- Seven Carries
in the distance] .
The Seven Carries is an historic canoe route from
Paul Smith's Hotel to theSaranac Inn through what is now known as theSaint Regis Canoe Area in southernFranklin County, New York in theAdirondack Park . The route was famous with sportsmen and tourists from major east-coast cities from the late 1800s through the 1930s; interest has revived in recent years.The route is nine miles (14 km) long and crosses seven wilderness ponds and three lakes. It used to connect two popular Adirondack hotels— Paul Smith's Hotel, built in 1859 and burned in 1930, now the site of
Paul Smith's College , and the Saranac Inn, built in 1864 and burned in 1978, now the site of a public golf course and a small hamlet.From Saranac Inn, the route traditionally started via a horse-drawn wagon ride to Little Green Pond. Today, after a short drive over the Fish Hatchery Road from
NY-30 , one can put in on Little Green and then carry 220 yards (200 m) to Little Clear Pond, or put in directly on Little Clear. The paddle to the Saint Regis Pond carry is convert|1.5|mi|km. Little Clear is used by the State Fish Hatchery, and no fishing or camping is allowed. The carry from Little Clear toSaint Regis Pond is the longest of the trip, at convert|0.6|mi|km. At convert|400|acre|km2, Saint Regis Pond is the largest pond on the route, and is well worth exploring; the carry to Green Pond can be reached by a paddle of convert|1.2|mi|km.From Saint Regis Pond, it is a 200 yard (180 m) carry to Green Pond, which is only convert|0.2|mi|km wide. Next is a convert|0.15|mi|km|sing=on carry to one mile (1.6 km)-long Little Long Pond. A convert|0.15|mi|km|sing=on carry brings one to Bear Pond, which is only convert|0.4|mi|km wide. Finally, the two less than 100-yard (90 m) carries and an equally short paddle across Bog Pond (no longer in the Canoe Area) bring one to
Upper Saint Regis Lake , home of many AdirondackGreat Camps , includingCamp Topridge .Upper Saint Regis Lake connects to
Spitfire Lake andLower Saint Regis Lake , the site of Paul Smith's Hotel, three miles (5 km) from the end of the last carry. Alternatively, one can take out at the Saint Regis Carry in the southeast corner of Lower Saint Regis, convert|0.6|mi|km from the end of the last carryThere are campsites on Saint Regis, Green, Little Long, and Bear Ponds.
External links
* [http://www.adksportsfitness.com/back_issues/august2001/articles/paddling.html "Adirondack Sports and Fitness" - Wilderness Paddling in the St. Regis Canoe Area]
* [http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9505E7DC1F3EE733A25756C0A96E9C946797D6CF "New York Times", "SUNSHINE AND PICNICS.; A Combination Saranac Sojourners Are Playing to the Limit", last paragraph, August 5, 1906]
* [http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9E02EEDB173EE733A25755C2A96E9C946797D6CF "New York Times", "IT'S IN THE FAMILY.; Roosevelt's Eight-Year-Old Nephew Catches an 11-Pound Pike", fourth paragraph, August 26, 1906]
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