Trying to plan a fishing trip for a couple of days in the adirondacks for next Mon. Anyone know if it’s possible to paddle the Raquette upstream from Tupper Lake?
Paddling uphill
You can go as far as the Racq. falls without getting out. If memory serves there is at least one access point on the river that is right off the road. When you get to the falls it is a mere 1 mile carry up to the top of the falls. From there it is a flat water paddle up stream against the wind to the town of Long Lake.
We launched at Axton Landing
and omitted all the oxbows from there to Tupper Lake. It was still a pleasant paddle up to the falls and back. There is a launch closer to Rt. 3 though.
Raquette upstream from Tupper Lake
Launch at the Crusher on RT3 and paddle upstream, lots of good campsites along the river and good fishing between the Crusher and Axtons Landing. Campsites uptream from Axtons to the Falls are spread out farther apart. The lean-tos are usually taken in the summer, but the bugs and trash are less in the campsites. Lean-tos are not the ticket in bug season, a good tent is better protection.
The current is not bad to paddle against, lots of turns, but its a fairly wide river and room for upstream and downstream traffic. Some motorboats on that stretch, but you can hear them way before they get to you amd most folks are friendly and will watch their wakes.
There is a parasite that infects the yellow perch in that river, small white cysts on the gill covers and in the flesh. DEC says its not harmful to humans if you cook the fish, but the cysts are unsightly. No problem with the smallmouth bass, walleye, or northern pike. The pike are a surprise when you hook one and they like to head for the downed timber in the water. There are big ones in the Raquette, most people travel with lighter tackle for the smallmouths and walleyes and lose the pike they hook.
Can’t give you a good estimate for paddling upstream, its very water dependent. Downstream we figure an hour from the falls to Axton and an hour from there to the Crusher during a race. On a Scout trip we made it two days of fishing and a spare day for weather delays.
The portage around Raquette Falls is over a mile and its probably the worst carry in the Adirondacks; long, rough and over a ridge either way.
Enjoy the trip, its a great stretch of water.
Bill
Nice river
We’ve camped and fished up there several times, was a great trip. If you catch a chub, dont throw it back, use it as bait for northerns. I cought one on an 8" chub last time below the falls behind a big bolder in slower water,right where you beach the boats, good luck. Let us know how you do
Awesome Paddle
I’ve canoed the Long Lake - Tupper Lake route many times (never upstream) and have loved it each and every time.
Thanks everyone!
The bugs weren’t too bad overall due to the rain and wind, but they were bad one day when there was neither. I even saw some mosquitos which I was surprised about - thought they didn’t come out until later in July.
Ended up going to Little Tupper Lake which was pretty nice caught about 10 of the brookies (they are beautiful) between me and my buddy, but we caught about 40 largemouth. I didn’t think there was anything but the brookies in there so us and another fishing couple where surprised. Unfortuntely, I think little tupper’s brook trout will be going the way of the brookies in the Bog River/Lows Lake.
LTL
My wife and I were out at Little Tupper Thurs -Saturday and saw the same. Bad bugs, both mosquitoes and blackflies, on Thursday. Fridays rain kept the bf’s away but not the skeeters. We left Saturday when it looked like another all day heavy overcast/rain. We figured the bfs would be unbearable anyway if the sun ever did come out. On the plus side, that was the calmest couple of days I’ve ever seen that lake. If this was your first visit to LTL, you lucked out bigtime for water conditions! Where’d you end up staying, I remember seeing one group at #11 as we were paddling out Saturday morning?
Regards,
Charlie
we actually went for
three days right after mothers day (15-19). We had showers and strong wind the first / last day it was almost too strong to be out in.