Summer is for swimming

May 29, 2007 5:46 PM

Where's the best place-- within a 60 to 90 minute drive of New York City-- to go swimming in a lake, river, or stream?

Bonus points for waterfalls, tubing opportunities, or pretty scenery.
Thanks in advance!

posted by chickletworks to sports, hobbies, & recreation (12 comments total)

Harriman Park has numerous locations for swimming (go to the bottom of the page). I'm familiar with Lake Tiorati, which is a beautiful drive, a beautiful lake, and a beautiful place, but I imagine that any of those listed would be fantastic.
posted by invitapriore at 5:57 PM on May 29, 2007

Take a look at SwimmingHoles, if you haven't already.
posted by caek at 6:08 PM on May 29, 2007

i went tubing here. It was fun. quick and a little scarey. Its 60-90 minutes depending on where you're coming from in the city and of course, traffic. Its a nice area.
posted by alkupe at 6:14 PM on May 29, 2007

Yuck -- I've found the other two beaches at Harriman (Sebago and Welch) to be overcrowded and the water to be too warm and filled with milfoil and other plants. Some of the least pleasant swimming experiences I've had. However, I've never been to Tiorati -- sounds like a totally different experience.
posted by one_bean at 6:28 PM on May 29, 2007

I'm partial to Sunfish Pond in the NJ portion of the Appalachian Trail. There's parking at the trail head (Delaware Water Gap).
posted by roue at 6:47 PM on May 29, 2007

Second alkupe's suggestion. Tubing was much fun on the Esopus.
posted by greatgefilte at 7:12 PM on May 29, 2007

Thanks for the advice, everyone! My friends and I are excited for splishy-splashy fun this week.
posted by chickletworks at 10:11 PM on May 29, 2007

My suggestion (which seems counterintutive, since summer tourists make me really annoyed mostly) is to drive two hours out to the end of LI and swim in the following bodies of water:
>LI Sound
>Peconic Bay
>Richmond Creek

Bonus points if you do a Peconic River canoe trip for an afternoon. Lots of nice scenery, lots of nice wineries, plus you can go to Splish Splash on your way home (grossest water park ever)...email is in my profile if you want more info
posted by weaponsgradecarp at 10:45 PM on May 29, 2007

Hooray! A chance to look at two of my favorite maps! Haven't had much use for them in Colorado!

Harriman on the weekends is CROWDED. But I second the advice of one_bean and invitapriore: Stay on away from Sebago and Welch and hit Tiorati. It's a gorgeous lake. This time of year, the crowds might not be so bad.

Sunfish Pond, near the Delaware Water Gap, is actually in Worthington State Forest in NJ. It's across the Delaware river from, well, Delaware. It's my favorite place in NJ. I actually don't know for sure if swimming is allowed in Sunfish pond, but I know that I swam in it. Maybe roue could comment or you could contact the ranger at 973-841-9575.

Sunfish pond is a glacial lake. It's not 'beachy' like Tiorati and there isn't a ton of space to lay out. It's cold, as I remember, and it's a hike to get there. But pretty, it sure is.

I suggest you explore Worthington as much as possible, and same goes for Harriman. Check out the awesome maps for either place from the NJ Trail Conference. They usually sell these at the ranger station and cost 13 bucks. An investment that will pay off if you decide to explore off the beaten trail. The Forest Service maps are OK, but they don't compare.
posted by jstef at 10:53 PM on May 29, 2007

Your question reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Kramer takes a (toxic) swim in the East River. Hilarious.
posted by HotPatatta at 12:22 AM on May 30, 2007

Lake Taghkanic state park is clean, and pleasant and not crowded and is about 90 minutes north of the GWB.
posted by shothotbot at 11:40 AM on May 30, 2007

Mohonk Mountain House. No tubing, but the scenery can't be beat, and there's lots of hiking. New Paltz is really nice.
posted by aberrant at 2:19 PM on May 30, 2007