Headwaters Campaign

The Headwaters Campaign is a collaboration of the Adirondack Council and Northern Forest Canoe Trail along with three lake associations (Blue Mountain Lake, Long Lake, and Raquette Lake) in the headwaters of the Raquette River Watershed. The purpose of the Headwaters Campaign is to expand the communications and outreach capacity of the three lake associations in order to share stewardship-focused messaging (environmental stewardship, responsible recreation, invasive species prevention, Leave No Trace, etc.) with other local partners and to engage a broad base of stakeholders in watershed management planning.

Supporting the Lake Associations

Lake associations across the Adirondack Park play a vital role in safeguarding our precious lakes and waters from potential threats. This work is made possible in part through support provided by local and/or county government, as well as a variety of grant sources; however, the vast majority of this work is funded in large part by lake association members and carried out by contractors or volunteers.

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Through its partnership with the Raquette Lake Preservation Foundation, the Adirondack Council recognized the growing need for additional support to these groups. The Council approached the Northern Forest Canoe Trail to partner up on writing a grant to fund a “Headwaters Campaign” that would provide staffing and advisory oversight to lake associations in the Raquette River Headwaters. That grant was awarded and funding will run through October 2024.

A Watershed Approach

Over the next 18 months, the Headwaters Campaign will support the region in moving towards a watershed-focused planning approach. One of the primary goals by the end of the project is to collectively develop a watershed management plan for the Raquette River Headwaters reflective of the interests of all the stakeholders involved in this campaign.