| FEATURES & STATISTICS | |
|---|---|
|
Contour Interval |
165 ft |
|
Highest Elevation |
2880 ft |
|
Lowest Elevation |
880 ft
|
|
Map Area |
93.5 sqmi |
|
Centerpoint Coordinates |
43.757112, -74.822121 |
Early Development
Big Moose Lake is at the head of the Moose River, about five miles north of Old Forge and Fourth Lake in the Adirondacks. While undoubtedly being a popular tourist destination, the lakeshore is known for being less developed than others in the area. When the area became more easily accessible by rail upon Big Moose Station’s opening in 1892, large private homes and resorts were built, many of them in the palisade architectural style featuring walls made of vertical half timbers. The outside of the logs are still rounded and covered in bark to face the elements while the inside sanded and varnished for a finished look. Building with unmilled wood was more practical and the vertical half timbers provided more surface area than traditional log cabins. The Waldheim resort, established in 1904, is a prime example of the style.
Fishing and Lake Acidification
Fishing is popular on Big Moose Lake, though, for a time the activity was threatened by acidification of the many of the regions lakes. With the increase of industrial activity in the northwest beginning in the late 1800s, coal combustion released large quantities of sulfur dioxide into the air which transformed into sulfuric acid and in turn acid rain. In the 1970s park rangers detected an increase in lake water acidity and the dying off of their many species of fish.
Historical records of Big Moose Lake’s pH level were available as far back as 1760 providing data showing the effect of the sulfuric acid. The effects have been largely mitigated by Title IV of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 which targeted acid rain and required sulfur dioxide emissions to be significantly reduced.
