As we cruised through the Adirondacks, we kept our eyes open for the usual…local attractions, railroad depots and rolling stock, and of course, places to grab a bite to eat!
This is the old Eagle Bay New York railway station. It was operational from 1898 until 1933. It was served by the old Raquette Lake Railway spur that ran from Old Forge to Raquette Lake. All of the track has been pulled up and the railroad right-of-way is now the main line snowmobile route in the area. As there were a couple of vehicles parked in front of the old depot, it appeared to be in use for some purpose.
I found a statistic regarding the community of Raquette Lake that was fairly interesting… Only about 100 housing units in the community are occupied year around. The remaining 838 units are only used during the summer season.
This is the Adirondack Hotel in Long Lake New York. It was built in 1904. It replaced an earlier hotel named Kellogg’s Lake House that had burned to the ground in 1901. By 1923, this hotel was touted as offering “excellent rooms, light, airy and attractively furnished.” Meals were pronounced to be “universally good, with first class service." There were "modern accommodations for 75 persons starting at $25.00 per week.” Today, a room with a queen bed and a private bath would cost $120.00 per night…
This is the Victorian Dining Room in the hotel. Laurie and I decided to have lunch here. The hotel also offers the more casual Lake Street Café as well as the Taproom.
Albert Einstein stopped at the hotel in the 40’s while seeking a vacation area. It is alleged that he ate lunch in this dining room…
I have read a few web reviews about the hotel and the dining facilities. In the spring of 2011, the reviews were generally pretty negative…especially as regards the rooms and the condition of the facility. Of the 4 more recent reviews that I found, only one was a bit negative, the other 3 were fairly positive.
This is the view across the street from the front porch and from the dining room of the Adirondack Hotel. There is a beach area and float planes are available for sightseeing tours.
We chose a pretty basic lunch, with both of us ordering the cheeseburger and chips. The burger was juicy, the bun was buttered and toasted…and they didn’t skimp on the cheese!
Just to see if we could stop our hearts, we decided to try an order of the cheddar cheese fries as well. Again, lots of cheese…browned nicely on top. While our doctor would stroke out if he saw this little gem, what the heck, we were on ‘vacation’…
This is a photo of the lobby of the Adirondack Hotel…a little shabby and run down but still busy.
We learned that the river next to the hotel and Long Lake itself had flooded in April. (The proverbial 100 year flood!) The basement of the hotel was underwater. Unfortunately, the boilers were ruined as were the coolers and the food on hand. In addition, damage to the driveway, kitchen floor, front porch and the loss of business weren’t covered by insurance. Apparently, the financial need has been at least partially met through community fund raising efforts…but another fund raiser was scheduled for the end of September.
She may be old and a little beat up but the hotel has been in business for 107 years. Guests have included Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan, Alfred E. Smith, (Democratic Candidate for President in 1928), and, in the 1980’s, Mickey Mantle.
The Adirondack Hotel is located at 1245 Main Street, NY Route 30, in Long Lake New York. Phone: 518-624-4700. Website: www.adirondackhotel.com.
Just click on any photo to enlarge it…
Thanks for stopping by for a visit!
Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
Neat place and you certainily got your cheese worth.
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