The Adirondack Wildlife Refuge, a popular tourist attraction in the high peaks of Upstate New York, has reached the end of its road.
The Wilmington property is listed by Adirondack Premiere Properties for $799,000.
The listing includes more than 47 acres of land with water frontage along the West Branch of the Ausable River, as well as over two miles of hiking trails and a public fishing access trail that winds through forest and meadow. Just seven minutes away is the picturesque High Falls Gorge.
Stephen Hall owned the refuge with his wife, Wendy. Together, they rehabilitated and released many animals back into the wild.
At its peak, the refuge housed wolves, bears, bobcats, hawks, coyotes, and other animals that were too injured to return to the wild. Those that remained became part of the refuge’s educational programs.
For a brief period of time, guests could even stay overnight at the Wolf Dome located about 100 yards away from the gray wolf enclosure, where they could hear the wolves’ howls at night.
Adirondack Explorer reported that at age 77, Stephen is ready to retire and will continue to live in the house next to the refuge. His wife Wendy passed away from cancer in early 2022 and none of their four children are taking up the family business.
This female black bear, named Ahote, has escaped from her enclosure at Adirondack Wildlife Refuge in Wilmington, N.Y. (This photo was taken of the bear in April 2021 for an unrelated story.)Katrina Tulloch
The refuge faced challenges in the past decade, including multiple violations from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation—one of which involved misleading investigators about a bear escape.
A nonprofit organization created to help fund the refuge also split and new management took over and tried to reestablish the rehabilitation center. Their applications to the state were denied and management was transferred back to Stephen.
Stephen is hoping a builder who wants to revive the refuge will buy it and reopen it for the public.
