Moose Pond Designated Tent Site #3 [DEC #13646] (Mckenzie Mountain Wilderness)

FREE backcountry primitive camping on the shore of Moose Pond in the McKenzie Mountain Wilderness of New York's ADIRONDACK Forest Preserve (DEC Region 5, north of Ray Brook and Saranac Lake). This is a DEC-mapped designated primitive tent site ('Moose Pond Designated Tent Site #3 [DEC #13646]'), and New York provides it at NO CHARGE: the DEC McKenzie Mountain Wilderness page lists the fee as 'Free' and the unit as open year-round, first-come first-served. It sits about 64 feet from Moose Pond (measured against OpenStreetMap). This site is on the west shore of Moose Pond -- reach it on foot via the Moose Pond Trail (the trailhead is off Moose Pond Road) or by paddling the pond; no motor vehicles or bicycles are allowed in the wilderness, so you hike or paddle in. COUNT DISCLOSURE: the DEC unit page enumerates eight designated tent sites -- seven on the shores of Moose Pond (three on the west shore reachable via the Moose Pond Trail or by water, four water-access only) and one on the eastern bank of the Saranac River near the Moose Creek confluence (water access only). DEC's GIS maps five of these eight; this batch ships all five mapped sites (each named by DEC's GIS layer, enumerated on the DEC page, and located on its namesake shore in OpenStreetMap) and does not invent the three unmapped Moose Pond sites. No pins were invented. This is free, first-come Adirondack Forest Preserve backcountry camping in the McKenzie Mountain Wilderness -- do NOT confuse it with a reservable fee campground; the nearest fee campgrounds are the SEPARATE Saranac Lake Islands island sites on Lower Saranac Lake and Meadowbrook State Campground on Route 86, both miles away, and neither charges to reach these sites. SEASON / ACCESS: DEC lists McKenzie Mountain Wilderness as open YEAR-ROUND and free, but every site here is reached on foot or by paddle (Wilderness = no motor vehicles and no bicycles) -- trails and the Moose Pond paddle can be wet, snow-covered, blowdown-blocked or ice-bound, so confirm current trail, water and site conditions with the DEC Region 5 Ray Brook office (518-897-1200) or the unit page before you go, especially in winter or mud season. RULES: no reservation and no fee; camp only at a designated site (look for the round yellow DEC 'Camp Here' marker) or, elsewhere in the wilderness, more than 150 feet from any road, trail or water; a free Forest Ranger permit is required only if you stay more than 3 nights or camp with a group of 10 or more (arrange it through the DEC Region 5 Ray Brook Office at (518) 897-1200 (Forest Rangers via 911 or DEC dispatch 1-833-NYS-RANGERS)). This site is around 1568 feet, well below any Adirondack high-elevation camping restriction. These are primitive sites: expect at most a fire ring -- no hookups, no showers and no potable water, so bring water or treat what you take from the pond or river. Pack out all trash, follow Leave No Trace and the DEC fire rules, and store food from bears (this is black-bear country). Confirm current rules, trail status and this site's status on the DEC page (dec.ny.gov/places/mckenzie-mountain-wilderness) or with the Ray Brook office (518-897-1200) before you go; we have not visited. SHARED POND: Moose Pond straddles the boundary between the McKenzie Mountain Wilderness and the neighbouring Saranac Lakes Wild Forest, so DEC files the pond's seven designated tent sites under both units -- this McKenzie-side site is a DISTINCT designated site from the pond's other sites, which are listed separately (the Saranac Lakes Wild Forest 'Moose Pond' sites); all of them are free.

USGS topo — contours & terrain

Aerial — USGS / NAIP

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.

• Moose Pond Designated Tent Site #4 [DEC #13645] (Mckenzie Mountain Wilderness)~0.2 mi
• Moose Pond Site 7 (Saranac Lakes Wild Forest)~0.2 mi
• Moose Pond Site 8 (Saranac Lakes Wild Forest)~0.4 mi
• Moose Pond Designated Tent Site #1 [DEC #13648] (Mckenzie Mountain Wilderness)~0.6 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

Before you go