The Rooster Comb Mountain trailhead parking lot in Keene Valley is packed with more than 60 cars on a Saturday afternoon in early October 2019. (Enterprise photo — Elizabeth Izzo)

SARANAC LAKE — Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday described an influx of hiker traffic to the Adirondack Park as good for the economy — but said the state is “making sure that the tourism that comes in is well-managed.”

Reiterating comments he made this past November about encouraging tourism while protecting the Adirondack Park’s natural resources, Cuomo again underscored finding that balance during a press conference at the Hotel Saranac Sunday.

“Tourism has been very important for us,” he said. “We understand the balance. Yes, you want the economic development and you want the tourism, but you don’t want to depreciate the asset. That’s what we have, and what we’re preserving for future generations.”

On some good weather days and holiday weekends this past summer, hiker traffic to High Peaks trailheads overwhelmed existing parking areas. Coupled with a roadside parking ban along one of the busiest stretches, state Route 73 in Keene Valley, the full parking lots prompted some visitors to park illegally, others to park farther away and walk along the roadside, and some to abandon their plans to hike altogether. In the small town of Keene, the traffic at times overwhelmed local resources, such as the town’s shuttle to the Garden trailhead.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation has since formed a High Peaks task force to put together a strategic plan to manage the foot traffic. That plan is due to DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos by the end of this June. The town of Keene has also created its own task force as part of a broader community planning effort.

Cuomo acknowledged that the increased amount of tourism has caused some issues.

“We have a lot more people now coming in to do day hiking on the trails,” he said, “so much so that parking and traffic has become a problem. And how do you manage the parking and the traffic and still bring in commercial enterprises? We’re going through that. But it’s a good (economic) engine, no doubt.”

Cuomo pointed to the state’s marketing efforts, such as the I Love NY advertising campaigns, as “one of the reasons you see that increased tourism.” He said once tourists visit the Adirondacks and are exposed to the state-owned Forest Preserve, they “can’t get enough of it.

“I came (to the Adirondacks) before I was governor, I came as a young man. I spent a lot of time with my family, a lot of time with my brother here,” he said. “For me it is magical, and it is spiritual, and it is rejuvenating. It just gives me such a sense of peace and wonder and really renews me personally.

“We love the place itself, but we also have to have an economy. We have to have income, and we have to have jobs, and revenue to allow the local governments to run.”