Tips and Suggestions About Camping in Pharaoh Lake, Adirondacks
Pharaoh Lake Wilderness in the Adirondack Mountains, is a great uncapped campground, located in upstate New York, near Schroon Lake. It is one of New York’s largest untamed wildernesses, and is apart of the Adirondack Forest Preserve, surrounded by other forest preserve lands and many ponds/lakes. It does not cost anything to camp here. However, the camping is first come first serve. Also, you will have to walk about 3-5 miles (depending on what campsites are left) in with all your camping gear. Also, the last road to get here is all unpaved.
That being said, when my friends and I camped here we had a beautiful time. The weather was great and our campsite was right on the water. We camped in June and had very warm weather. It was warm enough to enjoy swimming. Also, we camped on a weekend and it was a little crowded but you could still find campsites.
In this post you will read more about the Pharaoh Lake wilderness area, Pharaoh Lake camping, Pharaoh Lake lean to, Pharaoh Lake Adirondacks, Pharaoh Lake wilderness trails, Pharaoh Lake swimming, Pharaoh Lake Hike, Pharaoh Lake kayaking, Pharaoh Lake fishing, Lost Pond Pharaoh Lake Wilderness, and more.
This post is all about Pharaoh Lake.
Pharaoh Lake:
Pharaoh Lake Wilderness Area
Okay, there are many ways to get to Pharaoh Lake. The most common way, will have you start on either 87 North or South (depending on where you are coming from). Then you will take Exit 28 towards Crown Point and Fort Ticonderoga Ferry. If coming northbound you will take a right onto NY- 74 towards Paradox Lake and Ticonderoga Ferry. Whereas, if you are coming southbound, you will take a left onto NY- 74 towards Paradox Lake and Ticonderoga Ferry. In .6 miles turn right onto 1st cross street onto US – 9 S. Then, in 2.1 miles turn left onto Alder Meadow Road. Continue on this road for 1.4 miles to Crane Pond Road and the parking lot will be on your right. You can follow this directions for Pharaoh Mountain as well.
The last part of your drive is all dirt roads. Thus, you might want to be careful with what car you bring. Once you get to the parking lot, you will have to walk at least 3.6 miles with all your gear, to get to the first lean-to and campground area. If you are interested in thru-hiking, this is a great beginner area to test out your gear and see what you really need verses what you don’t. It is on a first come, first serve basis. Thus, you can’t reserve any of the lean-tos, or campgrounds. Thus, I suggest getting there early to secure a campground. Also, the lean-tos, are always the first to go.
Once you have walked the initial 3.6 miles to get to the campground area, there will be a fork in the road. It will tell you to either continue right, and you can access different lean-tos, or you can go left and again, access other different lean-tos. My friends and I went to the right. Whereas Pharaoh mountain, is more to the left, which is why, my hike was so long. I went ALL around the campground, just to find the trail head. Thus, if you want to hike Pharaoh Mountain, maybe veer to your left instead of your right.
Pharaoh Lake Camping
There are 38 different campsites, with 14 various lean-tos that you can camp at. You can ONLY camp at the different designated yellow, “Camp Here,” markers. They will be located on different trees with a picture of a tree saying, “Camp Here.” More information, about the different campgrounds, and how to access them, can be found here (under camping section of page, will have to scroll down, about half way to see). Lastly, when you came anywhere in the Adirondacks, you must follow the “Leave No Trace” Rules and these additional regulations.
Once you are in the park, you will see, it contains over 46,000 acres of land, and the lake is over 400 acres. Thus, you have plenty of room to explore. There is also great hiking located in the preserve. The mountain I hiked while there, is Pharaoh mountain, being a total of 10.5 miles round-trip (depending where your campground is). Here is the AllTrails Map as well for Pharaoh Mountain Trail.
You can also access the Sucker Brook Trail, the Pharaoh Lake Trail, the Crab Pond Trail, the Pharaoh Lake Loop, the Glidden Marsh Trail, the Springhill Ponds Trail, the Springhill Ponds Spur Trail, the Berrymill Pond Trail, the Lost Pond Trail, the Grizzle Ocean Trail, the Clear Pond Trail, the Treadway Mountain Trail, the Bear Pond Trail, the Rock Pond Trail, the Lilypad Pond/Rock Pond Trail, the Otter Pond Trail, the Short Swing Trail, the Crane Pond Trail, the Goose Pond Trail, the Gull Pond Trail, and the Spectacle Pond Trail. So, you can access to so much hiking in this wilderness area. In addition, here (under featured activities; hiking, section of page) is a link to even MORE hiking and how to access the trails mentioned.
Pharaoh Lake Wilderness Trails & Map
You can also swim, kayak/canoe, and paddle, on this lake. In addition to Pharaoh, you can kayak, canoe, or paddle, on numerous different ponds and lakes, accessible from this wilderness. Such as, Crane Pond, Goose Pond, Berrymill Pond, Lost Pond, Putnam Pond, and Eagle Lake (here is a link, explaining more and how to get to these bodies of water, located, about ¾ of the way down, under paddling section of page). In addition, if you are in need of some kayaking gear, here is a great website with some great gear!
Other Activities Accessible Here
You can also fish at any of these places listed above. However, there are rules and regulations you must follow, that can be found here, (under fishing section of page, about ¾ of the way down on page). Also, a main rule, is Baitfish are prohibited anywhere within the wilderness.
Other activities you can access here, are Hunting and Trapping (follow these rules and regulations, about ¾ way down on page, under Hunting and Trapping section), cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, horseback riding, and you can visit various other forest preserves located nearby. This website, will provide you with all the information you need about these different activities.
Thus, there is a lot to do here. My friends and I mostly swam and soaked up the sun. I also hiked Pharaoh Mountain. Which, from our campsite, was 5 miles away, and then another 5 miles to get back to our campsite. Thus, I was pretty tired after my hike! However, from other campgrounds, this isn’t as far away, it really depends on where you are located within the wilderness area.
Alright, that wraps up our time at Pharaoh Lake Wilderness. When I camped here, I really did in enjoy my time here. Like I said, the weather was beautiful, the lake, Lake Mariah, was the perfect temperature to still be refreshing, and my friends and I got an awesome campsite. Also, the hike to Pharaoh Mountain was gorgeous, but I will say, it should have been like 2-3 miles shorter. I would love have loved the trail even more if it was only 7 miles roundtrip. Anyways, I hope you found a new, beautiful, and inexpensive, place to visit, with LOADS of activities to do. Thank you so much for reading, and take care.
