Outdoors: Carrying on through life's shadows

A desire to stay away from trails crowded with pandemic recreationists has kept us largely out of the mountains this year. Instead, we have opted to explore less popular areas, finding remote lakes and new-to-us bike paths.

But two weeks ago I persuaded my husband, Herb, to head north to Lake George to see the fall colors before they faded for good. We would make a loop, climbing Cat Mountain, then taking the ridge trail over to Thomas Mountain before heading back down.