Selkirk Shores State Park
Selkirk Shores State Park things to do, attractions, restaurants, events info and trip planning
Description
outdoor
family friendly
pet friendly
Selkirk Shores State Park is a 980-acre state park located in the Town of Richland in Oswego County, New York. The park is located on the eastern shore of Lake Ontario.
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Ratings
Description
Selkirk Shores State Park is a 980-acre state park located in the Town of Richland in Oswego County, New York. The park is located on the eastern shore of Lake Ontario.
Posts
This is a review of the cabin accommodations, and a bit about the park. We stayed in cabin site 21. We came as a friend group with 4 families with young children (ages 2-6). We are low-maintenance campers and were very pleased with the cabins. A fridge, small stove, and double-basin sink were very welcome, as were toilet facilities (they provided 3 rolls of TP, but bring a stool for the shorties). Windows had screens and shutters, no curtains. Outlets in each room. Generous wall hooks & hangers in each room. The screened in porch with Adirondack chairs was roomy and a good place to be surrounded by woods while blocking out mosquitoes. Did not use the fireplace, but it looked great. Table and chairs/benches were solid, heavy, and probably milled and assembled on-site 70 years ago, still going strong. The listing says 3 bedrooms, but it’s really two bedrooms, and two twin beds in main living space. One bedroom with a full mattress that was pretty uncomfortable, a dresser, and large shelf. Other bedroom had 2 twin beds with about a foot of space between them and a dresser. (Other friends’ cabins had bunks.) The twin mattresses were more comfortable, but all plastic-coated of course. (Do bring sheets and other linens. If you have the packing space, mattress pads would be a big upgrade.) Gorgeous gigantic oak at the site. Fire pit with a grill, and a separate standing grill. Other key items to bring if you come in July: a fan for the heat, clothesline/pins, trash bags, bug spray, white noise (or ear plugs) if you’re there over Independence Day. Lots of fireworks going off multiple nights! Our brief interactions with the park staff were very nice. Shower facilities were a 7-min walk away, with your typical camp showers, no complaints. Playground was great, just unshaded, so very hot. Camp store has reasonable prices (!), a small sharing library, a craft room for kids for rainy days that was terrific, and firewood for purchase. Frog pond was nice, but we discovered it was too long of a walk for our kiddos from the cabin, had to drive to a closer trail head another day. Saw frogs! On damp days mosquitoes were THICK. So were fireflies every night, magical for the kids. Beach: pebbly, but they had also hauled in sand. It does hurt your feet walking out, but gives way to Sandy bottom further out. Terrific place to find pretty rocks. Water was chilly a couple days, warmer on the hottest days in the afternoon. Nice pier. We hit the beach the night of the Fourth and saw fireworks going off over say 10 different places south of us down the shore. Kids loved it, booms not so loud. We would happily return another year :)
Emily ThujaEmily Thuja
10
We used to rent a cabin once or twice a season at Selkirk & really enjoyed doing that. Cabins are spacious although beds are typical camp beds. This time we camped with our new travel trailer. We were in Loop "A" (Acorn), site 1. Behind us were woods. Site was a good size; most sites were. On some sites campers could even back trailer into the woods. Grounds are we maintained. Dumpsters & recycle collection areas are conveniently located. The dumping station for the entire park is at the entrance to Acorn loop but is not obtrusive. There are areas in the center of Acorn loop (& probably all loops) for children to play. We chose not to camp anywhere in loop "C" (Chipmunk) because the sites have very little or no shade plus the sites are smaller & closer to your neighbor. However, views of the lake are available in Chipmunk loop. Selkirk has numerous amenities including fantastic trails all throughout the park, a great beach & many nearby areas to kayak. In fact, South Sandy Creek & Deer creek, within 5 miles of Selkirk, are listed among the top 10 places to kayak in NY. These 2 waterways are smooth kayaking & take you 2 - 3 miles out to Lake Ontario. Beautiful scenery & many birds to be admired while paddling. Enjoy!
Dianne Nugent-WardDianne Nugent-Ward
100
Beautiful state park with breathtaking views of Ontario Lake. You don’t want to miss the sunsets here- they were some of the best I’ve ever seen. The swimming at the beach was rocky- bring crocs or other water shoes, after about 3 feet into the water it turns sandy. The water isn’t deep at all but it cooled us all off. Lots of places on the beach to sit, and enjoy the view. We stayed at the campground for a couple of days and overall it was good. The only complaint is that the sites are VERY close together, especially in the chipmunk loop. We tent camped while everyone else had a RV, we definitely felt like an outlier lol. We drove around to scope out which sites we would be more comfortable with for next time. Bathroom and showers were great- kept clean. Easy hiking trails, with beautiful scenery is worth trying out! Trails are marked and it was easy to follow the map, also, being bug spray. The staff were wonderful! Shout out to them. The park office has ice and wood you can purchase. The actual camp store in the campground is only open Thursday-Sunday. We know in 2025 they are having major renovations and will be closed but in 2026 we will definitely be back!
Holly WilsonHolly Wilson
00
This is a super park. We had the best spot, #97! It was large and private and has a trail right behind it to the beach path. The beach area is nice, but there is a pump at the southern edge that runs continuously and mars the serenity of the atmosphere. The water in the swim area had lots of algae floating on it and smelled fishy, so we did not swim. We saw lots of other swimmers, though. We went to the beach for a truly beautiful sunset. The bathrooms were all clean and showers had wonderful pressure with good hot water. The showers are the push button kind, which is annoying, but helps the park save resources. We walked and biked the entire park with ease. There is a handy store in the C loop with snacks and basic camp needs, but is only open Thursday to Sunday. The lake trail is easy and well marked. We did not do any of the other trails as we were here only a couple of days. We love that they had several horseshoe pits throughout the park and we really enjoyed the one closest to our spot. For the size of this park and the number of people here, we were very surprised at how quiet and peaceful it was. 👍🏼👍🏼😁
Elaine KorwekElaine Korwek
70
What a fantastic find for a hike today. Well worth the 2 hour drive from Rochester. Parked near the beach access parking lot and set out to do a big loop to come back starting on the frog pong trail. Very short trail that led to a pond with a plank boardwalk to walk across. Nice place to sit down and take in nature for a second. From there, we took the 52c trail to the red fox trail to the blue forest trail and then hopped back on the redox trail, which took us up to the salmon River. Walking along there for a bit til we found the entrance for Lakeshore Trail to take us back to the parking area near the beach access lot. I recommend going counterclockwise so you save the best for last. The views along the lakeshore trail over Lake Ontario are stunning. With plenty of access points to the water. There are also campsites available and cottages when in season. A lot of people out there enjoying a beautiful 50-degree day walking. Biking and having their dogs along. Easy in easy out. Most of the trail was relatively flat. Would definitely like to come again in the fall or even the peak of summer.
Michael BorreroMichael Borrero
10
One thing NY does well is their state parks. I enjoy our yearly, two week stay at the park. Although not in the Adirondacks, it has that isolated feel. They have a general store with a few commonly needed items and across route 3, at the park entrance, The Lakeside restaurant and ice cream stand are convenient and highly rated. Pulaski is near by for groceries, car wash, laundromat, restaurants etc. It offers much with a small town feel. Inside the park, we enjoy the spacious sites and walking trails. Sunsets on the lake never disappoint. There is a walking pier and beach. The beach is often without a lifeguard so swim at your own risk. They try to maintain a sandy beach but it always seems to be under construction as any storm washes out the sand. Entry to the water is a bit treacherous for us tender foots, with the lake rocks typical of Lake Ontario. Hookup utilities are minimal, electric only, so we use water sparingly to avoid a trip to the dump station. The bathhouse are well maintained but a bit rustic. Overall, an enjoyable and convenient park.
Hog roamerHog roamer
70