The village of Saranac Lake has two new boat racks at key access points on Lake Flower, providing local users and thru-paddlers with valuable infrastructure.

The new racks were constructed by the Northern Forest Canoe Trail’s professional stewardship crew and installed with support from the village’s Department of Public Works. The project was funded in part with a grant from Explore Adirondack Frontier.

“Saranac Lake is a key trail town for the Northern Forest Canoe Trail,” said NFCT Stewardship Director Noah Pollock. “This community is known for its paddling opportunities and plays host to the popular ‘Round the Mountain Canoe and Kayak Race and is the finish line for the Adirondack Canoe Classic. With such a lively paddling scene, we felt it was important to enhance infrastructure for both locals and visitors.”

Both racks are strategically located: one near the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation boat launch at Riverfront Park, and another at the NFCT takeout above the Lake Flower Dam.

“The rack at Riverfront Park allows paddlers to store their boats so they can stock up at nearby businesses, and the other provides a convenient location for those looking to get to the village’s downtown,” Pollock said. “We’re grateful to the village for making this project so easy — in particular, Andy Testo and the public parks crew helped prepare the sites so we could install the boat racks safely.”

As the only dedicated water trail crew in the Northeast, the NFCT’s stewardship crew specializes in projects at the interface of land and water, including campsites, portage trails and access points. To learn more about the NFCT’s stewardship work, contact Noah Pollock at noah@northernforestcanoetrail.org or visit northernforestcanoetrail.org.

About the Northern Forest Canoe Trail

The Northern Forest Canoe Trail is a nonprofit organization that maintains and promotes the 740-mile water trail that runs from Old Forge, NY, to Fort Kent, Maine, and connects New York, Vermont, Quebec, New Hampshire and Maine. The trail showcases the mix of landscapes and communities currently lining the traditional routes used by Indigenous peoples, settlers and guides. It is the longest in-land water trail in the nation and consists of 23 rivers and streams, 59 lakes and ponds, 45 communities and 65 portages. To learn more, visit northernforestcanoetrail.org.