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Sinclair Point LbNA #6613

Owner:Adoptable
Plant date:Sep 30, 2003
Location:
City:Saratoga Springs
County:Fulton
State:New York
Boxes:1
Planted by:steve
Found by: Suron
Last found:Jul 29, 2006
Status:FFFFFF
Last edited:Sep 30, 2003
Sinclair Point on Great Sacandaga Lake Letterbox

This letterbox is to be found just south of the small town of Edinburg, New York in an area that is the southern "gateway" to the Adirondack Mountains. Route 30 passes through here from the New York ThruWay (Interstate 87) up into the heart of the Adirondack Mountains. Edinburg is 6 miles east of the Northville Bridge (just off Route 30) and 1 mile west of the Batchellerville Bridge. These two bridges span two arms of the large Great Sacandaga Lake, which has a shape similar to an old style tobacco pipe with the mouthpiece at the northeastern end.

The Sinclair Point letterbox only involves a short walk, but provides the chance to see a very nice lake vista from a place usually known only by the locals. In the summer, boating is big. Canoeing would be possible from here, but watch for the chop worked up by southwest afternoon winds. In the winter, cross country skiing is good along the shore if the snow is deep; the beach is covered with cobbles and some boulders.

From the intersection in the town of Edinburg, travel south on Sinclair Point Road. About 3 miles down, you will cross the line crossing from Saratoga to Fulton County. Travel about 0.7 mile further until the road makes a sharp turn to the right to become Elmer Brown Road. The broad gravel shoulder at the bend is where you should park. The land to the south is New York State Park land, but may be "permitted" to private individuals for shore access. That said, local tradition seems to allow access to the lake at this spot for fishing and short hikes; visitors should be polite to the local environment.

Hike south along the old abandoned and blocked (by boulders and logs) southward extension of Sinclair Point Road for 0.2 mile. This brings you to the usual high water erosional mark for the Great Sacadaga Lake. A circle of small boulders for a campfire was at this spot; but a Roxaboxen is said to be there now (6/04).

The Great Sacandaga Lake was created around 1930 by damming the Sacandaga River at a site about 15 miles to the northeast. This was done to control destructive floods as the Sacandaga flowed down into the Hudson. These floods typically occurred in the early spring from the melting snow pack in the Adirondack Mountains. The lake level rapidly peaks in early spring at 770 feet above sea level at a point about where you now stand. During the rest of the year the lake is typically lower, slowly going down to around 750 feet above sea level in late winter. The old Sinclair Point Road used to continue south to a point directly across the lake called Fish House where a hillside cemetery can be seen just above the opposite shore line. The remnant of a stone wall that bordered the old road fades away into the lake, progressively more disturbed by winter ice. Before the lake was created, a beautiful 300-foot-long covered bridge spanned the Sacandaga River along this road about halfway between you and Fish House. Pictures at the time when the lake was created show the waters of the Great Sacandaga Lake swallowing the bridge intact till it disappeared from view.

From the camp fire circle, bushwhack 40 paces NW to a tall pine tree 1.5 feet in diameter that splits into two equal and parallel trunks 25 feet above the base; this pine is the only one growing in this area. From the pine tree, walk due north 50 paces to a tall twin-trunk red maple tree. Then walk 8 paces northwest to a tree stump 5 feet high and 1 foot in diameter that looks a little like a wolf howling at the moon. In the hollow at the top is the letterbox. Once found, use the stamps to prove you've discovered the Great Sacandaga Lake (GSL) at Sinclair Point (SP).

Three Lady Bugs
Letterbox resubmitted 11/03; originally 09/02; checked 06/04