Adirondack Explorer

Loon Lake Loop

Fourth of July, hordes of tourists, a pandemic—I would have to put on my thinking cap if Carol and I were to escape the crowds and mitigate the risk of contracting the coronavirus.

We knew we wanted to mountain bike, but we feared that our go-to place—the BETA trails off Hardy Road in Wilmington—would be mobbed. So I suggested a ride I had discovered earlier in the year, a 15.6-mile loop over logging roads and little-used town roads in the northern Adirondacks.

It turned out to be a good choice. Apart from 2 walkers and an occasional car or all-terrain vehicle, we encountered no one in three hours of cycling. And we were rewarded with striking views of

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