Clear Pond is as quiet a pond as you will find anywhere, and although many hikers use the trails surrounding the pond, very few access it by boat. Use the area trails to extend your adventure, and even consider a second carry to Rock Pond to the north.

Key takeaways

• Distance: 5.6 miles round trip
• Elevation gain: 690 feet
• Hike includes trail junctions, bridges, and a road walk
• Based on a loop hike

Paddling

You will need to paddle through Putnam Pond to the narrows that separate it and North Pond. From the narrows you can access the 0.6 mile portage trail that leads to Clear Pond. This is a well marked trail with decent footing. No motorboats are allowed on Clear Pond, but they are allowed on Putnam Pond. The waters are typically calm. Clear Pond is relatively small, with only approximately 1-mile of shoreline.

Fishing

Listed as one of the top brown trout waters in Essex County by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Clear Pond is also home to rainbow and brook trout, as well as their cousin, the kokanee salmon.

At 26 acres, Clear Pond is not large, but it still manages to draw anglers at ice out. The use and possession of baitfish is prohibited. Access is via a trail from Putnam Pond Campground or paddle/ portage from Putnam Pond itself. A lean-to provides shelter at the pond.

Hiking to Clear Pond

The Clear Pond Trail extends 3.8 miles from the Putnam Pond Campground Trailhead North looping around Putnam Pond to the Grizzle Ocean Trail at a location approximately 1.2 miles from the Putnam Pond Campground Trailhead South. The trail drops 100 feet in 0.1 mile to the shore of North Pond, after passing along the northern shore of the pond it ascends 170 feet in 0.1 mile. Between Rock Pond and Clear Pond the trail ascends 265 feet and descends 135 feet in a 0.5 mile. The trail descends 120 feet in the 1.1 miles from Clear Pond to the Grizzle Ocean Trail. Clear Pond and the Clear Pond Trail can also be accessed from the western shore of Putnam Pond via a 0.6-mile spur trail. Total elevation gain is 690 feet.

A day use fee is required to park a vehicle at the Putnam Pond Campground when the campground is open. The trailhead may not be plowed in winter.

How to get there

From the intersection of Route 9 and 74 near Schroon Lake, follow Route 74 toward Ticonderoga. Continue to Putts Pond Road on the right — this is also the entrance road for Putnam Pond State Campground. Drive this to the end to access the campground and the pond. A day use fee is required.