Lands designated as "wild forest" in New York are managed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation as part of the Forest Preserve.
Management Wild forests are intended to retain an essentially wild and natural character, however management facilitates a greater amount of recreational use than areas designated by the state as wilderness, which feature an increased sense of remoteness and solitude. Most are located within the boundaries of Adirondack Park or Catskill Park.
List of New York wild forests ForestCounty or countiesParkAreaNotes Aldrich Pond Herkimer, St. Lawrence Adirondack Balsam Lake Mountain Ulster Catskill Black River Herkimer, Lewis, Oneida Adirondack Blue Mountain Essex, Hamilton Adirondack Bluestone Ulster Catskill Champlain Islands Clinton, Essex Adirondack Includes four small islands (Garden Island, Cole Island, Sheepshead Island, and Signal Buoy Island) in Lake Champlain. Colgate Lake Greene Catskill Cranberry Lake St. Lawrence Adirondack Crystal Lake Sullivan Debar Mountain Franklin Adirondack Delaware Delaware Catskill Created in 2008 through re-classification of Cherry Ridge-Campbell Mountain Wild Forest and Middle Mountain Wild Forest. Dry Brook Ridge Delaware, Ulster Catskill Elm Ridge Greene Catskill Ferris Lake Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer Adirondack Fulton Chain Herkimer Adirondack Grass River St. Lawrence Adirondack Halcott Mountain Greene Catskill Hammond Pond Essex Adirondack Horseshoe Lake Franklin, St. Lawrence Adirondack Independence River Herkimer, Lewis Adirondack Jessup River Hamilton Adirondack Kaaterskill Ulster Catskill Lake George Warren, Washington Adirondack Moose River Plains Hamilton, Herkimer Adirondack Overlook Mountain Ulster Catskill Phoenica Ulster Catskill Raquette River St. Lawrence Adirondack Rusk Mountain Greene Catskill Saranac Lakes Essex, Franklin Adirondack Sargent Ponds Hamilton Adirondack Shaker Mountain Fulton, Hamilton Adirondack Shandaken Ulster, Greene Catskill Split Rock Mountain Essex Adirondack Sundown Sullivan, Ulster Catskill Taylor Pond Clinton, Essex, Franklin Adirondack Vanderwhacker Mountain Essex, Warren, Hamilton Adirondack Watson East Triangle Herkimer, Lewis Adirondack Also known as Watson's East Triangle Wild Forest. White Hill St. Lawrence Adirondack Wilcox Lake Fulton, Hamilton, Saratoga, Warren Adirondack Willowemoc Sullivan, Ulster Catskill Wilmington Essex, Clinton Adirondack
See also Albany Pine Bush Long Island Central Pine Barrens Rome Sand Plains
References
External links NYS Department of Environmental Conservation: Forest Preserve unit descriptions Land units maps: Adirondack Park, Catskill Park