Tourism, Access, and the Adirondacks

We often think of tourism as something negative.  No one wants to be that wide-eyed tourist with a fanny pack around their waist, taking photos of the most minuscule thing while staring confusedly at a map wondering how you ended up five miles farther away from your hotel room than you wanted to be, but the fact remains that tourism is a fundamental part of the economy of the Adirondacks, and is probably why the park exists today.  Though tourism in the park has changed dramatically from the Great Camp era, when it served as a luxury getaway with a hint of nature for the elite to its role today (at least in some areas) as a vacationland outfitted with restaurants, shops, ski resorts, and a former Olympic site, the role of tourism hasn't in that it attracts many people to the park each year who leave it with a newfound appreciation for all the Adirondacks have to offer.

Before the Adirondacks were even a park, they acted as a sort of rustic vacation destination for wealthy downstaters, who, after spending much of their free time in the mountains and on the lakes, lobbied hard for its protection.  They made it possible for us to enjoy the Adirondacks today and paved the way (quite literally by advocating for better access to the park) for the boom in tourism that has happened in recent years.  While many people think of increased tourism and the increased urbanization that often accompanies it, in the form of highways and hotels, as an environmental tragedy, I think it is important to recognize that the tourism industry is a major advocate in keeping the park as beautiful as it is, is one of the reason it even exists, and is something to embrace rather than hate.  Though there are huge environmental repercussions involved with land development, if there were no way for the public to visit the park, there would be less incentive to conserve the land and the Adirondacks as we know them would likely not exist.  Perhaps instead of shunning Adirondack tourism, we should encourage environmentalism, stewardship, and more eco-friendly practices among the parks visitors to ensure that there will still be a park to visit in the future.

Why wouldn't you want to go here? I know I do.

Photo link: http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/28/a280bdee-12fd-11e2-b59f-001a4bcf6878/5075acd4dff05.preview-620.jpg