Adirondacks: Great Camp Sagamore (July 2019)



My spouse and I visited Great Camp Sagamore on a Monday morning in early July 2019. We booked our tickets online (which requires pre-payment) because we were not sure if tours sell out, and we did not want to miss our opportunity to visit the property. (The only way to see the entire property is by guided tour.) The complete tour is not really suitable for handicapped guests, since it involves walking on gravel and rough paths and some steps; however, some of the Upper Complex (worker’s buildings) are more accessible. A gravel parking lot is located a short walk from the chalet, where there are restrooms and a gift shop. We did not see any food/beverage options available except for coffee, water, and ice cream. 

Great Camp Sagamore is located in the village of Raquette Lake, a 2-hour drive from Lake Placid, where we stayed. (Be sure not to confuse Great Camp Sagamore with the Sagamore Resort, which is located 75 miles away in Lake George.) The expansive 1,500+ acre camp property includes the Main Lodge and 26 other buildings positioned adjacent to Sagamore Lake.

William West Durant built the Lodge in the late 1800s in a Swiss chalet style using woods native to the area. In the early 1900s, the Alfred Vanderbilt family purchased, expanded, and improved the camp (including indoor plumbing, electricity, telephones, a tennis court, bowling alley, croquet lawn, “Wigwam” guest quarters, and hunting lodge). The camp is arranged in two complexes that are located a half-mile apart. Guided tours visit both the utilitarian Upper (Worker’s) Complex, and the more elaborate Lower (Guest) Complex. Guests visit the blacksmith shop, furniture shop, icehouse, livestock buildings, kitchen/dining room, playhouse, and outdoor bowling alley (with its unique ball-return system). 

We enjoyed our guided walking tour of Great Camp Sagamore; the expansive property was interesting, and our college-age guide was very entertaining.





















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