The snow we received before our recent wet weather was a welcome addition to our already good base. I took advantage of it by skiing on the Fish Pond Ski Trail with Wren before the melt. The trails are most easily reached off Rt. 30 near Lake Clear where you can park just off Fish Hatchery Road. There are a number of trails in the area which link the various water bodies of the St. Regis Canoe Wilderness, and each day we skied along the narrow trail which passes Little Clear Pond and Little Green Pond before linking up with the Fish Pond Ski Trail – the main artery in the area.

On our first outing snow was falling steadily as Kendra, Wren, and I were immersed in a winter wonderland. The woods were silent save the sounds of our own breathing and skis, and we found the trail in great shape as we glided along. The only birds we found were a few black-capped chickadees and a lone hairy woodpecker. Animal tracks too were scarce as any that were present were getting covered up by the falling snow. But we did recognize the print patterns of coyote, red fox, white-tailed deer, and red squirrel. After skiing out on the Fish Pond Trail a couple miles we turned and retraced our steps as we were starting to get wet from the falling snow. It was a beautiful outing.

Fish Pond Sign
Some of the trails in the area are marked, but others are not. Skiers can ski out and back on already tracked-in trails, and can also explore further using a map. The Adirondack Paddler's Map shows the area well as does the ADK's Guide to the Adirondack Northern Region.

The following day Wren and I returned for an encore following the exact same trails, but going a bit further and faster on the well kicked-in Fish Pond Ski Trail. Warming temperatures did have the snow compacting beneath our weight, but the trails were still in great shape and we moved along quickly.

Bird life was similarly quiet as it had been on the previous day, but animal tracks printed since the snow storm dotted the fresh snow and crossed our path. We found the same tracks of the previous day – coyote, fox, white-tailed deer, and red squirrel – but also found American marten, fisher, and snowshoe hare. The forest in that area is great for finding wildlife and is subsequently good for finding wildlife tracks as a result.

Fish Pond Trail
The Fish Pond Ski Trail crosses several wet areas as the trail winds through the woods.

One of my favorite attributes of the Fish Pond Trail is a large hill which the trail crosses a couple miles from the parking area. It is fun to ski down both sides of the hill. We climbed to the top and then raced down – I yelling "mush" to Wren to make sure she kept moving quickly. She loves to race down the hills when I'm on skis. We retraced our steps, staying straight on the Fish Pond Trail until it joined the railroad bed – an easier route out for us as evening shadows grew. Even with our melt of the past two days, snow will return and we'll be back. There always seems to be snow on the trails around Fish Pond.