A new exhibit opened at the Wild Center this past weekend. North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley was at the Natural History Museum in Tupper Lake as the ribbon was cut on the Wild Walk.
The Wild Walk is a quarter-mile series of boardwalks, suspension bridges, and platforms that gradually elevate people above the tree level for a panoramic view of the Adirondacks. Wild Walk designer Chip Reay says the heart of his design rests in the natural setting surrounding it. “The main structural things, these steel trees, are really the form of all of the conifers that surround the Wild Center and are so much a part of the landscape. There are reflections of it in the details. The handrails are all white pine needles and things like that. You become part of the forest. It becomes a more introspective experience I think because you are part of it rather than just being on an elevated sidewalk.”
Walking through the forest footpath leading to the Wild Walk, Northland Associates Ron Burlin said it was the most unique project he had ever been involved in. “The goal was to disturb as little of the footprint as possible. There was a perimeter set out at the very beginning of the project and that was the absolute maximum that we were allowed. Our superintendent was able to come up with some ideas that allowed us to reduce that footprint even more. You will see as you walk this that some of the existing trees and branches actually overhang the new work. We were able to work that closely to the existing forest and disturbed very little of it.”
There are eight platforms connected by a series of suspension, steel truss or wood bridges. Conical metallic forms emerge from platforms, simulating pine trees.
The Wild Walk begins with a covered bridge. One platform hosts a gigantic treehouse. Suspension bridges lead to a huge white pine snag. A bit higher is the spider web – a net suspending people 24 feet above the forest floor.
At the apex of the Wild Walk, the Eagle’s Nest provides panoramic views of the Adirondack High Peaks, Mount Morris, McKenzie and Whiteface Mountains, and the Seward Range.
Tupper Lake Mayor Paul Maroun believes the Wild Walk will spur tourism in the Adirondacks. “It’s a fantastic feat of architecture and engineering design that combines nature with people. You can see the Racquette River which flows into the St. Lawrence. You can see Whiteface Mountain. You can see chipmunks running on the ground. You can sit in the Spider’s Web and feel what a bumblebee feels like when it’s caught in a spider’s web. It’s really a fantastic piece of architecture that puts people in touch with nature. I’m very excited about it. I think Tupper Lake is on the cusp of becoming a great tourist attraction in the heart of the Adirondacks.”
The $5.5 million Wild Walk opened exactly nine years after the Wild Center, the Natural History Museum of the Adirondacks, opened. While there are suspension bridges and staircases to the forest floor, the main structure is universally accessible.
