PAUL SMITH’S COLLEGE FACILITIES
The Kettle Pond Writers’ Conference is grateful to call Paul Smith’s College home. Paul Smith's campus is located approximately thirteen miles from the city of Saranac Lake in the Adirondack Park in upstate New York. The main campus is relatively compact and located on the edge of Lower St. Regis Lake, though Paul Smith’s owns more than 14,000 acres that makeup the full campus, and writers are welcome to access the surrounding trails and enjoy paddling on the Lower St. Regis during their week at Kettle Pond. More information about accessibility at Kettle Pond can be found here. Details on getting to Kettle Pond can be found here.
RECREATION
​At Kettle Pond, we offer a variety of different recreational activities. Daily opportunities covered in tuition include:
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access to the campus gym
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canoe & kayak use (most afternoons, weather permitting)
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Miles of trails –
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access to the VIC, Paul Smith’s Visitor Interpretive Center (inc. a butterfly house, outdoor amphitheater, floating bridge... a place impossible to oversell)
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evenings around fire pits (feat. wood from Paul Smith’s campus sawmill
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resident-led yoga? (a strong maybe)
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axe throwing? (TBD, but it’s happened before)
WRITING SPACES
While on campus, writers will have access to the college library, where they can find many quiet nooks for writing with beautiful lake vistas. The 24-Hour Room, attached to the library, offers 24/7 computing and printing access. There are also dozens of lean-to structures scattered throughout the campus on trails, along the lake, and throughout the VIC.
OTHER ESSENTIALS
Paul Smith's College bookstore is stocked with essentials like snacks, some medications, stationary, and basic toiletries, though the summer hours are limited to weekdays (read: not during the first two days of the conference). Nearby Brighton Market also has basic essentials, as well as a deli and gas, in nearby Gabriels, NY (~four miles from campus). Writers who will not have a car while on campus are urged to keep Paul Smith's relatively secluded location in mind while packing.
Here's a link to our perennial list of packing suggestions. We've heard from some it's overkill, but we have also lent coats to many of those critics. We urge writers to pack as we do: plan for 3 seasons of weather, hope for fewer.
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