Planning on heading to Cranberry Lake NY in late September . I want to park at DEC boat launch on Columbia Road… Drop kayak in there and paddle to one of the East Inlet flow campsites. I then would like to backpack the entire Cranberry Lake 50 trail over next 3 days…around and back to East Inlet flow campsite… And then paddle back to DEC boat launch where my car will be. My question is… Does anyone have a rough idea about how long of a paddle it is from that boat launch to the East Inlet flow campsites? Time wise? Paddling average speed…Thanks for any info… Joe
hello joe, 1st thing ya need to know about ADK lakes is the wind …Cranberry Lake can get real rough, real fast due to wind. Therefore…time estimates can vary greatly due to winds. I’m not sure what you r calling the East inlet…Wanakena area ?? Cranberry is a huge lake , Ive been past it many times. Best to scour the Internet for all the info on Cranberry you can find . Getting a campsite reserved may be a problem also …popular area. btw…where u gonna stow the kayak while yer hiking the trails for 3 days? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranberry_Lake good luck
Hi again joe …you might want to buy this map before your trip , U would want the original paddler’s map…not the “South” version. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Adirondack-Paddler-Map-One-Color-One-Size/372224666813?_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D44040%26meid%3Ddee28dbfa67845b29bb499b448ed9776%26pid%3D100011%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D2%26sd%3D372160991445%26itm%3D372224666813&_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850
Boats are pretty safe in the Daks. Yet for a three day absence a lock is prudent
Thanks. Yes, I would bring a lock to secure it, I would also drag it into woods and keep it hidden out of site.
@Dirtbaghiker said:
Planning on heading to Cranberry Lake NY in late September. Does anyone have a rough idea about how long of a paddle it is from that boat launch to the East Inlet flow campsites? Time wise? Paddling average speed…
In 2017 I made a coin toss between completing the Cranberry 50 via trail or circumnavigating the entire perimeter of Cranberry Lake in my 17’ sea kayak. I thought the paddle trip would be a little different so it won out.
I spent 6 days paddling and camping the Lake’s roughly 63 miles of shore line. I started and ended at the DEC boat ramp near the dam off of Colombian Road.
I just checked my trip log and both the Adirondack Paddler’s Map North and the new Adirondack Paddlers Map - The Whitney Wilderness. I measured the distanced from the DEC boat ramp to East Inlet to be approximately 5.5 miles. As to speed, my daily averages ran from 3.0 to 3.6 mph. I would estimate that my overall paddling speed with a fully packed kayak to be 3.3 mph. The subject Paddler’s maps, both in 1:50,000 scale, also show the entire Cranberry 50 Trail plus other area hiking trails.
@tvcrider… That is awesome what you did!! It is something I will add to my list for sure. Thanks for that info also, it is exactly what I needed to know to help me with the timing for my trip. Hey, if ya happen to have any pictures from that trip that you don’t mind sharing, I would love to see them. You can email me at dirtbaghiker@yahoo.com. Thanks again… Joe
@tvcrider… That is awesome what you did!! It is something I will add to my list for sure. Thanks for that info also, it is exactly what I needed to know to help me with the timing for my trip. Hey, if ya happen to have any pictures from that trip that you don’t mind sharing, I would love to see them. You can email me at dirtbaghiker@yahoo.com. Thanks again… Joe
Thanks very much. I just sent several pics to your above address. Please let me know if they got through to you. I actually read the book “On Polar Tides” while on the trip.
I got most of them. Some didn’t come through but the ones I saw were great. Thanks again!!