A return of Log Bay Day? Police agencies prepare as rumors swirl

PHOTOGRAPHER: Ethan Travis

Had Log Bay Day not been banned this year, it would’ve gone off Monday, but all was quiet then.

Some supporters of Log Bay Day want to bring the annual celebration back before the summer ends — and parks and law enforcement officials are prepared to respond.

Dave Wick, executive director of the Lake George Park Commission, said he has heard rumors of people trying to reschedule the event for Saturday, Sunday or even Tuesday.

“There’s just some random things out there on Facebook from diehards that want to find a way to reschedule it, but we haven’t seen anything that organized so far,” he said.

Wick said he talked to Warren County Sheriff Bud York about the possibility.

“We’re just looking at having an aggressive patrol presence in that area” if an event resembling Log Bay Day is brought to any part of the lake, he said.

The summertime party was banned following the death last summer of an 8-year-old California girl. Charlotte McCue was killed the night of July 25, 2016, when Alexander West drove his powerboat into an antique Gar Wood driven by McCue’s grandfather. He had spent the day drinking and doing drugs at Log Bay Day, witnesses testified at West’s trial. The Lake George man was sentenced in June to five to 15 years in prison for second-degree manslaughter.

Had the annual party not been banned this year, it would’ve gone off Monday. A unified effort by the park commission and law enforcement agencies made the area of Shelving Rock Bay and Log Bay in Fort Ann unfriendly to partiers, who stayed away. Patrols were boosted on and around the lake.

Wick said he anticipated that some people might try to bring back the all-day party, which formed 20 years ago as a small gathering of hospitality workers and grew exponentially. The possible reprisal was discussed during a year of meetings with law enforcement agencies and the state Department of Environmental Conservation on how to put an end to the event, he said.

“Several contacts reached out to us and said there are several fairly weak attempts at reorganizing something for Log Bay Day, and we’re gonna stay on top of it and make sure nothing like that happens again,” he said.