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Ausable Club Drop Off / Parking

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  • Ausable Club Drop Off / Parking

    Hi all,

    The SummitPost entry for Ausable Club states that "Everyone must hike from the parking lot. No drop-offs or pick-ups are allowed at the trailhead area/gate."

    However, this sign at the junction of Ausable Road and Lake Road seems to suggest that vehicles can proceed that far but no further:



    So can we get a ride to the Lake Road?


    If we decide to drive ourselves I understand that parking capacity may be an issue. This sign states that after the 30 vehicle lot is full "no further hiker parking is available":



    However, the ADKHighPeaks Wiki references "two parking lots on your left as you drive down Ausable Club Rd". Satellite imagery shows what appears to be a second parking lot adjacent to the 30 vehicle lot.

    Is additional parking available at the Ausable Club once the first lot reaches capacity?


    TIA,
    AP

  • #2
    The aim of disallowing "drop-offs" is to keep the Ausable Club Road/Lake Road junction free of (non-member) vehicular traffic.

    If drop-offs were permitted, you'd have cars blocking/narrowing the junction while passengers disembark and collect their gear. By disallowing dropoffs, all of this activity is relegated to the parking lot.

    The parking area has two "lots" separated by a few trees.
    OpenStreetMap is a map of the world, created by people like you and free to use under an open license.

    When the two lots are full, the only legal option is to park on highway 73's shoulder with all four wheels off the pavement. It is illegal to park along Ausable Club Road and you will be ticketed (as was done last summer).

    If the Ausable Club's public parking area is full, it's unlikely the Roaring Brook parking area (across the highway) will have space.

    If all lots are full and there's no space left along the highway (it can happen), you can park at a pullout on the west side of the highway. It is located up the hill and south of the Ausable Club. It's the "P" on this map: https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=1...4898/-73.76299
    Looking for views!

    Comment


    • #3
      Appreciate the detailed response.

      So I guess the sign at Lake Road that says no authorized vehicles allowed beyond this point and directs hikers to the parking lot 1/2 mile back along Ausable road is just doubling down? Since public vehicles shouldn't be here in the first place ...

      Thanks for the clarification regarding the road parking. I read the sign at the parking lot to mean no parking on 73, but now realize it is referring to Ausable Road.

      Seems that between the 2 parking lots there would be more than 30 spots available at the Ausable Club.

      Regardless, we should be fine between the Club, Roaring Brook, and 73 roadside.

      AP

      Comment


      • #4
        Ausable Club Drop Off / Parking

        Ausable road is a town road on which the public has free access, but no parking. Someone could stop and drop off a hiker, for example, but could not proceed to the actual trailhead and register by vehicle.


        Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

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        • #5
          OK, thanks.

          Ausable Road, brown road sign, public.
          Lake Road, green road sign, private.

          The sign at the junction of Ausable Road and Lake Road makes sense given the above.

          Comment


          • #6
            As Joe Cedar said, Ausable Rd. is a public road. So while it is legal to pause and drop off others before going to park, for obvious reasons the Ausable Club does not want vehicles stopping there for the time it takes to have everyone but the driver get their packs, other gear, and themselves out of the vehicle. On busy mornings, there could be quite a line of cars blocking the road while this goes on. Additionally, then there is a group (perhaps several groups) hanging around waiting for the driver to return from parking the vehicle.

            Same applies to the end of the hike. While public access through the Ausable Club is insured by virtue of the 1978 land sale agreement, hikers should still consider themselves as "guests" until they reach state land and therefore behave appropriately with regard to their "host".
            Every time that wheel turns round, bound to measure just a little more ground.

            Comment


            • #7
              Ahh, the tricky world of etiquette.

              OK, fair enough. I'm hiking with kids so was hoping to turn a 13 mile hike into a 12 mile hike for them.

              We'll drive in ourselves, park, and walk in rather than have my wife drop us off.

              Appreciate the responses.

              Comment


              • #8
                UPDATE:

                Yesterday (June 17) I noticed there are several new signs posted at the junction of the Lake Road and Ausable Club roads. They all say:

                PRIVATE PROPERTY
                NO DROPPING OFF OR
                PICKING UP
                Looking for views!

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