The Lake Champlain Paddlers' Trail

The Lake Champlain Paddlers' Trail    

The Lake Champlain Paddlers' Trail includes 39 locations on New York and Vermont public and private lands, providing access to more than 600 lake-shore and island campsites. The Trail was opened in 1996 by the Lake Champlain Committee (LCC) to provide a safe, recreational corridor on Lake Champlain for human powered craft.


The Trail depends upon clean water.  As such, it stands as a  symbol of LCC’s commitment to water quality protection and restoration.  In today's world, the Trail offers the opportunity to slow down, to move gracefully and quietly in concert with the rhythms of the lake.  Whether canoeing or kayaking on Lake Champlain, the Lake Champlain Paddlers' Trail offers a portal to places that nourish us and where our minds can run free.  Please travel safely, act respectfully and responsibly, and enjoy the wonder and beauty of our Lake Champlain.

Lake Champlain Committee Stewardship

LCC oversees an active stewardship program for remote Lake Champlain Paddlers’ Trail locations, and works with public and private land managers to maintain the Trail.  LCC’s long-term goal is to have sites located approximately a day’s paddle apart (about 8 – 10 miles apart under normal paddling conditions). LCC also produces an annual guidebook that is available through membership.

Volunteer site stewards perform critical roles in Lake Champlain Committee’s stewardship of the Lake Champlain Paddlers’ Trail (LCPT).  Stewards adopt one or more Trail sites to visit frequently during the paddling season.  Each site has unique monitoring and stewardship needs, and stewards check site conditions, help keep the site in good shape, and make notes of observations. Periodically, stewards will come together for workdays and site steward forums to discuss issues about the Lake Champlain Paddlers’ Trail.

Various sites on the Trail have different in their stewardship needs.  Some locations, especially those at the more developed state parks, have regular staff on site and are vigorously managed.  Other public and private sites offer primitive camping, and are not staffed at all.  As the use of the Trail increases, so does the need and importance for a committed group of volunteer stewards.    

Site Steward Locations for 2012/13 Paddling Season

• East Creek Bay - Shoreham, VT
• Five Mile Point - Shoreham, VT
• Barn Rock Cove - Westport, NY
• Barn Rock North - Westport, NY
• Palisades - Westport, NY
• Snake Den Harbor - Westport, NY
• Ore Bed Harbor - Westport, NY
• Bay Park Beach - Shelburne, VT
• Law Island - Colchester, VT
• Schuyler Island - Chesterfield, NY
• Point Au Roche - Plattsburgh, NY
• Hazelett Beach - Colchester, VT
• Niquette Bay - Colchester, VT
• Mill River Falls Parcel - Georgia, VT
• Highgate Cliffs Natural Area - Swanton, VT