The portion of the Adirondacks containing the Five Ponds Wilderness, Cranberry Lake Wild Forest, Cranberry Lake, and adjacent Forest Preserve lands provide some of the best hiking, paddling, fishing, skiing and camping experiences available in the northeastern United States. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's (DEC) Five Ponds Wilderness Unit Management Plan adopted in 1994 proposed improving the area with additional trails to provide a way to hike a 50-mile loop around the lake. This circumnavigation would give hikers an opportunity to experience lakeside views, deep forests, backcountry ponds and diverse wildlife, as well as peaceful campsites, nostalgic lean-tos, and the fading signs of the area's rich logging, milling and tourism history. Through the cooperative efforts of DEC, the Adirondack Park Agency (APA), the Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK), the SUNY-ESF Ranger School, and many volunteers, including the Five Ponds Partners, the route is now open for use.

  Above all, the new loop trail, dubbed “The Cranberry Lake 50,” was developed to encourage people to explore and enjoy the expansive natural scenery of the Cranberry Lake region.  As one former explorer of the area, Bob Marshall, put it, such wild scenery “was similar to great works of art.”  And when he further noted in 1930 that “Wilderness furnishes perhaps the best opportunity for pure aesthetic rapture,” he was surely referring to places like Cranberry Lake.  Although the Cranberry Lake 50 promises to be a pleasant adventure in itself, alternative entry points are possible and extended side trips will tempt the visitor.  For example, traditional hiking trails can be combined with a suggested bike link along NYS Route 3, from the parking lot at the Peavine Swamp trailhead west of Cranberry Lake, through the hamlet of Cranberry Lake, to the parking lot at Burntbridge Pond trailhead east of Cranberry Lake.  The loop can be started in Wanakena, at the DEC campground in Cranberry Lake, or from either of the parking lots previously mentioned.  For those with boat access, other options are available that combine travel by boat and foot.  A close look at the attached map should reveal several possibilities for dividing the route into reasonable distances based on time, interest, season, and preferred mode of travel.  When you have finished the loop we hope that you will display The Cranberry Lake 50 patch and share your experience with others.  Enjoy!

 For a downloadable complete trail descriptions click here.