As town of Keene seeks solutions, safety concerns mount for trailhead stewards
By Tim Rowland
The town of Keene is used to dealing with frustrated hikers at its popular Garden trailhead, but this year relations have taken a darker turn.
“Our frontcountry steward was trying to talk about preparedness and a fight breaks out between two hikers,” Supervisor Joe Pete Wilson said at the board’s monthly meeting.
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Hikers have yelled, threatened violence, surrounded stewards and poked them in the chest, and illegally parked cars in the access road, warning stewards that the vehicles better not be towed.
“People are just leaving their cars in the road; this is so far beyond anything we’ve ever seen before,” Wilson said.
It’s reached the point where he’s worried about the safety of young stewards, who work solo. The stewards are provided by Keene and the Adirondack Mountain Club. With the escalation in confrontations, the state agreed to add an assistant ranger on Fridays and Saturdays.
The assistant rangers have uniforms and radios, but are unarmed and have no arresting powers. Wilson said crowds have matched those of last year, which were down slightly from the heavy use experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Access to The Garden — one of three main northern access roads to the High Peaks — begins in the hamlet of Keene Valley, winds up the mountain through residential neighborhoods and terminates at a lot capable of holding 44 cars, first come first served.
Unlike the ADK’s Adirondak Loj, there is no long, unpopulated access road that can handle overflow if the main lots fill up. And unlike the Adirondack Mountain Reserve, the Keene lacks the resources to go to a parking-reservation system.
Board member Ann Hough said the AMR’s reserved lot, which has been plagued by no-shows, might actually be driving more hikers to The Garden, because they can’t use the vacant AMR spaces.
The town runs a weekend shuttle from Marcy Field, but The Garden is filling up on weekdays too.
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Due to topography, private property and tree-cutting restrictions in the forest preserve there are few other options, if any.
“The big challenge we have always had is no parking, no parking, no parking,” said Board Member Bob Biesemeyer. “What’s the answer? I don’t know.”
Board members said they will ask for a high-level meeting with state officials to figure out a way forward.
Board Member Teresa Cheetham-Palen said the state bears some responsibility because it promotes park events that bring visitors, but has not followed up with the resources to manage those tourists.
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“We do want to have (visitors) here, but we need help,” she said. “A 20-year-old steward is not equipped to deal with an angry hiker. (But) the rangers are already strapped and they’re working tons of overtime.”
Board Member Chris Daly said he does not want to see the town abrogate responsibilities as it must protect homeowners.
Wilson said town resources are stretched thin, making it difficult to manage not just hiker parking, but also short term rental issues, stray dogs and events at Marcy Field. “As the town of Keene has taken on increasing management responsibilities it’s become more than we can do,” Wilson said. “We have to ask, how much is enough?”
Quick solve is that any spaces not filled at AMR by 7am become first-come first-served. That way they aren’t driving traffic to other trailheads.
Long term though the Garden needs to be expanded. 44 spaces for all the miles of trails and peaks served by that trailhead is absurd. Plus it’s the trailhead for JBL visitors.
Good thought, and not unlike Katahdin. Those with a permit get their spot, those without can gamble on open, first-come, first-served spots.
Or better yet, if the AMR is going to restrict access AND refuse to fill vacant spots, it would be a great time to have another look at their easement benefits.
I agree, the long term solution is expanding the lot. It is absurdly small, especially given the existence of the JBL. Pragmatically speaking, the impact of cutting a few trees around a pre-existing parking lot would have little impact on the character of the forest preserve as a whole. The current size of the lot is untenable, and the chaos that ensues from it takes away from the spirit of the wilderness that it was intended to serve.
How does a private entity like JBL get to use a public parking lot for their business? I have never thought about that but it is absurd.
They do not get to use the parking lot for their business. Their guests are not guaranteed a spot and have to try to get one just like everybody else and their staff parks elsewhere
If these supposed hikers cause problems, have them arrested. Have illegally parked cars towed. Why has law and ORDER become the problem? Bring civility back.
I totally agree. The problem is that there is almost no enforcement. Everyday go and tow cars. Madden’s in SL is probably happy to take care of this and make some money, and nobody is going to mess with Mike or Bill! If they do – they will be sorry.
They need to start prosecuting rule breakers as far as they can and levy huge fines. I’m sick of everyone’s entitled attitudes and the destruction these hordes of people are doing to the trails. Find somewhere else to hike, preferably in another state so those of us who live here can get a chance to use the trails. Forever wild doesn’t include habitat for the overpopulated Dickhead Arrogantas.
Due to sympathetic lawmakers in this state who adopted bail reform we can’t even get juvenile car thieves held in jail until bail is met. They are released on an appearance ticket. You think this state is going to prosecute rule breakers and levy huge fines??? Never going to happen.
Rob, it seems your understanding of how the word works, the criminal justice system at least, is a bit lacking.
Allow me to help, a little. Deciding against jailing pretrial, innocent until proven guilty children is not the same as issuing civil offense parking tickets.
Hope that helps.
My point was if they aren’t going to hold criminals in jail until bail is posted instead of just releasing them how are we going to prosecute rule breakers as far as they can and levy huge fines as Tracy Hill mentioned. Never going to happen
We can’t even get car thieves in this state kept in jail until bail is met. They get released on an appearance ticket. How do you expect someone to be prosecuted as far as they can and huge fines levied?? And as far as hiking in other states, I pay taxes in this state just like you. These trails just aren’t for your enjoyment
I thought nature lovers and 46ers appreciated nature and were more relaxed because if fresh air and exercise and realuzing what is most important in life❤️Guess I have an idealized view.
Time to revisit the long standing argument that hikers in New York State pay a trail fee. New York residents as well as out of state residents pay to hunt and fish as well as take a safety training course. Maybe instituting the same fees and education requirements will take the burden off from the rangers and volunteer rescue squads. Hikers will be better prepared and knowledgable. The fee can be used for trail maintenance and to help support rescue squads in the state. $10 per year, per hiker, would go a long way when you look at the numbers that access the high peaks just from the garden alone.
Amen!! That’s exactly what needs to happen. So many places in this country utilize fee based services and it’s time NY catches up. Charge 5$ less for residents, and include it with a hunting and fishing license.
Ah yes – logic. There seems to be no room for it here. “Maintain the status quo and no mo!!” seems to be the traditional rallying cry.
NYS residents pay a fee to hike in OUR state is ridiculous, we already do its called taxes. Let the out of staters pay a $10.00 yearly fee.
George,
By that logic, hunt/fish/trap licenses should be free for residents as well as all State Parks, campsites, and day use areas. The reason there is a fee is because these activities are not pursued by all people in the State, yet use resources that all taxpayers own. It is simply the logic of if you use a public resource for recreation, you should be prepared to pay your fair share for its conservation.
But I agree that residents should pay significantly less than non-residents. Many, if not most states have a much higher differential with licenses and even visitor fees between res/non-res users. NYS keeps the differential low – presumably to encourage tourism – but then cuts corners on paying for hardening infrastructure and providing enough Rangers and enforcement to protect the resources they merely give away.
I think a hiking permit would be difficult to enforce and I hate the idea.
Additionally, although I am not a hunter and merely an occasional fisherman, and while I agree that those folks are harvesting stocks replenished by use of those fees, I can see a fairness argument to be made, given the areas that are impacted by overuse and need “restocking”.
With that said, maybe the best answer is a trailhead PARKING permit. Much easier to enforce, reduces overuse, pays for conservation and enforcement.
You have to pay in the state parks but not here? You get a discount or it is free if you are older and more likely to financially stable and able to afford it…
Meanwhile hunters that hunt with bow blackpowder, rifle have paid well over 100 a year every year to maintain trails…hikers whine and cry that they came here to hike and might have to walk to a trialhead.
Most of the fees paid by hunter’s go towards hunting regulations. Most trail work is done by volunteers.
Hunter’s harvest animals.
Hikers do not.
Maybe stop trying to compare two totally different groups…
Then you’re stuck enforcing who has permits and who doesn’t when there’s no manned “main entrance” to most places.
All the above suggestions sound good to me! I would gladly pay $10 for access, opening up no show spots in AMR and ticketing non-compliance is good too! But, please no tree cutting for more parking!
No Uber drivers in Keene Valley?
cute idea..but no cell service either
I think AMR reservation system is great!!
They should do it for garden lot as well!!!
I have used Marcy field shuttle —it is easy
Shuttles and drop off should be permitted at both sites
The Adirondacks have been my backyard my whole life …up until the COVID pandemic you didn’t even think about parking as part of your trip. Nowadays you better be planning ahead.
I liked the shuttle from Marcy field, I’ve also used the reservation system. The education for hikers is great if you actually get people to take it and better yet actually listen and use it. But I digress.
I have no way of counting how many times I’ve parked at lesser known trailheads in the last 4 years and added sometimes up to 8 miles to my roundtrip just so I won’t have to deal with this and still be able to make my objectives for the day. Hiking Marcy via elk trail is a very long day, gorgeous, peaceful, fun and exciting but oh sooo long.
This is going to take multiple prongs to manage. 1. Add multiple shuttle services that will pickup from multiple locations around town not just some field out of town, many people stay at the local bnb’s, hotels etc. Offer a system, $2 per ride or $20 for the season or something like that…..2. call every law enforcement agency that has jurisdiction, I can think if 3 just in Keene. Get them to patrol and actually issue tickets, to people that have broken the rules. I’ve seen rangers give people tickets or actually walk people out for not having a bear can, we can’t give them a ticket for parking on protected land??. 3. Use technology, let people pay for premium parking and issue them a sticker that can be scanned like a parking garage.
The answer will continue to be to expand the lot to allow for more parking! That parking lot is laughably small for the number of trails and terrain it accesses, and how popular the Johns Brook Valley is (for good reason). It’s size is not proportional to the area and popularity, especially when you look at less popular trailheads across the ADK. The state needs to figure out a way to expand parking, even if it requires a constitutional amendment. I would be the last person to advocate for cutting of trees on forest preserve land, but the idea of a forest preserve only works if the system is pragmatic. Not being able to cut a few trees to allow more people to enjoy access to the hundreds of thousands of acres of forested wilderness is just ridiculous. Recreational needs change overtime and the state’s management of the lands needs to be dynamic to adapt.
There’s no space to expand that lot unfortunetly. It’s surrounded by private land and wilderness area with forever wild tree cutting limitations
I would question the idea of “forever,” with no exceptions. There needs to be pragmatic exceptions to the idea of “no tree-cutting” on forest preserve land. The “spirit” of the forest preserve is what matters here. It does no good to have protected hundreds of thousands of acres of wilderness, but not have adequate infrastructure to support it. At the federal level, there is a reason they have buffer areas around their wilderness access areas. Private land and parking lots should never directly abut a wilderness boundary, where you cannot cut trees with no exception; that is untenable and will cause chaos.
I get very nervous when we start talking about the “spirit” of the forest preserve that way. There are many who would happily drive a truck through any easing of strict adherence to the “forever wild” provisions of our constitution.
” Article 14 in the state constitution states that lands in the forest preserve “shall be forever kept as wild forest lands. They shall not be leased, sold or exchanged, or be taken by any corporation, public or private, nor shall the timber thereon be sold, removed or destroyed.””
Its in the NYS constitution to ‘remain forever wild’ if this is unacceptable that people cant park wherever they want I suggest they go to where parking lots exist in abundance. Walk..to where you want to be. Keene students run farther during gym class that hikers do to get to trail heads
The spaces are determined, not by how many people want to hike the trail but what the wilderness can handle. Preservation and conservation not cut trees so we can park our cars there and run tons of people into a habitat they destroy and dont support
State bent over backwards for the AMR and this is one of the results. It’s time to build some sensible parking solutions.
The best solution is to address the need for more parking weather it’s on AMR land or not. The hiking trend is not dying anytime soon. Give people a workable option, it’s a long drive up there for most.
Its in the NYS constitution to ‘remain forever wild’ if this is unacceptable that people cant park wherever they want I suggest they go to where parking lots exist in abundance. Walk..to where you want to be. Keene students run farther during gym class that hikers do to get to trail heads
I’m a lifetime resident of Keene. The Garden parking lot is too small and has been a problem for quite a while. The State of New York will not allow the parking lot to be expanded. If the State will not allow parking lot expansion I, think the lot needs to be permanently closed.
agreed, especially since people wont fight nice
The State Police based in Ray Brook should have been called. Disorderly conduct or even assault charges could have been made. Why didn’t you explore that in your article?
Time for a backcountry permit/reservation system. Entry and Exits designated, and pay a fee. Just look at The Boundary Waters area in Minnesota. Great model. People will pay, and it will help manage the flow of people. The other example is the Na Pali coast in Hawaii. These areas manage crowds and demand VERY well. Should be easy, but like usual, NYS and DEC are slow to the game and virtually non existent on real issues.
Maybe they should stop worrying about the visual diversity of the tourists, and how they can recruit more visitors who look different, but all come from the cities anyway and think/act the same.
Start focusing on real issues NYS, please.
This epitomizes the arrogance, selfishness and violence that is a hallmark of Gen Z. As they see it, the world is theirs to take by the fists. Degenerate members of the white tribe primarily with some others. Punish their threats by giving the wardens arrest powers and the right to impound their vehicles. Any violent threats will result in arrest.
Greg,
Each generation reflects the values they were TAUGHT. While any particular “generation” should be held responsible for its actions, they are not solely to blame. Previous generations are responsible for their education and molding the values and character of the generation that will replace them. So we must be careful when pointing the finger.
cute you think there are ‘wardens’ assumptions as well to the ‘white tribe’ wonder who they are? Not a tribe of the Iroquis nation for sure.
A free public shuttle system with LONG hours 4am to 11pm. Weekends and holidays. Other peak periods in summer and fall. Paid for by the state operated by ORDA. The same buses and drivers can be used by the state ski centers in the winter. From downtown Lake Placid service free parking at Horseshow go to ADK Loj Hurricane Marcy Field The Garden Rooster Comb AMR and Chapel Pond. Terminate at a large free public lot near Exit 30. If no land there then Exit 29 where the state funded the redevelopment of the old Frontier Town. Another route from LP to SL and the Saranac 6ers.
nothing is ‘free’ who is paying for the shuttle?
Time to start making it MANDITORY to have a licence or permit to hike the high peaks . Maybe an online course about etiquette , staying on trails , etc.
Hunters , fisherman ,trappers all have to have licenses . It cost money to manage these resources.The high peaks are no different .
I AGREE. 20 DOLLARS PER YEAR . THIS GIVES YOU ACCESS TO ALL FOREST PRESERVE LANDS .PEOPLE WHO FEEL ENTITLED WILL STILL DO WHAT THEY PLEASE, THATS WHY WE NEED LAWS ENFORCED. I WAS JUST IN THE ADK LAST WEEK AND SAW MANY CARS PARKED RIGHT IN FRONT OF NO PARKING SIGNS. NOT ONE OF THEM HAD A TICKET ON THE WINDSHIELD. MORE LAW ENFORCEMENT NEEDED.
Ah! A better solution… steel fighting cage! The arguing parties can settle their parking dispute by winning a fight for the parking spot. The winner gets to park, and the loser has to wander the tourist crowded streets of Lake Placid…
Hopefully hiker fees/passes, parking fees, refundable deposits to discourage no-shows at AMR, hiker shuttles, and other reasonable suggestions, will be seriously considered/revisited. We should not be resigned to or contented with, as many appear to be, a VUM that determines visitor use numbers by something as arbitrary, unimaginative and short-sighted as the current, historically unchanged, parking access.
It seems pretty straightforward; You have to do some pretty difficult contortions to make the solution more difficult than it is: Like Ryan & Andrew said, look at how Katahdin manages theirs and adapt it to your specific needs. Ensure that civility and rules are enforced the correct way… With someone who is armed and has the power to enforce them. Be proactive instead of reactive. If you’re worried about the money, it will cost you less in the long term than in the short term to plan ahead. Clutching pearls and wringing hands will NOT change the social dynamic that you’re now facing from people who come and don’t care about anybody else. What will is knowing that if they break the rules, they get the stick.
Lets see, 800 year round residents, what percentage of that is aged out of your idea of what town residents should pay for, you figure around 150 of the population is in school, that leaves 650 residents…most not working at all in this field because they “WORK” trying to get out of driveways hikers park in and leave for the day so residents cant leave. If it comes to armed enforcement for ‘guests’ to the area to realize this isnt good behavior we should stop allowing hikers altogether
This would be so easily solved with just towing the illegal parkers. And anyone who threatens staff have staff call cops and arrest them. Why are we letting people behave like animals! We live in a society let’s act like it
Totally agree on all points. Why should entitled hikers get to park illegally with no fines? Do people really believe that they can leave their cars wherever they want so others are inconvenienced? The total lack of consideration for others is mind-boggling.
Build parking and public facilities to accommodate the public use of public lands. If public property is not available, both the State and Town have eminent domain rights to take private property for public use, as it routinely does for highways and other public improvements. The problem is not the public who has every natural right and reasonable expectation to the full and fair recreational use and enjoyment of the Adirondack Park. The real problem is the Lord of the Flies environment created by the vested and self-serving interests of the fine folks at the Ausable Club, the AMR in cahoots with DEC, and the Green Mafia and other environmental elitists, who seek to maintain their own utopian private preserves and enclaves, and exclude the public. Until the State and Town make the necessary public improvements to accommodate the public, dysfunction will reign over our native lands.
Ever take a drive past many of the existing trailheads – especially in the HPW? Most of the parking areas are about as big as they can be. Rivers, slide areas, ravines, slopes, road configuration all are limiting factors on parking lot size and safe ingress/egress. Perhaps some may be enlarged slightly, but with today’s bigger cars/trucks/campers, etc., the bottom line is, it is impossible to obtain the amount of safe parking needed for unlimited access to much of the HPW and other popular trailheads. Hence the idea of shuttles and remote parking miles away. Not a well-accepted idea, but I haven’t heard many better ideas.
Park Rangers should have the authority to arrest and have the cooperation of law enforcement.
Amazing. Hikers yelling and threatening stewards. Then you have the unprepared hikers, people who can’t take their trash, complete disregard for trail etiquette. While I have 24 high peaks in and many lesser, it’s these past few years have made hiking in VT or elsewhere so much more appealing. I avoid the AMR until 10/31. Really have stopped hiking high peaks in the summer because of the people. What can be done with limited employees or volunteers who have no authority to deal with hostile people? It’s a shame if spots are open at the AMR, no way to use them. Too bad the few ruin things for others because they can.
Now wait a minute… if I start shoving my finger into the chest of the parking meter maid at Lake George, the handcuffs will be on me chop, chop. Why can’t the Rule of Law be applied at the Garden? What am I missing? Jesus! (Yes, I realize that 44 slots is thin pickings for a major trailhead. But a casual glance at the relevant topo map show nothing without a 20 degree slope or a house).
The proliferation of social media hiking influencers might be causing some of this. Maybe people showing up to hike for the wrong reasons are bringing some other negative energy with them. Look at me here, let me be the 20th person of the day to tell thousands of people on facebook about the trail conditions for the day, etc. The good old days of a guide book, map, and bucket of gorp over.
A parking permit rather than a trail permit would avoid some of the NYS Constitutional issues that charging for use of the Forest Preserve would involve. The funds from the sales of these parking passes needs to be directed towards expanding parking and shuttle options. As this involves highway access, the DOT might be a better agency to handle these parking permits.
They still cant, even as DOT, do anything to state land. Its still in the constitution to remain forever wild. You cant just cut trees, and throw down parking lots.Chopping it up for people who came to hike, that now cannot walk to a trailhead is insane because once your start you dont stop.
Honestly, the AMR parking reservation system would be a great model for the Garden. It’s virtually impossible to get a spot at the Garden now. I would much rather deal with the inconvenience of having to race for a reservation online than repeatedly showing up to not find a spot and then need to go elsewhere or home. I live an hour away from most trailheads meaning if I don’t leave by 5am I am pretty much out of luck! I’m ok with an early start, but it seems to get earlier and earlier every year…
Side tangent – I know this isn’t enforceable but I wish there were dedicated AMR spots for the real hikes. Pretty sure all 70 spots are filled by influencers clamoring to get up Indian Head for an Instagram pic. I just want to get out to Colvin and Blake without going through Elk Lake, or Nippletop and Dial. Wonder if it would ever be possible to create a trail from the Dix Trail near the Boquet that goes up an hits all those that way we could just bypass the AMR entirely?
Why not just get rid of the Garden Parking lot and turn it into a shuttle stop. There is lots of room to park down at Marcy Field. If you mind having to wait a few minutes for a ride, find something else to do.
Joel says:
I’ve read all the comments, and the last one (Paul) is the simplest and the best: Close the Garden Parking Lot and have everyone use a shuttle from Marcy Field.
Yes.
This article greatly exaggerates the number of aggressive or potentially violent visitors engaging with trailhead stewards utilizing the trailheads in the high peaks region. Charging a fee is inequitable and does nothing to address this supposed problem nor does increasing parking capacity. It is no secret that there is not enough parking at certain trailheads for the number of people attempting to use them and this has been an issue long before Covid. Anybody planning to use these trailheads, locals or visitors needs to come better prepared with alternatives for when parking is at capacity. And yea some people are just unkind or react poorly when things don’t go their way but I’m so sick of articles like this that only attempts to heighten a situation we already know exists and offers zero solutions