You are invited to participate in a CARavan sponsored by the Metro Region on September 9-18, 2010 in the scenic area of the Adirondack Mountains in northern New York State.  This will be a semi-hub tour spending eight days in Lake Placid and two in Alexandria Bay on the St. Lawrence River.

The tour will begin in the beautiful town of Lake Placid, home to the 1932 and 1980 Olympics, with the host hotel being the High Peaks Resort.  The Opening Banquet will be held on Thursday, and then the next two days will be spent touring the area, driving to Tupper Lake and the Wild Center Museum on Friday, and Paul Smiths and Saranac Lake on Saturday, before driving to Alexandria Bay on Sunday.

The tour will be stopping in Clayton at the wonderful Antique and Classic Boat Museum before reaching our hotel destination, the Riveredge Resort which enjoys striking river views.

Monday, the participants will cruise through the 1,000 Islands on the mighty St. Lawrence River with a stop at the romantically inspired Boldt Castle. 

On Tuesday the tour drives back to Lake Placid through the Adirondack Park, much of which has been designated “Forever Wild.”

Wednesday will be a tour to Blue Mountain Lake and the famous Adirondack Museum, returning on wilderness roads to Lake Placid.

Thursday will be a drive to Vermont visiting the Morgan Horse Farm, Middlebury Inn and the fascinating Shelburne Museum containing an amazing collection of Americana artifacts.

Friday will be a drive to one of the oldest tourist attractions in the state, the awesome Ausable Chasm, where river tours and outdoor activities abound.

Saturday will be a Classic Car parade through Lake Placid culminating with a display of the vehicles on the Olympic speed skating rink.  The Final Banquet will be that evening at the High Peaks Resort.

It should be noted that the tour participants will be taking advantage of the Olympic events while in this most charming town – viewing demonstrations of the 90 meter and free style ski jumps, testing the bobsled run, learning the art of curling and a taking a trip up Whiteface Mountain on the gondola to see the spectacular views from the top of the mountain, after which a German Fest Buffet will be enjoyed. 

Lake Placid has been named one of the 10 best outdoor towns in the country.  Sitting in the midst of the 6 million acre Adirondack Park, this winter sports town is as engaging in the summer as it is in the winter, with many fine restaurants, shops and magnificent outdoor activities.  The Adirondack Park boasts 2,000 miles of trails, 3,000 lakes and ponds and beautiful winding roads, perfectly suited to driving a Full Classic® car.  In 1932, when the Olympic Games were held in Lake Placid, these were the cars that were driven by the spectators and participants.  Miraculously, aside from updating the condition of the roads, the area has not significantly changed from that time period.  This CARavan will almost be like a trip back in time, but with all the modern amenities. 

We are very excited about you joining us in this beautiful area of New York State and meeting the many people that make this wilderness park their home.  The club hopes to have at least 80 Full Classics® and 175 participants in September 2010 on the “Autumn in the Adirondacks” CARavan, which will be a leisurely driven 900 hundred mile tour over a ten day period, on some of the most scenic, forested roads that had once been the playground of the rich and famous.

Hello Everybody,

Our cruise which took us 1,000 miles into the Amazon River was an absolutely wonderful once in a lifetime experience far exceeding our every expectation.  The best part had to be the congeniality and friendliness of the people that we encountered during our stops along the way.  The weather, while hot, was not as bad as we had anticipated, although many on our ship probably would not concur.  I’ve got to give Grace credit for choosing the best tours available on this cruise, all told more than a dozen.  And that’s the segue to our tour, the Autumn in the Adirondacks CARavan.

You’re aware that I’ve been badgered and battered about things I write you or rather don’t write to you.  Now I’m being chastised for delaying this publication as it’s all complete save for the following no holds barred information.

We are recognizing the local wildlife by naming a day in their honor (which may or may not have further significance for that day), our first the “Raccoon.”  We arrive on Thursday, September 9, 2010 at the High Peaks Resort in Lake Placid, NY.  The H.P.R. recently completed a total restoration which gives us an outstanding facility for our home base of 8 days.  On this day you can get settled in, renew friendships and acquaintances and tour the town.  Our opening banquet is in the evening.

Friday, 9/10 (“Otter”), sends us on a scenic 70 mile drive around the three Saranac lakes to Tupper lake and the Wild Center, the Natural History Museum of the Adirondacks.  We return to a buffet dinner at H.P.R. and then for the adventurous, a “Curling Party” at one of the Olympic Ice Rinks, the less adventurous may spectate or have the evening at their leisure.

Saturday, 9/11 (“Beaver”), we drive about 95 miles on beautiful scenic Adirondack roads to Paul Smith’s College for lunch, then on to Spenser Boat Works to view some mahogany classics, returning to Lake Placid for a BBQ dinner at the 90 M. ski jump where we’ll be viewing demonstrations.

The “Bear” is featured on Sunday 9/12 as we drive 165 miles to the Riveredge Resort in Alexandria Bay for a 2 night stay.  Enroute there’s lunch at the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton, NY, a stop at a 1000 Islands winery culminating with dinner at the Riveredge.

Monday, 9/13 the lowly “Squirrel” gets his day as you get to relax at the resort and walk the town or you can drive 10-20 miles to Wellesley Island.  If you choose to cross into Canada to enjoy a spectacular view of the 1000 Island from the Skydeck, you must have a passport.  Be sure to return by 11:15 AM as we board the Uncle Sam Boat tour for lunch and a visit to Boldt Castle returning to the Riveredge for dinner.

Our fifth driving day (“Deer”) logs us a leisurely 138 mile return run to Lake Placid and the H.P.R.  We have a lunch stop in Canton and an optional visit to the Remington Museum.  Take your time getting back as it’s a “dinner on your own” evening.  There are many dining choices in Lake Placid.

I’m going to run out of space so I’ll tell you that the remaining days we travel mileages of 155, 150 and 76 all easy on the Classic miles.  You and your Classic are going to love every yard of this 870 mile CARavan.  During these days we will also visit the Adirondack Museum, the Morgan Horse farm, the Middlebury Inn, the Shelburne Museum and Ausable Chasm, with hopefully a few surprises forthcoming.  We also have a “Nearly Octoberfest” buffet at Whiteface Mountain and we culminate with a parade of Classics through Lake Placid.

Our CARavan is a day or two longer than most, you will be getting a full breakfast everyday, 8 lunches and 8 dinners, certainly more than on most CARavans.  Our unique areas necessitate that we operate in this manner, hence, a CARavan appearing more costly than many, but in our opinion a great value none-the-less.

In order that you can make your financial plans, here are the figures that we intend to adhere to or to lessen.  Our prices are promulgated on an 8 night stay at the High Peaks Resort and a 2 night stay at the Riveredge Resort.  The size of the CARavan is limited to 100 rooms at the High Peaks Resort. 

So, there you have it folks, a more detailed itinerary is on our website - or contact us and we’ll mail you a copy.  You know, we have had an overwhelming positive response to the idea of this CARavan, now with full financial disclosure, please give us your thought.  The dire national economy has affected nearly everyone and we need to know how many plan to attend – we won’t hold you to it and we won’t publish or divulge anyone’s comments if you so desire or we can say “name withheld by request.”  Metro has about $3,000 committed to this adventure, a loss that we could sustain if necessary, however, before we spend more, won’t you please give us a direction?  Thanks.