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Taking the Kids: To Lake Placid and a resort that gets it right for families

By Eileen Ogintz, Tribune Content Agency on

Lynne Kylish has struck gold. Not literally, but Kylish, the mom of three from New Jersey, thinks her family found vacation nirvana at the Whiteface Lodge (www.thewhitefacelodge.com) in Lake Placid, N.Y., (www.lakeplacid.com). And for a busy family looking to create happy vacation memories, that is like finding gold.

"A wonderland for kids," she said. For grown-ups too.

"As soon as you walk through the door, it wipes all your worries away," said Peter Klemm, here with his wife and sons from Connecticut.

I like to see a resort get it right and, I think, the Whiteface Lodge does. The 94-suite resort is spread out over 40 acres reminiscent of the historic "camps" of the Adirondacks with rough-hewn logs, big stone fireplaces, oversized leather furniture and whimsical décor evoking the outdoors. (Kids especially like the bear in the canoe hanging high above the dining room) There are also expansive condo units in the lodge with kitchens but with all the amenities of a topflight resort, even a spa. "We have our own space but someone else takes care of everything so I can relax," said Kylish.

The only complaint I heard was from a guest from Los Angeles who was disappointed there weren't blue cheese stuffed olives for his martini -- and at most places I hear lots of complaints.

The added plus is that whatever the season there is so much to do here in the Adirondacks (www.visitadirondacks.com), which is bigger than Yosemite, Glacier, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and the Great Smokey National Parks combined. (New York state has a new Path Through History website (http://paththroughhistory.ny.gov/) to help you plan an Adirondacks trip and elsewhere in N.Y. State.) Lake Placid also offers:

 

-- A wonderful interactive museum about the animals and environment in nearby Tupper Lake that is a great introduction to the region, The Wild Center (www.wildcenter.org).

-- The Olympic Complex ( two winter Olympics were held here, in 1932 and 1980, http://www.whiteface.com/facilities/olympic-center) where you might be able to watch a skating competition or hockey game or climb into a bobsled for the ride of your life down an Olympic track.

-- Outdoor adventures for every season -- hiking, golf, kayaking, canoeing and fishing in summer and fall; skiing on Whiteface Mountain (www.whiteface.com), snowshoeing and ice skating all winter.

We drove up the historic Veteran's Memorial Highway to the summit of Lake Placid, to take in the huge lake we'd explored by boat the day before. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, then the governor of New York, supported building the road in the early 1930s because it made the mountaintop accessible to those with disabilities, which it still does. Once there, we walked through a 426-foot tunnel carved into the mountain to board an elevator up 27 stories -- the easiest summit I'd ever reached -- to sprawl on the rocks looking at the spectacular views from the 4,867-foot-high peak.

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