by Bill Ingersoll
Published: January 2009
Cascade Pond is arguably the most scenic destination in the eastern Blue Ridge Wilderness. The outlet stream pours over the namesake cascade, and the view from the old lean-to site across Cascade Pond to Blue Ridge can be quite photogenic. A new lean-to stands in the coniferous woods to the east of the outlet. This is a fine destination for a relatively easy day trip or backpacking trip at almost any time of the year. In the winter, it excels as a snowshoe adventure.
Getting There
The trailhead is located on a gravel driveway on Durant Road, south of Blue Mountain Lake. The roadway is located 0.2-mile west of the eastern intersection of Durant Road and NY Route 28/30, next to a cemetery. The driveway passes the trailhead and reaches a point where boats may be launched on the lake. It is not plowed in winter, but the extra distance you have to walk to the trail is nominal.
Cascade Pond
From the winter parking area at the start of the driveway, follow the unplowed road for about 0.1-mile to the summer parking area. The red-marked trail leads right, just south of west, through a coniferous forest. It takes you in 0.7-mile (a 20-minute walk) to the long bridge over the channel connecting Lake Durant with Rock Pond. A steep pitch follows as you climb over the eastern tip of a long ridge nearly 200 feet above the level of the lake, followed by a quick descent into a small valley.
You cross the small stream flowing through the valley and begin to climb along its south bank. Tall hardwoods fill the valley. The grade gets briefly steep again as the trail pulls away from the stream and climbs towards a height-of-land, with a total ascent of about 275 feet from the valley’s bottom. This higher area is beautifully forested with layers of spruce, fir and hemlock.
At 2.2 miles, after an hour of hiking, the trail reaches an intersection with the bed of an old road. The red-marked trail to Cascade Pond bears left. The way right is an unmaintained route that DEC has proposed in a 2005 draft management plan to mark as an official trail. When constructed, it will connect with the trail to Wilson Pond.
Bearing left on the trail to Cascade Pond, you are now on a trail that is extraordinarily old, built in 1849 as a carriage road linking Eagle Lake with the Cedar River. Today, this section is a delightful walk through the spruce-filled woods to the north shore of the pond.
You approach the old lean-to site at 2.7 miles. Rock ledges near the water offer outstanding views, and the nearby outlet spills over its natural rock dam. Even though the lean-to no longer stands here, this is still an outstanding stopping point. On mild, sunny winter days this is the warmest spot on the pond.
A narrow log bridge carries hikers across the stream, and just as the trail seems to be leaving Cascade Pond a side trail leads right to the new lean-to, 2.8 miles and one-and-a-half hours from the winter trailhead. This is a shady, cool site nestled amidst the spruce and fir forest that surrounds Cascade Pond. It lacks the view of the old site, but it is not without its charms.
Bill Ingersoll of Barneveld is publisher of the Discover the Adirondacks guidebook series (hiketheadirondacks.com). For more on this region, consult Discover the West Central Adirondacks by Barbara McMartin and Bill Ingersoll.
