Carthage Reservoir.
Carthage Reservoir is a one-acre municipal impoundment in the Old Forge area — the kind of working water that shows up on USGS quads but not in guidebooks. No public access, no fish stocking records, no trail connections — this is infrastructure, not recreation. If you're looking for a paddle or a cast in the Old Forge corridor, you're ten minutes from the Fulton Chain, where the actual lake country starts.
Carthage Reservoir has public access.
The water, surveyed.
Seasonal pattern for this lake · live closures appear above
2 parking areas· 2 accessible
Closest parking lots within range, ranked by walking distance. Accessibility flags come from Google verified-data and NYSDEC records; surface and capacity from NYSDEC and OpenStreetMap. Confirm hours and seasonal closures before you go.
- 01Parking AreaTrailhead4.7 mi
- 02Parking Area5.5 mi
Getting in, staying over.
Camping.
What the lake is doing today.
What rings this water.
The waters.
The trails.
Read before you launch.
Make a weekend of it.
Closest editorial picks for a meal, a scoop, a pint, a bed, and a sight worth your time.
Eat.
1— 23.1 mi to the nearest table out here; plan the drive to dinner.
Stay.
1— 21.4 mi to the nearest bed on the register; book before you go.
See.
1— 25.0 mi to the nearest sight on file; fold it into the drive.
Add to the record.
Free, takes thirty seconds. Yours forever.
Every page on this site gets better when readers contribute. Mark a peak you’ve climbed, drop a photo, file a field note, or flag a correction — every addition makes the next visitor’s page better.
Add a shot.
Sunrise on the dock, a cairn at the summit, a bend on the trail. Your camera roll, our archive.
Add a photo →File a report.
Trail conditions, water level, bug pressure, blowdown. The kind of detail that helps the next person plan.
Write a field note →Spot something off?
Wrong elevation, outdated access notes, a coordinate that's drifted. We'd rather hear it than miss it.
Suggest an edit →Frequently asked.
- Where is Carthage Reservoir located?Carthage Reservoir is a reservoir in the Old Forge region of the Adirondack Park in northern New York State.
- How big is Carthage Reservoir?Carthage Reservoir has a surface area of approximately 1 acres, a small pond.
- Is Carthage Reservoir open to the public?Yes, Carthage Reservoir has public access. See the listing page for current trailhead, parking, and boat-launch details, and check active DEC advisories before visiting.
- Can you camp at Carthage Reservoir?Within roughly seven miles of Carthage Reservoir: 3 designated campsites. Permit and primitive-camping rules vary; check NYSDEC before you go.