East Branch Sacandaga River Trail

By Rich Macha

The Siamese Ponds Wilderness comprises of 114,010 acres in the south-central Adirondacks. It offers many backcountry trails suitable for cross-country skiing. The East Branch trail is an 11.1-mile trail mostly on a historic stagecoach route that can be skied in and out from either end or as a through trip where a shuttle would be required. One advantage of in-and-out skiing is that you get to ski out in your own tracks which is usually easier than breaking trail. On the northeastern edge of the wilderness area is Garnet Hill Lodge which offers groomed skiing, so skiers staying in the area can do both groomed and ungroomed skiing in the region.

Most of the trails within the Siamese Ponds Wilderness are at elevations in the 1,500-2,000 feet range. The area is rugged. Although there are quite a few hulky massifs like Puffer Mountain (3,438 feet elevation), Bullhead Mountain, and Eleventh Mountain that can be seen from certain spots, many, like those mentioned, are trailless. Trails do go up Peaked, Balm of Gilead, and Chimney mountains.

Last winter, I joined a group of friends and skied from the Old Farm trailhead (43.5906°N, 74.0905°W) south to a lean-to on the Sacandaga River for a round-trip distance of 14 miles. Then, late last season, a couple of friends and I skied from the NY Route 8 trailhead (43.7066°N, 74.1168°W) going northwest to Diamond Brook and then followed the brook upstream for a couple of miles of off-trail travel.

The East Branch trail is like the spine of the wilderness area, with several ribs branching out from it on trails to other destinations, mainly ponds. The trail’s north trailhead is at the end of plowing on Old Farm Road in North River, and its southern trailhead is on Route 8, four miles west of Bakers Mills. I will describe the route from north to south. Junctions with several other trails are found along the way – our route, except for one instance, is usually straight ahead.

From the Old Farm parking area, it is 0.1-mile to the sign-in kiosk. A left turn here would put you on the loop route past Botheration Pond. The East Branch trail goes straight ahead on an easy wide trail over an old road. You soon pass the newly rerouted 0.3-mile Elizabeth Point trail to the shore of Thirteenth Lake; the old trail was often washed out and not the best for skiing.

Old Farm Clearing is then reached at 1.2 miles and if you search around you can find old foundations and walls. The other end of the Botheration Pond loop enters from the left. The outlet of Botheration Pond, Botheration Brook, actually becomes the East Branch Sacandaga River at some undetermined (that I can tell from looking at maps) spot nearby about a half-mile away and out of sight for the time being.

The Puffer Pond trail heads off to the west at the 1.3-mile mark. However, it is often wet, even in winter, so a new reroute can now be found 0.2 miles further south. Our trail continues going south losing a little elevation in the process.

At about the three-mile mark, some rollercoaster-like steeper ups and downs are encountered and are the biggest skiing challenges on the northern half of the trip. Successful descents often bring wide grins to skiers faces. Occasionally, you fall – it’s all part of the experience. The river then comes into view on the left, and the trail drops again and makes a sharp left turn to arrive at a footbridge over the river. This would be a good turn-around spot if you wish to keep the round-trip distance to under nine miles.

The trail is level for a while but has some dips in and out of frozen brooks. Big Shanty Flow can be seen through the open hardwood trees to the west. Last winter, fresh moose tracks followed the trail for about 200 yards! I have also seen moose tracks on two previous ski trips in the area to the east, around Bog Meadow and Second Pond Brook.

A right turn at a junction takes you the river and, soon after, reaches the Sacandaga lean-to. A nearby suspension bridge carries the Siamese Ponds trail across the river – the ponds are another 2.3 miles away and a 13-mile round-trip for those that start from Route 8.

From the lean-to, our trail closely follows the river’s east shore heading southeast. To the northeast, Diamond Mountain can be seen overlooking the river before Diamond Brook is crossed at the 9.5-mile mark. The area to the east was often traveled and hunted by Adirondack activist and Niskayuna resident Paul Schaefer several decades ago; his writings make for some interesting background reading, and I recommend them highly.

Our trail now gains 425 feet in the next mile as it goes over a shoulder of Eleventh Mountain, passing some rocky cliffs, and is fairly challenging going down in the other direction. After a short flatter section, the trail loses 250 feet in the final 0.5-mile in exciting fashion down to the Route 8 parking area. Hopefully, you will be graced with good snow conditions.

The East Branch trail is appropriate for intermediate skiers when snow conditions are good. Some folks have found certain sections to be steep enough to the point that climbing skins were useful on the longer climbs. The area usually has reliable snow cover most of the winter and many folks will ski at least part of the East Branch trail at some point of the season – the opportunities abound – give it a try.

A lover of wild places, Rich Macha has led many trips for the Adirondack Mountain Club and has spent 20 years in the paddle/snowsport business. For more of Rich’s adventures, visit: northeastwild.blogspot.com.