Saranac Lakes Wild Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
8 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Photo: Mwanner at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Saranac Lake
6% of Saranac Lake’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 8.2 miles of mapped trail cross Saranac Lake, 2.8 per square mile of land. 103 acres are parks and preserves, 21 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns · #93 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
107 acres · of 2.9 sq mi of land
Trails
8.2 mi
2.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
103 ac
21 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.6 mi
2.6 mi paths
Highest peak
2,083 ft
Mount Pisgah
Lakes & rivers
4
1 beach · 2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Saranac Lake?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Saranac Lake have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Saranac Lake is ahead of 93% of U.S. towns, #93 of 758 in New York. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, conserved land lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Saranac Lake’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%BTrails2.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land21 acres of park per 1,000 residents (103 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · NY 70% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 93%
LessMore
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 88%
Water is 8% of Saranac Lake’s area (0 of 3 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 5%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Town of Harrietstown Bike Park
Park
3 acres0.2 mi of trail
Jump line
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Sunset Park Arboretum
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 9 parks & preserves
Town of Harrietstown Bike Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Saranac Lakes Wild Forest8 acres · New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Sunset Park Arboretum2 acres
Baldwin Park1 acres
DirectionsRiverfront Park1 acres
DirectionsAmpersand Park1 acres
DirectionsPrescott Park1 acres
Riverside Park1 acres
DirectionsWilliam Morris Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
107 conserved acres
6% of Saranac Lake’s land. Water is left out: Saranac Lake has 2.9 square miles of land and 0.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Saranac Lake’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city71 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government28 ac
State conservation17 ac
County12 ac
Regional agency7 ac
Local Park · 74 acLocal Recreation Area · 26 acLocal Other or Unknown · 19 acState Conservation Area · 16 acState Recreation Area · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 21 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town Of Harrietstown Land Local Park | Town or city | 21 | Unknown |
| Village Of Saranac Lake Land Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Unknown |
| Dewey Mountain Recreation Area Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 12 | Open |
| Trustees Village Saranac Lake Land Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Unknown |
| The Pines Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Soccer Field Local Recreation Area | County | 11 | Open |
| Saranac Lakes Wild Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 8 | Open |
| Unclassified State Conservation Area | State conservation | 8 | Open |
| Saranac Lake Central School Land Local Other or Unknown | Regional agency | 7 | Unknown |
| Saranac Lake Civic Center Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 5 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
10 places to go in Saranac Lake
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Saranac Lake
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Saranac Lake
Front playground
DirectionsSide playground
DirectionsPlus 4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Saranac Lake
Lake Flower Boat Launch
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Peaks in Saranac Lake
Mount Pisgah2,083 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
19 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.4 miUnpaved · 7.5 mi
Monopoly0.6 mi
Keough's K0.5 mi
East Side Snowshoe Trail0.4 mi
Operation0.4 mi
Peanuts0.3 mi
Trivial Pursuit0.3 mi
Boulder Dash0.3 mi
Adirondack Rail Trail0.3 mi
Timinator0.3 mi
Exploding Kittens0.2 mi
9 more trails
Yellow
0.2 miAll Loops
0.2 miCookie Monster
0.2 miBattleship
0.2 miJump line
0.1 miNatski
0.1 miConnect Four
0.1 miTwister
0.1 miEasier
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.6 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
4Soccer
4Tennis
3Basketball
3Baseball
1Football
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Saranac Lake: May, August and September
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 26 | 29 | 38 | 51 | 65 | 73 | 77 | 75 | 68 | 55 | 42 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 2.9 | 2.3 | 2.6 | 3.5 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 3.3 | 3.2 |
February is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 77 °F). 4.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Saranac Lake →
Next door
Saranac Lake and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saranac Lake | 6% | 2.8 | 21 | 99%+ | A |
| St. Armand | 81% | 0.3 | 4,247 | 91% | A |
| North Elba | 81% | 1.8 | 2,214 | 83% | A+ |
| Harrietstown | 88% | 0.6 | 6,651 | 97% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Saranac Lake
Where can I hike in Saranac Lake?
The longest trail networks: Town of Harrietstown Bike Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Saranac Lake is conserved land?
6% of its land, against a typical 5% for a New York town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Saranac Lake’s trails?
Saranac Lakes Wild Forest and Town of Harrietstown Bike Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Saranac Lake?
2.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Saranac Lake?
164,135 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Saranac Lake or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 103 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Saranac Lake have?
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #93 of 758 in New York. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Saranac Lake neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →