Scarface Mountain trail closure impacts aspiring Saranac Lake 6ers
By Mike Lynch
A popular peak that is part of a hiking challenge in the Saranac Lake region is closed to hikers for the immediate future.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation shut down a large portion of the trail to Scarface Mountain in Ray Brook in December after it deemed a bridge located a half-mile from the trailhead structurally unsafe.
The DEC said it is developing plans for a replacement structure over Ray Brook (also the name of the waterway), but didn’t provide a timeline for when that would happen. People are still allowed to walk from the trailhead to the bridge, which was built in the 1980s.
Scarface is part of the Saranac Lake 6er hiking challenge that encourages people to summit six peaks in the region: Baker, Ampersand, McKenzie, St. Regis, Haystack, and Scarface. People that finish all six can register their accomplishment and buy a patch for $15. There are close to 6,200 finishers on the list.
Located across the street from DEC’s region 5 headquarters, the Scarface hike is 3.8 miles one way to its 3,088-foot summit.
Impact on hikers participating in the Saranac Lake 6er hiking challenge
The challenge was started by the village of Saranac Lake in 2013 and quickly gained traction, inspiring similar ones throughout the Adirondacks. It has undergone numerous changes in recent years. Most recently, the village turned over registration duties to the Saranac Lake Chamber of Commerce on Jan. 1.
Rachel Karp, executive director of the chamber, said her office has received a few emails about the trail closure. She noted that those who have already climbed Scarface are still able to complete six and receive a patch. It’s beginners who are impacted but she’s still encouraging them to get started.
“Being able to complete the challenge might be on hold, but you can still hike the other mountains,” she said.
RELATED READING: A guide to all 6 of the hikes
The village has also cut back on promoting the challenge and requires 6er participants to earn a patch by beginning the Baker Mountain hike at downtown’s Berkeley Green.
In 2022, the village turned over control of revenue from the fees to Saranac Lake Development Corp. It uses the money for trail maintenance on the peaks.
Last summer, the development corp hired the Adirondack Mountain Club to do five days worth of trail work on Baker Mountain.
Saranac Lake Treasurer Patrick Murphy told the Explorer last summer the 6er program generated about $15,600 in the 2020-21 fiscal year from May to June and $12,235 the following year through finisher fees.
People should be calling the DEC Land manager for that area and asking for it to be replaced asap… what else is their job then to act promptly when these significant structures fail, preventing the public from accessing a trail built with the public’s money.
That bridge has been in neglected disrepair for as long as I can remember.