Found · unverifiedNY DECFree

Snake Den Harbor Campsite [DEC #4469] (Split Rock Wild Forest)

Drive-up · New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation · NY · 44.22646, -73.36349

We haven't personally camped here. Everything below is pulled from public land data, USGS maps and OpenStreetMap — a real place on New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation land, but not field-checked by us. Confirm road conditions, current access, stay limits and fire restrictions before you go.

FREE first-come primitive camping at the Snake Den Harbor Campsite, one of the four DEC-designated shoreline campsites in the Split Rock Mountain Wild Forest (Essex County, eastern Adirondacks, on the largest undeveloped stretch of Lake Champlain shoreline in New York, DEC Region 5). New York provides it at NO CHARGE: the DEC Split Rock Mountain Wild Forest page lists the unit as 'Free' and open year-round, and states 'Four designated campsites are located on the shoreline of Lake Champlain at Barn Rock Bay (2), Palisades, and Snake Den Harbor.' This is the designated site at Snake Den Harbor, on the Lake Champlain shoreline -- reach it by canoe/kayak or small boat. These are FREE, first-come, designated sites -- no reservation, no fee, no facilities (no hookups, no showers, no potable water); this is NOT the developed Lincoln Pond or Crown Point campground. The most common way in is by canoe, kayak or small boat from the free DEC Westport Boat Launch. 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 1-833-NYS-RANGERS / 1-833-697-7264)). Camp only on the designated/hardened site (look for a round yellow DEC 'Camp Here' disc), bring water or treat what you take from the lake, pack out all trash, follow Leave No Trace and the DEC fire rules, and store food from bears (this is black-bear country). SEASON / ACCESS: DEC lists the unit as open year-round, but Lake Champlain conditions and wind/water levels vary by season -- confirm current conditions and this specific site's status on the DEC page (dec.ny.gov/places/split-rock-mountain-wild-forest) or with the DEC Region 5 office (518-897-1200) before you go; we have not visited.

USGS topo — contours & terrain

USGS topographic map of Snake Den Harbor Campsite [DEC #4469] (Split Rock Wild Forest)

Aerial — USGS / NAIP

Aerial image of Snake Den Harbor Campsite [DEC #4469] (Split Rock Wild Forest)

Weather outlook

Loading the latest forecast…

Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 122 ft.

Fire & smokeNIFC · AirNow

Checking active fires & air quality…

Active wildfires from NIFC (within ~50 mi); air quality from AirNow. Always confirm current fire restrictions with the managing office before you go.

Everything you need — measured from camp

Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer

Nearest of each

HHardware4 mi
GGrocery5 mi
@Mail5 mi
FFuel6 mi
RxPharmacy7 mi
MMechanic7 mi
LLaundry7 mi
ShShower8 mi
OOutfitter11 mi
WWater12 mi
DDump12 mi
+Urgent care13 mi
AAir-up54 mi

≤30 mi30–4545+water

The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 5 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

Access

Drive-up

Land

New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation

Elevation

122 ft

State

Coordinates

44.22646, -73.36349

Cost

Free

Nearby & resupply (OpenStreetMap)

Nearest townRock Landing · ~3.0 mi
Drinking waternone within 10 mi
FuelMobil · ~6.0 mi
Propane / LPGAmeriGas · ~27.0 mi
Dump stationDump station · ~12.1 mi
GroceriesErnie's Market and Deli · ~4.6 mi
PharmacyKinney Drugs · ~7.0 mi
Hospital / clinicElizabethtown Community Hospital · ~11.5 mi
HardwareAubuchon Hardware · ~7.2 mi

Nearby restrooms — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)

Highway rest areaWilliston South Rest Area · ~20.1 mi NE
Highway rest areaWilliston North Rest Area · ~20.2 mi NE
Highway rest areaHigh Peaks (South) · ~22.3 mi SW
Highway rest areaHigh Peaks (North) · ~22.4 mi SW

Open this spot elsewhere

Google satellite →Gaia GPS →CalTopo →Back to the map →

Other camps nearby

If this one is full, gated or washed out.

How we know this

Source

NY Dept. of Environmental Conservation

Confidence

Researched — The record is detailed and internally consistent, and the coordinates land where the managing agency says this site is.

How it was placed

NY DEC 'Primitive Campsite' GIS layer (https://gisservices.dec.ny.gov/arcgis/rest/services/dil/dil_land_assets_prm_cmp/MapServer/0), ASSET_UID 4469, NAME verbatim 'Snake Den Harbor Campsite', ASSET='PRIMITIVE TENT SITE', PUBLICUSE='Y', ACCESSIBLE='N', FACILITY='Split Rock Wild Forest', DEC Region 5. DESCRIP=''; NOTES=''. Coordinate is DEC's own point geometry (WGS84), pulled 2026-07-25 via the layer's /query endpoint (outSR=4326). FREE + COUNT confirmed on dec.ny.gov/places/split-rock-mountain-wild-forest (Split Rock Mountain Wild Forest, read 2026-07-25): 'Fee: Free', open year-round, Essex County, DEC Region 5 Ray Brook (518) 897-1200. CONFIDENCE (HIGH): the page enumerates exactly -- 'Four designated campsites are located on the shoreline of Lake Champlain at Barn Rock Bay (2), Palisades, and Snake Den Harbor' -- count 4 = GIS 4 and the per-location split matches the GIS points location-for-location, so this designated site is individually certifiable (Crystal Lake enumeration basis). IDENTITY/LOCATION CORROBORATION (OSM `out geom`, overpass.kumi.systems, 2026-07-25): LOCATION: Snake Den Harbor (Lake Champlain shore; paddle access). OSM also carries the 'Lake Champlain Shoreline Paddle' route past the site, corroborating the shoreline placement. ELEVATION ~124 ft (USGS EPQS, 2026-07-25) -- Lake Champlain shoreline; no elevation restriction applies. LEGALITY (guardrail 1): DEC-designated, publicly-usable campsite; first-come, no-reservation. ACCESS (guardrail 2): free -- paddle/boat from the free DEC Westport Boat Launch, or on foot via the Barn Rock Trail for the southernmost Barn Rock Bay site; no access/day-use/permit fee; nearest developed fee campgrounds (Lincoln Pond, Crown Point) are miles off and are day-trip alternatives only. Plus DEC State Land Camping Rules (dec.ny.gov/things-to-do/camping/state-land-rules): free Forest Ranger permit only for stays over 3 nights or groups of 10+. Ingest 2026-07-25.

Field check

Not verified on the ground. Nobody from here has camped it. It stays at Researched until someone does.

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

Your first dispersed night →Fire rules & restrictions →Getting unstuck →Power off-grid →All field notes →

Been here? Tell us what changed. This page is built from public records, so the fastest way it gets better is somebody who has actually pulled in. Road washed out, site gone, gate locked, or it is exactly as described — all of it useful. Send a report →