Nehasane

Our first stop on our route north was the trailhead to Bald (Rondaxe) Mountain, just north of Old Forge. The guidebook told us that it was the easiest hike for the greatest reward. After a mile with teaser views along the way, we found the fire tower with families picnicking around it. We enjoyed the views of the Fulton chain and Little Moose Lake in the distance.

The Tamarack Café was our destination for hot turkey sandwiches in Inlet. We decided that gravy was nature’s most perfect food.

Our real destination for the next few days would be Lake Lila – a lake that we have been hearing about from friends and family for our whole lives. The road to the lake access was marked with “15mph” and we were not able to come close while avoiding the ruts, potholes, boulders and grand canyons along the way.

After a brief carry, we were on one of the most magnificent and pristine lakes in the Adirondack Park. Until 1979, it had one great camp on its shore, “Nehasane,” which belonged to the Webb family. The camp was burned when New York acquired the land and it became the largest lake in the park with an entirely state-owned shoreline.

We followed the northern shore and found a campsite on a promontory with a rocky shore that reminded us of the Maine coastline. After pasta for dinner, we watched the lake while the sun got lower. Eventually we went to bed.

The next morning we were excited to explore the lake. Once our kayaks hit the water, we felt that we were seeing the Adirondacks in its primeval. With campsites set back from the shore, and no buoys necessary due to the motor restrictions, there was little sign on human activity.

To get a higher perspective of the lake, we paddled to the trailhead to Fredrica Mountain. Despite some deer flies chasing us, we sat and enjoyed the view from the rocky summit and snacked on granola bars. Oddly enough, the same deer flies found us on the descent…

For the rest of the day we meandered around the shoreline with a brief paddle down the Beaver River. We snacked and lounged in the sun. When we got back to our campsite, we played cards on our rocks and went to bed early.

The next morning we packed up our gear and after two treks up the trail (one for gear, one for kayaks) we headed to Little Tupper Lake. We got a short paddle in, but thunderstorms seemed to be brewing around us, so we’ll have to come back to experience the rest of the lake.

We’re off to Wadhams for some fiddling and then we’re Schroon Lake bound on Thursday for a much different camping experience.