bluecordfishermen 
The transition from Summer to Fall happens quick in the North Country. To break up the routine, I headed to Tupper Lake NY in an attempt to catch walleye and pike. This trip covered a lot of ground including kayaking, hiking, fly fishing and exploring. I forgot that the weather gets a vote, but I adapted my plan and made it a great weekend.
Quote from a Article marketing Tupper Lake: “Tupper Lake is a great body of water for anglers in the Adirondacks looking for various species of fish to catch. Tupper Lake consists of the Simon Pond, Raquette Pond, Piercefield Flow and the lake itself. Tupper Lake is great for lake trout, northern pike, and walleye. Walleyes can be caught by trolling minnow plugs around the islands at night. Shore fishing can produce tiger muskies, northern pike, walleye, smallmouth bass, and lake trout. Where the Bog River enters Tupper Lake is the best spot for shore fishing. Raquette and Simon Pond are broad, shallow and weedy waters that have great northern pike populations.”
For places to stay at Tupper Lake, go to the end of this post.
I took my time getting to the lake so I could check in at the Tupper Lake Motel and focus on fishing that evening. The wind was kicking hard and you can see the waves in the picture below. The swells were close to a foot out in the channel. I never got past the weed beds and gave up after an hour of fighting the wind. I lost my anchor in the weed bed roots and headed to find a replacement in town.
A fella at the boat ramp pointed me in the right direction to the local hardware store and advised on hitting the Raquette River up stream where it should be sheltered from the wind. This was a short ride east of town. The ramp was first rate and it had a dock for fishing. The parking lot was busy with kayakers leaving and night fishermen settling in on the dock.
When I hooked this bass, I thought I snagged a root. Great fight and the picture does not do justice to his size. I caught him on a small, white mister twister. The Raquette river is narrow and deep in this stretch.
Got back to my room cold from the wind and water and fell asleep early. The next morning I took a walk into down town and had a great breakfast at the Swiss Kitchen on the main drag. The place was empty except for a young family, three old guys drinking coffee and the two gals waiting on tables. We talked about the economy of the town before the old men went to church. The older lady behind the counter gave me her run down on fishing and offered advice to head to Bog River Falls. She made a point to tell me her daughter is returning from Dallas TX to get married at the Bog River Falls later in September. The Falls did not disappoint.
I tossed a popper and crankbait a few times into the lake but I am positive this spot gets a lot of pressure. When I came back later that day, it was crawling with people and no place left to park. This is a local swimming hole even when the temperatures are below 75.
HORSESHOE LAKE
Next, I took the kayak up to Horseshoe Lake. There is no actual launch but I found a place to put in along hwy 421. As soon as I entered the water, the wind went from calm to insane. Again, the swells were about a foot but seemed bigger on the open water. I hugged the bank but had no luck. This lake has lots of dead fall along the shoreline and I heard its great for Pike, but not on the day I was there. As I headed in to the truck, I met up with a older couple launching small canoes. I tried to talk the nice lady to turn about because the chop on the water was very rough. During this conversation, her husband flipped his canoe. No lasting issues but only his obvious embarrassment. I got out and helped him empty the canoe and get it back up on the shore. These canoes weighed only 12 pounds each. He was soaked and getting cold fast but they were gone before I could get my kayak out of the water by my truck.
BRIDGEBROOK POND
Change in plan once again. I saw a trailhead along hwy 421 on the way to Horseshoe Lake. On the return, I stopped, locked up the kayak and hit the trail with my fly rod to Black pond and Bridgebrook pond. It was an easy walk.
Bridgebrook Pond is a 2 mile one way out and back trail. Black pond is the half way point. It was not fishable without waders to get beyond the marsh shore line. Bridgebrook Pond trail ends at a great location on an isthmus with the large “pond” on the north and a bog on the south.
At the end of the trail, I pulled out the fly rod and gave it a shot. I noticed fish rising to get bugs and so I switched to dry flies. I missed at least 20 small rainbow trout (All Less than 7 inches) . Several rainbows jumped out of the water, but I could not keep them hooked. I lost a lot of flies in the hemlocks and water lilies, but it was a blast. Several hiking groups stopped and watched me fly fish. The kids were most interested in the flies. In between groups, I made a friend with a chipmunk who liked bits of my energy bar (MRE Lunch). While I was tying on a fly, he ran across my hiking boots. He was a curious guy until groups came with dogs.
TUPPER LAKE AT DUSK
By the time I got back to Tupper, I was thirsty but not done. I went to the municipal launch and gave the big lake another try. The winds calmed and I paddled to the weed beds.
I missed a couple of bass and had one very nice pike follow my crank bait up to the kayak, but did not catch any fish. I probably waited too long to get off the lake and the end of the day jet skiers and speed boat drivers were getting all they could out of the last light before heading into their docks. (I think they saw me.) I got back to the room and ate a dinner of microwaved soup. Not much open but McDonalds after 8:00pm in Tupper Lake these days due to COVID.
Labor Day was rainy and windy. I packed up and began heading back to Fort Drum but planned to make some stops along the way.
Mount Arab
The first stop heading back was Mount Arab. It is a short 40 minute hike to the fire tower at the top and is a heavily used trail. The view is worth the climb. There is no warm up. From the trailhead its 20 minutes to the first level spot and its not the top.
GRASSE RIVER
The next stop was Grasse River public access along Route 3 between Lake and Sevey.
The Grasse River is a short walk on a trail from the parking area. I got there around lunch. I took the spin casting tackle because I knew the forest went right up to the stream. Rooster Tails resulted in a black bass, a very young bass and one big chub.
Final stop: Streeter Lake, Aldrich NY
This is a lake deep in the Five Ponds Wilderness. To get there, you catch a dirt road in Aldrich and drive five miles into the woods on a county road. The entrance to Streeter Lake was blocked to prevent use of the Lean Tos for camping. The hand launch point was available, but the winds were horrible. It looked great but it was too rough to be 5 miles from no where. Aldrich is a village of hunting camps and has only a few if any year round residents. Finding Aldrich requires maps. Coffin Mills Road from Oswegatchie leads to Aldrich. The dirt road leading to Streeter Lake is west of the bridge crossing the Little River in Aldrich. If you are not watching for it, you will miss it. Head South from Aldrich for five miles to reach Streeter Lake. This road parallels the Little River. There are some intersections but the way is clear on which fork to pick to get to Streeter LAKE. Stay on the gravel and you can’t go wrong.
Beyond the gate is a road and path that leads the Lean To’s by the lake. The Lean To camp site was a half mile past the road block. (I got there by foot). Here you are deep in the forest of the Adirondacks. This is a place where you are truly alone. This will be a future trip if the rules are changed to permit camping. There are numerous camping sites but these are controlled by DEC NY. Streeter lake is only 40 miles from Fort Drum.
Staying at Tupper Lake
Tupper Lake did not have camping due to COVID restrictions but the local mom and pop hotels are great.
I stayed at the Tupper Lake Motel. These folks were great. I had easy parking for a pickup truck with a kayak. I was not the Marriot but it had all a fisherman wants: Microwave, Fridge and a hot shower. The team at Tupper Lake is the best. Call 518 359-3381 or look them up on-line at: http://www.tupperlakemotel.com/
This is the kind of place that mails you the iphone cord you forgot without asking for payment.
Alternatives for Lodging:
Shaneen’s Adirondack Inn 800 474-2445
Red Top In 518-359-9209 · info@redtopinn.com
Camping Once COVID ends: https://www.tupperlake.com/campgrounds/blue-jay-campsite (518) 359-3720
The VFW opens at 2:00 PM daily. I regret not getting there but I was beat each evening. Sleep was more important than beer on this trip.
