Polliwog Pond to Little Polliwog Pond

Polliwog Pond is one of the deeper ponds in the area, reaching up to 70 feet. It is well known for being a great place for trout fishing. Polliwog Pond is also a great place to swim from the shoreline with its sandy white beaches. Polliwog Pond is made up of several bays, which are fun to explore. It is common to see loons nesting or swimming on Polliwog and Little Polliwog. Little Polliwog is a short (very steep) portage from Polliwog Pond and is a great place for observing wildlife including wood frogs, peepers, black ducks, mergansers, beavers, moose, and other animals. Little Polliwog has white water lilies and yellow pond lilies, as well as clusters of bog plants, including pitcher plants and sundews.

Key takeaways

• Total distance: 2 miles round trip
• Portage: 0.1 mile one way
• Flatwater
• No motorboat access allowed

Paddling the Polliwog Ponds

Put-in at Polliwog Pond access on Floodwood Road and paddle across Polliwog Pond, meandering around the various points of land. After passing the first point of land on your left and the entrance to a bay on your right, you will come to another point of land with a campsite. Continue paddling to the southwestern end of the pond as you look for the white portage sign for Little Polliwog Pond. There is a campsite on the southernmost point, which is a nice place for a picnic if unoccupied. 

The portage to Little Polliwog starts out with a steep hill. It can be a challenge getting your boat out of the water and up the incline, but the rest of the 0.1 mile portage is relatively level. You can choose to walk the portage with or without your boat to check out the isolated ecosystem on Little Polliwog Pond.

Recommended resource: Adirondack Paddler’s Map: The Saranac Lakes

How to get there

Put in/take out at Polliwog Pond access on Floodwood Road, located 1.2 miles down the road as you come in from the east, past the Fish Hatchery. Parking is limited to pull off areas along the side of the road.