Malone, NY 12953 - Franklin County

Introduction

The property offers a long-term timber investment opportunity dominated by older sugar maple and black cherry species composition. Immediate income opportunity is available from forest thinning or future value can be stored on the stump allowing the forest to continue to store additional asset value and or carbon.

Property highlights include:

Standing timber value of $254,300, with large sized, average diameters

Adjacent Forever Wild State Land ownership

Developed access to support future forest management activities

Property includes the Kary Mountain peak

Small meadow to build an off-grid camp

Location

Kary Mountain Forest is situated just east of Route 30 in the northcentral section of New York's Adirondack Park. The northern section of the land is adjacent to the western block of the Chazy Highlands Wild Forest, a large wilderness within the Park.

Locally, the surrounding landscape is characterized by undeveloped forestland however just down the road is a small community of mostly seasonal homes around Eagle Pond. Also nearby is the Titus Mountain Ski Center 10 miles to the north.

The largest nearby towns are Saranac Lake (population 4,825), a 40-minute drive to the south, and Malone (population 14,139), 15 miles to the north, both communities offering full retail & dinning amenities.

Albany, the states capital and home of the Albany International Airport, is a 3 hour drive. Montreal, Canada is a 1.75-hour drive.

Access

The property is accessed by Adirondack Park Preserve Road, a local gravel road well suited to vehicle traffic. From Eagle Pond Road, the southern property boundary is 0.3 miles, with this road continuing through the land for a short ways before exiting the SE corner of the land to other privately owned land and then State Forever Wild Land to the east.

Internal access is provided by very old woods trails that were developed first, when the lower portion of the property was farmed, likely in late 1800s and then more recently +/-35 years ago when the land was last used for forest management.

Boundary lines are old and difficult to find in some areas.

Site Description

The site generally has a southern aspect, with nearly all terrain falling to the access road. The exception is the northeastern quadrant that sits on the shoulder of Kary Mountain (where terrain is mostly level) whose slopes then tilt to the east. Elevations range from 2,020 ASL at the northern end of the property which is just shy of Kary Mountain peak, to 1,540 at the lands southwest corner.

Terrain is variable with the lower third of the property possessing gentle slopes. This area was formally farmed and hosted a homestead as evidenced by old stone walls and wire fencing, likely in the late 1880s. As a result, softwood trees are common in this area. The balance of the terrain is modestly steep with some rock out-crops in areas. The mid section of the land has two narrow valleys leading up to the Kary Mountain plateau, both areas are quite scenic and nice hiking spots. All of the terrain appears to support mechanical harvesting equipment, facilitating future forest management activity.

Soils are well drained and productive, as indicated by the tall, high quality trees that grow on the land. Two small meadows exist on the land along its southern boundary.

The lands primary highest and best use is timber production, however the property does support constriction of an off-grid camp near the access road in the existing meadow or within the lower woods.

Timber

The timber asset represents an excellent appreciating resource, capable of storing value and producing future revenue. Its maturity also offers immediate income opportunity.

Stumpage values were assigned by F&W Forestry Services in September of 2023, producing a property-wide Capital Timber Value (CTV) of $254,300 ($1,673/total acre).

The species composition is dominated by hardwoods at 99% of total volume with softwoods (spruce/fir, cedar and tamarack) holding the balance. The sawlog volume breakdown is held by species with strong demand in the marketplace, with sugar maple holding 63% of the volume and black cherry at 21%. The remaining volumes are held primarily by red maple, The Birches, white ash, and American Beech.

No forest management has occurred since the tenure of the current owner began in 2003. Based on the forest age classes, it appears thinning occurred last about 30-35 years ago. Thinning or harvest cuts can occur anytime given the maturing overstory and high densities.