Lake George becoming THE place see each holiday season

League of women voters in Saratoga pushing for passage of ERA

By Ken Tingley

Of all the beautiful holiday light displays around the region, the village of Lake George’s may be the most compelling.

The decorations in Shepard Park are simple and bright and always worth a look.

The light displays on the corner by the visitor’s center jumps out at you as you drive past and continue uninterrupted along Beach Road all the way to the steel pier.

Shepard Park’s lights in the village of Lake George are always worth a look.

A couple years ago, Ice Castles was added in the Charles Wood Park. A mountain of ice was carved and molded into a winter wonderland unlike anything most of us had ever seen.

It was a big hit and people flocked there from all over the region. Our one visit was on a bitter cold evening right after Christmas with the temperature near zero. It was an amazing little attraction that left us wanting even more. I was hoping they would make Ice Castles even bigger in future years.

But balmy conditions made it tough to maintain the ice. When temperatures reached nearly 50 degrees in mid-February last year, Ice Castles had to shut down, suffering from the same malady that has frustrated Winter Carnival organizers for years - warm weather. The fear was Ice Castles would pull out entirely and leave a winter void.

Winter’s Dream was a new addition to the holiday light scene this year.

Local business leaders were proactive and re-invented the winter lights even with two new events that would include Fort William Henry as partner as well. It manifested itself Winter Realms and Winter’s Dream.

Winter Realms took over the space of in the Charles Wood Park where Ice Castles had been and incorporated lights, music, light shows and a skating rink. Driving up Route 9 toward the village lights beckon you.

Winter’s Dream used Fort William Henry for a high tech light experience.

Anyone could interact with the silhouettes inside the fort.

Most of us who live here have not been to Fort William Henry for years. That’s for the summer tourists. It was a treat to be inside the fort again with a light experience at night that gave the fort a warm and inviting feel.

The advertising asks you to “Explore a series of installations along a free-flow pathway, where lights, sounds, original music and video content bring the sensations of the season to life in a new way.”

The lights experience in the four corners of the fort are quite an experience.

But here is the problem.

There are two separate events with two separate admission fees.

You’ll pay $25 to $30 to get into the fort and another $15 to $20 to get into

Wood park below.

After experiencing the light show at the Fort - and it didn’t take much longer than a half hour (and we were walking slowly) - we were hoping to see more in the park below until we found out there was another entrance fee.

More lights and shows have replaced Ice Castles in Wood Park, including a skating rink.

We viewed the lights from afar and felt we got our money’s worth.

The new attractions are a great start. I’m hoping they will add more to the light show in the Fort in the coming years and maybe find a way to have a combined ticket to make it more affordable to see both light shows.

Lake George is on the right track  with these new events and it will never have to worry about the weather.

Other events

We took in an Adirondack Thunder hockey game over the holidays as well. With my son in town, he lamented not having seen a real hockey game in a few years.

We had not been to a hockey game since before the pandemic and found the team had improved dramatically. But most of all we loved the “ugly Christmas sweater” segment between periods.

New Year’s Eve had a decidedly different feel this year.

We took in the dinner/comedy show at the Park Theater, but it was just my wife and myself at midnight since my son returned home the day before.

We watched the ball drop in Time’s Square, but passed on any champagne. Seeing “2024” light up on the television filled me with a sense of foreboding. I couldn’t help but wonder where we will be as a country a year from now.

Gender equality forum

The League of Women Voters of Saratoga County is launching its 2024 campaign for women’s equality on Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. at Saratoga Public Library.

The presentation is titled “Let’s finish what we started” and will showcase famous feminists from American history as well as feminist writer Jen Deardrick speaking remotely from Boston. The event is co-sponsored by the library.

“The league was founded on the premise that women deserve equal treatment under the laws of this nation,” said Patricia Nugent, chair of the Saratoga County League’s Women’s Rights Awareness Campaign. “We’re determined to manifest that vision this year, and we welcome all who have suffered the consequences of second-class citizenship to join us. We’ve waited too long for justice. 2024 is the year to claim it.”

New York State voters will have an opportunity to vote on the Equal Rights Amendment this November.

Nugent pointed out out that Assemblyman Matt Simpson, Sen. Jim Tedisco and Assemblywoman Mary Beth Walsh all voted against having a state-wide referendum on the Equal Rights Amendment.

The event is part of a year-long effort to get the Equal Rights Amendment passed.

Speaking today

Just a quick reminder that I will be speaking at the Queensbury Senior Center on Bay Road at noon today.

I always get a good turnout in Queensbury and the questions are always probing, so I hope you can make it.

With my new book out - The Last American Editor, Vol. 2 - I will be talking about the value of commentary and opinion as part of our daily news diet. We may need that more than ever this year.

I will also be appearing next Tuesday at The Senior Center of Kingsbury and Fort Edward at 78 Oak Street in Hudson Falls.

I hope you can make it to one of these events.

Spectrum interview

If you missed my interview with Susan Arbetter on Spectrum just before Christmas, I’ve provided a link to check it out.

New website

The new website - Ken Tingley Books - is up and running and there are a few discounts for ordering multiple copies of the different books.

Hopefully, you get a chance to check it out.