We provide canoes, kayaks, and a stand up paddle board for our lodging guests to use on Lake Clear. Be sure to sign the waiver and wear a life jacket when boating.
Paddling near the Lake Clear Lodge
The immediate area surrounding the Lake Clear Lodge has some of the most diverse paddling experiences anywhere in the world as it is the dividing line between two of the major drainage basins in the Adirondacks: The St. Lawrence River (the largest) and Lake Champlain.
There are great opportunities to experience an incredible variety of paddling experience from river rapids to remote pristine ponds where you can see breathtaking mountain views and the largest remaining virgin old growth forest in the U.S., to rare natural wonders found in wetlands – all in one short trip!
Our family enjoys side trips with diverse outdoor activities while you paddle including mountain hiking, fishing or simply walking. Cathy and I are foremost innkeepers and not licensed guides and even though our families have lived here for generations even we have not begun to scratch the surface of paddling experiences.
For more information on paddling in the area, visit our page on Paddling in the Adirondacks.
Right from your handcrafted lodging door: a paddling paradise!
Lake Clear, where Einstein paddled, is the New York States 28th largest lake and is the largest headwater for the Saranac River with over 9.4 miles of shoreline and an inlet and outlet – to keep it Lake Clear!
Lake Clear is also of interest as it the dividing line between those waters that head to the St. Lawrence River and those that go to Lake Champlain. We have found there to be 3-4 fishing “hotspots” with species including largemouth bass, northern pike, brown trout, landlocked salmon, lake trout, bullhead, and yellow perch. A great variety for all members of the family and we have caught some large ones!
Lake Clear Outlet
With one of our canoes or kayaks, you paddle from our shore to Lake Clear Outlet as it winds its way to the Saranac chain of Lakes and eventually Lake Champlain. Lake Clear Outlet has nearly 4.5 mi. of shoreline and is a frequent resting and hunting spot for our resident bald eagle!
The Lodge is in such a Mecca for birding that a young Theodore Roosevelt wrote a book on birding that exist just in our own County: The Summer Birds in the Adirondacks in Franklin County New York.
As you paddle Lake Clear you may see many of our resident birds including peregrine falcons, osprey, hawks, warblers, and ducks and of course our Lake Clear family of loons. In late spring warblers in all colors arrive; songbirds including kingbirds, flycatchers, grosbeaks, waxwings, thrushes, wrens and sparrows, kingfishers, herons, owls especially the barred, wild turkeys and Canadian geese are just a sampling of what you may see!
Lake Clear Lodge to Upper Saranac Lake
Want more information? Come stay with us! Our Adirondack "concierge" guide will assist you upon your arrival.