Cranberry Lake Loop
Updated: 2 days ago
August 2026 • 69.17 km • 4 Days / 3 Nights • Backcountry Wilderness
The Objective
Deep in the western Adirondacks lies the Cranberry Lake region — a remote landscape of dense northern hardwood forests, expansive wetlands, and historic bog boardwalks. This past August, I set out on what was planned as a streamlined 65km loop, designed to test endurance, remote navigation, and camera gear management (it ended up closer to 69km — more on that below).
Rather than rushing the terrain, the goal was a steady 4-day pace, with enough breathing room to enjoy the views, fly the drone where permitted, and capture the true, raw atmosphere of the backcountry.
Below is how it actually went: the original plan for each day, followed by what really happened on the ground.
Expedition Metrics.
Total Distance: 65.02 km planned → 69.17 km actual (43.0 miles)
Elevation Gain / Loss: ~744–837 m planned → 1,405 m / 1,403 m actual
Duration: 4 Days & 3 Nights · ~21h 11m total moving time
Terrain Profile: Heavy roots, deep mud, downed trees and undulating ridgelines, especially Day 2's forest section. Flat-looking on paper, far from flat underfoot.
Water Strategy: Every source we refilled from was clear enough that the Millbank pre-filter bag wasn't needed.
Day 1 Plan
Distance: 16.47 km
Elevation Gain/Loss: 171/208 m
Approx Hiking Time: 3h 35m
Campsite: Primitive Campsite
What actually happened.
17.37km · 5h 15m moving time · 347m ascent / 341m descent
This one didn't start how we'd hoped. My fiancée had worked a night shift the evening before, so we got away later than planned — which meant putting in a harder pace than we'd budgeted for just to have any chance of reaching camp before dark. We also hit a flooded section partway through and had to take a short detour around it, which added the best part of a kilometre and didn't help the clock.
In the end we lost that race — we rolled into camp about 10 minutes after sunset and it was fully dark by the time the tent was up and dinner was on. Not the relaxed first night we'd pictured, but there was a fast-flowing stream right next to the site to refill water, which made camp chores easier than it could have been in the dark.
Day 2 Plan
Distance: 17.06 km
Elevation Gain/Loss: 353/298 m
Approx Hiking Time: 4h 3m
Campsite: Primitive Campsite
What actually happened.
18.11km · 6h 02m moving time · 502m ascent / 400m descent
Day 2 was the hardest of the trip, and the numbers back that up — the most ascent of any day, over 500m of climbing packed into 18km. We woke to moderate rain that didn't clear until around 6am, so it was a damp start. The hiking itself began easily enough, and about 3.9km in — roughly an hour and ten minutes into the day — we stopped for a swim and a wash in one of the streams feeding the lake. We ended up spending a good 75 minutes there.
After the swim the trail pulled away from the lake shore and into the forest, and that's where it got properly hard: constant undulating ups and downs, plus a steady stream of fallen trees to climb over or route around. We kept a steady pace through it regardless, and it paid off — that evening's campsite was the best of the whole trip, up on a raised bank on the edge of a lake with genuinely stunning views. The one downside was heavy silt along the lake bottom near the bank, which ruled out a second swim. We got in a couple of hours before sunset, so for once we actually had time to set up properly and just sit and enjoy the view.
Day 3 Plan
Distance: 22.92 km
Elevation Gain/Loss: 220/396.8 m
Approx Hiking Time: 5h 0m
Campsite: Primitive Campsite
What actually happened.
23.84km · 7h 30m moving time · 403m ascent / 500m descent
The best start of the trip — a stunning sunrise with mist rolling across the lake, which we sat and watched over breakfast before setting off on the longest day feeling genuinely energetic.
A couple of kilometres in we passed some primitive campsites along the northern shore of Cranberry Lake's East Inlet, with a pebble shoreline that would have been perfect for a swim. We didn't stop — it was still early and we wanted to bank distance while we had the legs for it, knowing how far we still had to go. From there the trail turned back inland; there were still occasional downed trees, but the elevation was more forgiving than the day before, with fewer sharp ups and downs.
Later in the day the trail runs for a couple of kilometres alongside State Route 3 before dropping you into the town of Cranberry Lake itself. There are a couple of small convenience/gift stores there — perfect for an ice cream and a cold drink that wasn't filtered lake water, and a well-earned break after three days on trail. On the far side of town the trail heads back into the woods, with a few more ups and downs before the final campsite — a great spot with plenty of dead fallen wood for a fire, though the nearest water source is a small stream a couple of hundred metres further down the trail. We made the most of our last night out there: a proper campfire and the hammock strung up to relax in and watch the flames.
Day 4 Plan
Distance: 8.57 km
Elevation Gain/Loss: 93/124 m
Approx Hiking Time: 1h 52m
Campsite: Primitive Campsite
What actually happened.
9.85km · 2h 24m moving time · 153m ascent / 162m descent
Clear but chilly to start. We broke camp for the final push back to the car, and it turned out to be our fastest pace of the whole trip — flat ground and the pull of the car park will do that. The trail out was mostly flat, just a couple of downed trees to step around, and once you exit the forest near the ranger school it's paved road the rest of the way. Passing through the small village of Wanakena, make sure you stop at the big Cranberry Lake 50 sign for a photo — then cross the picturesque bridge and it's just a couple of hundred metres of road back to the car.
Looking Back
Four days in, and the gap between the plan and the reality turned out to be the best part of the story. The rushed, headtorch-lit arrival on Day 1 couldn't have felt more different from sitting out on that raised bank on Day 2, watching the sunset while thinking there was nowhere else I'd rather be that evening.
69km instead of the planned 65, nearly double the elevation gain the route planner promised, and not one section that went exactly as pictured on a map beforehand. If you're planning this loop yourself, take the "plan" numbers on this page as a rough guide and pack for the "actual" ones.
The Gear Strategy
Packing for a 40-mile, 4-day loop meant optimizing for efficient weight distribution without sacrificing production capabilities — balancing multi-day backcountry survival gear with drone batteries, cameras, and power banks turned out to be a precise science.
My complete, itemized gear list from this trip — including exact base weight, shelter systems, and sleep setup — is mapped out on Packstack if you want the full breakdown.
Backcountry Food Strategy.
Fuelling a 4-day trek like this meant balancing high-density nutrition with low pack weight. I've learned from previous experience that stopping for a large lunch doesn't work for me — it leaves me feeling bloated and slow carrying on into the afternoon — so instead I leaned on calorie-dense, lightweight food I could snack on throughout the day to keep my energy up and my body moving.
Breakfast.
I always start the day with a hot breakfast, and for this trip that meant baked apple porridge or sausage and beans. Both were calorie-dense enough to carry me through the morning, and having something hot helped fight off the early chill.
Snacks & On-The-Move Lunch.
For this trip that meant a selection of dried fruits, nuts, beef jerky, and a sweet treat — Haribo or M&Ms — to keep me moving, with crackers, peanut butter sachets, and packets of precooked chicken in buffalo sauce for the brief stops.
Dinner.
Dinner was all about recovery and morale. Each evening I wound down with a substantial hot meal — Chili Con Carne, Beef Stew with Pearl Barley, or Orzo Pasta Bolognese — plus a couple of Hot Chocolate Puddings packed as a reward to split with my fiancé at the end of a long day.
The Gear Behind the Fuel
All of my hot meals on this trip were from Firepot — they make a fantastic range of dehydrated meals that don't skimp on real ingredients, offer different sizes (including large portions for those extra-long days on the trail), and easily cater to various dietary requirements.
Small practical note for anyone planning this route: every stream and lake we refilled from was clear enough that we never needed to pre-filter with the Millbank bag — worth knowing if you're deciding what to pack.
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