state
Kayaking Beaver Creek, August 2011
Where is a quiet place to kayak near Cedar Ridge and the Brookfield Horse Camp? Have you ever thought about kayaking the Beaver Creek, from Horse Trail 60 north until the end of the navigable waters?
You take Fairgrounds Road north from Brookfield NY, until a first parking area on the left of the road. This is Horse Trail 60. It’s a short portage (1/8 mile) until you reach the bridge crossing the Beaver Creek.
Put in the on the side of this bridge. I did from the east side, through the marshy ground, but you could portage over the horse bridge, then put on the west side, and avoid the marshy ground.
Having a good set of wheels means you won’t have to carry your kayak, but make sure not to drag it on the gravel to avoid wearing holes in your kayak, as I learned earlier this summer.
This is a delightful little trip. Do drive the Charles Baker Auto tour, or hike some of the many trails in the area…
Kayaking Long Pond
Long Pond offers 8 designated roadside campsites, and a handful of other informal campsites on the other side of the lake. A large man-made lake in an agricultural landscape of Chenango County, it offers some excellent fishing and nice views, especially for Chenango County.
This map below shows where each picture was taken roughly in the area.
Large NY State Forests Tend to Be Located In Rural Areas
There are many state lands across New York State.
The problem is, for many New Yorkers, the largest and most interesting parcels — the Catskill Forest Preserve, the Adirondack Forest Preserve, larger state forests like Brookfield Horse Camp, Brashier Falls, Tug Hill State Forest, Sugar Hill, are all a long drive from where they live.
This map shows the town population versus the location of state forest and forest preserve lands that are popular for hiking, camping, fishing and hunting. I did not include state parks. Note how unpopulated most areas are with large state forests.
To demostrate how dramatic this is, take a look at a map of urbanized or otherwise developed areas of New York State based on Landstat data. Yellows are suburban areas, while reds are urbanized downtowns with few trees or forest — the kind of people you would think would most likely want to spend time in the woods.
Maybe we don’t want lots of urban folks coming to the state forests. Maybe there remoteness keeps people away. Yet, it shows the large disconnect from large public lands and the population centers across our state.
Home Rule vs Dillon’s Rule
There are two categories of state governments as it relates to local governments:
- Home Rule: States that give local governments wide latitude to decide which policies are appropriate for their communities
- Dillon’s Rule: States that give limited powers to local government to make decide which policies are appropriate for their communities
No states fall clearly in on category or another as it’s more of a continuum then definite categories. Indeed, when states choose how much to empower local governments they must consider a variety of factors such as:
- Impact of one town or city’s decisions on surrounding communities
- Citizens that travel through one community or reside their temporarily for work, recreation, or other activities, but due to lack residency have no voice in that government
- Involvement and awareness of a community’s citizens in governments
- Fairness between wealthier and poorer communities
- State-wide goals for various programs
Certainly some things really ought to be decided on a local level, under Home Rule, by an informed citizens and their representatives:
- The rate of property taxation and structure of fees paid exclusively by local residents and businesses
- The level of government services provided to local citizens and businesses
- The design and management of local service roads and streets
- The creation of local laws and policies, as long as much local laws and policies are made clear to visitors using signs or other documentation
On the other hand, there is a compelling case to reserve some powers to states under Dillion’s Rule to ensure fairness both to local residents and more importantly, largely voiceless visitors to a community.
- A state bill of rights must exist to ensure that local governments both treat their citizens fairly, and most importantly visitors to the community fairly
- Local laws need to consistent enough so that visitors know what to reasonably expect when visit a community and require
- Inter-community highways need to be regulated by the state to promote the quick and convenient movement of goods and people.