Gas prices put chill on summer retreat

By Darrell Laurant

Published: June 25, 2008

LAKE GEORGE, NY — Thomas Jefferson, a man who obviously got around, once visited this Adirondack jewel and called it “The Queen of American Lakes.”

The local Indians named it “Lake That Shuts Itself In,” because it is surrounded by mountains.

And for generations, a wide variety of merchants, motel and hotel owners and hucksters have called it a gold mine.

At one time (and maybe still) Lake George boasted the thickest infestation of places to sleep per capita in America. In the summer, this drowsy village of 3,600 would typically swell to 36,000.

But maybe not this year. I’ve been coming here for four decades (my parents moved here in 1969), and I’ve never seen it as quiet as it’s been this week.

The merchants remain optimstic, of course. Some public schools in New York State don’t let out until the last days of spring, they point out. As soon as the kids are unleashed, the families will invade in force, they add.

“It’ll be crazy here next weekend,” they’re predicting now.

In the meantime, last Sunday, the captain of the paddle-wheel steamboat Min-E-Ha-Ha was delivering his droll tour guide routine for a boat that was three-quarters empty. There were actually parking spaces available along Canada Street, the main drag, and “Vacancy” signs far outnumbered their “No Vacancy” counterparts.

The reason, of course, was another series of signs bearing numbers like “4.25” and “4.29.” Like the rest of America, Lake George is having gas pains.

Last year, it cost my wife, Gail, and me about $80 in fuel to drive from Lynchburg to Lake George. This time? $140.

That had to send a chill through the merchants surrounding this still-chilly Queen of the Lakes.

Lake George is typically at the epicenter of dozens of campgrounds and RV parks. Now, many of these vacation mobiles are parked for the summer, many with “For Sale” signs attached to their broad flanks.

On the way up to New York last Friday, it seemed to me that traffic on the D.C. Beltway and the New Jersey Turnpike had slackened considerably. Nor was this a good time to play the “license plate game” (how many from out-of-state can you find?), because plates from beyond the Mid-Atlantic region were as rare as drivers following the speed limit.

I also noticed a lot of arms hanging out of windows, even in new cars, the A/C switched off to save gas.

Many of the people who sell food, beer, T-shirts and amusement park rides in Lake George during the summer depend on these three months for their livelihood, much as toy dealers regard Christmas.

I’m looking at those gas price signs, and I feel for them.