Town
Where to Stay in Keene
Keene sits on Route 73 in the AuSable River valley, with Giant Mountain and the High Peaks rising on either side. Trailheads for Cascade and Porter, the Garden in Keene Valley and the Adirondack Mountain Reserve are a short drive away. The Bark Eater Inn began as a stagecoach stop in the early 1800s and has 6 rooms in its farmhouse and 2 cabins, with breakfast included. Dartbrook Lodge, beside Dart Brook on Route 73, has cottages and suites on a property that has taken travelers since the 1800s, a few minutes from the trailheads. Keene Valley, a few miles south, has the Noon Mark Diner, a long-running stop for breakfast before a hike.
The Bark Eater Inn
Keene · Inn
An inn in Keene that began as a stagecoach stop on the route between Lake Champlain and Lake Placid in the early 1800s. Joe-Pete Wilson, a former member of the U.S. Olympic cross-country ski team, ran the family operation from 1972 and named it the Bark Eater; Meghan Kirkpatrick and Tyler Nichols have run it since 2018. There are 6 rooms in the main farmhouse and 2 cabins in the woods, and breakfast is included.
Dartbrook Lodge
Keene · Lodge
Cottages and suites at 2835 Route 73 in Keene, beside Dart Brook, on a property that has taken travelers since the 1800s. Lodging ranges from open-plan cottages and one-bedroom suites to a multi-bedroom cottage, with names like Bell's Cottage and Halcyon House. The AuSable River runs through the valley below, with waterfalls and swimming holes, and High Peaks trailheads are a few minutes up Route 73.
Why Stay in Keene
- •Keene and Keene Valley are the closest towns to many High Peaks trailheads, including the Garden, Chapel Pond and the Adirondack Mountain Reserve.
- •Lodging in Keene usually costs less than in Lake Placid, about 20 minutes west, and it is closer to the trails.
- •Chapel Pond, on Route 73, has roadside rock climbing on its slab and canyon walls.
What Makes This Area Interesting
- •The Garden parking area: starting point for hikes to Marcy, Haystack, and the Great Range; reservations required in season.
- •Adirondack Mountain Reserve (AMR): access to Indian Head and Rainbow Falls; DEC parking reservations required May–October.
- •Chapel Pond Canyon: roadside rock climbing on Route 73; classic routes on Chapel Pond Slab and Chapel Pond Canyon walls.
- •Noon Mark Diner: the pre-hike breakfast institution in Keene Valley; open 7am–3pm, cash preferred.
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