lands

Maps of the Fulton Chain of Lakes

These are maps of the Fulton Chain of Lakes using NYS DEC data, Open Street Map, and a variety of other public data sources like the mining database, the dam safety database, and DEC lakes and waterways shapefiles.

To see and download PDFs click and view maps.You may have zoom in and/or print the maps to see the 20-ft contour lines cleanly.

Last night

Gaudy old state office building downtown

Front coming through

 Central Avenue

North

Can You Sue the State For Failing to Protect Against Pollution?

Article XIV Section 4 states:

The policy of the state shall be to conserve and protect its natural resources and scenic beauty and encourage the development and improvement of its agricultural lands for the production of food and other agricultural products.

The legislature, in implementing this policy, shall include adequate provision for the abatement of air and water pollution and of excessive and unnecessary noise, the protection of agricultural lands, wetlands and shorelines, and the development and regulation of water resources.

Cedar River Below Dam

While Article XIV Section 5 provides:

A violation of any of the provisions of this article may be restrained at the suit of the people or, with the consent of the supreme court in appellate division, on notice to the attorney-general at the suit of any citizen.

This would state affirmatively that the any citizen may sue the state for failing to “conserve and protect its natural resources and scenic beauty” and “encourage the development and improvement of its agricultural lands for the production of food and other agricultural products.”.

90% of Wild Forest is Actually Wilderness

A secret of the Adirondack State Land Master Plan is that well over 90% of the lands officially dedicated as Wild Forest are actually forever: wilderness, even though it’s not called that.

Wilderness Area

Here is why from Adirondack State Land Master Plan:

4. Public use of motor vehicles will not be encouraged and there will not be anymaterial increase in the mileage of roads and snowmobile trails open to motorized use bythe public in wild forest areas that conformed to the master plan at the time ofits original adoption in 1972.

That language basically makes it clear that no new roads or truck trails will be created in Adirondack Forest Preserve. Therefore, except for a handful existing roads, the vast majority of lands of Adirondack Forest Preserve will forever remain free of motor vehicles and snowmobiles (in winter). The milage of snowmobile trails and truck trails will only decline in coming years, strictly fitting into defination of “wild forest”.

Helldiver Pond in Evening

Moreover per the consitution:

The lands of the state, now owned or hereafter acquired, constituting the forest preserve as now fixed by law, shall be forever kept as wild forest lands. They shall not be leased, sold or exchanged, or be taken by any corporation, public or private, nor shall the timber thereon be sold, removed or destroyed.

Therefore per the consitution, no timber may be removed or destroyed in the forest preserve, which means the consitution explicitly prohibits any new road from being constructed in the forest preserve, except where an existing road exists. You can’t build a new road through the forest without cutting timber.

Across Mason Lake

The only constraint from designating all of Adirondack Wild Forest as wilderness, is some of the parcels are smaller, and there a minimal roads going to campsites, lakes, destinations, and private lands throughout the park, mostly low-speed forest preserve roads, with minimal use.

… no roads, no timber cutting = wilderness area

State Nature and Historic Preserve Deserves Enhanced Consitutional Protections

There are Three Classes of Protected State Public Lands in the New York State Consitution:

  1. Forest Preserve – Consitutionally Protected with No Land Bank
  2. State Forests and Wildlife Management Areas – Consitutionally Protected with Land Bank
  3. State Nature and Historic Preserve – No Consitutional Protection – Can Be Alienated By Legislature

Off the Cliff

State Forest Preserve.

The State Forest Preserve, inside of Catskill and Adirondack Parks is defined in Article XIV Section 1:

Article XIV Section 3

The lands of the state, now owned or hereafter acquired, constituting the forest preserve as now fixed by law, shall be forever kept as wild forest lands. They shall not be leased, sold or exchanged, or be taken by any corporation, public or private, nor shall the timber thereon be sold, removed or destroyed.

[exceptions not included]

This is the strictest classification of public land. No land swaps or non-forest preserve uses are permitted. Trees may not be logged except incidentially as part of maintence of these wild forest lands. This language is often seen as unflexible, and has required 10 admendments to the state consitution in the past 100 years, as no land bank is provided for in consitution.

Article XVI Section 1 Exception 3, passed in 1957, does provide for a limited “Land Bank” allowing for realignment of a limited number of miles of state highways for safety purposes, however it is very limited compared to compared the generous land bank previsions Article XIV Section 3 (State Forests).

… nor from relocating, reconstructing and maintaining a total of not more than fifty miles of existing state highways for the purpose of eliminating the hazards of dangerous curves and grades, provided a total of no more than four hundred acres of forest preserve land shall be used for such purpose and that no single relocated portion of any highway shall exceed one mile in length.

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A lack of a land bank means even for minor non-forest preserve uses of current forest preserve lands, a consitutional admendment must be passed. This means a consitutional admendment must be drafted, passed by two successive legislatures (such as the 2011-2012 and 2013-2014 sessions) and signed into law twice, then approved by a majority of the state’s voters in a general election.A powerline cutting off 1/3rd of an acre of forest preserve, would require this expensive and lengthy procedure.

Through the Marshlands of the VIC

Wildlife Management Areas and State Reforestation Areas.

More flexible is the concept of Wildlife Management Areas (popularly known as “Public Hunting Grounds”), and State Reforestation Areas (popularly known as “State Forests”), as defined in Article XIV Section 3. These were added in the current form to the state consitution under the State Consitutional Convention of 1933.

Article XIV Section 3

1. Forest and wild life conservation are hereby declared to be policies of the state. For the purpose of carrying out such policies the legislature may appropriate moneys for the acquisition by the state of land, outside of the Adirondack and Catskill parks as now fixed by law, for the practice of forest or wild life conservation.

The prohibitions of section 1 of this article shall not apply to any lands heretofore or hereafter acquired or dedicated for such purposes within the forest preserve counties but outside of the Adirondack and Catskill parks as now fixed by law, except that such lands shall not be leased, sold or exchanged, or be taken by any corporation, public or private.

2. As to any other lands of the state, now owned or hereafter acquired, constituting the forest preserve referred to in section one of this article, but outside of the Adirondack and Catskill parks as now fixed by law, and consisting in any case of not more than one hundred contiguous acres entirely separated from any other portion of the forest preserve, the legislature may by appropriate legislation, notwithstanding the provisions of section one of this article, authorize:

(a) the dedication thereof for the practice of forest or wild life conservation; or

(b) the use thereof for public recreational or other state purposes or the sale, exchange or other disposition thereof; provided, however, that all moneys derived from the sale or other disposition of any of such lands shall be paid into a special fund of the treasury and be expended only for the acquisition of additional lands for such forest preserve within either such Adirondack or Catskill park.

All State Forests and Wildlife Management Areas are Consitutionally Protected but with a state-use land bank. Small portions of State Forests and Wildlife Management Areas (under 100 acres) may be traded for other areas of the land nearby. Alternatively, small areas of land may be sold for purchase of new Forest Preserve within the Adirondack or Catskill Parks. This allows the state the flexibility to re-route highways and build other needed state facilities, as long as the amount of public land is not reduced. The Consitution has never been admended for State Forests or Wildlife Management Areas.

While one could argue that the Adirondack and Catskill Forest Preserve should include similiar flexibility, not including a land bank for Forest Preserve means that large parcels are ensured never to be subdivided by roads, power lines, or other troublesome breaks of wilderness.

The important thing to note is that State Forests and Wildlife Management Areas can not be alienated in whole without a Consitutional Admendment. There will never be a net decrease in State Forest and Wildlife Management lands outside of the Forest Preserve, even if boundaries may change slightly due to public needs. To change State Forest and Wildlife Management Area boundaries, such as for re-routing of a state highway or constructing of a state facility, a bill of alienation with a home rule message must pass to successive legislatures, however no consitutional admendment is required as long as the bill of alienation involves less then 100 acres.

Almost Black Out

State Nature and Historic Preserve.

The State Nature and Historic Preserve came out of the New York State Consitutional Convention of 1967. It was approved by the People of New York State in the General Election of November 1969. It finally gave public parks limited consitutional protection, at least those parks maintained by the State of New York, and officially designated as “State Nature and Historic Preserve”.

Article XIV Section 4 (relevant sections)

… The legislature shall further provide for the acquisition of lands and waters, including improvements thereon and any interest therein, outside the forest preserve counties, and the dedication of properties so acquired or now owned, which because of their natural beauty, wilderness character, or geological, ecological or historical significance, shall be preserved and administered for the use and enjoyment of the people.

Properties so dedicated shall constitute the state nature and historical preserve and they shall not be taken or otherwise disposed of except by law enacted by two successive regular sessions of the legislature.

The State Nature and Historic Preserve was a good concept. Yet, before passage, it was well established in Case and Statutory Law under the Alienation Doctrine and clarified through 50 years of case law, most notably Williams v. Gallatin (229 N.Y. 248, 253). It didn’t make any real changes to the policy of state, and left land vunerable to alienation by two sucessive the state legislatures. Traditionally the State legislature has been resistant to abuse the Alienation Power, usually deferring to the opinion of local environmental groups, and acting consitent to statutory law. Most alienations exist as a land swaps and generally involve a de minis amount of land. Yet, that is no guarantee for the future.

Untitled

Strengthen the State Nature and Historic Preserve.

The State Nature and Historic Preserve should be strenghtened to have the consitutional protections afforded to State Forests and Wildlife Mangement Areas. There should be a consitutional bar for all large alienations, e.g. those larger then 100 acres. Large scale alienations of all public lands should require a consitituional admendment, not just those designated Forest Preserve, State Forest, or Wildlife Management Area.

Moreover, the DEC and the Office of Parks and Historic Preserve, should be compelled to add all lands it owns and maintains to the State Nature and Historic Preserve. Right now, it is not viewed as priority for most state agencies, as the State Nature and Historic Preserve offers no additional protections over the traditional parks.

NY State Nature and Historical Preserve

New York State has the well known Forest Preserve in Adirondacks and Catskills (provided for in Section 1) and State Forests and Wildlife Management Areas (provided for in Section 2) outside of the Blue-line designated Forest Preserve Boundaries. Yet, on November 4, 1969 the voters of New York State admended the consitution to add a new section that called for a new type of land — The State Nature and Historic Preserve — now managed by the new Department of Environment Conservation.

Article XIV Section 4:Protection of natural resources; development of agricultural lands.

The policy of the state shall be to conserve and protect its natural resources and scenic beauty and encourage the development and improvement of its agricultural lands for the production of food and other agricultural products.

The legislature, in implementing this policy, shall include adequate provision for the abatement of air and water pollution and of excessive and unnecessary noise, the protection of agricultural lands, wetlands and shorelines, and the development and regulation of water resources.

The legislature shall further provide for the acquisition of lands and waters, including improvements thereon and any interest therein, outside the forest preserve counties, and the dedication of properties so acquired or now owned, which because of their natural beauty, wilderness character, or geological, ecological or historical significance, shall be preserved and administered for the use and enjoyment of the people.

Properties so dedicated shall constitute the state nature and historical preserve and they shall not be taken or otherwise disposed of except by law enacted by two successive regular sessions of the legislature.

Since 1969, only 35 facilities have been added to the State Nature and Historic Preserve. While most of these properties are not contigous, they consist of some the most interesting public lands in NY State.

Zoom in to see the specific properties.

Here is a list of the properties, sorted by alphabetical order.

State Nature and Historical Preserve Acres
ALBANY PINE BUSH PRESERVE 1581.3
BARE HILL UNIQUE AREA 400.9
BOG BROOK UNIQUE AREA 131.7
BRANDOW POINT UNIQUE AREA 62.9
CAMILLUS FOREST UNIQUE AREA 351.5
CARPENTER FALLS UNIQUE AREA 38.2
CASTLE ROCK UNIQUE AREA 130.2
CROTON GORGE UNIQUE AREA 20.9
DAVID A. SARNOFF PINE BARRENS PRESERVE 2,572.5
EDGEWOOD OAK BRUSH PLAINS PRESERVE 729.6
HAWK WATCH TRAILWAY 5.0
HENDERSON SHORES UNIQUE AREA 890.3
JUNIUS POND UNIQUE AREA 105.1
KOWAWESE UNIQUE AREA 165.0
LABRADOR HOLLOW UNIQUE AREA 1464.4
LITTLE GALLOO ISLAND UNIQUE AREA 44.8
LONG ISLAND PINE BARRENS 581.2
MIDDLE GROUND FLATS UNIQUE AREA 372.4
MOUNT LORETTO UNIQUE AREA 211.0
NELSON SWAMP UNIQUE AREA 889.7
NEVERSINK RIVER UNIQUE AREA 6,579.9
OLD WESTBURY CONSERVATION-UNIQUE AREA 31.7
ONONDAGA ESCARPMENT UNIQUE AREA 52.3
RAYWOOD UNIQUE AREA 316.5
REINSTEIN WOODS NATURE PRESERVE AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION CENTER 270.6
ROME SAND PLAINS UNIQUE AREA 1,786.3
RUSH OAK OPENINGS UNIQUE AREA 230.6
SALMON RIVER FALLS UNIQUE AREA 112.4
SPLIT ROCK UNIQUE AREA 34.1
SQUAW ISLAND UNIQUE AREA 0.2
THE GULF UNIQUE AREA 605.5
ZOAR VALLEY UNIQUE AREA 995.6
Total State Nature and Historical Preserve 21,764.5

Camping Log

New York Land Cover

January – June 2011.

Roadside: 9, Tent: 1, Leanto: 0 nights …

Date Campsite Where Type Notes
06/19/11 Campsite On Forest Road 70 Near Lye Wilderness Forest Road 70, Green Mountains NF, Kelley Stand, VT Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Hiked towards Big Alder, but couldn’t cross stream. Rainy day, did a little paddling in Powley Place. Nicer day on Memorial Day
06/04/11 Campsite On Back Side of Stockmans Island Stockmans Island, Hudson River State Park, NY Tent camping after paddling in on kayak Put in at Coxscakie Boat Launch, camped on an island in Hudson River.
05/29/11 Powley Place (Campsite 9) Piseco-Powley Road, Ferris Lake Wild Forest, Stratford, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Hiked towards Big Alder, but couldn’t cross stream. Rainy day, did a little paddling in Powley Place. Nicer day on Memorial Day.
05/28/11 Powley Place (Campsite 9) Piseco-Powley Road, Ferris Lake Wild Forest, Stratford, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Rainy day. Hiked around Powley Place.
05/27/11 Powley Place (Campsite 9) Piseco-Powley Road, Ferris Lake Wild Forest, Stratford, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Left work early, drove up there. Nice evening before the rain.
05/21/11 Cheney Pond Cheney Pond, Vanderwhacker Wild Forest, Newcomb, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Explored Vanderwhacker Wild Forest. Kayaked around Cheney Pond couple of times, explored Tawandus Ruins.
05/20/11 Fox Lair Campsite NY Route 8, Wilcox Lake Wild Forest, Bakers Mills, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Much nicer this time, a little rain, things greened up. Got a little rain, very damp.
04/22/11 Fox Lair Campsite NY Route 8, Wilcox Lake Wild Forest, Bakers Mills, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Woke up to 3” of cold wet snow and rain, decided to go home and abandon trip.
04/21/11 Gravel Pit Campsite NY Route 8, Wilcox Lake Wild Forest, Griffin, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Cold morning, trees covered with ice. Hike up around part of 13th Lake near North Creek, NY
04/09/11 Moscow Hill Horse Camp Brookfield State Forest aka Charles Baker State Forest, Brookfield, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge One other camper here, no equestrians this time of year. Wanted to camp on Cherry Ridge, however too much snow there.

Getting Out and Stretch

March – December 2010.

Roadside: 28, Tent: 2, Leanto: 1 nights …

Date Campsite Where Type Notes
12/4/10 Old NY 8 Wilcox Lake Wild Forest, Griffin, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Very cold. Ice and snow on truck in morning. Kind of close to NY 8, but all the best campsites taken by hunters.
11/12/10 Lower Assembly Area Sugar Hill State Forest, Watkins Glen, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Woke up surrounded by Horse Trailers and equestrians in morning. Assembly area was closed this time of year, but horse trails still widely used.
11/11/10 Informal campsite on Forest Road 151 Allegheny National Forest, Near Sayre, PA Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Second night at Allegheny National Forest. I liked the site I stayed in the previous day a lot, and the days where too short (sunset at 4:45 PM), so no time to waste searching for a site.
11/10/10 Informal campsite on Forest Road 151 Allegheny National Forest, Near Bradford, PA Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Many sites in Allegheny National Forest. This one I particularly liked, so I decided to stay there.
11/09/10 Aspah Run Camping Area Aspah, near Wellsboro, PA Roadside camping (in pickup truck): paid primitive area Decided due to a lack of a time due to early sunset, would have done roadside/back country camping, but for $10, and being alone, it was fine.
11/08/10 Aspah Run Camping Area Aspah, near Wellsboro, PA Roadside camping (in pickup truck): paid primitive area Camped here, because I didn’t want to camp back country, and didn’t know the area well enough.
11/07/10 Lower Assembly Area Sugar Hill State Forest, Watkins Glen, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Originally wanted to camp at Birds Eye Lake or something like that, but the map I had got me lost, and I couldn’t find the road campsite up there.
11/06/10 Campsite 7 Stoney Pond State Forest, Madison, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Frost/ice on puddles in morning. Some snow in some places.
09/05/10 Campsite 56 Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Rain showers, enjoyed staying in a very private and quite campsite up in the sandy plains.
09/04/10 Campsite 56 Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Hiked to Mitchells Pond. More rain. It was kind of wet and cold.
09/03/10 Campsite 56 Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Kind of wet and rainy, hung out in camp, did a little exploring of the plains. Also, paddled in Cedar River Flow for a while. Enjoyed the very private drive in site here.
09/02/10 Campsite 2 Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge I left work at 5 PM…. but with traffic, and wanting to get a pizza to eat on the way up, didn’t get to Moose River Plains until after 9 PM. Very dark, very tired, just wanted a place to collapse.
08/28/10 An Designated Campsite Big Pond, near Margretville, NY Kayak in Primitive Campsite: no charge Did a little hiking an exploring around Ashfield Pinnacle, then drove south to Big Pond. Lantern did not work, a very dark night.
08/27/10 Betty Brook Campsite Burnt-Rossman Hill State Forest, Schoharie, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Nice night after work…. drove around Mallet Pond State Forest, looking for campsites and interesting places to explore.
08/14/10 Mountain Pond Campsite 4 Mountain Pond, Paul Smiths, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Last day of NY 30 Kayak vacation. Mountain Pon was nice, very remote, just off of NY 30.
08/13/10 Floodwood Road Campsite 3 Floodwood Road, Fish Creek Ponds, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Crowded, stayed down by Poliwog Pond… wouldn’t go there again.
08/12/10 Horseshoe Lake Campsite 8 (about a ½ mile from lake) NY 421, Horseshoe Lake, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Couldn’t get a site right on Horseshoe Lake. Discovered Lows Lake – amazing.
08/11/10 Wakely Pond Campsite 7 Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Wanted to paddle Cedar River Flow and enjoy camping up near water …
08/10/10 Undesigned Campsite, west side of road Mason Lake, Spectulator, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge First day of kayak vacation, as I drove up from work, decided to go somewheres not too far away …
07/31/10 Undesigned Campsite, west side of road Mason Lake, Spectulator, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Hiked to Pillsbury Mountain Firetower, then camped down at Mason Lake.
07/18/10 Otter Brook Campsite (MRP Number 110) Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Camped by the Otter Brook Bridge, at a rather large campsite. Not my favorite campsite, and it poured out.
07/17/10 Wakely Pond Campsite 8 Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Camped down by Cedar River Flow, in a drive in site, a short way from the Flow, but also pretty private.
07/16/10 Wakely Pond Campsite 8 Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Camped down by Cedar River Flow, in a drive in site, a short way from the Flow, but also pretty private.
07/15/10 Wakely Pond Campsite 8 Moose River Plains, Inlet, Adirondacks, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Camped down by Cedar River Flow, in a drive in site, a short way from the Flow, but also pretty private.
06/27/10 Balsam Swamp Camping Area Site 3 Balsam Pond, East East Pharsalia, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Came back to here, after exploring Labrador Hollow.
06/26/10 Balsam Swamp Camping Area Site 3 Balsam Pond, East East Pharsalia, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Stop over between Burnt-Rossman and Labrador Hollow. Liked camping here in the past.
06/25/10 Duck Pond Campsite Burnt-Rossman Hill State Forest, Summit, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Camped up a Duck Pond for a change, after driving out here after work.
06/05/10 Leonard Hill Informal Overlook and Campsite Leonard Hill, Broome Center, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Camped up by the Firetower at an informal campsite, watched sun set, weather turned to rain by morning …
06/04/10 Betty Brook Campsite Burnt-Rossman Hill State Forest, Schoharie, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Camped at Betty Brook, very humid, drove down to Utsaythana Firetower.
05/15/10 Alder Pond Campsite 2 Alder Pond, Balsam Lake Wild Forest, Margretville, NY Tent campsite…. short backpack in: no charge Camped at one of the campsites around Alder Pond.
04/03/10 Betty Brook Campsite Burnt-Rossman Hill State Forest, Schoharie, NY Roadside camping, in a tent Didn’t have the cap on my truck yet, but wanted to roadside camp.
03/21/10 Cotton Hill Lean To Cotton Hill, Middleburgh Short backpack into a leanto There was about a foot of snow up by Cotton Hill Leanto on first day of spring, but due to abnormally warm weather, wasn’t all that cold until late into the night.

Campsite

August – October 2009.

Roadside: 3, Tent: 0, Leanto: 0 (thru August 2009) …

Date Campsite Where Type Notes
10/11/09 Betty Brook Campsite Burnt-Rossman Hill State Forest, Schoharie, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge First really cold evening of the year, very much fall like. I didn’t bring my warm coat with me.
10/10/09 Betty Brook Campsite Burnt-Rossman Hill State Forest, Schoharie, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge Fairly cold night, but not as bad as one might have thought. On way out, stopped at Leonard Hill to take some pictures.
08/08/09 Betty Brook – informal campsite along road Burnt-Rossman Hill State Forest, Schoharie, NY Roadside camping (in pickup truck): no charge After hiking Slide Mountain and Balsam Lake Firetower. Dead tired …