A Long Walk Around Cranberry Lake

 

Amos crossing the Oswegatchie River on the Wanakena footbridge

I have spent the last 10 days wonderstruck, immersed the forests and tiny towns of this region. We've done some driving from here to there, but mostly we've been walking. Despite this slow means of travel, and the fact that my attention is almost always here and now, I am still very aware of how little I know this place. We are just dipping our toes in its plentiful lakes, deep woods, and unique culture. 

To bring you up to speed, after completing the 22-mile French Louie loop, which incorporates small pieces of the Northville Placid and North Country Trails, we cruised over to the Black River Wild Forest. There we did an overnight, hiking from the Bear Creek trailhead to Chub Pond, looping over to Gull Pond the next day and back to the car. We stayed at Chub Pond lean-to #2, which provided an epic view of the very large pond (ponds are the size of lakes out here and lakes, well, they are really big). But the real magic was happening on shore. I had the opportunity to watch a clutch of snapping turtle hatchlings take their first steps. Furtively, peeking out of a hole, one by one, where surely they had just left their eggs, walk, waddle, and tumble down to the water, where each one, glided in. I wished them a good life, all seven that I got to witness.

View from Chub Pond lean-to #2

a baby snapping turtle taking their first swim

That evening, rain was predicted so I procured us a Hipcamp in Barneveld, NY at West Canada Creek Farm. Wow, this place was a gem! We rented a little screenhouse for the night, nestled on the edge of expansive hayfields and the wide creek. I set up our tent inside to ensure that Amos felt at home, and he took to it immediately. I learned many hikes ago, to avoid renting motel rooms at all costs. Amos is happy if the surroundings are quiet and resembles sleeping on the trail as much as possible. This screenhouse fit the bill. We liked it so much, we stayed a second night. Plus, Chris and Heather the owners knew the region's trails well, having hiked many of them. It was lots of fun talking trail and they had really helpful insights to share about our upcoming adventure.

Amos at the screenhouse at West Canada Creek Farm

And what an adventure it has been! And still is. We are in progress, taking a rain day at another sweet Hipcamp. I'll be sure to share that one in the next post. So far, we have completed 40 miles of the Cranberry 50 trail. The Cranberry 50 (CL50) is as, you guessed it, a 50-mile trail, that encircles Cranberry Lake. Cranberry Lake is the third largest lake in the Adirondacks and is shaped kind of like an octopus, with a wide center and many arms. These arms are called "flows," which are basically shallow, marshy sections of the lake. Cranberry Lake was once a smaller lake surrounded by cranberry bogs. In the mid-1800's, a dam was built on the Oswegatchie River (to benefit the logging industry), that expanded the lake, essentially creating these flows. Oswegatchie is pronounced Osh-we-gosh-ee (gathered that knowledge at the farm too). The trail travels loosely around the perimeter, at times venturing miles from the shore, but frequently returning the hiker to a flow for camp. 

The tiny village of Wanakena is the hub for the Cranberry 50

We began our trek in the tiny, incredibly charming, village of Wanakena. There's not much here by way of businesses, but my goodness, this li'l place sure welcomes the hiker. I was delighted to come into town and find Otto's Abode. It was sadly closed for renovations, but I could tell that Otto's was one cool place. It shared a historic building with the post office. Out front, a human-sized moose character greeted us, inviting us onto a porch with comfy chairs for sitting and a library of books to "borrow and return". Across the street from Otto's was a park, which had a pavilion (with outlets), a fire ring with Adirondack chairs, firewood, a spigot, croquet, and the most delightful bathroom I have experienced the whole trail. Mind you, I have used a lot of outhouses, but this was really a well-cared-for bathroom. A large round sign shaped like a trail marker announced a trailhead for the Cranberry 50. 

In the center of "downtown" Wanakena

Greeted by the only moose I've seen yet!

However, we did not start here. Instead, we crossed the Oswegatchie River by car and parked near the trailhead for the Janack's Landing trail. By hiking this trail into the loop, we effectively portioned the Cranberry 50 into a 40-mile section and a 15-mile section. So, when we're done, we will have hiked 55 miles! We reached the CL50-proper in a couple hours and spent our first night at Glasby Pond. Unfortunately, I am again limited on photos to share on the blog, given that my phone requires syncing with the internet to download photos to the cloud. Ah, tech. Therefore, rather than take you through each day via text alone, I'll share the highlights. 

One of the many bridges on the Cranberry 50

The path itself has been a joy to walk. We have been traveling counterclockwise and essentially started with the more challenging portion of the loop. However, even this more "rugged" section was gently rolling. Fern-capped boulders sat sentinel in the woods. Yellow birch and eastern hemlock towered. Beech was ever-present. Scarlet swamp maple leaves sometimes carpeted the soil underfoot, by the end of our week, golden sugar maple and coppery beech leaves did too. They were a couple of tricky creek crossings with Amos given precarious boulders, but most creeks were bridged, and mud was, given what I've seen on other trails, minimal. With the exception of some blowdowns along the Otter Creek Trail (one of the many shorter trails that the CL50 uses), maintenance was excellent. Even there, had I not been navigating them with Amos, they wouldn't have been so troublesome. 

Campsite by Brandy Flow

Given our humble daily mileage, we didn't always hit the primo campsites, but there were plenty to be had along the trail. Our favorite was one along Brandy flow. We had this spacious site all to ourselves. In fact, we had every camp all to ourselves! It was high and dry and sunny. Loons called late in the afternoon and in the morning we were greeted by a woodpecker knock-knocking away at the tree over our tent. Amos enjoyed taking a dip whenever he pleased and I enjoyed sunning on a large boulder in the water. Come to think of it, Amos enjoyed taking a dip in a lot of places along this trail.

Amos wild and free in East Inlet

The sunsets and early mornings (I don't get up early enough for sunrise) were spectacular. The quiet of this trail, too, was remarkable. Although, unlike the French Louie, there were nights I heard crickets and barred owls and screech owls too. 

Sunset on Cranberry Lake

With the exception of Friday, which was exceptionally lovely with 70-degree temps, and we were within miles of the town of Cranberry Lake, we only saw six hikers the whole time, three and two were in groups, and four out of six were women! Oh, and whatever you do, don't ask Amos about the town of Cranberry Lake. 

The General Store in Cranberry Lake

Aside from Wanakena, the only other town the CL50 goes through in Cranberry Lake. Cranberry Lake is also a pretty quiet place. However, the cars move fast on Route 3, and there are many residences that line the road (even if most seemed uninhabited this time of year). I stopped at the one general store in town to procure a cold soda and to fill our water reserves. Amos was in a panic, eager to get back to the trail as fast as possible, which put me in a panic too. But, we made it through with a quick 15-minute stop. One and a half miles later we were back in the woods. Whew!

Yesterday afternoon, we walked the suspension bridge into Wanakena. What a feeling! We'd done it - the biggest trek of our amble. We'd spent nearly a full week in the woods hiking those 40 miles. 24 of them we'd completed over the last 3 days. We'd gained speed and confidence, but most importantly, we let the beauty of these woods seep into our bones. I was grateful for a primitive campsite right in the town of Wanakena that night. Doesn't get easier than that. We celebrated with a 10-minute drive up to Star Lake where I procured cheap gas station pizza and a hamburger for Amos. Well-deserved rewards. 

In the coming days, we'll take on the remaining miles of the Cranberry 50! Thanks for letting us share our story with you!

Feeling pretty swell about completing the Cranberry 40