I have been going to fish creek for 40 + years and still enjoy it as much as when I was a little kid.  My two boys love it there and once we get there they do not want to leave, go figure. I have pictures from when my grand parents used to go to Fish creek back in the 50's and will dig them up and get them scanned and sent to you.  Fish Creek is definitely the best camp site in the state by far.  I can remember when my grandfather would say that he could remember paying .30 cent per night to stay at Fish creek.  How times have changed.  (Timothy Scheer)

Every summer, my family vacation was a two week stay at Fish Creek during July. I am one of ten children and we were fortunate enough to have a motorboat. For several years, my siblings and I would put on clown suits (along with Pete Clark) and water-ski around the campsites just before dusk. The boat horn would sound and our 'spotter' would ring a cowbell, which was quite loud. Campers would be amused and children would run onto the docks to wave back at us. We must have been in great shape then to last the duration to make it around all of the campsites. It was a wonderful tradition that I was happy to be able to participate in. That was in the very late 70's and early eighties (1978-1982). I lost touch with Pete once my parents passed, but he was from West Falls, NY. I can not recall any costumes other than the clowns-which Pete's mom Joan had sewn. (Not to say that Pete wasn't ever a Santa.) We usually went 'clowning' in sets of three. Believe it or not, we once had ten skiers off of our family boat. We had my cousin's boat tow our boat until we were all out of the water and then he broke us free. (We all went on two skis so that we wouldn't waste power.) It was incredible! However, we were later contacted by a park ranger and asked not to attempt that again because of the amount of room the skiers took up through some of the narrows. I wish I had a picture of that! The Good Times... (Ellie Leszczynski)

I see there is a Glenn Peters who wrote into you about Fish creek Ponds. Would Glenn be related to a Andy Peters who used to ride around Fish Creek on a unicycle? My sister Vicki had a crush on him and I believe I have a picture of him somewhere. Fish Creek for almost 41 years just like Tim Scheer in a previous message infact his and my Grand parents used to come to fish creek 60 years ago, My mom has been coming to Fish creek every year since she was 10, 58 years ago. Outhouse toilets is what I remember when I was a young lad. I remember Karen Quick a good friend when I was 12. I remember going fishing with my cousin Tom Revoir and I had what seemed to be a 3 foot pike on the line in the channel to flood wood and Tom somehow let it go on me. We haven't spoke since. Milk, eggs, butter, cream, chocolate milk oj, Milk, eggs, butter, cream, chocolate milk, oj, Milk. Here I sit all broken hearted. My brother Kurt used to ski around fish creek dressed up like a girl and throw candy at kids . My cousin Rusty used to take us water skiing and tubing( tractor trailer tube tied to the tow rope). Rusty had a few Gennys buy that time. My dad would always drag us up some mountain for fun. Now Houston, Mason and My dad so the same things. (Jamie Edwards)

I too have been going to Fish Creek for quite some time now. My parents used to go back in the 50's with my grandparents (Tom and Mary Ryan). Ironically they used to camp with (Tim Scheer's) grandparents and my cousin Jamie (Hawk) Edwards parents. Some of my fondest memories came from fish creek. When my cousin Jamie Edwards and I got in trouble lighting off fireworks illegally. I believe the Forest Rangers lets us go. About the 3 ft. Pike that I supposedly let go on my cousin Jamie, it was a 3 inch Perch. My Uncle Jim Edwards invented tube war, and I still have the scar from when Kurt hit me in the head with the rubber raft. I almost drowned when my father lost control of the ropes from his new sail kit for the canoe and I was trapped underwater in the canoe. Oh and let me not forget I was scarred for life when my cousin Rusty took his clothes off and swam naked off of Buck Island. This is the same Rusty that enjoyed many Genny's even on his Cheerios' for breakfast. All in all I love this place and will always come back to visit.
(Tom Revoir)

I grew up in Fish Creek 2 weeks every summer and what a wonderful childhood it was. I remember all the people selling their wares throughout the campsite. I remember going to the dump behind the trading post to watch the bears come out and the close calls when they came right past the cars or stupid people would try to get close to get a picture. I loved the long lines down the highway, meeting people which I am sure my parents did not care for. We could walk around the whole place and never once was anyone worried someone might grab us or harm us, we hung out at the beach as teenagers, flirted with the rangers and always went to the trading post to check our post boxes for mail. Rainy days were spent driving to the hatchery down the road, or into Saranac Lake or Lake Placid and when we were small we always went to Santa's Village when we were camping up there. When I moved back to NYS I immediately took my daughter camping in a tent there for a week, what a wonderful time we had. She loved fishing from the site, boating, sitting by the campfire, going to the activities at the outdoor chapel. I can still remember doing the Bunny Hop when I was younger down by the old beach. Church services always seem more special at the outdoor chapel than going to the same old church at home. We have been on cruises, to Disney, all over the US and Canada yet we can not wait to get back to Fish Creek. Next year I am renting a camper (too old for tents now) and we are going with friends for a week. I am so glad I will have the memories of this wonderful place for the rest of my life.
(Elizabeth Schalk)

Reading over the memories section made me think of the times (early 60's) my Uncle and I (then a young boy of 13) decided to build a dock. We, my Aunt, Uncle and myself) would come to FC the last week in June to avoid the 2 week limit since we could then stay till July 14. At that time there was a clearing around site 170 where truck loads of pine slabwood from a sawmill in the area was dumped. I suspect the purpose was to give the campers firewood, but my uncle, being a very resourceful person, was able to build quite a dock from the slabs. I recall getting pine logs from the woods and pointing them with a axe, and driving them into the sand with a large rock. Needless to say it was a bit different from CampADK's present dock, but it served us well for the time we were there, and I suspect it also served the campers on that site the rest of the season.

Years later (1982), I was there again, this time with my own young family. I located a sawmill in Onchiota, and purchased a $5 carload of slabwood. I then built my own replica of the same slabwood dock, using the big rock technique of post installation. Sadly, we learned of my Uncle's passing a week after we returned home, before I could relate my memory lane project.
(Pete Stagg)
who still hears the call of "Pies, Cakes, Cookies , Doughnuts, Bread, and Honeydips today" in his head.

Do you or your relatives have recollections of the early days at Fish Creek? If so please email me  This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it . Any info as well as photos would be greatly appreciated!

A work in progress.... Certainly much more coming!