The Saint Regis Canoe Area in

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 ...

is the largest

wilderness 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 ...

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the ter ...

area 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 ...

and the only designated canoe area in New York state. It is closed to motorized vehicles. Among the 50 ponds (small lakes) and lakes are Upper Saint Regis Lake, part of the

Seven Carries The Seven Carries is an historic canoe route from Paul Smith's Hotel to the Saranac Inn through what is now known as the Saint Regis Canoe Area in southern Franklin County, New York in the Adirondack Park. The route was famous with sportsmen an ...

route, and Saint Regis Pond. It contains the headwaters of the West and Middle Branch of the Saint Regis and the

Saranac River Saranac River ( moh, Tsi ietsénhtha) is an river in the U.S. state of New York. In its upper reaches is a region of mostly flat water and lakes. The river has more than three dozen source lakes and ponds north of Upper Saranac Lake; the highest ...

s. Only two of the lakes can be reached without a

portage Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...

, or ''carry'' as it is known in the region. Primitive

canoe camping Canoe camping, also known as touring, tripping or expedition canoeing, is a combination of canoeing and camping. Like backpacking, canoe campers carry enough with them to travel and camp for several days, but do so via a canoe or kayak. Descri ...

is permitted on many of the lakes and ponds.

Saint Regis Mountain Saint Regis Mountain is a mountain in the town of Santa Clara, New York, in Franklin County at the center of the Saint Regis Canoe Area in the Adirondack Park. It can be climbed from a trailhead on Keese Mills Road in Keese Mill, west of Pau ...

and Long Pond Mountain are within the area. The area covers 18,400 acre (76 km²) in southern

Franklin County, New York Franklin County is a county on the northern border of the U.S. state of New York. To the north across the Canada–United States border are the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario, from east to west. As of the 2020 census, the county popula ...

between Tupper Lake and Paul Smiths.

References

{{Canoeing and kayaking Wilderness areas in Adirondack Park Canoeing and kayaking venues in the United States Protected areas of Franklin County, New York Paul Smiths, New York