Last summer I took some shots through my binoculars to the south and was surprised how much there was to see. I have this idea that if I get just the right day I will be able to see White Face, the Olympic mountain over by Lake Placid a few hundred kilometres to the east. No such luck so far but it was pretty clear to the south east and I thought some shots would be worthwhile if only as markers on the horizon.

This shot is interesting as it shows the old psych hospital, Garden Island and the spire of Marysville's catholic church which is almost exactly 8 km away. The highpoint on the dark horizon to the right on the steeple is another 2.5 km away and well beyond that is the faint horizon of the Adirondack highlands. You can use these points to line up what you are looking at and compare it to a marine chart which lists all the highpoints as nautical aids. This view is about 112° east south east.

This view above and to the right is about 125° east south east. Click on the one above for a bigger picture. The New York State highlands show particularly well. I was wondering where the watertower would be as there is no community in Canada on that angle. It is, however, right in line with Cape Vincent, NY, 20 km away directly behind the 271 metre tall tower in the middle of the shot.

I am not sure of the names of the areas of Jefferson County standing out by contrast of snow and woods behind the fainter radio towers to the right.

And then I start thinking the horizon is not level and that I may be seeing faint white mountain tops out there. I need a telescope. But instead, I pop upstairs again just before sunset at around 4:20 pm. Now there is clearly a hilltop to the left of the tall antenna. Here is a 1 MB .bmp topo map showing the hill.

Now I want to know what that object is on the US side on the hillside. If mapquest is to be trusted, it is likely Watertown, NY, 55 km away as the crow flies. Later when I tried to take photos at dusk, it was clearly the city but too dim to get a good view:

Oswego's plume, Ferry, Elevator Bay, Clayton's watertower