Every named river in the Adirondack Park — the Hudson, the Moose, the Raquette, the Sacandaga, and the rivers that drain the High Peaks.
The Goodnow River drains northwest out of the Goodnow Flow — a damned pond on the south edge of the Santanoni Preserve — and winds through mixed hardwood and wetland before joining the Hudson River near the hamlet of Newcomb. It's a shallow, tea-colored flow through low country, more corridor than destination, threading between the High Peaks wilderness to the east and the open timber tract west of Long Lake. No designated access or formal put-ins on record, but sections of the river pass close to seasonal logging roads and cross under NY-28N south of Newcomb — primarily a route for through-paddlers connecting Goodnow Flow to the Hudson or for locals scouting beaver sign in spring. Brook trout likely present in the cooler headwater stretches, but the river itself stays off most fishing maps.
The Grass River drains north from the western High Peaks foothills toward the St. Lawrence. The Lampson Falls reach offers a short paddle to a waterfall — calm water, easy access, and a trail to the falls themselves.
The Grasse River cuts through the northern Adirondacks in a wide, slow arc — part flatwater, part ledge-and-rapid, depending on where you drop in. The main stem runs west from the High Peaks watershed through Tupper Lake and into the St. Lawrence drainage, picking up tributaries and slowing into long, forested stretches that see more canoes than trout flies. Access points scatter along back roads north and west of Tupper Lake village, most unmarked but readable if you know the county route numbers. It's a working river — log drives ran it for decades — and the paddling reflects that: long, quiet, occasionally monotonous, with put-ins that require local knowledge or a DeLorme.
The Grasse River drains a broad swath of the northwestern Adirondacks — a slow, meandering system that runs west from its headwaters near South Colton, through Canton, and eventually into the St. Lawrence. The upper reaches flow through state forest land and private timberland; the lower sections pass dairy country and mill towns, a working river rather than a destination paddle. Access is scattered — bridge crossings on county roads, a few informal car-top launches where the shoulder is wide enough — but no formal DEC access sites in the Park itself. This is local fishing water: ask at the tackle shop in Tupper or Colton, not the ranger station.
The Grasse River drains a wide swath of the northwest Adirondacks, running from its headwaters near Cranberry Lake northwest through Tupper Lake, Canton, and Massena before meeting the St. Lawrence. The upper reaches — the stretch that cuts through state land south and west of Tupper Lake — are classic Adirondack meandering water: slow current, alder thickets, beaver meadows, and long quiet paddles between put-ins. The lower river opens up considerably as it leaves the park, becoming a working river with dams, hydroelectric infrastructure, and a different character entirely. If you're looking for moving water in the northwest corner, start upstream — the middle and upper Grasse are where the paddling is.
The Grasse River runs northwest through the Tupper Lake region — a slow-moving, forested waterway that drains out of the northwestern Adirondacks toward the St. Lawrence drainage. It's less a paddling destination than a working river: log drives ran it historically, and today it threads through mixed public and private land with limited formal access points compared to the more curated put-ins on nearby lakes. The upper reaches near South Colton hold brook trout; below that it's warmwater species — bass, pike, panfish — though no systematic survey data has made it into the DEC's public records. If you're launching here, you're doing local homework first.
The Grasse River runs northwest through the working forest between Tupper Lake and the St. Lawrence County line — a paddling river more than a destination water, with long flat stretches through mixed hardwood and softwood and occasional pocket marshes that open into wider pools. It's less mapped than the Raquette or the St. Regis system, which means fewer put-ins are marked on recreation maps, but local paddlers know the access points and run sections of it in spring when water levels cooperate. The river drains a wide watershed and picks up tributaries as it heads toward Massena and Canton — more of a throughway than a place you'd fish or camp intentionally. If you're exploring the northern tier of the park by canoe, the Grasse is worth noting as connective geography rather than a featured stop.
Grassy Brook cuts through the Speculator backcountry with the kind of low profile that keeps it off most fishing reports and trail logs — no stocking records, no obvious trailhead signage, no lean-to within shouting distance. It's the sort of tributary stream that shows up on DEC wetland maps and old USGS quads but rarely makes it into conversation unless you're piecing together a bushwhack route or tracing watershed boundaries for a longer paddle. The name suggests marshy headwaters or alder-choked meanders — classic Adirondack brook trout habitat if the gradient's right and the beaver dams haven't drowned it out. Worth a look if you're already in the area with a topo map and an afternoon to kill.
The Great Chazy River cuts north through the northeastern corner of the Adirondack Park — a long, quiet drainage that eventually crosses into Quebec as the Rivière Chazy. It's a working river more than a destination river: paddlers run the lower sections in spring when water levels cooperate, and local anglers know the access points by dirt road and bridge crossing rather than trailhead. The upper reaches near Lyon Mountain see occasional brook trout; the middle and lower sections warm considerably by midsummer. If you're looking for solitude and don't need a lean-to or a marked put-in, the Great Chazy delivers — just bring a county map and a tolerance for farm roads.
The Great Chazy River drains north through Clinton County from its source near Lyon Mountain, cutting through farmland and forest before crossing into Quebec and emptying into Lake Champlain — one of the longer north-flowing systems in the northeastern Adirondacks. The upper stretches run through state forest land with seasonal trout fishing; the lower river opens up into agricultural corridor with roadside access off a patchwork of county routes. It's a working river more than a destination paddle — moderate gradient, occasional beaver work, and enough public road crossings to make it a decent day trip for anglers who know the stocking schedule. Spring runoff brings the best flows; by August it runs shallow and warm below the headwaters.
