Lake Shetek State Park — Hotel in Revere

TLDR: Cost is $7 for a day (2021), but it’s worth it because the facilities and park are amazing and beautiful!

Wonderful state park!

We were caught by surprise by the requirement of a day pass ($7 at the time of this visit), as it was not posted prominently anywhere online during research. However, it was quick, easy and Covid safe to get a day pass which gets taped inside the car.

It was completely worth it too! We were stopping for a few hours to stretch our legs, move around, and snack before we headed to our necessary destination. We got so much more than that. The park does have a small playground with some old school equipment, including a wooden teeter-totter and a metal slide. However, the playground is also quite close to a swimming hole. Up the hill are the showers and bathrooms with an access point below. It’s clearly labelled that no lifeguard is on duty, but there is a life ring to toss to those in danger. (We didn’t swim as it was too cold and windy, but it looked lovely. My son had fun sticking fingers and toes into the sand and wading in.)

The picnic tables that we saw were clean and comfortable (no slivers or anything). I did see that they didn’t have a lot of accessible trash cans in that area. We had to go back into the bathrooms to throw things away. Understandable since this is a state park with wild animals, but slightly inconvenient if you choose a spot too far from the restrooms.

Then we went on a walk, and the area is beautiful with both lake and forest views and several miles of walking trails that are well cared for. We didn’t see too much of them, but we did see the boat docks and the causeway bridge to Loon Island.

Gorgeous Park! Would...

We had a blast at Lake Shetek! Beautiful place and so many deer at night. We rented the group site. The only reason I gave it 4 stars versus 5 stars is because of the interaction I had with the ranger. We were unaware that we couldn’t park inside the actual site. I misunderstood when I called them and asked them about parking. The lady said we could park there but I clearly misunderstood exactly where she meant. There is no clear signs on where we can park and not park. Apparently we should just know! When he approached us in the morning he seemed nice and had a smile but his tone and words did not match his face. It was very passive aggressive and rude. When I tried to say sorry and that I misunderstood that someone said we could park where we parked he said “no one told you that.” Indicating I was a liar. I didn’t appreciate his attitude and was glad we didn’t have to encounter him again because I don’t think I would have been so nice to him the next time. I really had to bite my tongue but I wanted to tell him to kick rocks and get an attitude adjustment. I understood his frustration 100% and we moved quickly to change the situation. He needs to understand people make mistakes and he could have approached us differently. Other than that the other staff was delightful and the park was amazing! So much fun. Good fishing. Good hiking. Nice, clean, and well cared for sites. We...

This review is about renting a canoe at the park and is a warning to those that are interested in such. You need to know that the canoes are mainly for 2 people--if there is a 3rd person, they will have to sit in the bottom of the canoe for safety...BUT YOU WILL NOT BE TOLD THIS WHEN RENTING!! We rented for 3 of us (2 adults, 1 child) and wondered why there was no middle seat, just a bar where it looks like one was attached at some point. THE CANOES DO NOT HAVE ANYTHING ON THEM TO TELL YOU ABOUT THIS. I only found out after emailing of my concern as to why they didn't tell us this and rented to us on a day where the water was too choppy (they said it was okay in one section of the lake, but we couldn't even get out of the launching area without rocking A LOT and being pushed to shore by the waves twice). The woman that rented to us was not friendly and despite our returning immediately to the office to report our issue, offered no apology, no refund (got a slight apology but no refund offer after emailing, either). Will never return to this park. The only reason I am giving it two stars is because the trail at Loon Island was nice, though I was so upset I could...