Green Lakes State Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Green Lakes State Park |
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Green Lake, seen from its eastern shore. The lake's unusual blue-green color is due to annual "whitings" that leave suspended mineral solids in its water. The mineral content of the water also makes the lake meromictic, which is quite rare and which has led to intense scientific study of the lake for nearly a century.
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| Type | State park |
| Location | Manlius, New York |
| Area | 2,200 acres (890 ha) |
| Created | 1928 |
| Operated by | New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation |
| Visitors | 1,687,000 (in 2022) |
| Status | Open year round |
Green Lakes State Park is a New York State Park. It is located east of Syracuse in the Town of Manlius. The park is very beautiful. It has a famous golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones. Green Lake is a special kind of lake called a meromictic lake. This means its layers of water do not mix. It is one of the most studied lakes of its kind in the world. The park also protects the biggest old-growth forest in Central New York. Round Lake is even named a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior.
The park has two small lakes at its center: Green Lake and Round Lake. They both have a unique blue-green color. These lakes are at the bottom of a gorge that is over a mile long. The lakes and the gorge were formed during the ice ages. They show some of the amazing geology of upstate New York. Green Lake is about 65 acres big and 195 feet deep. Round Lake is 34 acres big and 170 feet deep.
The park covers about 1,955 acres. Around 800,000 people visit it every year. Almost half of the park is old-growth forest. This means it has very old and large trees. You can find huge tuliptrees, sugar maples, beech, basswood, hemlocks, and white cedars. There is a special group of trees near Round Lake called the Tuliptree Cathedral.
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Fun Activities at Green Lakes State Park
At the north end of Green Lake, there is a sandy swimming beach. There are also grassy areas for sunbathing. A building nearby has changing rooms and a snack bar. Green Lake is a very popular place to swim in Central New York.
Next to the beach, you can rent rowboats and paddleboats in the summer. Green Lakes also offers classes for stand-up paddleboarding and paddleboard yoga. You cannot bring your own boats or paddleboards.
The park has an 18-hole golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones. There is also a clubhouse for golfers. High up on the western cliffs along Green Lake, you will find a Frisbee golf course. The park also has 137 campsites and seven cabins. These are great for people who want to enjoy nature but prefer more comfort than a tent. There are many picnic areas in the park. Some have shelters you can reserve for groups.
Hiking and Biking Trails
Green Lakes State Park has many hiking trails. About 10 miles of these trails are also used for cross-country skiing in winter. Some trails are open for mountain biking too. Most of the developed areas are at the north end of the lake. The western shore of Green Lake is wild and untouched. Round Lake is also mostly in a wilderness area. One writer said that walking the lake trails feels like being "cradled between the rich, vibrant, almost alien blue-green waters on one side and thickly vegetated, steep wooded inclines on the other." The North Lake Trail and Round Lake Trail together form a flat loop that is about 3.25 miles long.
The park has many bike trails, mostly on its western side. These trails connect to the Old Erie Canal State Historic Park. This historic park runs right by the north entrance of Green Lakes State Park. The Erie Canal was stopped in 1918. But it is still there in this State Historic Park. The old path next to the canal is now a walking and biking trail. This trail stretches for 36 miles. It goes from the Butternut Creek aqueduct in DeWitt to the Erie Canal Village near Rome, New York.
The Golf Course
Green Lakes State Park has an 18-hole public golf course. Robert Trent Jones designed it in 1935. This was one of his very first courses. He later designed about 500 courses around the world. Instead of being paid, he was given a ten-year lease for only $1.00 per year. Jones opened the course on May 6, 1936. He invited famous golfer Gene Sarazen to play a special match. Over 1,000 people came to watch.
A writer named James Dodson loved the course. He called it "the original little masterpiece at Green Lakes." He said it was his favorite Trent Jones golf course. Robert Trent Jones even came back for the 50th anniversary of the course in 1986.
Park History
People started trying to buy the land for Green Lakes State Park around 1924. A woman named Betsy Knapp wrote about its history. Her family had owned and farmed this land in the early 1800s. She mentioned how Harry Francis helped a lot. He was a professor at the New York State College of Forestry.
In October 1927, about 725 acres were bought for the new park. In 1929, the Administration Building was built. It was designed by Laurie D. Cox, a famous landscape architect. The first park superintendent, Arvin Henry Almquist, lived there for four years. The building was closed for many years but reopened in 2008.
During the Great Depression (1929–1939), the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) helped build the park. The CCC was a program that gave jobs to young men. They built the park's roads, buildings, cabins, golf course, and trails. CCC camps were set up on the park property. The men hauled sand from Sylvan Beach to create the sandy beach. They also dug basements for park buildings by hand. The CCC built their own barracks and dining halls. These facilities closed in 1941.
The CCC camp was reopened in 1944 during World War II. It housed farm workers from Newfoundland. In 1945, it became a camp for German prisoners of war. This camp was a part of Pine Camp. The camp closed again in 1946 when the prisoners returned to Germany.
Since the park first bought land in 1928, it has grown to 1,955 acres. More land was added in 1960, 1975, 1995, and 1996. In 2019, 261 more acres were added. Alverna Heights, a 200-acre area next to the park, was bought from the Sisters of St. Francis.
In 2008, the old bathhouse near the swimming area was taken down. A new building was built for about $2.3 million. This new building has changing rooms, restrooms, showers, a snack bar, and a meeting room.
Park Plans
In 2011, the State's Office of Parks published a plan for Green Lakes State Park. Here are some key points from the plan:
- 1,002 acres in the western part of the park are now a Bird Conservation Area. This means it's a special place to protect birds.
- About 105 acres in the Old Growth area and around Round Lake are now a Park Preservation Area. This area is protected even more.
- The Rolling Hills Campground will be improved soon. Later, it will be moved to a new spot south of the park office.
The park has many white-tail deer. Some groups have suggested allowing bow hunting to help control the deer population. However, bow hunting is not allowed in the park.
Lake Geology and Science
The cliffs around Round Lake are about 150 feet high. But the rocky gorge where the lake sits is much deeper. The bottom of Round Lake is about 180 feet below its surface. Below that, there might be another 150 feet of mud and dirt. So, nearly 500 feet of rock was carved out here!
How the Gorge Formed
This deep gorge was made about 15,000 years ago. This was at the end of the last ice age. A huge river of water flowed through here. This river came from melting ice sheets. It flowed east through this channel on its way to the ocean. The Niagara River gorge, below Niagara Falls, is a good example of how these gorges form today. Its depth is about 326 feet, which is a bit shallower than Green Lakes. There are other similar gorges nearby, like at Clark Reservation. Geologists call these deep channels "the Syracuse channels."
How the Lakes Formed
Green Lake and Round Lake are probably what's left of huge "plunge pools." These pools were formed by giant waterfalls during the ice age. It's still a bit of a mystery why there are two separate lakes. As expected for plunge pools, the lakes are quite deep compared to how wide they are. For example, Round Lake is 180 feet deep and about 700 feet wide.
Why the Lakes are Blue-Green
Almost half of the water that enters these lakes comes from underground. This water flows through the bedrock. It carries a lot of dissolved minerals that are not found in rainwater or snow. People noticed the high amount of sulfur in the deep waters as early as 1849. The lakes also have a lot of calcium and magnesium.
This high mineral content causes "whiting" events every year. During these times, tiny crystals of calcite and other minerals fall out of the water. The lakes look especially green then. These tiny crystals settle in a layer at the bottom of the lakes. The famous "reef" at Deadman's Point on Green Lake was built up by this process over thousands of years. Underneath Deadman's Point, there are some very rare water mosses and sponges.
Studying Climate History
Most lakes mix their deepest waters with their surface waters at least once a year. But Green Lake and Round Lake do not. They are rare, meromictic lakes. Water deeper than about 55 feet does not mix with the surface water. Because of this, the deep water has almost no oxygen. It is rich in calcium, magnesium, and sulfur. The lakes are meromictic because they are deep for their size. Also, a lot of mineral-rich groundwater flows into them.
Since the water doesn't mix, and there are no plants or animals living in the deep, oxygen-free parts, the lake bottoms have undisturbed layers of sediment. These layers are like tree rings. They keep a record of history. Scientists are using these layers to study the climate of this part of New York over the last several thousand years.
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