powerhouse trail guide
introduction and route overview
The Powerhouse Trail is a well-maintained, 3.1 mile out-and-back hike with only slight elevation changes. The trail passes through a small clearing and then becomes a woods walk with glimpses of Outlet Brook along the entire route. Use this guide to learn about some of the natural features and historical artifacts you are likely to encounter on your way. Keep an eye out for uneven footings and wet spots.
The trailhead is on Sagamore Road, where there is a small car pull-off with enough parking for 2-3 vehicles (designated by the “P” on this DEC map of the Great Camp Sagamore trail system). You can also start via the Lake Trail (where there are a few more parking spaces), by making a left onto Big Slope after about half a mile, then making another left onto Powerhouse at the next junction to complete a 2.3-mile loop, returning via Sagamore Road. All of these junctions are marked.
The Powerhouse Trail ends at a secluded cascade with a view of the Raquette Lake South Inlet (a pretty picnic spot). Crossing the brook to return via the Cascades Trail is not recommended due to deep water with a strong current.
Historical Background
This trail offers a behind-the-scenes look at some of the infrastructure that made luxurious electric light available to Sagamore’s owners and guests well before local municipalities had this utility. While the Vanderbilts enjoyed their comfortable camp life, workers maintained and ran the amenities, like this hydroelectric powerhouse, to make the plush lifestyle possible. W.C. Ryan, the camp’s electrician managed the powerhouse and electric lines running through camp from 1914 until rural electrification came to the Adirondacks in the 1930s. For over 15 years, the powerhouse was an essential (if hidden) element to the Vanderbilt’s experience of “roughing it” in the Adirondacks.
Trailside Features
outlet brook
Rushing water serenades hikers as they travel this trail. Sagamore Lake flows out to Raquette Lake through this outlet stream. Sagamore lies within the Raquette River watershed, which flows north to join the St. Lawrence River at the US-Canadian border. Healthy watersheds mean clean drinking water, which is one reason New York State has protected the Adirondack Park since its establishment in 1892.
Outlet Brook has a healthy riparian zone. We know this because there is plenty of vegetation to absorb excess nutrients which could overwhelm the balance of the aquatic ecosystem. Some plant species you are likely to see along this stream bank are cinnamon fern (Osmunda cinnamomea), wintergreen or teaberry (Gaultheria procumbens), and northern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis). While speaking the names of these species feels good on the tongue, we do not recommend tasting them.
Did you know?
A riparian zone is the name for the special biome at the edge of a body of water. All streams have a riparian zone whether they are in the mountains or cutting across a city. The density of streamside vegetation here is one reason why Adirondack watersheds are considered so healthy. Wintergreen sits at the edge of Outlet Brook in the riparian zone and smells like mint when the waxy leaves are broken. Its bright red berries can help hikers identify it in late summer.
Hydroelectricity
Early hydroelectric systems like this one relied on gravity to pull water from the highest point to the lowest. As you hike along the Powerhouse Trail, follow the flow of water to learn about how this system worked. Here we will summarize the function of each trailside artifact. Read “History of the Powerhouse” to learn more about this system and how it came to Sagamore.
Bendway Weirs
Just upstream of the valve house are weirs (concrete structures similar to dams) that diverted some of the stream’s current into the valve house.
Valve House
The first stop for the water that powered Sagamore’s lights, the valve house (sometimes called a gatehouse in hydroelectric engineering terms), controlled the flow and pressure of the water directed from Outlet Brook to the Powerhouse. From the valvehouse, the water flowed downstream to the powerhouse through the raceway.
Raceway
Rusting iron hoops visible along the trail are all that remain of the raceway. In 1914, it conveyed water, which had been diverted from the brook at the valve house, some 300 yards downstream to the powerhouse turbines. Wooden staves were encircled and bound together by these iron hoops to create a sort of wooden pipeline. We can guess that it must have leaked incessantly.
Powerhouse
Sagamore’s powerhouse expanded upon developments in hydroelectricity spurred by Thomas Edison and General Electric. Incandescent lighting and innovation. Before the turn of the century, The Prospect House in nearby Blue Mt. Lake, a 500-bed hotel that helped popularize the Adirondack vacation, boasted, “Electric lights, running water and modern bath and toilet rooms.” The Vanderbilts would have been proud to show off high-tech amenities to their guests. As you might guess, the powerhouse no longer supplies electricity to camp.
plant species
Red Spruce (Picea rubens)
The red spruce is a native Adirondack coniferous tree and a prime example of a boreal forest species. You’ll see lots of red spruce on your walk if you know what to look for. “Spruces are spikey, firs are friendly” is a good mnemonic device to help with tree identification. Red Spruce needles are prickly to the touch while fir trees tend to feel soft. Spruce needles have four sides, whereas fir needles are flat. Red spruce wood is light and soft and often has a slight reddish hue. It’s frequently used as building lumber and is a prized wood for certain musical instruments.
Hobblebush (Viburnum lantanoides)
An Adirondack native, this plant is a mainstay of the understory and draws attention all year. Fragrant white flowers appear in May followed by edible red berries that mature in August. In the winter and early spring, brown buds appear, which some hunters say look like moose ears, lending the plant one of its common names. Hobblebush - a.k.a. witchhobble, moosewood, moosebush, and more - hobbles the hiker because the plant’s long branches can root wherever they touch soil, ensnaring the unsuspecting boot! Watch out lest hobblebush cross your path!
Did you know?
The term “witch-hobble” doesn’t come from the Adirondack Park’s sizeable spell-casting population, but actually from the Middle English “withy” or “withe,” referring to a strong but flexible twig or branch.
hiking out
The Powerhouse Trail is an example of how history is all around us, shaping how we move through the world or the woods! We don’t know for sure if Mr. Ryan, Sagamore’s electrician, followed this particular trail on his commute (his cabin stood in Sagamore’s workers’ complex), but we can imagine what his daily stroll might have been like. The roar of the powerhouse might have been deafening when the turbines were spinning, but the scent of the trees and the feel of the forest floor 100 years ago were much like they are today. What will future generations imagine about our travels through the woods? With them in mind, we encourage you to learn about how you can reduce your environmental impact by reading about Wilderness Ethics and Leave No Trace principles at www.Sagamore.org.
Leave No Trace 7 Principals
Plan Ahead and Prepare
Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces
Dispose of Waste Properly
Leave What You Find
Minimize Campfire Impacts
Respect Wildlife
Be Considerate of Other Visitors
© 1999 by the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics: www.LNT.org.