Hey all! Checking in with any of you who have been mountain stream fishing in the Adirondacks. I am staying at the ADK Loj Heart Lake Camp Ground with my family over Labor Day… we usually do this, and because of small kids I rarely have time to jet out on my own to fish. But, my brother will be with me this time and I want to make sure that I take him to some cool spots. I have been fishing at points on the Au Sable (CR spots in Wilmington), near the ADK Loj, and I am aware of the rivers and streams as you hike out into the wilderness a ways. But… I’d like some advice on any mountain streams which are not a 2+ mile hike out into the high peaks wilderness… mostly because I am not certain about my brother’s hiking abilities, but also because I can’t up and leve my family for a whole day. Any suggestions?
I haven’t been to the Loj (my parents have been there many times) but I have fished around that area some.
I suspect you’ll find brook trout in almost any water there – especially this year. I was not too far away a couple of weeks ago (an annual trip) and the water was much higher and the weather cooler than any other time I’ve been that time of year.
I’ve fished some spots in the keene valley that are not very far, but parking near trailheads can be a huge problem (it was nearly packed when I arrived at 6:30 AM one time).
I would suggest being as specific as possible with your request and just contact the DEC region 5 office. I’ve reached out to them before and I find that the DEC is often very generous with info https://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/120650.html
Places where we visit in the Adirondacks, I’m often in a similar boat – my kids are older now but I get up and go fish while they sleep and I’m always looking for easier access so I spent more time fishing and less time driving/walking.
Thank you! These are perfect. There is a portion of the West Branch Au Sable which crosses the road near the Loj (on it’s way from Marcy Dam), but I cannot tell where the private land is/is not at that point and I know that there are a lot of second home owners around there who are very protective. I prefer to stay away from the crowds, especially that weekend, so I think contacting DEC is a great recommendation. This is definitely a family-focused trip, where we join a group of about 40+ people camping in our group (yearly), so getting out to fish needs to be coordinated and efFISHient… not how I prefer it to be. Thank you so much for the points!
Sure thing.
I’ve had good exchanges with the DEC on topics like finding brook trout in the area – I specifically assaulted them with a barrage of questions once when I fished a creek that was advertised for Brook trout and stocked browns and I ended up catching more rainbows than I could count.
Like many in the service of the public, I suspect that too few people reach out to ask, so they’re keen to help.
Thanks, I will reach out! I bet they are KEENE to help 
I have a Gaia Premium subscription for exactly this purpose. OnX has a similar Private Land overlay to the basemaps, but a Gaia Premium subscription is much less expensive, and I find it is well worth the annual $40 cost that helps me navigate checkerboard boundary lines to stay on public land, and give me property owners’ names that can help me get permission to access private land.
It looks like everything south & east of the Loj-Heart Lake for a few miles is NY State Property. North of the Loj property (including Lc Ranch LLC ADIRONDACK LOJ RD, LAKE PLACID, NY 12946 property) the State land is pretty well surrounded by private land unless you’re willing to hike in a couple of miles.
The Loj staff should be able to give you a map of their holdings there to keep you straight, and might even be able to to tell you what rocks to stand on…
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