Clarks Landing Campsite (Debar Mountain Wild Forest)
FREE primitive camping on Adirondack Forest Preserve land associated with the 72,000-acre Santa Clara Conservation Easement Tract, in the northwestern Adirondacks (Franklin and St. Lawrence Counties, DEC Region 5). DEC-designated primitive tent site ('Clarks Landing Campsite'). New York provides these designated primitive tent sites at NO CHARGE -- the DEC page lists the fee as 'Free' -- and they are first-come, first-served and cannot be reserved. This one is EASY: DEC places this campsite "near the Clarks Landing Hand Launch on the Deer River Flow", and the Clark's Landing Hand Launch parking area -- off Cold Brook Road immediately off State Route 30 -- is about 0.13 mile away in a straight line, so it is a short carry from the car rather than a backcountry hike, on a big quiet flow with a boat put-in right there. WHICH DEC PAGE COVERS THIS ONE: DEC's mapping files this site under the Debar Mountain Wild Forest, but it lies WEST of State Route 30, and the Debar Mountain Wild Forest page explicitly excludes that ground -- it is described instead on DEC's Santa Clara Conservation Easement Tract page, which is where the 'Free' fee and this site's description come from. Practical consequences: the surrounding easement land is PRIVATELY OWNED AND ACTIVELY LOGGED (expect logging trucks and skidders, and some access roads are closed during operations), more than 100 privately-leased camps are scattered through the tract and the public is barred from the camps and the posted one acre around each, and many roads there are not open to public motor vehicles -- stay on designated roads. PERMITS: a free New York State Forest Ranger permit is required for any stay of more than three nights in one spot, or for a group of ten or more (neither DEC page sets a stricter local threshold, so the statewide rule governs). Arrange any permit in advance through the DEC Region 5 Ray Brook Office at 518-897-1200 (Mon-Fri, 8:30 AM to 4:45 PM). Camp only at the marked site -- look for the yellow 'Camp Here' disc -- because elsewhere on the Forest Preserve camping is prohibited within 150 feet of any road, trail, spring, stream, pond or other water. These are primitive sites: typically just a fire ring, no hookups, no toilets and no potable water, and designated TENT sites are for tents. Pack out all trash, follow Leave No Trace and the DEC fire rules, and store food away from black bears. Do not confuse this with the nearby Meacham Lake and Buck Pond Campgrounds, which are DEC's developed PAID campgrounds. The area is open year-round, but many of the access roads here are seasonal and winter travel is on ski or snowshoe. One more thing worth knowing: DEC has a Unit Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement underway for this area whose stated scope includes changes to "trails and tent sites", so this inventory can shift. Confirm current rules, road and trail conditions and this site's status on the DEC page (dec.ny.gov/places/santa-clara-conservation-easement-tract) or with the Ray Brook office before you go; we have not visited.
Everything you need — measured from camp
- @Mail14 mi
- GGrocery15 mi
- FFuel15 mi
- RxPharmacy15 mi
- +Urgent care18 mi
- HHardware22 mi
- OOutfitter22 mi
- MMechanic22 mi
- DDump23 mi
- WWater23 mi
- ShShower23 mi
- LLaundry35 mi
The read: water is a real 23-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 15 mi out.
Not within 60 mi: Propane. Plan those before you head up.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). Open in Google Maps ↗
The site
Nearby & resupply (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureDeer River Flow (water) · nearby
- Nearest townDuane Center · ~2.0 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelStewart's · ~14.9 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump stationDump station · ~23.3 mi
- GroceriesPrice Chopper · ~14.7 mi
- PharmacyKinney Drugs · ~14.9 mi
- Hospital / clinicAlice Hyde Medical Center · ~15.5 mi
- HardwareSturdy Supply & Rental · ~22.3 mi
Nearby restrooms — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- No mapped restroom within 30 miles — plan to pack it out.
Open this spot elsewhere
Other camps nearby
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Clear Pond Campsite (Debar Mountain Wild Forest)~3.1 mi
- Debar Meadows Campsite (Debar Mountain Wild Forest)~5.8 mi
- Skiff Pond Campsite (Debar Mountain Wild Forest)~6.1 mi
- Long Pond Designated Campsite (Debar Mountain Wild Forest)~10.5 mi
How we know this
What we don’t know
A land record can put you within a few metres of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Seasonal & winter access
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up