8 Things New Yorkers Know About the Adirondacks in the Winter That Visitors Don’t

Once the snow in the High Peaks gets deep enough, you need snowshoes or skis on the trail.

New Yorkers who spend winters in the Adirondacks know details like that by heart. A weekend visitor might not.

Here’s what New Yorkers know about the Adirondacks in the winter that tourists often don’t.

1. Mirror Lake’s Ice Track

Mirror Lake in Lake Placid becomes a 2-mile skating track in winter, once the ice is at least a foot thick.

The North Elba Park District maintains the track.

You can skate there for free around the clock, as long as conditions allow.

Many locals check the ice before they plan a skate, and visitors often book the trip first.

Dog sled rides also run on the ice, and you don’t need reservations.

2. Lake Placid’s Toboggan Chute

The toboggan chute on Lake Placid’s Mirror Lake can’t open in winter until the ice is 12 inches thick.

The North Elba Park District decides when the ice is safe.

Once it opens, you ride down a 30-foot-high structure onto the lake and coast more than 1,000 feet.

Because the lake has to freeze first, the opening day changes from year to year.

If you’re booking a trip around a ride, leave yourself a few spare days.

Only one sled goes down at a time.

3. Saranac Lake’s Ice Palace

Saranac Lake’s Winter Carnival, one of the oldest in the United States, began in 1897.

The first ice palace went up the following year.

These days, volunteers build the palace from almost 1,000-pound blocks of ice taken from Lake Flower.

The carnival starts the first weekend of February and runs until the second Sunday of the month.

The palace typically goes up in the two weeks leading up to the carnival.

If you miss the carnival, the Lake Placid tourism office says you can still visit the palace for as long as the weather allows.

4. Snowshoes at 8 Inches

In the Adirondacks’ High Peaks Wilderness, you need snowshoes or skis once the snow is at least 8 inches deep.

Day trips are capped at 15 people and overnight groups at 8.

DEC doesn’t issue permits for oversized groups there, so a group of 16 has to split up.

The state’s winter advisory for the Adirondacks and Catskills also tells you to carry crampons or other traction devices for icy portions of trails.

5. Unplowed Winter Roads

Some Adirondack roads go unplowed.

One is the Jay Mountain Road and Wells Hill Road segment bordering the Jay Mountain and Hurricane Mountain Wildernesses, which isn't plowed in the winter.

If you ski or snowshoe there, stay alert for snowmobiles, since it's a designated snowmobile trail.

Chain Lakes Road South in the Essex Chain Lakes Complex isn't plowed in winter beyond the raft put-in on the Indian River.

Before you head for a trailhead, check DEC's backcountry page for closures, or call the Region 5 office at 518-897-1200, the contact it lists.

6. Moose River Plains Road

The Limekiln Lake-Cedar River Road through the Moose River Plains is a primary snowmobile route in winter.

The road runs more than 20 miles, and it's open to snowmobiles once enough snow has fallen.

The complex has a unit-wide snowmobile speed limit of 25 mph.

Riders should slow down when approaching and passing skiers or snowshoers.

If you'd rather ski, nearly 16 miles of trails in the complex are designated for skiing only.

The eastern segment of the road is listed as closed after a bridge failure at Payne Brook, so check it before you ride.

The Town of Inlet plows the Seventh Lake Boat Launch parking area for vehicles and snowmobile trailers.

7. Ice-Fishing Closures

In DEC's Region 5, which covers the eastern Adirondacks, nearly all ponds and small lakes where brook trout live are closed to ice fishing.

You can still ice-fish larger waters such as Lake George, Raquette Lake and the Saranac chain of lakes.

Visitors often assume any frozen pond is fair game, while many locals check the rules first.

Some parking areas, roads and trails may not be maintained in winter, so ask the Region 5 fisheries office about access before you go.

Some open ponds take a hike to reach, such as Berrymill Pond in the Pharoah Lake Wilderness, a 2-mile walk in from Putnam Pond Campground.

8. Winter 46ers

The Adirondack 46ers club counts December 21 through March 21 as winter.

Hikers who climb all 46 peaks in winter and record their ascents with the club's historian earn recognition as Winter 46ers.

If you're already a 46er, finishing in winter keeps your number and puts a W after it.

The first recorded Winter 46er was Edgar B. Bean, in 1962.

Mud Season Closures

When the spring thaw turns Adirondack roads to mud, DEC closes snowmobile trails and gates to seasonal access roads on Forest Preserve, State Forest and Conservation Easement lands.

The 2026 closures covered DEC Region 5 and Region 6, which include Adirondack counties, with all gates expected to be closed by March 20.