Soon after crossing a little stream, we reached a vertical rock wall the formed a low ledge. Thomas and I were searching for the next blue blaze that marked our trail. There - up on the ledge - was a tiny speck of blue. Surely this could not be our trail? How were we supposed to get up onto the ledge? We could hardly be expected to climb up the rock wall, or could we? We could. Our fellow Canadian hikers tackled the climb without hesitation. The look of disbelief on our faces made way for an amazed grin: this was more like it! Trails in Canada were considerably more challenging and interesting than anything either of us had experienced in Germany!
[Later I learned that this 'challenging hike' was actually very easy for North American standards. The Adirondacks tooky should take my hiking experience to yet another level - not just above tree line!]