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Short Trip in the St. Regis Canoe Area, Adirondacks

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Brewster, New York
This past week I spent a few nights in the SRCA. I first camped at Long Pond and then went up into the back ponds - Bessie, Nellie, Kit Fox, Little Long and Little Fish. Weather was great the entire time, just one brief shower early in the morning of my last day. Lots of solitude and quiet - I saw no one when I was in the back ponds and only a couple of other people on Long Pond.
 

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Thanks for posting . I have been planning a trip to the Adirondacks in a few weeks and was holding off because of the stories I have been hearing about the crowds .
 
Thanks for the pics. I was up there this spring, went in from Little Clear and Carted up the road from St Regis to Fish. There were a lot of fishermen on St Regis, no one on Fish. Three days of solitude.
 
On both the drive in and out, all the trail head parking areas for the high peaks were full, on a Thursday and a Tuesday. There were 4 cars in the Long Pond parking area when I arrived at 10 am and while I was unloading two loaded up and left. Some of the sites on Floodwood Road were occupied, but not all. From what I have seen this summer, the High Peaks, Pharaoh Lake Wilderness, Little Tupper/Round Lakes and Bog River/Lows have been the crowded places. As one outfitter told me, "Every day has been a Saturday." Last year I went to the Cedar River Flow over Labor Day weekend and there were only two others camped there. From what I have seen this summer, I am not sure I would attempt it this year.
 
Thanks for the pics. I was up there this spring, went in from Little Clear and Carted up the road from St Regis to Fish. There were a lot of fishermen on St Regis, no one on Fish. Three days of solitude.

Like you, I felt fortunate to get a few days of quiet and solitude.
 
Great pictures! Thanks for sharing! I haven’t paddled the ADKS yet but was thinking about taking a closer look and planning a trip sometime in October. What are the crowds like in the DAKS during October? I am not one for bumping into crowds when in search of solitude so a heads up would be appreciated. Once again, thanks for sharing your trip.
 
Hi dcloots. I have been paddling the ADKs for 40+ years and as others have said, this year is like no other. One friend up there who has been an outfitter for nearly 30 years told me recently, 'Every day is a Saturday." That being said, I have always enjoyed October because there are fewer people encountered with the possible exception of Columbus Day weekend in the more popular spots. However, I would expect those encounters to be at the put-in, as even at popular sites such as the Bog River/Lows Lake, Little Tupper Lake, Lake Lila, the Oswegatchie River and the Cedar River Flow, campsites are dispersed, enabling one to get separation. I think the key to getting the prime sites is to arrive early and if possible, mid-week. Colder temps and less than ideal weather will decrease the numbers. Add a significant carry (the ADK term for a portage) to a trip and you further decrease the numbers. The St. Regis Canoe Area is a unique location; it is the only one of it's kind so it draws a lot of attention. An outfitter has an outpost right in the heart of it, so that also draws a lot of visitors to it. As opposed to places like Little Tupper Lake and Bog River/Lows Lake, some of the bodies of water in the SRCA are smaller, so the campsites are closer together, bringing about more encounters. Of course there are visitors who lack or forget etiquette; on a visit to Long Pond this summer, I had people fishing just offshore from my campsite very early in the morning (just after sunrise), talking loudly and banging their paddles on the canoe as moved about when I was still asleep in my hammock. Likewise, on that trip, two people were out cruising the shoreline in their solo boats around 6:30 am and again talking loudly. That is something that I have had happen in SRCA and not at places like Little Tupper or Lows Lake if I choose a campsite that is not on the route in/out of the area. My practice is to try to camp at different sites each trip anyway, so that in and of itself gets me away from the more popular sites. However, there have been times where I have gone to these popular sites and been presently surprised by how few vehicles there are in the parking area. BTW, I really enjoy your videos. I watch them all the time. Keep them coming. Happy paddling!
 
I'm headed up there in October, mid week... usually not so bad after labor day, even more 'not so bad' after columbus day...

thanks for the 'taste' in pics.
 
I am going to try to do the same in October. It will have to be a weekend, but I am going to try to avoid Columbus Day and instead add a personal day onto another weekend. I have to get over a problem with a knee first though...Happy Paddling!
 
Hi dcloots. I have been paddling the ADKs for 40+ years and as others have said, this year is like no other. One friend up there who has been an outfitter for nearly 30 years told me recently, 'Every day is a Saturday." That being said, I have always enjoyed October because there are fewer people encountered with the possible exception of Columbus Day weekend in the more popular spots. However, I would expect those encounters to be at the put-in, as even at popular sites such as the Bog River/Lows Lake, Little Tupper Lake, Lake Lila, the Oswegatchie River and the Cedar River Flow, campsites are dispersed, enabling one to get separation. I think the key to getting the prime sites is to arrive early and if possible, mid-week. Colder temps and less than ideal weather will decrease the numbers. Add a significant carry (the ADK term for a portage) to a trip and you further decrease the numbers. The St. Regis Canoe Area is a unique location; it is the only one of it's kind so it draws a lot of attention. An outfitter has an outpost right in the heart of it, so that also draws a lot of visitors to it. As opposed to places like Little Tupper Lake and Bog River/Lows Lake, some of the bodies of water in the SRCA are smaller, so the campsites are closer together, bringing about more encounters. Of course there are visitors who lack or forget etiquette; on a visit to Long Pond this summer, I had people fishing just offshore from my campsite very early in the morning (just after sunrise), talking loudly and banging their paddles on the canoe as moved about when I was still asleep in my hammock. Likewise, on that trip, two people were out cruising the shoreline in their solo boats around 6:30 am and again talking loudly. That is something that I have had happen in SRCA and not at places like Little Tupper or Lows Lake if I choose a campsite that is not on the route in/out of the area. My practice is to try to camp at different sites each trip anyway, so that in and of itself gets me away from the more popular sites. However, there have been times where I have gone to these popular sites and been presently surprised by how few vehicles there are in the parking area. BTW, I really enjoy your videos. I watch them all the time. Keep them coming. Happy paddling!

Really appreciate your response. My apologies for your quick response and my lack of responding to you. I just recently completed a loop trip in Maine and another video will be out shortly. I appreciate you following along with the videos and especially pleased that you enjoy them! I may have tapped out on my last trip with green lights granted by the wife but your detail as to the crowd conditions has given me a solid base to build on. I may still have a slight chance to drift off on another adventure but I am not counting on it. I will bookmark this post as very useful information for future planning. Thanks again for responding. Greatly appreciated.
 
Mr loots (or is it cloots?),

If you're looking for fewer people, take a look at these two trip reports in these links.

https://adkforum.com/showthread.php?t=19402&highlight=chain

https://adkforum.com/showthread.php?t=23215&highlight=chain

Depending on your taste for adventure (and suffering) there are a few loop routes and through trips that incorporate the Chain Drain. It is an underused part of the ADK's.

It is Cloots. I have breezed through your links which I will need to find more time to sink my teeth into. I just suffered on my last trip (returned yesterday) so I am still willing to do some minor suffering but getting close to 50 years old I am realizing that I am not 21 any longer. Thanks for the links and I will certainly dig into them.
 
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