Grafton Lakes State Park
Encyclopedia
Grafton Lakes State Park is a state park
in Rensselaer County, New York
in the USA. The park is in the central part of the Town of Grafton
and north of the community of Grafton on NY Route 2
.
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, ice skating, hiking and biking, picnic tables and pavilions, a nature trail, a playground, recreation programs, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, orienteering, ski-orienteering and a food concession. The beach has been rated as the best in the Albany area
.
Grafton Lakes also contains the Shaver Pond Nature Center
, which offers nature and recreation programs.
The park contains several lakes, including Long Pond, Mill Pond, and Second Pond.
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) is expected to be placed in the park in 2008.
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
in Rensselaer County, New York
Rensselaer County, New York
Rensselaer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 159,429. Its name is in honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original Dutch owner of the land in the area. Its county seat is Troy...
in the USA. The park is in the central part of the Town of Grafton
Grafton, New York
Grafton is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The population was 1,987 at the 2000 census. It is believed that the town received its name from Grafton, Vermont, from where the first town supervisor, Nathaniel Dumbleton, was originally from. The town is an interior town near the...
and north of the community of Grafton on NY Route 2
New York State Route 2
New York State Route 2 is a state highway in the Capital District of New York, United States. It extends from an interchange with Interstate 87 and NY 7 in the hamlet of Latham within the town of Colonie to the Massachusetts state line, where it continues to Boston as Route 2....
.
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, ice skating, hiking and biking, picnic tables and pavilions, a nature trail, a playground, recreation programs, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, orienteering, ski-orienteering and a food concession. The beach has been rated as the best in the Albany area
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
.
Grafton Lakes also contains the Shaver Pond Nature Center
Shaver Pond Nature Center
The Shaver Pond Nature Center is located in Grafton Lakes State Park in the Town of Grafton in Rensselaer County, New York, USA.The nature center and the state park are northeast of Albany and are on the north side of NY-2....
, which offers nature and recreation programs.
The park contains several lakes, including Long Pond, Mill Pond, and Second Pond.
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) is expected to be placed in the park in 2008.