Long Pond Designated 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 ('Long Pond Designated 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 says Long Pond's single primitive tent site is on the shore "located near the Long Pond Hand Launch", and the hand launch parking area at the end of Trim Road is about 224 feet away in a straight line, so you can drive to the launch and be at camp in minutes -- though DEC describes the tract's sites as "primarily accessible from the water", so expect the last stretch to be a short carry or a paddle along the shore. 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
- FFuel11 mi
- GGrocery12 mi
- RxPharmacy17 mi
- @Mail17 mi
- ShShower23 mi
- DDump23 mi
- +Urgent care24 mi
- WWater24 mi
- LLaundry24 mi
- HHardware24 mi
- MMechanic24 mi
- OOutfitter28 mi
The read: water is a real 24-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 11 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 featureLong Pond (water) · nearby
- Nearest townSanta Clara · ~2.1 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelValero · ~10.9 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump stationDump station · ~23.2 mi
- GroceriesStewart's Shops · ~12.5 mi
- PharmacyKinney Drugs · ~17.1 mi
- Hospital / clinicAlice Hyde Medical Center · ~17.4 mi
- HardwareHarbor Freight Tools · ~24.3 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.
- Clarks Landing Campsite (Debar Mountain Wild Forest)~10.5 mi
- Clear Pond Campsite (Debar Mountain Wild Forest)~11.0 mi
- Clear Pond Universally Accessible Campsite [DEC #11564] (White Hill Wild Forest)~15.0 mi
- Clear Pond Campsite 2 [DEC #11406] (White Hill Wild Forest)~15.1 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