Cod Pond

[saabrian]

Hiked the Cod Pond trail in Wilcox Lake WF on Sunday. It'd be nice if DEC put up a few trail markers. There were maybe 2-3 snowmobile markers each way but nothing else. It's easy to follow the trail most of the time but there were a few spots where a little guidance would be helpful. For example, at one junction, there's an arrow pointing to the right (toward Georgia Creek but there's nothing on the sign to indicate that) but no indication that it's actually a junction with the left going to Cod Pond. Plus, there are a few spots of major blow down where the continuation of the trail didn't seem obvious to me. Twice, I would've either taken the wrong path or abandoned the hike if there hadn't happened to be another hiker near by who'd done it before.

[DSettahr]

Your experience sounds pretty typical of the Wilcox Lake Wild Forest specifically. In general terms, what you describe is also something that you can expect to encounter more and more often as you branch out from more popular hikes, such as the High Peaks and the Fire Tower Mountains. Wilcox Lake sits among the ranks of areas like the Silver Lake Wilderness (away from the NPT at least), the Black River Wild Forest, the Pigeon Lake Wilderness, the Independence River Wild Forest, the Cold River area of the Western High Peaks (again, away from the NPT at least), the Hoffman Notch Wilderness, the Debar Mountain Wild Forest, etc.- all areas that the maps show a plethora of trails within but in reality these trails are often poorly maintained, typically minimally marked (if they are marked at all), and at times a navigational challenge to follow.

Issues with poorly maintained and marked trails in the Wilcox Lake Wild Forest have existed for years. This is why both the ADK guidebook and the National Geographic Map have the warning listed that hikers are advised to travel in a group of at least 3 when traversing the snowmobile trail through the Coulombe Creek area. It is a warning that probably could be expanded to cover just about any trail in the area.

I can't speak for the DEC, but I know that the Wilcox Lake WF area gets very little use (especially compared to other areas in the Adirondacks more popular for day hiking and overnighting). I would guess that it's just not anywhere near the top of the priority list for maintenance. Lakes with lean-tos (Murphy, Wilcox, Lizard) get some use, but other than Crane Mountain and maybe the Pine Orchard, there really isn't a lot of demand for well-maintained trails in that area.

The area really doesn't even seem that popular for snowmobiling. I've hiked some of the snowmobile trails in more remote areas of the Wild Forest, and I'd have to imagine that it's been years since a snowmobile went down some of those trails, based on how overgrown they've gotten and how much blowdown there is.

In areas like this, you also sometimes see the effects of certain individuals actively discouraging maintenance. It's not uncommon for the DEC to put up signs at trail junctions in remote, little used areas, only to have someone rip the signs down within a few months (or even a few weeks). It's definitely frustrating.

I will also add that in the grand scheme of the full spectrum of recreational opportunities, there is a place for minimally maintained and marked trails. Some users desire the added challenge and are willing to put forth the extra work to find and follow these trails to reap the benefits of solitude that come with them. It would be nice, certainly, if it were easier to tell in advance just how well maintained and marked a trail will be, but exploring a new area and finding out on your own is also half the fun, I think. The National Geographic maps don't do a very good job of this (many trails that should be shown as "primitive trails" are shown instead as proper trails that most users would expect to be well maintained) but they are getting better as the public provides them with more feedback and they print new editions.

You can use the contact information on the DEC webpage for the Wilcox Lake Wild Forest to forward your concerns directly to the DEC. I wouldn't expect much to change in the short term, however. For trails that are much lower on the maintenance priority list, ultimately the only way they will likely ever see regular maintenance is if a group or individual adopts them through the Adopt a Natural Resource Stewardship Program and is willing to provide volunteer labor.

[DSettahr]

I will also add that in federally-designated Wilderness Areas, trails are usually left unmarked by design. Trail junctions may have a small sign or two (but not always). Even the Appalachian Trail, a heavily traveled trunk trail that receives high levels of use, is left unmarked where it passes through the Great Gulf Wilderness in the White Mountains. This is all done intentionally to provide a great level of challenge to visitors in these areas.

Of course, in those cases, there are usually signs at the trailheads warning you not to expect to see trail markers. The guidebooks and maps usually contain similar warnings as well, so its not something that a reasonably well-prepared visitor would be surprised to encounter.

[saabrian]

If there'd been two signs at the junction, I would've whipped out my map and figured it out. It was the presence of just one that threw me off.

I do understand the desire of some for a greater challenge. With all the resources now out there, it just seems like this information could be available in advance so hikers can make their decisions accordingly based on their skill, desire, etc. Given my own skill level, I generally avoid trails I know to be unmarked.

I've hiked in Wilcox Lake WF before and don't recall noticing this before. But thanks for the info. I'll keep that in mind.

[keoni]

Speaking of trails in that area, someone recently did a fair amount of work on the trail to Kibby Pond. Sections in danger of becoming overgrown have been cleared, the trail's been rerouted around blowdown in a handful of places, and it's much better marked than it used to be. Hopefully the trail to Cod Pond will reveive similar attention soon.

[saabrian]

So I took DSettahar’s advice and sent an email to DEC. Much to my surprise, I got a response the next day. She said they would send a steward out there in a way to mark Cod Pond and Oregon trails. She said she is the new manager of the Wilcox Lake WF unit and is in the process of reviewing the UMP and is looking for the public input on the area.