Snowmobiling in Speculator NY - Come Out and Play
A promotional video for the Speculator Chamber of Commerce.
From Wikipedia:
Speculator is a village in Hamilton County, New York, United States. The population was 324 at the 2010 census. 2,966-foot (904 m) Speculator Mountain rises just south of the village.
Speculator is the only incorporated village within Hamilton County and is within the town of Lake Pleasant. The village includes the northeastern end of a lake, also called Lake Pleasant. The local inhabitants sometimes refer to the village as the Four Corners, referring to the intersection of NYS Route 8 and NYS Route 30 in the middle of the business district.
Archaeological evidence of Native Americans has been found in arrowheads and spearheads near the shores of Lake Pleasant. Many historians believe Speculator was the hunting and fishing grounds of both Mohawk and Algonquin tribes. These Native Americans would only travel to the Adirondack Mountains to hunt during the warm months, while their villages were located in the Mohawk and Hudson Valley regions. There was a Mohawk, who named himself Captain Gill, who lived in a wigwam at the outlet of Lake Pleasant, during the end of the eighteenth century and the beginning of the nineteenth century. He had a wife named Molly, who had a daughter named Molly Jr., although Capt. Gill didn't claim the daughter as his own. Old Capt. Gill was a trail guide for the first settlers. He would show them places to hunt and fish. Capt. Gill was most famous for his storytelling of the Iroquois Nation, such as the Flying Head.
In 1892, a few ambitious and industrious business leaders felt they needed to update and modernize their facilities. Speculator was a booming Mecca for tourists. With the support of the voters in 1925, the village of Speculator was incorporated with a mayor and two trustees, which later changed to four trustees. The village of Speculator purchased a small water system of Dexter Slack and expanded it. The village had a generating plant and waterwheel installed at Christine Falls, and by 1926 they had electricity.
Growth escalated in the Victorian era between the mid-1800s and the early 1900s. Entire families spent their summers enjoying the mountain hospitality and fresh air. Several more hotels were built to accommodate them, and eventually more stores, homes and several cottages were built. Around the 1850s, city sportsmen began to come to the Adirondack Mountains to hunt, fish, and enjoy expeditions into the deep woods. They hired local men to be guides, who provided food and crude lean-tos for shelter. Hunting shanties were later widely used. With these sportsmen came their whole families to use the many hotels and boardinghouses in Lake Pleasant and Speculator. Private summer camps and cottages were built and along came the established family and children camps. Camps such as Camp-of-the-Woods, Camp Setag for girls, Kamp Kun-ju-muk for boys, the YMCA Camp Agaming, and Deerfoot Lodge for boys were established around the shores of local lakes. After World War I, famous athletes came to practice in the isolated communities, such as Gene Tunney, Max Schmeling, and Max Baer who arrived to train for the heavyweight championship fight.
Speculator calls itself the All Season Vacationland. A public beach is located in the village on the north lake shore. Free parking is available across the street from the beach. There is a baseball field, basketball court and large pavilion next to the parking lot. There is also a nature walk behind the pavilion.
Speculator Mountain, for which the village was named, lies just south of the village on Gilmantown Road, and is visible from most of the village. Oak Mountain is the location of the Oak Mountain Ski Center, located just north of the four corners.
The Grace Methodist Church Complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.
Lake Pleasant NY Private 2 Queen Bed Rental
Luxurious 2 Pillowtop Queen Bed Adirondack rental with a sitting area, flat panel HDTV, personal refrigerator, private entrance and separate balcony. Perfect for a getaway during any season. Plenty of activities within walking distance or a short drive within the Adirondack Park. Access to NYS Snowmobile trail system and plenty of on-property trailer parking available. Cleaning as well as linens and towel service. All of the amenities that you could possibly wish for in an affordable rental. Within 1 mile of Camp of the Woods and Oak Mountain Ski Resort and within a 30 minute drive to Olympic quality skiing at Gore Mountain.
Autumn in the Adirondack park is something to be experienced. Come stay at your home away from home and enjoy the crisp and cool mountain air while you take in the sights and sounds of the changing seasons. Give yourself that quiet weekend that you have been putting off through the summer run around. Break away and enjoy a day of hiking, fishing, kayaking the many waterways or simply strolling through town. Come back to a camp blanketed in stars while you warm yourself around the fire pit.