By QINA LIU
qliu@bizjournals.com | 716-541-1613

The Adirondacks have always been a special place for Judge Ralph Boniello III of the 8th Judicial District.

When he was growing up, his father often took the family there. Boniello rediscovered the region in the late 1990s when a friend introduced him to his first "high peak" - that is, Adirondacks mountains  higher than 4,000 feet. Once he conquered Algonquin Peak in September 1998, he said he was hooked.

"I didn't know I was going to do all 46 at the time. This was my first one, and I thought I would do just one and get it over with," he said.  

Boniello has climbed 25 high peaks so far, including Mount Marcy, Mount Skylight, Whiteface Mountain, Rocky Peak Ridge, Big Slide Mountain, Esther Mountain, Sawteeth, Phelps Mountain, Upper Wolfjaw Mountain and Lower Wolfjaw Mountain.

The Adirondacks have 46 high peaks, and Boniello said his goal is to do all of them at least once.

"It's kind of become a mission now to get my 46 done," he said.

The goal is to finish within the next five years. He plans to do five between now and early fall and several more this winter.  

"The ideal thing is when you're up there, you do as many as you can before you come back down," he said.

The best way to prepare for a hike? Just climb, he said, adding that he stays in shape during the year by running and lifting weights.

"It's kind of an endurance thing. Generally, the hikes are about nine or 10 miles round-trip," he said. "Usually you have to walk in a mile or two before you get to the base of the mountain, and the next two or three miles are up and down and two miles out."

Boniello said he makes sure he has the necessary materials, just in case he has to spend a night in the woods. Proper clothing and gear for any weather are a must.

"When you're walking 13 to 15 miles and you're carrying 40 pounds on your back, it's tiring. But you've got to do it because you don't know what conditions you will have," he said.

Including the six-hour drive to the Adirondacks, a hiking trip usually takes an entire weekend, according to Boniello. At the annual judges' conference last year at Lake Placid, he led a group of 12 people up to and down from a high peak.

At nearly 6 million acres, Adirondacks Park is the size of the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone, Glacier and the Great Smoky Mountains national parks combined. Approximately 130,000 permanent residents live in the area, which also attracts 130,000 seasonal residents.

"The Adirondacks is a real treasure that a lot of people in Western New York just don't take advantage of," Boniello said. "In my opinion, it's one of the most beautiful places in the world."

Elected in 2000 when he was 56, he is serving his 11th year as justice of Niagara County Supreme Court.

He said he has seen firsthand how budget constraints have affected the court system. Due to an early-retirement incentive implemented last fall, he said nearly 50 percent of Niagara County Supreme Court staff left. Hardly any of those positions have been replaced. There have been no raises or overtime pay, and an increased workflow has decreased morale among judges, he added.

"They took too much money out of the court budget this year, and I don't see them replacing it next year," he said.

"New York is in some tough financial constraints, but it's kind of like cutting off your nose to spite your face."