Paddlers in the 90-Miler drive toward the finish line at Riverside Park in Saranac Lake in 2022. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Marbone)

SARANAC LAKE — The Adirondack Canoe Classic — more commonly known as the 90-Miler — is set to kick off its three-day paddling stage race on Friday with 275 boats and more than 600 paddlers signed up.

The race starts Friday morning at the Old Forge Public Beach and ends that day in Blue Mountain Lake. On Saturday, racers will paddle from Bissell’s Field, about 2.5 miles south of the Long Lake Bridge, to the Raquette River in Tupper Lake. Then on Sunday, paddlers will leave Fish Creek Campground and tackle the Saranac Lake chain of lakes to finish on Lake Flower.

The event is hosted by the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, which took over the race from Brian and Grace McDonnell in 2021, with support from the state Department of Environmental Conservation, dozens of businesses, nonprofits and communities, as well as hundreds of volunteers. It takes paddlers on a journey through the first 90 miles of the 740-mile NFCT.

Karrie Thomas, the executive director of the NFCT, said she’s always excited for race day, whether it’s for the 90-Miler or another race or another paddle. She added that she loves this race because it’s “community.”

“We’re a big family of paddlers, and the Adirondacks really welcomes people,” she said. “Whether you’re traveling to Old Forge from Saranac Lake or from Texas, you get a sense of how welcoming the communities are and how excited they are to see this race roll through in their backyard. People coming out in Inlet and cheering as the paddlers come off Fourth Lake, being at the finish line and Blue Mountain (Lake), being at the finish line at the Crusher.”

The 90-Miler includes a full contingent of solo, tandem, four-person and eight-person canoes as well as solo and tandem kayaks, one- and two-person guideboats and stand-up paddle boards.

While the 90-Miler community is represented by a large contingent of local participants, Thomas said a majority are people who have done it before, and some who are testing out the waters for the first time.

“I believe it’s like 40 boats that are all first-timers,” she said. “Then a number of other boats have part-first-timers, folks who have done it before. It’s not that many boats that are entirely composed of people who haven’t done the race before, but a lot of people do the race once, and then they bring a friend back to paddle in their boat with them. It’s definitely an experience people get excited about, and they share it with their friends and it just builds the community.”

There are more than 50 people who are members of the Gold Canoe Club — paddlers who have finished the 90 Miler at least 20 times. Participants range in age from 10 to 80. There will be more than 50 students representing several regional colleges and universities paddling this year, and more than 100 first-time 90-Milers.

Thomas said that to complete the 90-Miler, it takes a lot of “grit.”

“You need a certain level of fitness just to be able to propel yourself through the entire course,” she said. “Having some paddling skills does help, although there have been people who have barely paddled before who came and did the race. Although they typically have somebody in the boat with them to help make sure that it goes smoothly. Stamina — not just strength — but stamina and skill and just the grit to keep going.”

The race revenue is directed back into stewardship, maintenance and access projects on the Adirondack sections of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail and adjacent waterways. Revenue also supports the Northern Forest Explorers Scholarship Fund, which helps pay for kids aged 10 to 15 to participate in week-long canoe camping trips hosted by local guides.

Additionally, civic organizations working with the NFCT generate thousands of dollars for local projects during the 90-Miler. The towns of Webb, Long Lake, Inlet, Tupper Lake and Saranac Lake house, feed and outfit paddlers and their support crews — not just for the 90, but for countless paddlers who pass through the Adirondacks.

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Spectator spots

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Day 1: The start in Old Forge, 8 to 9:30 a.m., several locations along state Route 28, including Arrowhead Park in Inlet and the finish line in Blue Mountain Lake.

Day 2: The beach in Long Lake, from 8:30 to 10 a.m., a hike into Stoney Creek on the Raquette River, and the finish line at the Route 3/30 DEC Fishing Access east of Tupper Lake.

Day 3: The start at 8:30 a.m. at Fish Creek Campground, a hike into Bartlett Carry and the finish line festivities at Riverfront Park on Lake Flower in Saranac Lake.

For more information, including a list of participants, boat classifications and frequently asked questions, visit northernforestcanoetrail.org/adirondack90miler.