The Five Ponds
Wilderness Area
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
, an
Adirondack Park
The Adirondack Park is a part of New York's Forest Preserve in northeastern New York, United States. The park was established in 1892 for “the free use of all the people for their health and pleasure”, and for watershed protection. The park ...
unit of New York's
Forest Preserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...
, is located in the towns of
Fine
Fine may refer to:
Characters
* Sylvia Fine (''The Nanny''), Fran's mother on ''The Nanny''
* Officer Fine, a character in ''Tales from the Crypt'', played by Vincent Spano
Legal terms
* Fine (penalty), money to be paid as punishment for an offe ...
and
Clifton
Clifton may refer to:
People
*Clifton (surname)
*Clifton (given name)
Places
Australia
* Clifton, Queensland, a town
**Shire of Clifton
*Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong
*Clifton, Western Australia
Canada
*Clifton, Nova Scotia ...
in
St. Lawrence County, the town of
Webb
Webb most often refers to James Webb Space Telescope which is named after James E. Webb, second Administrator of NASA.
It may also refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Webb Glacier (South Georgia)
* Webb Glacier (Victoria Land)
*Webb Névé, Victoria ...
in
Herkimer County
Herkimer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 60,139. Its county seat is Herkimer. The county was created in 1791 north of the Mohawk River out of part of Montgomery County. It is named af ...
and the town of
Long Lake in
Hamilton County. It includes 1,064 acres (4.3 km
2) of private inholdings, 99 bodies of water covering 1,964 acres (7.9 km
2), 57.9 miles (93.2 km) of
trails
A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. The ...
, and 14
lean-to
A lean-to is a type of simple structure originally added to an existing building with the rafters "leaning" against another wall. Free-standing lean-to structures are generally used as shelters. One traditional type of lean-to is known by its Finn ...
s.
Geography
The area is bounded on the north by
Cranberry Lake
Cranberry Lake is a lake on the East branch of the Oswegatchie River in the Adirondack Park in New York in the United States. It is the third largest lake in the Adirondack Park (after Lake George and the Great Sacandaga Lake). About 75 percent ...
, a portion of the
Oswegatchie River
The Oswegatchie River ( moh, Kaniatarahòn:tsi) is a river in northern New York that flows from the Adirondack Mountains north to the Saint Lawrence River. The Oswegatchie River begins at Partlow Lake in Hamilton County, New York. The river co ...
, the road leading to
Inlet
An inlet is a (usually long and narrow) indentation of a shoreline, such as a small arm, bay, sound, fjord, lagoon or marsh, that leads to an enclosed larger body of water such as a lake, estuary, gulf or marginal sea.
Overview
In marine geogra ...
and private lands; on the east by the
Colton town line and private lands in the vicinity of Gull Lake, a road leading to Gull Lake and the
Remsen to
Lake Placid railroad; on the south by
Stillwater Reservoir
Stillwater Reservoir is a man-made lake located by Beaver River, New York within the Western Adirondacks. The lake has a large amount of recreational uses including camping, canoeing, boating, fishing, hunting, snowmobiling, and cross-country s ...
; on the southwest by the
Pepperbox Wilderness Area and on the west by the
Aldrich Pond Wild Forest Aldrich may refer to:
Places United States
*Aldrich, Alabama, unincorporated community
*Aldrich, Minnesota, city
*Aldrich Township, Wadena County, Minnesota
*Aldrich, Missouri, village
People
*Aldrich (surname), a surname (including a list of pe ...
and the
Watson East Triangle Wild Forest
Watson may refer to:
Companies
* Actavis, a pharmaceutical company formerly known as Watson Pharmaceuticals
* A.S. Watson Group, retail division of Hutchison Whampoa
* Thomas J. Watson Research Center, IBM research center
* Watson Systems, maker ...
. In the vicinity of Young's Road the wild forest and wilderness boundary is the Streeter Lake snowmobile trail. Land south and east of this boundary will be classified wilderness upon acquisition of inholdings.
The terrain is low, rolling and interspersed with many small ponds. Swamp areas and small brooks are numerous. The forest cover varies from pole-size hardwoods in the sections that were heavily logged and burned more than forty years ago to virgin pine and spruce stands.
Forest
This is one of the few locations in the
northeastern United States
The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...
where stands of
virgin timber
An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...
can be found. The Rich Lumber Company owned the land tract north of the St. Lawrence County line from 1903 to 1914. Although, some logging was done before 1903, the bulk of it occurred during this time period, when a railroad was put in to remove the large white pine logs. Part of Glasby Creek was not logged and some of the tall white pines still stand along the State Trail. The East Branch Oswegatchie on the parts across from High Rock still has very tall white pines, across it on an adjacent tract of state land, that was acquired by New York State in a tax sale in 1884.
Several fires burned large areas south of
Cranberry Lake
Cranberry Lake is a lake on the East branch of the Oswegatchie River in the Adirondack Park in New York in the United States. It is the third largest lake in the Adirondack Park (after Lake George and the Great Sacandaga Lake). About 75 percent ...
. The
blowdowns of 1950 and 1995 did considerably more damage. South of the St. Lawrence County Line was owned by
William Seward Webb
William Seward Webb (January 31, 1851 – October 29, 1926) was a businessman, and inspector general of the Vermont militia with the rank of colonel. He was a founder and former president of the Sons of the American Revolution.
Early life
Webb w ...
, and was never commercially lumbered; this area was sold to New York State in 1896. It holds the largest unlogged tract anywhere in the Eastern United States. It has been considerably damaged by both blowdowns, including over half of the esker at Five Ponds. The old growth pine and red spruce stand on the esker between Big Five, Little Five and Big Shallow, Little Shallow and Washbowl ponds is an example of this virgin timber.
Slightly south of the
St. Lawrence
Saint Lawrence or Laurence ( la, Laurentius, lit. " laurelled"; 31 December AD 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the persecution of the Christians that the Roma ...
-
Herkimer-
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
county marker stands what is (arguably) the largest virgin
White Pine
''Pinus'', the pines, is a genus of approximately 111 extant tree and shrub species. The genus is currently split into two subgenera: subgenus ''Pinus'' (hard pines), and subgenus ''Strobus'' (soft pines). Each of the subgenera have been further ...
in the
Adirondacks
The Adirondack Mountains (; a-də-RÄN-dak) form a massif in northeastern New York with boundaries that correspond roughly to those of Adirondack Park. They cover about 5,000 square miles (13,000 km2). The mountains form a roughly circular d ...
. Recent tree surveys have found one white pine standing at 144 feet tall, however, none over 150 feet tall have been found there yet. The virgin pine stand at Pine Ridge near the East Branch of the
Oswegatchie is another well known spot where examples of original growth timber may be seen. However, portions of the Pine Ridge stand were completely blown down in the 1950 hurricane. Most of the remainder of Pine Ridge was destroyed in the blowdown of 1995. The
Adirondack Park Agency Adirondack may refer to:
Places
*Adirondack Mountains, New York, US
**Adirondack Park, a protected area in the US, containing a large portion of the Adirondack Mountains
* Adirondack County, New York, a proposed county in New York
* Adirondack, Ne ...
ruled to leave the downed timber untouched. Camp Johnny, a nearby rise of land and popular camping spot remained untouched. There is extreme blowdown in the Cat Mountain area and in the very remote and nearly untraveled Riley Ponds section of the Five Ponds Wilderness Area.
Extremely difficult traveling conditions remain, where crisscrossing blowdown exists, with bushes, small trees and
witch-hobble grown up through. The Toad Pond area, on the very remote Robinson River area, has piles of Spruce blowdown. Not all areas have this extreme of blowdown— the southern portion of the Five Ponds Wilderness on the Red Horse Chain of Lakes (Salmon Lake, Witchopple Lake, and Clear Lake) has much of the forest in the valley areas still intact. Many white pines are standing on the Red Horse Creek, where the State Trail follows, forming a kind of double canopy in places. Very large Yellow Birch and Black Cherries can be found in places, near Clear Lake on Covey Pond Hill. Most of the large spruce around Mud Pond and the Clear Lake area have died off or have been blown down. One, on the northwest side of Clear Lake is over one hundred feet tall.
There are places that are seldom travelled, especially southeast of Sand Lake, west of Crooked Lake, and north of the Middle Branch of the Oswegatchie River. A large Carpet Spruce swamp exists in this area, intermixed with blowdown and rocks. The Middle Branch of the Oswegatchie, west of Willy's Lake and north of a private inholding at Bear Pond is not canoeable.
Recreation
![The Plains Five Ponds Wilderness](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/The_Plains_Five_Ponds_Wilderness.jpg)
In addition to these spots, other points of interest to the hiker, camper and fisherman are:
High Falls on the Oswegatchie River; Alder Bed Flow on the Middle Branch of the
Oswegatchie River
The Oswegatchie River ( moh, Kaniatarahòn:tsi) is a river in northern New York that flows from the Adirondack Mountains north to the Saint Lawrence River. The Oswegatchie River begins at Partlow Lake in Hamilton County, New York. The river co ...
;
Cat Mountain; Sand Lake; Wolf Pond;
Big Deer Pond
Big Deer Pond in Hamilton County, New York is located approximately 1.5 west of Lows Lake in the Five Ponds Wilderness Area and the Adirondacks "Bob Marshall Wilderness" area (there is another in Montana). It serves as a 1/2 mile water-portage ...
; Nicks Pond; "The Plains," which are very similar in soil and cover type to that of the
Moose River Plains; and the numerous, clear, spring-fed ponds, most of which support brook trout.
Fishing
The East Branch of the Oswegatchie River was long considered the top
brook trout
The brook trout (''Salvelinus fontinalis'') is a species of freshwater fish in the char genus ''Salvelinus'' of the salmon family Salmonidae. It is native to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada, but has been introduced elsewhere ...
stream in the state, with catches of three to four pound brook trout common during the summer months. This distinction was lost when
northern pike
The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus '' Esox'' (the pikes). They are typical of brackish and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). They are known simply as a ...
were apparently introduced accidentally or otherwise into Cranberry Lake several years ago, with adverse impacts to the brook trout population. At the present time, the area is popular with hunters and fishermen who frequent the interior ponds.
Canoeing
The East Branch of the Oswegatchie is a fine
canoeing
Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. Common meanings of the term are limited to when the canoeing is the central purpose of the activity. Broader meanings include when it is combined with other acti ...
stream and is used as such to reach interior wilderness points of interest. The river has received increasing use in recent years and care must be taken that such use does not result in resource degradation. There is a 3.5 mile canoe carry at approximately 18 miles upstream that leads the traveler to
Lows Lake via
Big Deer Pond
Big Deer Pond in Hamilton County, New York is located approximately 1.5 west of Lows Lake in the Five Ponds Wilderness Area and the Adirondacks "Bob Marshall Wilderness" area (there is another in Montana). It serves as a 1/2 mile water-portage ...
. The existing lean-tos on the river will be phased out and ultimately replaced by primitive tent sites. There is also a canoe carry from Chair Rock Creeks' inlet on Cranberry Lake to Grass Pond on Lows Lake
Public access
The Five Ponds area is accessible to the public from the north and also from the south if one has a boat or canoe, from the east from the vicinity of
Lake Lila
Lake Lila is a remote lake in the William C. Whitney Wilderness Area, in the west-central portion of the Adirondack Park. It is accessed via a dirt road. Boat access to the lake is by hand-launch only, after a portage from the parking lot.
I ...
in the
William C. Whitney Wilderness Area
The William C. Whitney Wilderness Area, an Adirondack Park unit of New York's Forest Preserve, is located in the town of Long Lake, Hamilton County. It is bounded on the east by Hamilton County Route 10, on the south by lands of Whitney Industr ...
and along the Remsen to Lake Placid railroad. The area can also be reached from the southwest via the Raven Lake primitive corridor, and from the east, by boat or canoe, via the
Bog River
The Bog River, also called the Bog River Flow is a river that originates near the sources of the Oswegatchie River, in Hamilton County, New York in the Adirondacks, and flows through Lows Lake and Hitchens Pond, ending at the Bog River Falls at ...
/
Lows Lake tract. The western boundary in Herkimer County is accessible from the Bear Pond Road in the Aldrich Pond Wild Forest.
See also
{{commonscat
*
List of Wilderness Areas in the Adirondack Park
The Adirondack Park is a part of New York's Forest Preserve in northeastern New York, United States. The park was established in 1892 for “the free use of all the people for their health and pleasure”, and for watershed protection. The park' ...
References
* Adirondack Park Agency
"Adirondack State Land Master Plan" Updated 2001.
Wilderness areas in Adirondack Park
Protected areas of Hamilton County, New York
Protected areas of Herkimer County, New York
Protected areas of St. Lawrence County, New York
Old-growth forests