For more than a century The Adirondacks have served as a retreat for luminaries ranging from Teddy Roosevelt to Ralph Waldo Emerson, who helped set up the Philosopher’s Camp at Follensby Pond in 1858. And why not? With six million acres of mountains, lakes and forests, the Adirondack Park is the size of Vermont, bigger than Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Yosemite, and Glacier National Parks combined. More than 2.6 million acres have been set aside to remain “forever wild, ”places where even a tree can’t be cut without a vote.

Many of the towns here seem locked in time, little more than general stores with apple bins and counters to hire fishing guides. Antiquing is a favored pastime. Fall colors are astonishing. To see the Adirondacks as the wealthy industrialists did a century ago, visit one of the great camps, rustic vacation compounds now serving as educational institutes or handsome lodges. More than anything, it is a place to shake off the stresses of everyday life in a basically untouched natural environment.

For more information go to: www.adirondacks.com or www.adk.com.