Berrymill Pond .. A quiet place in the Pharaoh Lake Wilderness

Elevation: 1675 ft

Ascent: 760 ft

Distance: 3.2 miles

Location: West Hague Rd nortwest of Hague.

Berrymill Pond

Berrymill Pond is a nice destination for a picnic lunch in a quiet setting. Is is located in the Pharaoh Ponds Wilderness almost due south of the Putnam Pond State campground.   There are two trails to the pond, one from the north starting at the State campground and one from the south.   The trail from the north is shorter (2 miles vs 3 miles from the south) and it requires less ascent (360 feet vs 760 feet from the south)  The trailheadfrom the south is about 0.2 miles past the end of the May Memorial cemetery when traveling east on West Hague road and is well marked by a sign on the north side of the road.   There is a nice pull through parking lot there.

For the most part the trail is a very nice single track footpath with moderate gradients. In the spring there would be several moderately short sections that would be wickedly wet or muddy.  It passes both through open woods and through a “thicket” section where you are grateful for the open path that it affords.  When you approach the lake from the south, you will reach an intersection marked with arrows telling you that the trail makes a right angle bend there. If you follow the arrows, you will end up at another junction with a sign pointing you to the new lean-to on the edge of the pond. This is an good place to camp, environmentally speaking, but it is not the best place to enjoy a lunch beside the lake.   If you want to sit beside the like proper, at the first intersection go straight ahead on the unmarked path which soon leads you to a nice spot to sit along the edge of the main part of the pond.

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NOTE: For a more complete description of the trails, please see ADK's GUIDE to ADIRONDACK TRAILS - Eastern Region, pp 115-116.

Have a great hike!
Bob Goodwin