All Points North - Silver Lake Bog Preserve in AuSable Forks

Silver Lake Bog Preserve in AuSable Forks

A trek through nature's wonderland

Story by Bernice Lewis
Photos By Bernice Lewis and Dennis April

The pitcher plant in the Silver Lake Bog Preserve. It is one of three carnivorous plants found in New York and is shaped like a pitcher and traps insects in its digestive juices.

A black ant makes its way unsuspectingly across the bright yellow leaves of the pitcher plant. Within seconds the insect is trapped in a pool of digestive enzymes. Then it slowly drowns and becomes food for one of the world's most lethal weapons on a stem. Like the venus fly trap, the pitcher plant is a meat-eating plant.

"The pitcher plant grows in sphagnum moss and is one of the three carnivorous plants found in New York state"

The Silver Lake Bog Preserve, nestled in the heart of AuSable Forks, is one of the few places in the North Country where the pitcher plant, can be found. Dennis Aprill, a journalism professor at Plattsburgh State University College, said "the pitcher plant grows in sphagnum moss and is one of the three carnivorous plants found in New York state."

You may have heard of carnivorous plants but after a visit to the bog, chances are you will actually observe one of these animal eating plants. The plant takes six days to digest its prey. From carnivorous plants to white-tail deer, the bog is home to a plethora of animal and plant life.

Dog and forest
The end of the trail awards visitors with a sweeping view of Silver Lake and Silver Lake Mountain.

The 61-acre bog preserved by the Nature Conservancy in New York is also wheelchair accessible. A wooden path runs for half a mile ending at the start of Bluffs trail. If any species of the flora and fauna intrigue you, you can stop at one of the fifteen stations positioned on the sides of the trail for a biological background of the plant or animal. A visit to the bog and the ensuing Bluffs trail is an outdoor activity that anyone who needs a break from the stress of every day life could take.

The soil acidity in the bog means that only certain species of plants can grow there. Plants like creeping snowberry, balsam fir and white cedar grow in abundance. The bog's floor is covered with moss that spreads like wall-to-wall carpeting, making it an excellent cushion for deer during the winter months. The moss is shocking green, plush and fluffy, and caresses the tree trunks. The species of moss that can be found in the bog are gold thread, trillium, clintonia and club mosses.

Winter time
The path is wheelchair accessible with occasional benches where visitors can rest.

A forested area of pine trees is paired with Bluffs Trail at 200 feet in elevation. Once you have meandered through the brush, the view of Silver Lake and Silver Lake Mountain, a kaleidoscope of falls changing colors, are spectacular.

The lake expands in front of you for miles and the light glittering on the water's surface looks like a mirror reflecting nature's beauty. The changing hue of leaves on the mountain side is a shocking yellow and orange puzzle piece that begins from that base and rises majestically to the mountain's summit.

So just when the hour climb has tested your physical endurance and made you think you should really start going to the gym, you are rewarded for all your hard work with a view that can only be explained as spiritually inspiring. The lookout point at the summit of Bluffs trail is not marked by any wooden platforms but small patches of clear ground surrounded by boulders on which a tired climber can gratefully perch.

The landscape drops precariously into the lake so there is no alternative route to descend from the trail once you've reached the lookout point. The return trip is easier as gravity is now in your favor. The trail looks very different coming from the top so trailblazers should be cautious when following the worn out path that will sometimes disappear in places.

Have you ever gone hiking in the North Country?

Carnivorous Plants

Carnivorous plants are usually found in nitrogen poor soil. The plants have adapted to their environment by eating insects to make up for the soil's nutrient deficiency. The bladder wort, sundew and pitcher plant are the only three types of carnivorous plants found in New York. There are over 600 types of meat-eating plants in the world and can be found on every continent except Antarctica. Most people have heard of the venus fly trap. It only closes on prey that is moving.

The plants have a tubular shaped bright colored leaf lined with downward pointing hairs that prevent a trapped animal from escaping from its seemingly harmless enclosure. The unsuspecting insect is trapped in a pool of digestive enzymes where it is consumed by the plant.

The plant's single purplish red flower attracts insects easily. The pitcher plant, (also called the soldier's drinking plant or side-saddle flower), is made up of five sepals with three bracts and five petals.

Some species exude an amazing variety of chemicals, including digestive enzymes, wetting agents, and insect narcotics. Others rely on bacterial action to digest the prey.

Local common names for such plants abound, such as dumb-watches, buttercups, blood cups, fly-bugles, trumpet pitchers, and of course, fly-traps.