Boat access to the lake is by hand-launch only, after a 0.3-mile (0.48 km) portage from the parking lot.

Of the 100 largest lakes in the park, it is one of only five which are free of motorboats, jetskis, and floatplanes, including Lows, Little Tupper, Round, and Saint Regis Pond.

William Seward Webb assembled a 115,000-acre (470 km2) preserve, called Nehasane Park,[4] in the process of creating the Mohawk and Malone Railway in 1892.

In 1979, New York State acquired the 7,200 acres (29 km2) of Nehasane Park surrounding Lake Lila; Forest Lodge was razed by the state at the request of the Webb family as part of the acquisition process.

The railroad right-of-way is being renovated by owner New York State in 2021-2022, after a total lack of service since 1981, and the Adirondack Railroad will begin tourist passenger service from Utica through the former Webb lands in 2022, en route to a new northern terminus of Tupper Lake (108 miles).