☰Queensbury

Queensbury makes a useful base for the southern Adirondacks. Lake George village, with its boat cruises, the rebuilt fort and the lake itself, is five minutes north. The eastern shore of Lake George leads into the Adirondack Park, the largest protected area in the lower 48 — with several million acres of forest, lakes and mountains. Half-day hikes within easy reach include Prospect Mountain (a 25-minute climb with a long view over the lake) and Buck Mountain (a more serious morning up the east shore).

Going north along the I-87 corridor, Lake Placid and Saranac Lake are about two hours away and worth at least one overnight. Going south, Saratoga Springs is forty minutes; its racecourse and the natural mineral baths in the state park are the standouts. The Hudson cuts through Glens Falls a few miles south of Queensbury, with a walking path along the river and the Hyde Collection art museum nearby.

Queensbury sits on the I-87 (the Adirondack Northway), about 200 miles north of New York City and 65 miles north of Albany. Driving is the easy answer: the I-87 is fast and runs the length of the eastern Adirondacks. From New York City, allow three and a half to four hours; from Boston, the same.

Albany International Airport is the nearest commercial airport, an hour south on the I-87, with direct flights to most major US hubs. Adirondack Trailways runs a daily intercity bus from New York City via Albany; Amtrak's Ethan Allen Express and Adirondack lines stop in Fort Edward-Glens Falls, about ten miles east, with bus or taxi onward to Queensbury.

Once here, you need a car. The local Greater Glens Falls Transit bus system covers some routes around the town and into Glens Falls but won't get you to most of the surrounding attractions.

Queensbury wraps around the south end of Lake George and the foothills of the Adirondacks. The biggest draw is the Great Escape amusement park, busy from late spring to autumn; the Adirondack Balloon Festival in September fills the airport with hot-air balloons; and the town's small lakes and ponds — Glen Lake, Round Pond, Lake Sunnyside — are quiet enough to swim, fish or paddle.

Queensbury has four sharp seasons. Summer (late June to August) is warm with daytime highs in the high 70s to mid 80s Fahrenheit, occasional thunderstorms, and the lakes warm enough to swim. It is the busiest season, when the Great Escape, Lake George and the Adirondacks all draw heavy crowds.

September is, for many, the best month: the air is cooler, the foliage is starting to turn, and the Adirondack Balloon Festival fills three or four days mid-month. The fall foliage peaks around the first or second week of October; the eastern Adirondacks are one of the best foliage areas in the country.

Winter brings serious cold (single digits to teens Fahrenheit), snowfall (60-80 inches a year on average) and the small-but-decent local skiing at West Mountain. Spring is wet and muddy — the "mud season" of late April and May is the locals' quiet time, and worth skipping unless you have a specific reason to be here.