson for sustainable forestry, and never hesitates to shut down his mill to visit with those who stop in , talking about silviculture, milling or his own personal philosophy. With Gary , it's all related. He touts the advantages of his band saw mill. "When lumber is cut using this saw, the kerf (the bite the saw takes when it slices through a log) is only one-eighth of an inch, compared to a half inch or more taken by a circular blade. A savings of more board feet and less sawdust might not sound like much, but when you're talking about cutting a thousand board feet of lumber, that amounts to a substantial amount of wood."

The bandsaw is what cuts it all

Saving wood on the mill has financial implications, of course, but at Martin's Lumber, which they operate with Wini's brother Bill Good, economy is part of a much larger picture. The Martins are dedicated to sustainable forestry, managing their tree farm, not only so they will be able to continue harvesting timber for the slabs, signs, siding and dimensional lumber they sell, but also so future generations will be able to enjoy, use and pass on thriving woodlands.

Gary speaks of the particularly interesting character of the grains he finds in the trees he culls, and some oddities that speak of days gone by, like the marks left in a maple by taps hammered into the tree decades ago. He says that each time he loads a new log on the mill it is like Christmas. "You never know what you'll find. We feel privileged to discover the beauty each new log holds. Crotch wood and knurly pieces, especially, have grain and color unique to each sawn board, just waiting to be transformed into one-of-a- kind pieces."

A jewlry hanger from a root

Waste is a dirty word at Martin's Lumber. Everything that can be used is used. Sawdust (except that from toxic butternuts or black walnuts) is given away for livestock bedding or mulch. Odds and ends of small pieces are sawed into "stickers," the strips that allow air to circulate through a lumber pile. Edgewood trimmed off logs before boards are sawn is used for camp wood or fuel for the outdoor furnace that heats the Martins' home and domestic hot water. Some small pieces of wood become the makings for rustic boxes, bird houses or sign blanks. Even roots are salvaged, stripped of bark and turned into decorative hangers for jewelry.

Safety is the byword. The mill area continually is raked free of small scraps and knots to prevent dangerous falls. Gary, Wini and Bill check each other frequently to prevent accidents, and they never walk on logs, which can roll treacherously. Even the log headers and trails are kept free of slash.

You don't need to ask the Martins if their bold experiment is working for them. Their enthusiasm continually bubbles to the surface as they discuss their products, their philosophy and their love of wood. Gary points to a stack of milled lumber. "I think people need wood around them in their living space. You need more than metal and plastic."

They've hardly had time to look back at what might have been. " In the end, things work out for the best. Here we are over nine years later, having the best time working together, building our business, meeting new people, learning new skills."

A little girl making a bead at Martins

Gary has always been fascinated by the artistry of black smithing and recently took a workshop from an experienced smith. He has acquired an old anvil and was given a powered bellows from a neighbor. He's made some fireplace tools and can't wait to create his next piece. Wini, too, is passionately creative. Besides designing a hillside rock garden and raised vegetable beds, when she has time off from the mill, she crafts stained glass stepping stones and garden benches from concrete. She also has mastered a technique for making gem-like paper beads, from which she crafts earrings, bracelets and necklaces. She calls it "recycling at its best," and visitors often see craft demonstrations of get to try their hand at making a bead or cutting glass.

The woods invite you to stroll in.

The Martins are quite willing to demonstrate the mill and crafts when visitors stop by, or even take them on a woods walk to explain the concept of sustainable forestry. Those wishing to visit are encouraged to call ahead to ensure that the mill is open. The Martins regularly participate in open houses scheduled during Thurman's Maple Days (the last three full weekends each March) and the Columbus Day weekend Fall Farm Tour, and this year they will host "Martin's Lumber Wood Walk – Understanding Sustainability" on Saturday, June 2 nd .

Kids learn a different way of measuring girth of a large tree by making a human chain

Both adults and kids are encouraged to participate in these activities, might even gather eggs in the chicken coop.[3160105] The Martins feel we need to invest time in teaching children about the self-renewal of forests and steps we can take to ensure that trees always will grow there. Their own sons, James and Caleb, grew up with those messages. Caleb, in particular, seems interested in carrying on the milling operation. "If he does, he'll do it his own way, put his own spin on it, just as we have done," Gary says. "That's to be expected. And who knows?" He gestures to Caleb's pre-school boys, Miles and Maris, maneuvering toy trucks through the sand. "Maybe someday one of these little guys will want to do it, too."

A boy prizes an egg collected from Martin's coop

In the meantime, tourists eager to avoid the cookie-cutter tourist destinations will beat a path to their door, touching the heart of the Adirondack experience in a way that only the environmental or geo-tourist can.

Learn more about Martin's Lumber and Lucyann's stained glass stepping stones and paper bead earrings at www.PersisGranger.com/Adk_Martins.htm . To phone before visiting on a weekday, call 518-623-9595, or just show up between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on one of the special event dates.

Persis—better known as "Perky"—Granger is the author of two YA works of historical fiction and a teacher's guide, ("Adirondack Gold" and its sequel, "A Summer of Strangers") as well as an adult nonfiction anthology about living with Alzheimer's disease ("Shared Stories from Daughters of Alzheimer's: Writing a Path to Peace"). Another novel is in progress, vying for time with her freelance work and community volunteer efforts. Inspired by and enamored of the writing community, Perky also created "Fiction Among Friends", a mini-business which hosts readings, workshops, signings and retreats for writers. See more at http://www.PersisGranger.com and visit our contributors page for more about her.