Fire Tower of the Week: Cornell Hill Fire Tower (Camp Saratoga)

This week's fire tower is Cornell Hill Fire Tower (Camp Saratoga), in Wilton, Saratoga County.

At a glance

• Round trip: 0.3 miles
• Difficulty: Easy (flat woods walk; the tower is the whole hike)
• Trailhead: Camp Saratoga, 93 Scout Road, Wilton, NY 12831 — Parking Lot #3. Easy flat woods walk of about 0.3 mile out and back.

60-ft Aermotor LS40 built in 1923 on Cornell Hill near Round Lake and in service 1924 until the end of the 1970 season; taken down and re-erected in summer 2008 at the former Boy Scout Camp Saratoga (Wilton Wildlife Preserve & Park), beside a re-created observer's cabin. Open on posted weekends April through October, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. (the Town's main page says the third weekend of each month plus extra fall dates; its rules page says 2nd weekend; the posted 2025 schedule had exceptions; no 2026 schedule was found online, so confirm dates with the Town of Wilton); closed November through March; closed in bad weather; volunteer interpreters on site; sign-in register required; children under 5 may not climb; trails open year-round. Observer Noah LaCasse (1925-1934) had guided in Theodore Roosevelt's party on Mount Marcy in 1901. Treetop view over pine barrens and wetlands, not a mountain panorama. Questions: Town of Wilton, (518) 587-1939. Not part of the DEC Catskills Fire Tower Challenge.

Bring a layer, since it's always colder and windier at the top, and stay off the tower in thunderstorms.

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