Grafton Lakes State Park

Grafton Lakes State Park is a 2,545-acre (10.30 km2) state park located in Rensselaer County, New York, United States.[2] The park is in the central part of the Town of Grafton and north of the hamlet of Grafton on NY Route 2, northeast of Albany. The park contains the Shaver Pond Nature Center.

Grafton Lakes State Park
Long Pond, Grafton Lakes State Park, September 2015
Grafton Lakes State Park is located in New York
Grafton Lakes State Park
Location of Grafton Lakes State Park within New York State
TypeState park
Location100 Grafton Lakes State Park Way
Cropseyville, New York[1]
Nearest cityTroy, New York
Coordinates42°46′12″N 73°27′50″W
Area2,545 acres (10.30 km2)[2]
Created1971 (1971)[3]
Operated byNew York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
Visitors240,063 (in 2014)[4]
OpenAll year
WebsiteGrafton Lakes State Park

Park description

Grafton Lakes State Park was opened in 1971.[3] It contains several lakes, including Long Pond, Mill Pond, and Second Pond.

The park offers a beach, a boat launch and boat rentals, a bridle path, hunting (deer and small game in season), fishing and ice fishing (trout, pickerel, perch, and bass), ice skating, hiking and biking, picnic tables and pavilions, a nature trail, a playground, recreation programs, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and a food concession. Swimming is open daily from Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day from 10am-6pm, and gate fees are $8/car.

The park has long been used for orienteering. It was first mapped in 1980 by Mark Domonie, and drafted by Bill Jameson. The park was the site of the 1981 US Intercollegiate Championships. A permanent course (called Trim-O) was expected to be placed in the park in 2008.

Shaver Pond Nature Center

Located within the park is the Shaver Pond Nature Center, which provides outdoor recreation and environmental educational programs and is handicap accessible. The center stands at the beginning of 20 miles (32 km) of trails. Besides scheduled programs, the facility may be rented for club meetings.

Shaver Pond Nature Center also houses the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's Air and Acid Rain Deposition Monitoring Site.

See also

References
  1. "Grafton Lakes State Park". NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
  2. "Section O: Environmental Conservation and Recreation, Table O-9". 2014 New York State Statistical Yearbook (PDF). The Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government. 2014. p. 673. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 16, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  3. Natural Heritage Trust; New York State Office of Parks and Recreation; New York State Council of Parks & Recreation (1975). Fifty Years: New York State Parks, 1924-1974. Natural Heritage Trust. p. 43.
  4. "State Park Annual Attendance Figures by Facility: Beginning 2003". Data.ny.gov. Retrieved March 12, 2016.


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