True to form, at the end of October the weather began to act like the November weather to come..cold, damp, cloudy with rain showers turning into snow flurries now and again. Then a teaser of a day with brilliant blue sky and warm sunshine lured us out to play in the outdoors some more.

We've had a stretch of unseasonably warm and sunny weather this past week that has enabled those of us who live here year 'round to get outside and enjoy the more fall-like weather than November-like weather, as is the norm. You never know what's going to turn up weather-wise in November. It's always a gamble.

We locals who don't take a beach vacation this time of year like to take time in November to enjoy more walks around Mirror Lake in the crisp cool air, stroll and shop Main Street without the crowds, take some hikes and never see another soul, dine in local eateries without a wait, visit one of the local wineries and have a wine tasting with more personalized attention, sit for 6 whole hours watching a live broadcast from The Metropolitan Opera at our local art center. The list goes on and on. What this means to the visitor is the same thing. Lake Placid is wide open, and the town is all yours!

This time of year the lodging rates are much lower, the village isn't busy or crowded like the summer months or the ski season. Yes, there are activities you won't be able to do because there's a break for some before the ski slopes open, dogsleds run and the skating rinks are ready. However there are many things to keep you busy and the great outdoors is still the great outdoors, just a little undressed as the leaves have all fallen. Actually the mountains offer a unique leaf-free view this time of year with a more wilderness-type experience because there are so few people.

The businesses may not all be open, but the woods are! The woods have a kind of stark beauty this time of year and for photographers, the shadows formed by the slanted sun make for dramatic picture-taking. It will also snow now most any day and make the landscape even more dramatic. Our gigantic lake trout are still cruising around the public beach dock, doing what lake trout do this time of year - spawning. I watched a few this past Sunday, gliding slowly in and out from under the dock, some more than 3 feet in length. They're amazing to watch.

So, you see there's still lots to entertain you up here in the mountains this time of year. Come on up and play with us! Book a reservation and enjoy Lake Placid as we locals do in November.