Fair Haven Beach State Park – Fair Haven, NY

Fair Haven Beach State Park, located on the southern shore of Lake Ontario, is one of the most under-appreciated New York State Parks. While most people are familiar with the fact that there is an exquisite beach at Fair Haven, what might surprise you is everything else that is available at this unbelievable New York State Park. Fair Haven is far larger than it appears.

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The natural beauty of this park is fantastic, especially with its rolling woodlands, ponds, wetlands, and lakeshore. The park’s underdeveloped rustic beauty makes it a natural haven; you never know what wildlife you might stumble upon during your visit.

Beach

Of course, the pristine beach at Fair Haven is one of the major draws of this park. With a large 1500-foot sand beach and 600-foot lifeguarded swimming area, people flock to this park in the summertime to enjoy the cool waters of Lake Ontario. There are also beach volleyball courts for those looking to get their game on.

Picnic

As you drive through Fair Haven you will notice that there are literally hundreds of picnic tables set up throughout the park. Most of these include grills and are located in a scenic setting, such as around Sterling Pond and along the lakeshore.

There are also five picnic pavilions that can be rented for special events. These need to be booked through the New York State Parks Department. Keep in mind that pavilion rental fees do not cover the cost of your vehicle or your guest’s vehicles entering the park.

Fair Haven Beach State Park is a pet-friendly park. Pets are welcome as long as they are never left unattended, kept on a leash no longer than 6 feet long, and you can provide proof of rabies vaccinations. Pets other than service animals are not permitted on the lifeguarded beaches, playgrounds, boardwalks, buildings, or golf courses.

Hiking

While there aren’t a lot of hiking trails at Fair Haven, the ones that are there are really nice. One, in particular, the Lakeshore Trail (1.6 miles), which as you can already guess by the name, runs along the lakeshore. There are two other trails in addition to the Lakeshore Trail, which are the Bluff Nature Trail (.08 miles) and the Woodland Trail (.09 miles).

Fishing

There are lots of great fishing opportunities at Fair Haven Beach State Park. Visitors can fish in Sterling Pond or off Federal Pier, which separates Little Sodus Bay and Lake Ontario.

Sterling Pond – anglers will find Sterling Pond well stocked with northern pike, largemouth bass, crappie, panfish, and bullheads

Lake Ontario/Little Sodus Bay – Depending on the time of year, anglers can catch perch, large and smallmouth bass, walleye, trout, and salmon.

As always make sure that you have a valid New York State fishing license on you. This is a state park and they do check in with people fishing to make sure that they are doing so legally. You can get your fishing license online here.

Pier

There is a long pier that zigzags through the water and makes the perfect place to watch the sunset or fish from. We walked the pier in both Summer and winter. There are signs that say the pier is slippery when wet or icy, and I can attest that this is true. I nearly landed on my bottom when I slipped just walking through some standing water in the middle of summer. In the winter, it was even more treacherous. Parts of the pier were covered in ice, so we were slip-sliding down the pier and laughing all the way. I don’t recommend attempting the pier when it’s icy; you might end up in the frigid waters of Lake Ontario.

Boating/Kayaking

Fair Haven Beach State Park is an excellent place to get out on the water. Sterling Pond is a popular place to use rowboats, paddle boats, canoes, and kayaks. In fact, you can rent all of them at Fair Haven State Park. There is a boat launch on Sterling Pond where you can hand launch your own small craft or one of the park’s rented ones.

There is a large hard surface boat launch on Little Sodus Bay. The parking lot can accommodate 150 vehicles and boat trailers. Although other than the entrance fee, there is no fee to launch; there is an overnight slip fee if you are camping.

Camping/Cabins

There are 184 campsites (46 electric and 138 non-electric) in Fair Haven Beach State Park. I have camped in a lot of places in New York State, but I think Fair Haven has the most diverse collection of campsites anywhere. There are sits by the water, in the woods, next to the creek, and overlooking the bluffs.

On our last visit, we had the most incredible campsite. The parking spot was on the road in front of a short trail that led down to our campsite. Our car wasn’t completely out of view of our site, so we had no worries about security. However, our campsite was completely surrounded by woods, and we couldn’t see any other sites. The best part is that our site was nice and open with no bugs (aka mosquitoes).

I found a website, NY State Campground Photos, that has a number of the New York State Campgrounds listed with pictures of every site available. This is a great tool when you have to make reservations online. It has helped me pick some really great sites.

In addition to excellent campsites, there are 33 cabins and 4 cottages available. These cabins are some of the nicest around. The cottages are perfect for those looking for an outdoor adventure without having to rough it too much.

Wildlife

Wildlife is the best part of getting out and enjoying parks around New York State. There is a lot of waterfowl in the park, such as ducks, geese, and swans. There are also hawks, eagles, herons, and wild turkeys. Mammal species include grey squirrels, skunks, minks, red foxes, opossums, coyotes, and raccoons. The Sterling Marsh is a good place to spot turtles, frogs, toads, salamanders, and snakes.

If you are camping at Fair Haven Beach State Park, remember to keep your food stored away properly. Animals are good at smelling out food and will get into whatever you leave out. It is usual, but black bears have occasionally been seen in the park. Therefore, it’s important that you do not keep food in your tent.

Winter at Fair Haven

Like all parks along Lake Ontario’s shores, winter can be brutal and beautiful. The extremely cold temperatures of a New York winter leaves it mark on the landscape of Fair Haven. If you don’t mind the cold, this park is absolutely exquisite.

Ice Formations

My favorite part of winter is seeing the ice formations along the lakeshore. Ice forms around trees, bushes, and structures close to the beach, where the spray from the lake covers them and freezes. It is breathtaking.

Depending on when you visit, you can experience other unique winter phenomena; ice volcanos, pancake ice, and snowballs.

Ice Volcanos are conical formations where water and slush will erupt as they break through the ice shelf.

Pancake Ice – As the lake unfreezes, the undulating water creates a field of floating pancake ice.

Snowballs – These aren’t the kind that you make and throw at people. These snowballs are created as the ice rolls on top of the water, freezing as it goes, and eventually, it is pushed up onto the shore. These snowballs pile up along the shoreline.

Frozen Landscapes

Seeing the park blanketed in snow is amazing. If the wind is blowing, it can be rather fridged, especially in wide-open areas, such as the pond. This park is an incredible winter wonderland if you don’t mind the cold.

Winter Sunsets

There is nothing like a winter sunset. I don’t know why, but it seems like there seem to be so many more colors in a winter sunset.

Address

14985 State Park Road, Fair Haven, NY 13064

Google Map Link

Other Places To Visit In The Area

Have you visited Fair Haven Beach State Park before? Did we forget anything? Do you have a favorite state park? We would love to hear from you. Leave us a comment below.

More Photos from Fair Haven