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Sunday, August 31, 2025
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Sunday, August 24, 2025
Rogers Rock, The Trail©
Robert Rogers made good his escape on
March 13, 1758, in the aftermath of the Battle on Snowshoes, climbing up the
west slope of Bald Mountain, and making his way to Lake George. Historian Burt Loescher thought he might have
reversed his snowshoes and back-tracked away from the lip of the cliff to send
the impression to his pursuers that he had tried to escape down “Roger's Slide”.
However, Robert Rogers, in his journal does
not mention how he escaped, saying only that “the Indians closely pursuing
us at the same time, took several prisoners”.
But
can we follow him and walk the path of history?
The answer is yes, and Timothy Dwight, an early traveler to Lake George,
historian and artist Gary Zaboly, and the USGS have shown us the path.
Today’s
Roger’s Rock, which in 1758 was called Bald or Bare Mountain, is the
southernmost peak on a chain of three summits, called today Bear, Cook’s and
Roger’s Rock, and is separated from its northern brothers by a saddle that runs
generally from west to east, connecting the valley of Trout Brook with Lake
George. The western slopes of Bear and
Cook’s mountain, opposite and east of the site of the Battle on Snowshoes, would
have funneled the retreating rangers and the pursuing French and Native
Americans directly to the pass southeast of the battle.
It
is likely, as the surviving rangers scattered, that Rogers retreated towards
this pass. The path “Thro’ the
Mountain” as Rogers called this pass, is just over a mile long (1.6 km),
with Gary Zaboly describing it as “generally gradual ascent of 250 feet [about
75 meters] above the brook’s valley and equally gradual descent to the lake”,
ending at Heart’s Bay, on Lake George. However,
the French and Indians, would also have known of this pass through the
mountains to the relative safety of the Lake, and would have attempted make an
end run around the retreating rangers who were making for the pass, to ambush there. The presence of vengeful Native Americans and
French forces blocking the path over the pass, could have forced Rogers to turn
south to climb up to the peak of Rogers’ Rock.
From the middle of the saddle to the peak of Rogers’ Rock is only
another 300 feet (approximately 90 meters), and again according to Zaboly in “most
places the climb is gradual”, so an experienced snowshoer like Rogers could
have made it the summit.
But
how did he get down? According to
Zaboly, there are three possibilities, he could have slid down the 700 feet of
eexposed 65o granite cliff face to the lake below, gone farther south
and escaped down the partially treed ridge line extending to the lake, or gone
even farther south and escaped down the “narrow and steep valley”, on
the southern slope of the mountain.
A
rod, is an old unit of measure, used during the early 18th century
for surveying, which is 16.5 feet long (5 meters), so thirty to 40 rods, would
be between 495 to 660 feet (150 to 250 meters) away from the top of the cliff. On the map below, if you follow the 1,000
foot contour line, just about 750 feet (228 meters or 45 rods) from the head of
the trail shown on the 1894 map to the southwest side of the ridge running into
Lake George near Juniper Island, you will find a “narrow and steep”
ravine leading away from the summit.
Since Rogers never recorded the truth of how he escaped that night, we
will never truly know, but according to Occam’s Razor, the simplest one is
often the most likely to be correct and this is the route that Rogers most
likely took to escape his pursuers as it is the safest. It is even possible that he reversed his
snowshoes as he made his escape past the cliff edge and down the ravine, to
further confuse the vengeful French and Indians hunting him .
To follow in his footsteps, there is an easier (and safer way) that
will take you past the steep and narrow valley that Rogers used, past the partially
treed ridge line, to the cliffside, and a fantastic view of Lake George.
Start by travelling to Rogers Rock Campground, which is located at 9894
Lake Shore Dr, Hague, NY, USA. This is a
lovely (and inexpensive campground), with hot showers and flush toilets -- glamping!
There are a couple of ways of reaching the head of the trail, you can
star at the lakeside or pick up the trail at the rear of campsite 210.
The trail is very steep in areas, as you climb the mountain slope, and
you will frequently need to scramble up, using your hands and feet, as some of
the pitches are close to an angle of 45o. It is not a climb that should be made if you
are not in good shape or a beginner hiker, and it will take you about an hour
to climb up and plan on the same amount of time coming down (it should take you
less coming down, but this will allow for emergencies), so start at least three
hours before sundown. REMEMBER to tell
someone responsible at your base camp or leave a note on the dash of your car, listing
when you are leaving, where you are going, who is with you, and when you will
return. You should also bring emergency
supplies in case of situations. The
trail is not marked very well, you must keep a sharp lookout for red or yellow
ribbons or spots of paint on the rocks at your feet, particularly in the steep
areas. Going into this hike
my wife and I did not have adequate maps, I didn’t find good maps until after
we had returned from the Adirondacks (they are at the end of the article), and
it is very possible we turned to scramble up the side of the mountain early,
when we should have continued to travel along the contours of the slope before
climbing up the side of the mountain.
It was worth the climb though, the view from overlook was spectacular,
and we really enjoyed the hike.
So, if you ever find yourself in the Lake George/Ticonderoga area,
make time to climb to the top of Rogers Rock and enjoy the view while walking
in the footsteps of history.
I
hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me
on YouTube at BandanaMan Productions for other related videos, HERE. Don’t forget to follow me on both The
Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE,
and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube. If you have questions, as always, feel free
to leave a comment on either site. I
announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at
bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.
That
is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!
Sources
Bearor,
Bob; The Battle on Snowshoes, [Heritage Books, Inc., Westminster, MD,
2007]
), 1910-1920, https://itoldya420.getarchive.net/amp/media/battle-of-rogers-rock-glen-falls-ins-co-cbf468, accessed August 16, 2025
Dwight, Timothy; Travels
in New-England and New-York: in four volumes, Volume 3, [William Baynes and
Sons, London, 1823], page 340,
The
Rogers’ Rock Hotel And Slide, Lake George, N.Y. Post Card, 1905, https://www.tuckdbpostcards.org/items/72819-the-rogers-rock-hotel-and-slide-lake-george-n-y, accessed August 16, 2025
Todish,
Timothy J.; The Annotated and Illustrated Journals of Major Robert Rogers,
[Purple Mountain Press, Fleischmanns, NY, 2002]
USGS,
Ticonderoga 1894, Scale 1:62500, https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/topoview/viewer/#4/38.99/-100.33,
accessed August 16, 2025
Zaboly, Gary; “The Legend
of Rogers’ Slide”, Muzzleloader, Vol. XXVII, No, 4, September/October
2001, page 74-79
Sunday, August 17, 2025
Rogers Rock, The Legend©
During
the “Second Battle on Snowshoes”1 on March 13, 1758, Robert Rogers
and his Rangers ambushed, and were ambushed by, a larger French and Indian
force, along todays Trout Brook (then called by the French “Bernetz Riviere”,
about 3-½ to 4 miles (between 5.5 and
6.5 km) west of Fort Ticonderoga, or as French called it, “Fort Carillon”.
Rogers
and his force of 180 men had left Fort Edward and traveled north up the frozen
surface of Lake George, known to the French as Lac St. Sacrement, until they
had reached the southern slope of what the English called Bald Mountain and the
French knew as Mont Pelee, which after the events of March 13th,
1758, the English would rename as Rogers’ Rock.
Turning west and leaving the lake at this point, they marched along the
Native American path called by the French the “Route des Agniers”, or
the Mohawk Trail, into the woods along southern and then western slopes of Bald
Mountain, making for the valley of Trout Brook and the notch separating Bald
Mountain from Cook’s Mountain, a saddle where the daily patrol from Fort Carillon
reconnoitered. Once on the western
slopes of Bald Mountain, Rogers sent out a scouting party of three rangers along
the slopes of Cook’s Mountain above frozen surface of Trout Brook, the
remainder of the Rangers resting before continuing the march.
Unknown
to Rogers, six French allied Abenakis, returning from a scout to Fort Edward, had
discovered the tracks of their ice creepers on the frozen windswept surface of Lake
George and had rushed back to Fort Carillon to report to the French. The commander of the fort immediately sent out
a force of just over 300 French Marines, Canadian Milice and allied Indians to confront
him. They quickly advanced south along Trout
Brook, the same brook along which Rogers’ main party was advancing north.
The
three scouts, led by Ensign MacDonald, moved along the slopes of Cook’s
Mountain, spotted the advance party of almost 100 allied Indians below them in
a clearing, moving south down Trout Brook.
But in their hurry to race back and warn Rogers, they did not see the
main party of 200 mixed French, Canadians and Native Americans entering the
clearing a few minutes behind the advance party -- it was now about 3:30 pm.
By
the time the three scouts had returned to the main party, the Rangers had
marched about a mile and a half (approximately 2.5 km) further north along
Trout Brook, putting them just north of today’s Ticonderoga Country Club. It was now about 3:45 pm, almost an hour and
half before sunset.
Rogers
quickly ordered his men to leave their packs, face left and advance to the
eastern rim of the brook, where they lay in 100 yard long ambush behind trees,
logs and rocks.
Rogers Journal
-We kept close to the mountain, that the advanced guard
might better observe the rivulet, on the ice of which I imagined the enemy
would travel if out, as the snow was four feet deep, and very bad travelling on
snow shoes
- In this manner we marched a mile and a half, when our
advanced guard informed me of the enemy being in their view; and soon after,
that they had ascertained their number to be 96 chiefly Indians. We immediately
laid down our packs, and prepared for battle, supposing these to be the whole
number or main body of the enemy, who were marching on our left up the rivulet,
upon the ice, and would come within 15 Rods [about 250 feet, or 75 meters – Author’s Note] of My party by the Course they then Steered
I orderd Ensign [Gregory] McDonald to the command of the
advance guard, which, as we faced to the left, made a flanking party to our
right. We marched to within a few yards of the bank, which was higher than the
ground we occupied; and observing the ground gradually to descend from the bank
of the rivulet to the foot of the mountain, we extended our party along the
bank for enough to command the whole of the enemies at once
We waited until their front was nearly opposite to our left
wing, when I fired a gun, as a signal for a general discharge upon them;
whereupon we gave them the first fire, which killed about forty Indians, the
rest retreated. My party pursued them & Scalped about forty Indians in
about one quarter of an hour
The
advance force Native Americans was met by the Rangers, who fired first and ambushed
them. Many of the Native Americans fell in
the first volley, and the rest fled, quickly chased by many Rogers’ men, while
others stayed to finish off the wounded.
The French allied Indians retreated north along Trout Brook, taking further
losses, until they met the main body of the French, mostly Marines and Canadian
Milice, who alerted by the screams and musket shots, had spread out in a
crescent, before advancing down the brook.
The
ambushers were now the ambushed and the English were forced to fall back,
firing as they went, back to the main party of Rogers’ forces, with a loss of
about fifty men.
Rogers Journal
-The remainder I rallied, and drew up in pretty good order,
where they fought with such intrepidity and bravery as obliged the enemy to
retreat a second time; but we not being in a condition to pursue them, they
rallied again, and recovered their ground, and warmly pushed us in front and
both wings, while the mountain defended our rear."
The
Rangers were greatly outnumbered, but fought fiercely to maintaining the high ground
advantage, by lengthening their line to keep from being flanked and by slowly retiring
under the pressure of the French up the slope Bear Mountain, firing from behind
trees, rocks and log and using petite guerre, woods-fighting methods.
Rogers Journal
-Lieutenant Phillips informed me that about 200 Indians were
going up ye hill on our right to take possession of ye rising ground upon our
backs. . . I ordered him with 18 Men to take possession of ye rising Ground
before the Enemy, & try to beat them back. Accordingly he went, but I being
Suspicious that ye Enemy would go round on our left & take possession of
the other part of the hill, I sent Lieutenant [Edward] Crofton with 15 Men to
take possession of the ground there and soon after desired Captain Pringle to
go with a few men & assist Crofton, which he did with Lt. Roche & 8
Men. But the Enemy pushed So close in the front that the party's were not more
than 20 yards apart & oftentimes intermixed with each other.
Rogers Journal
-Upon finding that Phillips & his party was obliged to
Surrender, I thought it most prudent for me to retreat & bring off as many
of my people as I possibly could. Which I immediately did.
Rogers
acting in accordance with his own Rules of Ranging, had his men disperse and
retreat with each group of two to three men taking a different path the
pre-planned rendezvous point.
Robert Rogers’ Rule No. X of his "Rules for Ranging
Service":
-If the enemy is so superior that you are in danger of being
surrounded by them, let the whole body disperse, and every one take a different
route to the place of rendezvous appointed for that evening which must every
morning be altered and fixed for the evening ensuring, in order to bring the
whole party, or as many of them as possible together, after any separation that
may happen in the day; but if you should happen to be actually surrounded, form
yourselves into a square, or, if in the woods, a circle is best, and, if
possible, make a stand till the darkness of night favors your escape.
The
Indians and French, eager for the glory of capturing Robert Rogers, chased him to
the edge of a steep cliff face, extending 700 feet (215 meters) from the top of
Bald Mountain to the waters of Lake George.
During the chase Rogers threw off his regimental coat, which was later
discovered on the battlefield by the French. In a pocket was found his captain's
commission, dated 24 March 1756 and signed by Sir William Shirley. The French and Indians following him
discovered two sets snowshoe prints leading up to the ledge and assumed that
Rogers and another ranger had tried to escape by sliding down the smooth,
frozen, near vertical, east side of the mountain to the surface of Lake George
over 700 feet below. They assumed that he
had fallen and died, and so they gave up the pursuit, and the legend of Rogers’s
Slide was born!
But
Robert Rogers had survived and with his remaining men, reached the rendezvous
point by 8:00 pm, before limping back Fort Edward a few days later. But how did he escape?
Don’t forget to come back next week and read about how Robert Rogers
escaped from the summit of the mountain and how to follow his retreat to the
top of today’s Rogers Rock, yesterday’s Bald Mountain.
I
hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me
on YouTube at BandanaMan Productions for other related videos, HERE. Don’t forget to follow me on both The
Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE,
and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube. If you have questions, as always, feel free
to leave a comment on either site. I
announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at
bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.
That
is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!
Sources
Bearor,
Bob; The Battle on Snowshoes, [Heritage Books, Inc., Westminster, MD,
2007]
), 1910-1920, https://itoldya420.getarchive.net/amp/media/battle-of-rogers-rock-glen-falls-ins-co-cbf468, accessed August 16, 2025
The
Rogers’ Rock Hotel And Slide, Lake George, N.Y. Post Card, 1905, https://www.tuckdbpostcards.org/items/72819-the-rogers-rock-hotel-and-slide-lake-george-n-y, accessed August 16, 2025
Todish,
Timothy J.; The Annotated and Illustrated Journals of Major Robert Rogers,
[Purple Mountain Press, Fleischmanns, NY, 2002]
USGS;
“Ticonderoga 1894”, https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/ht-bin/tv_browse.pl?id=2202dc567c61fa316075743dd9492286,
accessed August 16, 2025
Zaboly, Gary; “The Legend
of Rogers’ Slide”, Muzzleloader, Vol. XXVII, No, 4, September/October
2001, page 74-79
Friday, August 8, 2025
Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!©
I
just wanted to thank all my readers and everyone else who has stopped by my
blog for helping me break through 150,000 all time views. Thank You!
Thank You! Thank You! Obviously, I could have reached this
milestone without you.
I
will be gone this weekend, but I’ll be back next Sunday with more great content. Thank
you again.
Don’t forget to come back next week and read “Ten Essentials of Winter
Camping ©”, where we will talk about how to camp in the winter wilderness and
stay warm and safe.
I
hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me
on YouTube at BandanaMan Productions for other related videos, HERE. Don’t forget to follow me on both The
Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE,
and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube. If you have questions, as always, feel free
to leave a comment on either site. I
announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at
bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.
That
is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!
Sunday, August 3, 2025
Starlight Mints and Survival©
Starlight
mints? Aromatherapy? Survival?
How do these three things go together?
Because
according to a 2008 study International Journal of Neuroscience “...participants
exposed to peppermint oil experienced enhanced memory and processing speeds…[it]
also increased their alertness while helping them maintain a sense of calm”.
Peppermint
is an herb that is a cross between two types of mints, water mint and spearmint. Ancient Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians among
others used mint plants and extracts, including peppermint, as medicine
thousands of years ago. However, peppermint wasn’t recognized as a distinct
subspecies until the late 17th century.
Now
I like starlight mints, and I also know that when people initially realize that
they are “misplaced” or turned around in the wilderness, fear and
anxiety begin to spike, and their thought process starts running around in
circles chasing its own tail.
However,
if you S.T.O.P., sit down, breathe, think AND eat three starlight mints, you
have a much better chance of thinking your way out of the crisis you’re in,
because eating three starlight mints can have a mild, but noticeable, effect on
your brain due to the combination of sugar and peppermint oil. And the time taken to suck on three starlight
mints while sitting and breathing should be enough to jump start your brain and
get it working again. Because when you
are “misplaced”, if you don’t relax, calm down and think, you will panic
and if you panic, you’re truly “lost”.
Eating
three starlight mints can provide a temporary boost in your alertness and
potentially enhance reasoning functions due to the peppermint oils,
Initially
there will be a “sugar rush” as the sugars in the mints cause a rapid
increase in your blood sugar (glucose) levels.
Glucose is the brain's primary fuel source, and the brain uses over half
of all the glucose you eat. This sugar
rush will give you temporary feeling of increased energy and alertness, and a
slight mood boost due to the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated
with pleasure and reward. Be warned nothing
is free, and this temporary boost could be followed by rapid drop or “sugar
crash” which will cause a decline in energy and concentration, as the body
releases insulin to regulate the glucose levels. This effect will likely be minor and short-lived,
but the sugar crash could lead to an increase of fatigue, irritability,
difficulty concentrating, and possibly impair cognitive functions like memory
and decision-making.
Peppermint
oil in starlight mints can increase your focus and alertness, and decrease
anxiety and fatigue, because it contains menthol. Menthol has been associated with enhanced
alertness and focus, and studies suggest that the aroma of peppermint can increase
the function of the hippocampus, a brain region critical for memory and
learning, by boosting cognitive function by up to 15%. The 2008 study by International Journal of Neuroscience
found that peppermint aroma improved cognitive performance, memory, and
alertness in the participants. However, the
2008 study on peppermint's cognitive effects was focused on inhaled essential
oils, and it is unknown if eating mints has the same effect.
I
have experimented with the effects of eating three starlight mints, when the
three o’clock blah comes on at work, and within a short time (less than 15
minutes) my energy levels and focus increased and was able to make it to five o’clock.
So,
next time I head out into the wilderness I am going to throw some starlight
mints into my pocket and some in my survival bag.
Don’t forget to come back next week and read “Ten Essentials of Winter
Camping ©”, where we will talk about how to camp in the winter wilderness and
stay warm and safe.
I
hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me
on YouTube at BandanaMan Productions for other related videos, HERE. Don’t forget to follow me on both The
Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE,
and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube. If you have questions, as always, feel free
to leave a comment on either site. I
announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at
bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.
That
is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!
Sources
Blatchley,
Barbara and Li, Sijia; “Examining the Effect of Peppermint on Cognitive
Functioning”, https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.psichi.org/resource/resmgr/journal_2014/fall14jnli.pdf,
accessed August 2, 2025
Deivanayagame,
Balasubramaniam, et. al.; “Effect of Peppermint Aroma on Short Term Memory and
Cognition in Healthy Volunteers”, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/342000375_Effect_of_Peppermint_Aroma_on_Short_Term_Memory_and_Cognition_in_Healthy_Volunteers,
accessed August 2, 2025
Ellis,
Rachel Reiff; “Health Benefits of Peppermint”, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/ss/slideshow-all-about-antioxidants,
accessed August 2, 2025
Michigan
State University Extension; “Stressed? Peppermint can help!”, June 01, 2016, https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/stressed_peppermint_can_help,
accessed August 2, 2025
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