Four trails and breweries to pair them with this fall

Hiking and hops meet in Saranac Lake, where the legendary local breweries know how to bottle up the flavors of fall, with all of its fiery foliage and golden colors. Hit one or more of these 4 trails to experience the autumn explosion of colors, and pair them with one of our local breweries. They are the perfect places to share your tales of adventure and relax with your hiking crew. 

Hex & Hops + Bloomingdale Bog

The Bloomingdale Bog trail is magical during the fall season. Its casual, flat grade combined with the crisp fall air and golden-hued tamarack trees creates quite the perfect mix for an autumn adventure. Because the trail makes a beeline along the site of an old railroad bed from Saranac Lake to Bloomingdale, you have the option of doing a car-to-car, an out-and-back, or just a short walk depending on how much time you have. Whatever option you choose, keep your eyes peeled for the rare bog plants, boreal birds like Canada jays, and the beavers that weave their way through the shallow waters. 

Being so close to Bloomingdale, the cruise over to Hex & Hops is a no-brainer. Well-known for their mead made from locally sourced Adirondack honey, they also serve their own craft beer, and have pizza and other munchies to refuel from a hike on the bog trail. During the fall, be sure to sample their fall-foliage festbier, along with other seasonal offerings. Hex & Hops has frequent live music at their outdoor space, and might even have an Oktoberfest celebration this fall, so stay tuned! 

Bitters & Bones + Moose Pond

Just a few minutes outside of downtown Saranac Lake, the gentle trail to Moose Pond brings you through shining striped maples and other towering hardwoods to the shoreline of a picturesque, peak-lined pond. Plus, at only a couple miles round trip, you won’t spend the whole day getting there. You can bring a small lunch, lounge on some of the flat rocks or raised outcroppings found while exploring the water’s edge, and even go for a swim. Don’t forget your camera for those fruity-pebble fall views of the McKenzie Range and Whiteface Mountain. 

Afterwards, head back into town for a stop at Bitters & Bones, where they are brewing up some fall flavors for your taste buds. Word has it that they’re thinking about doing something smoked or maple, so you’ll have to stop in to find out for yourself! Their outdoor patio is the perfect place to throw on a fleece, warm up by the heaters, and sip on some Saranac Lake craft beer.

Blue Line Brewery + McKenzie Pond

Located along the Jackrabbit Trail, McKenzie Pond is one of several day trips along this storied recreation corridor. During the fall, leaves falling on the trail make for softer steps to this already easily-walked path to a backcountry pond. After a couple miles of hiking, the shoreline glows with the colors of fall, with oranges, yellows, and reds running down the foothills of McKenzie Mountain above the pond, matching the trail markers you see along the way. As a bonus jaunt, nearby are the McKenzie Pond boulders, which you can access from a roadside parking area close to the start for McKenzie Pond. The forest surrounding the boulders is a mix of tall pines reaching towards the sky, and shorter hardwood trees that see stunning light during sunset hitting them and the boulders below. It’s a phenomenal place to explore, and even connect with the folks climbing the boulders littering the forest!

Within the blink of an eye, you’ll be at Blue Line Brewery after the quick drive over from the trailhead. They have a variety of flavors for everyone's palette, perfect for the fall when the temperatures and weather can often vary. Take home a crowler of your favorite brew before you leave!

Ray Brook Brewhouse + Haystack Mountain

A bird’s-eye view of the fall foliage, found after the tough hike up Haystack Mountain in Ray Brook, is a rewarding endeavor for hikers. At first, the walk starts underneath lofty red pines, but soon gives way to a stunning hardwood forest that erupts with every autumn color imaginable. Most hardwood trees, like the ash, beech, and maple that make up much of the trail’s forest, turn successive colors as fall creeps along. Species like the sugar maple can turn from yellow to orange, and then to red towards the end of fall! After hiking the 3.3 miles up to the summit ledge on Haystack, you’ll notice immediately that it doesn’t get to the height where all the trees have turned to spruce or balsam. Instead, the fall colors of the hardwood trees surround you, intermixed with some evergreens, so you feel like you're a part of the grand view you’re taking in.

Squint your eyes, and you might be able to see Ray Brook Brewhouse off to the east from the summit! Their outdoor patio and cozy indoor space have the bases covered for a post-hike hangout. A sandwich or burger and a mug of oatmeal stout signifies the end of a day well spent.

If a couple of these pairings stand out in particular to you, why not plan a trip this fall? Stay cozy around a campfire, or book a stay at one of several area lodging options.