In 1854, James Perrott, an English wilderness guide, left a glass jar in a remote region of Southern England. He placed his calling card in the jar with instructions for those who found it to contact him and add their own cards to the jar. This grew into the hobby of letterboxing, which combines treasure hunting with artistic expression and a little hiking. The glass jar was replaced with water-proof containers hidden throughout an area. Players must use their puzzle-solving skills to locate the boxes and leave behind their creative marks.
This June, the First Wilderness Heritage Corridor launched a letterboxing trail that runs through the Lake George Area. The sites along the trail are a mix of historical, cultural and scenic spots. Many of the clues offer bits of history.
Participates may pick up a free letterbox passport at one of many places throughout Warren County or download a PDF passport to print. The passport contains clues, in the form of rhyming riddles, to find the 28 lettering boxing sites along the trail. Clues to two additional “bonus” sites may be found at the First Wilderness website.
A water-tight box is hidden at each site and holds a stamp pad, a stamp unique to the site, a pen and a small notebook. Once players find the box, they must stamp their passport and leave their name, along with their own stamp if they wish, in the notebook.
As of this writing, the Examiner Adventure Team, which includes a 1-year-old in a stroller, has collected 11 stamps. Except for a little mud on the way to Grandma’s Tree and a too-narrow trail at Dynamite Hill, they had no problems rolling the stroller to sites visited so far. The more rigorous hikes will require a baby backpack. The team suggests participants bring their own pen as some boxes did not have one.
The boxes will be in place through Columbus Day. Two sites are date specific — Stony Creek Mountain Days, which is Sunday, Aug. 8, 12-4 p.m. and The Brant Lake Winter Carnival, which is held in mid-February. Once players collect at least 18 stamps, they may submit their passports to receive a free embroidered First Wilderness patch.
Where to pick up a First Wilderness Letterboxing Passport
- Queensbury Hotel, 88 Ridge Street, Glens Falls
- Adirondack Folk School, 51 Main Street, Lake Luzerne
- Kinnear Museum, 52 Main Street, Lake Luzerne
- Warren County Tourism, 1340 State Route 9, Lake George
- Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce, 2176 State Route 9, Lake George
- Fort William Henry Museum & Fort William Henry Resort, Canada Street, Lake George
- Lake George Visitors’ Center, Beach Road, Lake George Village
- Warrensburg Town Hall, 3797 Main Street, Warrensburg
- Martin’s Tree Farm and Lumber, 280 Valley Road, Thurman
- Chester Town Hall, 6307 Main Street, Chestertown
- North Warren Chamber, Dynamite Hill Road, Chestertown
- Johnsburg Town Hall, 219 Main Street, North Creek
- Hudson River Trading Co., 292 Main Street, North Creek
