Lake Frederick, West Point 2022

 

“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”

Albert Einstein

Our annual West Point trip was finally here. We look forward to this long weekend every year and start our countdown each year right after we leave. We couldn’t have a more wonderful group of friends and family that have gotten together for years at West Point to relax, enjoy time together, along with taking in the beauty that surrounds us here, and just plain have fun. This was Joe and mine 34th year coming since first starting this tradition. That is hard to believe. We only had one year we didn’t come and that was during the Pandemic.

We pull off of Smith Clove Road at the Lake Frederick sign and onto Proctoria Road named from the Proctor family (no not Proctor and Gamble family but rather the Proctor Vaudeville family). Frederick Freeman Proctor once owned 1142 acres here and called his property “Proctoria” which means “Land of the Skies”. At one time he had five large homes, many barns, and a gatehouse on this property. When Frederick passed away in 1929, the academy acquired his land.

After traveling 14 hours to get to West Point, the first thing we did after getting out of the car is to stretch, breath in the fresh mountain air and exhaling deeply, and take in the lovely sites that we have longed to see since leaving the year before. All our cares and worries just fade away and feeling of total contentment arrives. We get the overwhelming feeling that we have just come home and the year that just passed seems like just yesterday that we were here. Danny and Janet Eichner, the caretakers, hosts, and our friends always welcome us with a hug and say “Welcome Home,” as we check in. How blessed we are to be back. 

Every year when we come back, there are more and more improvements that have been made making this place nicer every year. This year, two new pavilions were built and to all our joy, a handicap ramp was added to one of the cabins. Our dear friend, Kathy is in a wheelchair now and having that ramp made it possible for her to join us again. I can’t thank Danny enough for working so hard to make that possible for all of us to have our Kathy back with us. Danny and Janet are angels and treat us so well and are unbelievably sweet to all the children who are with us.   They couldn't be nicer. 

As each family rolled in, we excitedly greeted them. How wonderful it is that we may only see some of these friends once a year and yet there feels as if no time has been lost. We hugged each and everyone and welcomed them to our peace of Heaven.

Lake Frederick has eight family cabins that you can rent that sleep 10 people in each. There is a kitchenette with a table and chairs, microwave, and mini refrigerator in each cabin. There are two air conditioners that cool off the inside in the summer and that also work as heaters in the winter. Each cabin has a porch with either chairs or swings where you can sit and enjoy the cleared views of the 18 acre pristine lake surrounded by mountains. On this lake, you can fish for bass, catfish, and pan fish but it is strictly a catch and release lake.

There are no bathrooms in the cabin but each cabin has a private bathroom in the bathhouse to use with a shower with nice hot water. There is also an older bathhouse that has been renovated to use with toilets and showers.

Some years we have had as few as 30 people and on our largest year, we had 75. This year we got up to 64 people with quite a few newbies that we really enjoyed getting to know. One of Joe's, nephews and his lovely significant other, showed up this year after not seeing him for 15 years. How special.  We hope everyone can come back next year. We had a blast as always and enjoyed our time with our friends.

There is an open grassy area to the rear of the cabins where there is a fire pit and picnic table for each cabin and is a great area to set up games. This year it was great fun watching all the young people as well as some adults playing soccer and football there. It was nice seeing such a large group of people out playing and just having fun. At night, we have a campfire with a sing along while two or more members of our group play guitars. Another tradition is lighting the Chinese Lanterns and launching them in honor of those who passed before us.

We always rent the mess hall for the weekend when we are here which is a great gathering place especially at dinner time. It has a nice kitchen with a double stove, a flat griddle area to cook at as well as gas burners to heat up food. There is plenty of refrigeration as well as a couple of keg coolers and multiple sinks for cleaning dishes. There are plenty of tables that can be set up for events. The mess hall is great place to have special events. They are working on having a new mess hall built here in time.

The sandy beach is the perfect place to relax and just float around in the cool mountain lake. Our group loves the beach and spent a good part of time there since the weather was perfect. This year it was manned by two lifeguards which made it great for all the parents with children to have those extra eyes watching them while playing in the water. You can even rent paddle boards, paddle boats, and row boats by the hour or just bring along a kayak to canoe to use while you are there. There are a couple of picnic tables to sit at in the shade and there are plenty of lounge chairs to sit and relax while working on your tan.

The hike around the lake is about a mile and is an easy hike and well worth your efforts. We take the hike around a few times a day to enjoy all the sites. First you pass the beach and tent campsites on your right. Bearing right you go up a small slope to the Red tree which is fascinating as there are only two trees like that on the whole property. Next you go passed the old cement swimming pool of the Proctor family which now just looks like a fishing pond. You can still see some of the cement walls of the pool.

Next you see the enchanted forest just passed the bridge to the left. It is a neat little area with unusual trees and bright green grass growing. Further around the lake you come up to the ruins of the mansion that once was, called the Ledgewood Ruins. It was a 15,000 square foot, two story Colonial Revival mansion and was the home of Frederick Freeman Proctor aka “Dean of Vaudeville”. There are some gorgeous views of the lake from the high parts of the trail. Then before taking the trail back down, there is a covered stone pavilion dated back to 1912 with a table making it a great place to have a picnic or just sit and relax with a lovely view of the lake. Sunsets are particularly beautiful from that location.

The office where you check in is a historic home of called West Lake Cottage which was part of the Proctor family’s home. This beautiful building needs restoring and I pray they will get funding to fix this up and preserve it. You must go to the office to check in and to rent any equipment. They sell a number of items like drinks, ice, ice cream, tee shirts, etc. Check it out when you are there.

Lake Frederick is on the southern most area of USMA and is only seven miles from the campus of the United States Military Academy (USMA) and only a short 50 miles from New York City. It surely doesn’t feel like it is that close to the city. I made two trips onto West Point this year with one tour and only took a few pictures. Then I went back with a group of our friends to see the fireworks but shortly after we arrived, we got soaked by a downpour. We headed back to the camp as we were soaked to the skin. Surprisingly, they still ended up having the firework show. We ended up missing it but there is always next year.

To stay at Lake Frederick you must be active duty or retired military, DOD civilians, Installation contractor, or Cadets parents and grandparents. You can call the office at 845-938-2649 to reserve a spot.

Till next year. Until then, we will cherish our memories of this most perfect weekend. Bye for now.

“Life is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose.”

Tennessee Williams

Lake Frederick 2021, West Point, New York

 

"A lake is a landscape's most beautiful and expressive feature.  It is Earth's eye; looking into which the beholder measures the depth of his own nature."

Henry David Thoreau

Have you ever been to a place that makes you happy for just being there? A place that is your slice of Heaven? A place that is comforting and feels like home while being away? That is what Lake Frederick is to me. I step out of the car, breathe in the mountain fresh air, look around at all the beauty and nature surrounding me, and feel all of life’s worries go out the window.

Old A frames 

No matter how many times we come back, I always get that same wonderful feeling. That feeling that I belong here even if it is only for a matter of days. We are blessed to come up here with a group of friends and family that have had a reunion of sorts every year for the last 35 years, excluding 2020 as per COVID. Many changes have occurred in this recreation area over the years and every year it gets better and better. When we first started coming here, the accommodations that we rented to sleep in were old metal A frames. They had electric to them but that was all; no air conditioning or heat. The only cooling devise was an occasional fan. There was a ladder leading to the upstairs for those who could take the heat. The A frames had bunks and beds with metal frames and mattresses scattered throughout. It was roughing it but it never bothered us as we were here, together at Lake Frederick.

Lake Frederick is located a short scenic seven miles ride from the main post of the United States Military Academy. West Point Military Reservation has over 16,000 acres and is the second largest military installation in New York State, just after Fort Drum. West Point has thirteen lakes and ponds totaling 510 acres all together off the main campus. The property that is now Lake Frederick was once owned by Frederick Freeman Proctor, aka, the “Dean of Vaudeville”. At one time Frederick owned 53 theaters on the east coast and was quite wealthy. In 1912, Frederick built “Proctoria” which means “Land of the Skies” on his 1142 acres. He built 5 large homes with various barns and a gatehouse. After Proctor passed away in 1929, the academy acquired the land and the buildings. 

There are currently eight beautiful log cabins that are heated and cooled. Four of the cabins are family style with a double bed in the middle room and four bunks in the other room. There is also a kitchenette with a microwave, refrigerator, and table and chairs. The front of each cabin has a porch with great views of the lake. The other four cabins are bunk house style with just bunk beds. Each cabin comes with a large picnic table and a grill/fire pit.

New Bathhouse and new sign

The old bathhouse has been renovated and is now very nice with new bathroom stalls and showers. You can use that bathroom or you can use the brand new bath house. Each cabin gets a key to their private bathroom with shower, sink, and toilet. What a great improvement. In the back of the new bathhouse is also a coin operated laundry room. That came in handy during our last trip, saving a trip into town to do laundry.

The Event/Mess Hall

The event/mess hall has had many improvements with the adding of lots of state of the art stainless steel kitchen equipment. We couldn’t have been happier this year to be able to use a 6 burner gas stove, two gas ovens, and a griddle. There was also plenty of refrigeration for all our cold items. In the dining hall, they have also added many new tables and chairs.  Many more improvements are coming in the years to come.   

The Enchanted Forest 

If cabins aren’t what you are looking for, Lake Frederick also offers 50 tent sites. The land offers plenty of great areas for camping and with lovely views. If you are worried that there is not enough to do, you can forget about that. There is plenty to do. They have a horseshoe pit, volleyball court, basketball court, and a lovely trail that circles the lake. The fishing is great on this catch and release lake and the swimming is heavenly.

West Lake Cottage

 You will need to sign in, at the historic West Lake Cottage. There is a store that offers firewood and souvenirs for sale as well as offering rental paddle boats, rowboats, canoes, and more.

Beach

One of many benches to relax and enjoy the view

The lake has a large sandy beach with views of the Ledgewood Ruins which was a two story colonial revival home with a cedar shingle roof. The swim area is roped off and there is a swim platform to lay on or jump off. The water is nice and clean and is wonderfully refreshing. After a nice swim, there are lounge chairs and picnic tables that can be used to relax and sit a spell. There are also benches scattered around the lake to sit and contemplate while looking at the beauty of this magnificent spot. While standing on the beach, looking at the beautiful and peaceful scenery, it is hard to believe that we are only 50 miles from New York City. 

Janet and Danny Eichner

Danny and Janet Eichner are the caretakers of the land and do a tremendous job making this place a heavenly retreat. They keep the property in great shape, keeping the landscaping perfectly groomed, and all systems running smoothly. They are constantly making improvements on this amazing recreation site. They are there for whatever you may need and are glad to help. They are a joy to be around and made our visit extra special. Thank you both for all your hard work. It shows.

Stone Gazebo

To use Lake Frederick’s Recreation Site, you must have an active duty or retired military ID,  or be a Reservist, Installation contractors, cadet parents and grandparents, or a DOD Civilian. The store is open seven days a week from 9 to 5. This is a fabulous place to see and stay. Maybe we will see you there sometime.

Till next year. We will be back and in the meantime, we will be dreaming of our little slice of Heaven. Till next time. Bye for now.