Raquelle and Bernie Landa

Daughter and Dad Dynamic Duo

FAMILY: Bernie, 48; Cheryl, 48; Raquelle, 12; Reed, 10
RESIDENCE: Clifton Park
PROFESSION: Bernie, Engineering Technology Leader at GE Renewables – Wind; Cheryl, Physical Therapist at Eddy Visiting Nurse & Rehab Association
SPORTS: Hiking, Skiing, Mountain Biking, Swimming, Triathlon

By Linda Waxman Finkle

Raquelle Landa is not your average 12-year-old. As one of the youngest in Shenendehowa Nordic Club’s “Wall of Fame,” she’s used to exceling in sports, academic endeavors, and in other activities as well. Maybe that’s why no one in her family questioned her becoming an Adirondack 46er. And why her dad, Bernie, jumped at the chance to pursue this goal with his daughter during the early Covid days of 2020, finishing in one season by summiting Mount Marcy at the end of October.

The family had heard about the Bill Koch Youth Ski League from friends who participated in Massachusetts. At the 1976 Winter Olympics, ‘Kochie’ won the silver medal in the 30K cross-country skiing event, the first American to win a medal in international competition; years later, he captured the World Cup title, and championed the skate-skiing technique. A Google search revealed that there was a BKYSL in Clifton Park through the Shenendehowa Nordic Club, which, since 1985, has supported cross-country skiing in southern Saratoga County, grooming trails in two town parks and on the Shen campus, offering beginner lessons, and boosting the Shenendehowa High/Middle School Nordic ski teams.

But let’s return to March, when all four Landas – mom Cheryl, Bernie, Raquelle, and 10-year-old brother Reed – were spending more time than usual in the Adirondacks due to the pandemic and fully remote learning. As a family who mountain biked and skied together, they didn’t hesitate to put on their winter traction devices and begin with a hike up Mt. Jo, and at the end of March, climbed Cascade and Porter, their first High Peaks – mountains with shorter round-trip distances. After a few more climbs in April, when the mountains were still icy and covered in snow, Bernie and Raquelle set the goal of becoming Adirondack 46ers. And, over the next month, the Landas continued hiking as a family, but more often than not, it was just dad and daughter who set out in the early morning hours. “We’re very similar,” offers Bernie. “We’d never had the opportunity to spend this much time together one-on-one, and we’re both organized, prepared, and not intimidated by challenges.”

Hailing from a family of sheep ranchers in Idaho, Bernie, an engineer, spent much of his youth assisting with the livestock operation, and hiking was another way to enjoy the outdoors. He’d always wanted to do the 50 High Peaks throughout the U.S., and has already completed about a dozen. He’s also a triathlete, mountain biker and cross-country skier, competing in the Lake Placid Loppet 25K or 50K cross-country ski race for many years. Cheryl, a physical therapist, who’s also very active and did a lot of hiking in the Berkshires after college, had both kids out on skis and bikes at very young ages. “Raquelle’s brave and adventurous, driven and mentally tough,” Cheryl says admiringly. “She is very proud of this accomplishment.”

On May 16th Raquelle and her father set out for an epic hike in the Dix Range. It was clearly going to be a long day when they realized the approach hike to the base of the first climb already had been six miles. Raquelle had her courage tested at the Macomb scramble where the trail was a mixture of seasons: ice sheets, mud from snow run off, and granite scree left behind from winter snow slides. “I was totally freaked out,” Raquelle said, “but I pushed on and my dad encouraged me to put one foot in front of the other.” After a four-peak series in the Dix Range, the descent was on the Lillian Brook Trail where Raquelle said she basically “checked out from exhaustion,” but dug deep to find the strength to keep going. The Dix Range made for a memorable hike and an unspoken level of trust and determination for these hiking companions. 

When ascending the rock face of Gothics, she was nervous about falling, and on the same day, around Upper Wolf Jaw, they ran out of water, with no stream in sight for quite a while. A little over a week later, they were out on the Seward Range, her least favorite of all, with another long walk to the base, constant rain, and a 10:30pm return to their campsite.

Her dad didn’t care for that weekend either. “When we got caught in the dark in thunderstorms, and were soaked and worn out, I wondered if we should throw in the towel,” Bernie remembers. “Going every weekend, I felt it in my knees, and it started to become job-like. Then Raquelle said, ‘Dad, it’s going to be okay.’ We were in mud up to our knees, and had two handfuls of trail mix to eat before falling asleep. But the next day, the sky cleared, and we were both in better spirits. She never showed that she was terrified, and I didn’t expect that. She taught me the value of patience and awareness.” With the benefit of hindsight, he would plan differently next time, and spend multiple nights in the backcountry, affording easier access to distant peaks.

A seventh grader at Shenendehowa’s Gowana Middle School, Raquelle plays the flute in the school band, is on the Capital District YMCA swim team, and is working hard on her Silver Award in Girl Scouts, focusing on decreasing plastic pollution by convincing restaurants to cut down on plastic usage. In several accelerated classes, her favorite subjects are math, and now English as well, and she hopes to become an elementary school teacher. “I can comprehend topics easily and then share that with others. Teachers inspired me, and I want to do what they do,” she says. Although she swims many different strokes, Raquelle hopes to qualify for a state championship in the breaststroke, and also cross-country ski on a more competitive team, perhaps at the high school level, if that’s allowed.

Her advice to younger girls? “The sky’s the limit – if you want to do it, you can do it,” she says confidently. “Make sure that you’re prepared because you don’t want to go into something that you can’t handle. You need to put in the time to make sure that you’re physically strong, but just keep persevering. Some things will be difficult… that’s life.” 

For all families, balancing time together is challenging, especially as kids gets older and choose different activities. “Reed, our fifth grader, appreciates team sports and is very involved with youth hockey,” says Bernie. “He also enjoys being outdoors and snowboarding, mountain biking, and camping are some of his favorites. Recently, he’s expressed more of an interest in doing the Adirondack 46, but I also don’t want to lose out on family activities, doing things that we all enjoy.” There are new goals, including the White Mountains in New Hampshire, Saranac 6ers, Fire Tower Challenge, maybe a triathlon, maybe the Adirondack 46 during the winter months. Who in the family will be attempting these, only time will tell!

Younger kids have completed the Adirondack 46er over time; Maebh Nesbitt did it just two days shy of her fifth birthday in July 2019. The daughter of Siobhan Carney-Nesbitt, President of the Adirondack Forty-Sixers, she’s working on becoming a Northeast 111er. And back in the ‘80s and ‘90s, Lisa Sawtelle (Macander) and two sets of twin boys, the Turners and Espers, all completed it at five years old. 

While these are all incredible athletic accomplishments, they’re somewhat different than what Raquelle and Bernie achieved. “We can have a very easy conversation about anything because I understand how she ticks,” Bernie affirms. “She knows that I’m available for her whenever she has a question, and we established a bond that might not have been there earlier. We’ll always be father and daughter, but now we’re buddies.” 

“While on the trail we would have deep conversations about current events – social issues to politics to life lessons,” Raquelle said of her dad, “and we both learned a lot from each other in a unique way.” She continued, “The outdoors allow both of us to disconnect from daily distractions and talk with each other.” But Bernie also acknowledged hours of silence. “I think we both were consumed by the challenges that was ahead and too anxious to talk to each other. It was usually on the descent where conversations would spark up between us, with the most thought-provoking and sincere attention.” 

It was on the descent of Marcy, on the last hike, of the last day, when Raquelle suggested, “Dad, it is more about the journey than the destination.” And it was at that moment that Bernie knew that every step, every mile, every difficulty that they had encountered, had all been worth it.

Linda Waxman Finkle (lwf518@gmail.com) is a writer, kayaking instructor, and event coordinator in Albany. She also enjoys hiking and cycling, and learning something new each day.