Lake Colden is a

lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

located in the

Adirondack High Peaks The Adirondack High Peaks are a set of 46 mountain peaks in the Adirondack Mountains of New York (state), New York state. They have been popular hiking destinations since the late 1920s, when the list of peaks was published in Russell Carson's bo ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, United States. Lake Colden sits at at the western base of

Mount Colden Mount Colden is a mountain in the Adirondacks in the U.S. state of New York. It is the eleventh-highest peak in New York, with an elevation of , and one of the 46 High Peaks in Adirondack Park. It is located in the town of Keene in Essex Coun ...

. To the northwest lie the MacIntyre Mountains—

Algonquin Peak Algonquin Peak is a mountain in the MacIntyre Range of the Adirondacks in the U.S. state of New York. It is the second-highest mountain in New York, with an elevation of , and one of the 46 Adirondack High Peaks. It is located in the town of N ...

(the second highest mountain in the state), Boundary Peak,

Iroquois Peak Iroquois Peak is a mountain in the MacIntyre Range of the Adirondacks in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is the eighth-highest peak in New York, with an elevation of , and one of the 46 Adirondack High Peaks, High Peaks in Adiro ...

and Mount Marshall.

Mount Marcy Mount Marcy is the highest point in the Adirondack Mountains and the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, with an elevation of . It is located in the town of Keene, New York, Keene in Essex County, New York, Essex County. The mountain is ...

is to the east. Lake Colden is fed by Avalanche Lake, to the northeast and in turn feeds Flowed Lands, to the southwest. Being in the heart of the High Peaks, the area is very popular with hikers. The

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (informally referred to as NYSDEC, DEC, EnCon or NYSENCON) is a department of New York state government. The department guides and regulates the conservation, improvement, and protecti ...

maintains an Interior Outpost on the western shore. There are a number of campsites and

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 structures open on one or more sides (colloquially referred to as lean-tos in spite of being unattac ...

s in the area. Lake Colden was named after David C. Colden in 1836; Colden was an investor in the Tahawus iron works of Archibald MacIntyre.McMartin, Barbara and Bill Ingersoll, ''Discover the Adirondack High Peaks'', Canada Lake, NY: Lake View Press, 1989. .

Images

File:Joel Tyler Headley Lake Colden 1859.JPG, Mt. Colden, Caribou Mt., and Lake Colden as seen from the southwest. From Joel Tyler Headley's ''The Adirondack; or Life in the Woods'' (1849) File:Lake Colden, Adirondack High Peaks, near the Interior Outpost.jpg, Lake Colden from the Interior Outpost. Cliff Mountain, center; a

is just visible at left.

References

{{authority control Colden Adirondack Park Colden