7 Best Sights in Lake Placid, The Adirondacks and Thousand Islands

The center was built for the 1932 Olympics and renovated and expanded for the 1980 Games. During the latter, the arena here was the site of the U.S. ice-hockey team's win over the seemingly unbeatable Soviets, which led the men to a U.S. gold medal. The victory came to be known as the "Miracle on Ice." The center also houses other ice rinks, a museum, and convention space. Winter Olympics enthusiasts can purchase bobsled and luge rides with a professional on the competition track for $60 to $75. Tours of the center are available at 10, 11:30, and 1, Tuesday through Saturday for $8.50. A 50-minute audiocassette tour of the center is an option. The center hosts hockey and figure-skating tournaments and ice shows as well as other special events.

A stop by the 1932 & 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum is a fitting way to begin your tour of Lake Placid. Displays here, including sports outfits and gear, explain the history and legacy of the Olympic Games at Lake Placid.

The field station, part of a Cornell University extension program, encompasses more than 200 forested acres, a greenhouse, and orchards. An exhibit here explains how maple syrup is made. You may buy some syrup to take home with you. Tours are available by appointment and are recommended during the production season, February through April. The station is also sometimes open on weekends in March and April.

Abolitionist John Brown lived for a short time on this 244-acre farm. In October 1859, Brown and his followers attempted to spark a slave revolt by taking over the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. His two sons and several of his followers were killed, and Brown was tried and executed. His body was brought back and buried here. A cross-country ski trail, a nature trail, and a picnic area are on the grounds, which are open all year.

An old 30-foot-tall ski slide right in town has been converted into a hair-raising toboggan run that spits you out onto and across iced-over Mirror Lake. The chute usually opens after Christmas but might be open as early as November and as late as February, so call to check conditions.

The towers of the 70- and 90-meter ski jumps here are stark and exposed and seem out of place, but the view from the top of the taller tower is dramatic. A glass-encased elevator takes you 26 stories to the top, where you get a bird's-eye view of the lay of the land and the High Peaks around Lake Placid. You also get a stomach-gripping view of what the jumpers see while preparing to take flight. During most of the year you may also opt to ride a chairlift up to the elevator. In summer, freestyle skiers practice twirls and somersaults into a 750,000 gallon pool.

The Olympic Sports Complex has 31 mi of groomed cross-country-skiing trails. Full-day trail passes are $18; lessons and rentals are available. You may also rent snowshoes here. From late June to early October, mountain bikers take over the trails (it's $10 for mountain biking).