Travel Photography

The Gull Bay Preserve on Lake George

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LESS-TRAVELLED HIKING IN NORTHERN LAKE GEORGE

Gull Bay Preserve Lake George Hike View

If you’re looking for a little bit of hidden understated beauty along the shores of Lake George, the Gull Bay Preserve might be your next favorite spot. It’s not Black Mountain, Buck Mountain, Cat Mountain, or any other majorly popular hike along the lake and it doesn’t have the same sweeping views that those hikes do, but it also doesn’t have the crowds.

I have been to the Gull Bay Preserve probably 10 times in the past 8 weeks or so and have never once seen another person in the preserve. I’ve seen Great Blue Herons, beavers, foxes, and plenty of lush greenery, but never another person.

I’m lucky enough to live only two miles from the Preserve right now, so Josh and I often head out in the mornings before work or after work for a little sunset hike. The Gull Bay Preserve is pretty low-effort, high reward since the trails aren’t too challenging. It’s a great place to hike around with kids, dogs, or camera gear.

When you arrive in the Gull Bay Preserve, you have a few hiking options. The most obviously scenic hike is up to the viewpoint (clearly marked) and that is only 0.2 miles up (0.4 round trip.) The view is gorgeous up there with a big bald rock and a little picnic table tucked away if you want to bring a lunch!

If you’ve come a bit of a ways to get to the preserve, you’ll probably want to go a bit further than just the view point. My recommendation is to continue on the orange trail and from there you can continue to the red and yellow trails for a big loop around the heron rookery. I’d factor in a few (3 or 4) hours if you want to do the larger loop.

There is more trail information on the Lake George Land Conservancy website and photos of the Gull Bay Preserve from my hikes there below:



The Gull Bay Preserve is located on Sagamore Rd in Putnam, NY. You can see the trail map below:

Gull Bay Preserve Lake George Hiking Trail Map

Let me know if you go in the comments below!

Colombian Amazon

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This is the last batch of the Colombia photos from this past fall’s trip (back when we were allowed to travel!). The Amazon is teeming with culture and wildlife and is a place in desperate need of protection. We flew from Bogota to Leticia and were incredibly underwhelmed with the town itself. We were happy to get out on the river ASAP and we did exactly that.

We were enchanted by the calls of the caymans at night, thrilled by the difficult journey, and charmed by the hospitality of our guide, Jose, who was born and raised on the Peruvian banks of the Amazon. Jose spoke the language of the jungle, understanding nuances in plant life and animal calls my senses would never pick up.

Here are a few photos from our journey crossing from the Colombian Amazon into Brazil and Peru, where borders flow freely with the river and all are one Amazonas.

Parque Los Nevados, Colombia

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If you’re heading to Salento during your travels of Colombia and thinking about going to see the wax palms in Cocora Valley, I would highly recommend not stopping there. Beyond Cocora valley lies Parque Los Nevados- a stunning park with a multitude of multi-day trekking options through paramos eco systems and to the tops of volcanos, staying in finca farmstays along the way.

Here are some photos of the time we spent in Parque Los Nevados:

Scenes from Hanoi

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Some scenes from my most recent stint in Hanoi, Vietnam. Cities usually don’t do all that much for me- usually, the more remote I am, the happier I am. Hanoi is an exception to this rule, though- it’s a charming city with all kinds of organized chaos, creative pockets, and warm, smiling faces.

Phong Nha, Vietnam

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On my most recent research trip in Vietnam, I spent an unintentionally long period of time in Phong Nha Khe Bang National Park in Central Vietnam after getting trapped in some storms. I was meant to go on a 3-day Hang En caving expedition through Oxalis, but some pretty wild flooding cut the trip short. After a day of trekking through the jungle in the pouring rain, arriving at camp, getting warm dry clothes on, and eating dinner, several men came running through the jungle to tell us we needed to evacuate. We needed to hike back out through the night, swimming across rivers we waded through on the way over, all in the pitch black. Below are some photos both from the expedition and the subsequent days I had meandering around the town: