Susquehanna Chapter ADK

The formation of a Quiet Waters Working Group offers an excellent opportunity to expand one of the Adirondack Park's greatest attractions, the St. Regis Canoe Area.

"The St. Regis, the largest primitive canoe area in the Northeast, attracts thousands of visitor each year who canoe, kayak, fish, hike and camp,'' said Neil Woodworth, executive director of the Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK). "Expanding this popular area to include 13 interconnecting ponds directly south of the St. Regis would greatly enhance the region's reputation as an outdoor destination and do wonders for its tourism-based economy."

Last month, state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Pete Grannis and Adirondack Park Agency (APA) Chairman Curt Stiles announced the formation of an interagency "Quiet Waters Working Group for the Adirondack Park." The Working Group will evaluate lakes, ponds and rivers in the park for potential designation as "quiet water," meaning that motorized craft would be prohibited.

ADK welcomes the creation of the Working Group, which offers an opportunity to address a number of boating issues, but does not advocate any wide-reaching ban on motorboats on Adirondack waters.

"Motorboats have been allowed for decades on most larger Adirondack lakes, and ADK believes that this traditional use should continue," Woodworth said. "But there also should be more places in the Adirondacks where people can canoe and kayak in peace and tranquility. We believe this can be accomplished with some modest changes that would have little impact on other users."

Woodworth, on behalf of ADK's 30,000 members, endorsed proposed motorboat restrictions on 13 ponds, which include Follensby Clear, Rollins, Floodwood, Polliwog, Little Square and Whey ponds. Under the proposal by the newsmagazine Adirondack Explorer, the area would be open to nonmotorized craft and boats with electric motors, with a 5 mph speed limit. The 13 ponds have a total surface area of 3 square miles, less than 1 percent of the total lake surface area of the Adirondack Park.

This plan would create an extended area for quiet paddling, but with fewer restrictions than on the St. Regis, where all motors are prohibited. Anglers would be able to navigate the ponds in boats equipped with electric motors and enjoy quiet fishing undisturbed by the noise and wakes of gas-powered motorboats.

The DEC-APA Working Group should also study the economic impacts of any quiet waters initiative, Woodworth said.

"Kayaking is the fastest growing segment of recreational boating, while at the same time rising gas prices are already taking their toll on motorized boating," Woodworth said. "If the Adirondacks' tourism industry is to remain viable, it must adapt to these changing trends."

Woodworth said the Working Group should also study possible motor restrictions or speed limits on Adirondack rivers, such as the Raquette, Jordan and Osgood. High-speed boats operating close to shore create wakes that disrupt nesting loons and inhibit their ability to reproduce. The Working Group should also consider economic incentives to encourage motorboat owners to switch from loud, dirty two-stroke engines to four-stroke engines.

While any recommendations of the Working Group will likely be long way off, Woodworth said the DEC can act now to enhance quiet paddling by reversing its decision on commercial floatplanes on Lows Lake. According to the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan, which is part of state Executive Law, "preservation of the wild character of this canoe route without motorboat or airplane usage … is the primary management goal for this primitive area." Under a Unit Management Plan for the area, which DEC signed in January 2003, floatplanes were to be phased out on the lake over five years. But DEC never adopted regulations to enforce the ban and is now proposing a permit system that could allow commercial floatplanes on the lake for up to 10 more years. ADK and other environmental groups are suing to require DEC to enforce the ban.

Woodworth said the Working Group should also try to dispel some myths about the lakes and ponds of the Adirondacks, including the myth that there are thousands of lakes and ponds, covering hundreds of square miles, that are open to quiet paddling. DEC has cataloged more than 3,600 lakes and ponds in the park, but nearly half are less than 5 acres and three-quarters have less than a mile of shoreline.

Another myth is that many lakes and ponds are inaccessible because they have been "locked up" in wilderness. Although wilderness accounts for 17.5 percent of the total area of the Adirondack Park, wilderness ponds cover only about 12,000 acres, less than 4 percent of the total lake water surface of the park. All told, when private and public water bodies are taken into account, about 90 percent of the park's lake surface area is open to motorboats.

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Paul Ertelt
Communications Director
Adirondack Mountain Club
(518) 449-3870
(518) 810-7741 (cell)
paulertelt@adk.org

Moira Beach
Publicity Chair
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