BLACK LAKE, New York (WWNY) – Black Lake is one of the largest lakes in St. Lawrence County, covering the towns of Hammond, Morristown, Rossie, Macomb, Depeyster and Oswegatchie, yet it only has two publicly accessible boat launches, one on each side of the lake which has about 64 miles of shoreline.
“What we’re doing here is trying to get some attention given to a boat launch, the only boat launch on this side of the lake that I’m aware of,” said St. Lawrence County Legislator Joseph Lightfoot (R. – District 3).
Local officials and state Assemblyman Scott Gray say improvements are needed at the state-run Black Lake Boat Launch on the north shore.
“There’s several deficiencies in this boat launch, the most of which is probably the bulkheads. They’re really inoperable, not functioning at all. Even if you could tie up to there, you would need a ladder to get out of your boat,” said Gray (R. – 116th District).
Gray points to the well-maintained boat launch on the St. Lawrence River in Morristown as a stark contrast to Black Lake’s.
Both are run by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.
Leaders say the state Department of Environmental Conservation should take over the operation and maintenance of the launch from Parks and Rec.
Lightfoot and Gray agree that the state DEC would have a better time managing and improving upon the Black Lake Boat Launch.
The Black Lake Association says not only does the launch need to be improved upon, but the parking lot gets too crowded on weekends and holidays.
“Most people take multiple people to pull their boats in and out if you watch them. There’s not enough water down here. It’s not wide enough to launch more than two at a time. Today it’s not too bad, but if you get a holiday weekend or a bass tournament on the lake, they’re parked all the way up the road. It’s just a bottleneck,” said Scott Roof, vice president of the Black Lake Association.
Gray has begun talks between both the state parks and recreation department and the DEC to see if a switch in operations is possible.
Gray says he’d also like the state to consider adding another public boat launch.
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