Comments sought on plans for 34-mile Adirondack bike trail

TUPPER LAKE, N.Y. – State officials are taking public comments until June 2 on plans for a 34-mile bike path through the heart of the Adirondack Park.

Plans call for tearing up 19-century railroad tracks between Tupper Lake and Lake Placid and creating a 10-foot-wide recreational trail with a stone dust surface suitable for biking, walking, skiing, snowmobiling and other pursuits.

The Department of Environmental Conservation is holding public meetings on the plan on Tuesday, May 9 in Tupper Lake and Wednesday, May 10 in Ray Brook.

The Adirondack Railway Preservation Society has sued the state over the plans. The group wants the tracks rehabilitated so it can extend tourist train service, which now runs from Utica to the Old Forge area and is slated for extension to Tupper Lake.