Original Goal Distance: 15-20 miles
Actual Distance: 26 miles
Big Island on Raquette Lake to Kelly's Point on Long Lake
Weather: 70s or 80s, sunny, tailwinds
Portages: 4
#1: .5 Raquette Lake to Forked Lake. Easily wheeled.
#2: 1.5 Forked Lake to Raquette River, wheelable along a gravel/dirt road. Easy, but seemed long.
#3: .1 around Buttermilk Falls (scenic and easy carry--more like the BWCA portages. Some roots and rocks. Long enough to make it worth unloading and reloading.)
#4: .6 around Class II rapids. Seemed runnable, after schlepping the first bag and canoe, but may have been bony. Did not scout entire area. People were using the same trail for tubing runs. Trail was wet in places and buggy. Not wheelable.
Random thought: Turns out both Sam and I were counting our steps as a way of zoning out during the longer portages. I got to 1000 faster than he did. Obviously, I walked more miles than he did.
Wildlife: Another deer visiting us early in the morning, great blue heron, loon, Canadian geese, ducks
Dinner: Cream of mushroom soup with gnocchi, rolls, oranges
Today we finished my original itinerary goal of three days, in two. Got up early--we heard the youth camp revelry's go off well after we were on the lake and as we were apparently approaching another one. (Dueling revelries. One camp apparently let their wards sleep in about 15 minutes later that the other.) Beautiful flat water all the way to the portage near the end of Outlet Bay.
Stopped at Tioga Point State Campground to look for water (no well) and saw that most of the sites/lean-tos were open and we could have camped there legally, had we known. (Although, that might have really pushed us too much for the first day.)
Found the portage take-out sign just adjacent to a private cabin as Outlet Bay narrowed where the gravel road took us to the Forked Lake put-in.
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| Portage sign from Outlet Bay on Raquette Lake to Forked Lake |
Loved Forked Lake. Not sure if it was due to it being the 5th and not the 4th or if there were just less motors and cottages, but this lake was much quieter than all of the others so far. Also felt more northern. More rocky outcrops.
Long Lake was long, but again, we had an excellent tail wind. Pontoon planes take off and land on it near the town of Long Lake. Still being the week of the 4th, the area was pretty busy and the airplane ride business seemed brisk. Was rather freaky being on the water with planes taking off overhead.
Knew we were shooting to stay somewhere on Long Lake and promised Sam we would stop at the Adirondack Hotel for a frosty beer. Got there around 4 pm and also ordered the calamari appetizer to tide us over. Was shooting for the first campsite on Caitlin Bay, but the lean-to was occupied, so we kept on going. The tent site there was spectacular, but we (I) thought we could get a lean to. Ended up paddling another 2-3 hours and ended up staying in an unofficial site adjacent to Kelly's Point. Several parties were already there (both lean-tos were occupied and a third tent was set-up nearby.) I really didn't trust setting up the tent in the grassy area behind the lean-tos which I suspect were being used as an outhouse.
Ended up with a beach campsite that had an outstanding view. Got dinner finished as the sun was going down. We pushed it today. Sam was a good sport about it.
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| The Adirondack Hotel in Long Lake, NY. |
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| Evidence that this campsite was being used, and not in the most hygienic way. |
