| Alger Island State Park |
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Address: Old Forge, NY 13420
Campground Phone: (315)369-3224
Regional Office Phone: (315)866-6330
This boat access only campground is located on Fourth Lake of the Fulton Chain of Lakes.
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Hours of Operation: The campground opens in mid-May and remains open through Labor Day.
Directions: From NYS Thruway, Exit 31 at Utica, Route 12 North to Alder Creek, Rt. 28 to Old Forge; right at the Post Office (Gilbert St.), left onto Park Ave., right onto South Shore Road to Petrie Road; 3/4 mile to the Fourth Lake Picnic Area.
From Route 28, Inlet, take South Shore Road to Petrie Road. One mile to Fourth Lake Picnic Area. Register for Alger Island at this point.
Amenities: 15 lean-to sites, 2 tent sites, picnic area with tables and fireplaces, hiking trails.
Fourth Lake Day-Use Area is the headquarters where registration and permits are issued for Alger Island.
A state owned boat launch, with ramp for launching larger, motorized boats, is located on Route 28 in the village of Inlet.
Boating: Motor boats, rowboats, and canoes allowed. Parking and boat launching access (cartop boats only) are gained from the adjacent department-owned Fourth Lake Day-Use Area at the foot of the lake.
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Fishing:
Lake trout, brook trout, rainbow trout, and landlocked Atlantic salmon. Fishing licenses are available at the campground. |
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| Hiking: A hiking trail around the island and miles of state maintained trails are nearby. |
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Day Use Facilities: A picnic area is available. No swimming beach available.
| Area Attractions: A few minutes drive will provide shopping and sightseeing attractions in the nearby hamlet of Old Forge. There is a Water Park called "The Water Safari" : HTTP://WWW.WATERSAFARI.COM/ |
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Also - the Moose River is
nearby in Old Forge - and has excellent still-water canoeing. Place to launch is here: |
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Also in Old Forge:
The Adirondack Train Ride |
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Historic Interest: In 1811, an "Act for the Improvement of the Internal Navigation of the State for the purpose of establishing a communication by means of Canal Navigation between the Great Lakes and Hudson River" was passed by the New York Legislature. Steamboat inventor Robert Fulton was an enthusiastic member of the commission assigned to investigate the feasibility of an "Adirondack Canal" and he extolled the virtues of this unnamed chain of Adirondack lakes. Although the idea never attained fruition, the lakes have since been known as the Fulton Chain. In his book "The Adirondacks" (Fulton Chain-Big Moose Region), Joseph F. Grady indicates that Alger Island was called Deer Island in the late 1700's. It was later called Big Island. The name Alger Island came from the family name of its longtime owners, father and son Mort and Ollie Alger. Alger Island was purchased by the state of New York on January 16, 1950 from Charles J. Engel. Lean-to's were constructed during the 1960's with the last one finished in 1968.
