Five Ponds Wilderness
Red Horse Trail: Hikers will need to navigate around two bridges that have washed away between Witchopple and Clear Lakes, and beaver flooding between Salmon and Witchopple Lakes.
Read on DEC's siteUsers should expect wet conditions and may require short bushwacks around flooded sections of trail until water levels recede. Users of the Cranberry Lake 50 Trail should note that hiking along Six Mile Creek Trail and bypassing the Olmstead Pond Loop provides enough mileage to qualify for the badge.
Read on DEC's siteThe railroad is undergoing maintenance adjacent to the Five Ponds Wilderness Area and William C. Whitney Wilderness Area. There is an increase in traffic from trains and equipment working on rehabilitation of the railroad through this section. Users are reminded that the railroad tracks between Harrington Brook and the carry to Clear Pond and Bog Lake (Five Ponds Wilderness) are not a DEC trail and should not be used as a canoe carry when the railroad is active.
Read on DEC's siteUpdated from DEC · DEC's page
Not affiliated with NYS DEC. Conditions change — verify with DEC before you go. Emergencies: 911 or 1-833-NYS-RANGERS.
Distances are as the crow flies.
Trail map from NY State DEC. DEC's page for Five Ponds Wilderness.
No past alerts for this trail since we started keeping track in October 2026.