The summer tourism season ends today, with one very big winner - the great outdoors.
In a season of economic uncertainty, campgrounds, marinas and other outdoor businesses finished the summer strong, riding a wave of steady heat and unusually dry weather.
"Everyone is extremely happy because of the weather - anybody could look at the forecast and see 10 great days and people were taking advantage of that," said Terry Swierzowski, the Fulton County Regional Chamber of Commerce & Industry's director of tourism and communications.
Albany's average high temperature in July was 85.5 degrees, eight degrees warmer than last year, according to the National Weather Service. The average high in August was 82 degrees, five degrees warmer than 2009. And fewer than 4 inches of rain fell in July and August, down from about 14 inches last year.
Favorable weather is why Jay Gander says his fifth year was the best at Jay's Lakeside, an outdoor restaurant across the street from the Great Sacandaga Lake in Northampton.
"It was a lot more sunshine and that meant a lot more traffic and a lot more people on the lake," he said. "I have the clientele anyway, but if the weather's not good, they won't come."
Lisa Swift, who owns Common Grounds, a cafe and gift shop at the Four Corners in Speculator, said businesses like hers are the ones that suffer when the weather cooperates for visitors.
"Meals were down because the weather was so beautiful," she said. "When it's rainy, campers don't want to make eggs inside, so they come out in full force, and they're also looking for things for their kids to do, so they'll shop and buy toys.
"But that didn't happen very often," she added.
Donna Mastro, who owns The Red Store in Caroga, began offering Friday night barbecues, complete with a DJ, but she said cars would pass by, with potential customers more attracted by the sun and sand.
"I thought I was trying to get people up here, but it just didn't go as well as I thought this year," she said.
But Mastro said she saw an increase in familiar faces circling back to town after years away. She suspects it's because of nostalgia for the state campground at East Caroga Lake, which nearly didn't open this year.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation announced in March that Caroga was one of seven campgrounds that wouldn't open for budgetary reasons. The campground had a $80,000 deficit in 2009, the department said. But it opened in time for Memorial Day weekend. It closes today.
"I think that got lot of people to come around that hadn't been here in a while," Mastro said.
Swierzowski said the chamber polled the region's private campgrounds, and most were near capacity approaching Labor Day weekend, and none were disappointed in the season.
The number of guests at the chamber's visitor center in Vail Mills was on target with last year's. About 2,500 people visited the center last month, many seeking easy, efficient ways to take advantage of the weather.
"People are looking for less expensive ways to have a great family time, so hiking and the outdoor activities or just going to the beach - we're seeing a lot of that kind of traffic," Swierzowski said.
Bill Pitcher is the city editor. He can be reached at bpitcher@leaderherald.com.