For Release: Thursday, August 27, 2009
8 Mile Reroute of Northville-Lake Placid Trail Completed
Changes Allow Exploration of a Vestige of Adirondack Park Forest Few Have Seen
A reroute of the Northville-Lake Placid Trail that moved the trail from Cedar River Road into the interior of the Blue Ridge Wilderness has been completed, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Regional Director Betsy Lowe announced today. The trail has been constructed, marked and is now open for public use.
"The renowned Northville-Lake Placid Trail was originally constructed by the Adirondack Mountain Club, and now their staff have completed this major reroute," said Betsy Lowe. "The trail crosses through the heart of the Adirondack Park, and is located almost entirely within the Adirondack Forest Preserve. The relocation of this segment of the trail from Cedar River Road into the Blue Ridge Wilderness will allow the public to explore a wild vestige of the original Adirondack forest that few people have seen."
The reroute work was completed by the Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK) professional trail crew, under a contract with DEC. The 132-mile Northville-Lake Placid Trail opened as a foot trail 85 years ago, after two years of construction by the Adirondack Mountain Club. A small ceremony to commemorate the opening of the new trail section was held today at Wakely Dam on the Cedar River and attended by DEC staff, ADK staff and members, Town of Indian Lake officials, and members of the public.
"The completion of the reroute helps DEC maintain the safety of trail users by moving them off a public road," said Barry Hutchins, Supervisor of the Town of Indian. "Congratulations to DEC for completing this very important addition to our Adirondack trail system."
Previously, the trail followed the Cedar River Road for 6.6 miles between Wakely Dam and the former McCane's Resort in the Town of Indian Lake, Hamilton County. The new trail section - eliminating all but 0.7 miles of road walking - has been located and constructed to afford an enjoyable hiking experience. Much of the new trail passes through magnificent old growth forest, with impressive specimens of sugar maple, yellow birch, hemlock and red spruce.
"Hikers will no longer have to make the tedious trek along a paved road, but will instead follow a well-designed trail through a wilderness forest from Cedar River Flow to Lake Durant," said ADK Executive Director Neil Woodworth. "This is not merely a major improvement to one of the nation's premier backpacking trails. This is also a new opportunity for hikers to discover one of the most beautiful landscapes in the Adirondack Park."
DEC contracted ADK for $62,000 to refine the trail route identified in the Blue Ridge Wilderness Unit Management Plan and construct the trail. The ADK professional trail crew worked for 10 weeks from late May through the middle of August. The trail is a model of how good trail layout and construction can protect the environment and minimize long-term maintenance costs. Only one foot bridge was required in the entire eight-mile reroute.
Five segments of the Northville-Lake Placid trail are on roads open to motor vehicles. A major DEC goal in the development of management plans for forest preserve units containing the trail is to relocate segments of the trail that are on roads into the woods. This is the first of the road-to-trail projects to be implemented. The new route will bypass private lands formerly known as McCane's Resort. At the request of the present landowner, the section of the trail through his land will be permanently closed to public use.
The trail now leaves Cedar River road just north of Wakely Pond, about 0.7 miles north of Wakely Dam, and enters the Moose River Plains Wild Forest. It travels northwestward along an interior road known as the Gould Road for about 1 mile. Then it proceeds northeastward approximately 6.6 miles through the Blue Ridge Wilderness to intersect the existing trail just south of Stephens Pond. Almost all of the 6.6-mile segment involved new trail construction, all done with hand tools.
The trail traverses a parcel of land formerly owned by Finch, Pruyn and Company and now owned by The Nature Conservancy (TNC). DEC is negotiating with TNC to add the parcel to the Forest Preserve.
The portion of the trail on the Gould Road is temporary. A future phase will construct a new route through the woods south of Wakely Dam, if conditions are suitable. In addition, the trail will be routed up the Wakely Mountain trail for about a mile, then northeastward along another arm of the Gould Road to the section of new trail construction. Once all construction is complete, the road walk along this part of the Northville Lake Placid Trail will be reduced from 7.8 miles to 0.3 miles.
