Lake Welch Beach

2 reviews, the first is 5 stars, the second is 1 star, but if there was a five, it will be 3 stars. The first time I stopped here with no previous plan. I was driving to the outlet and felt I want some nature. It was Monday morning, and i had the lake almost to myself. It was an amazing day.
The second time was 3 weeks after, sunny Sunday. The opposite, crowded, noisy, smokey and not that great fun.
I guess each person should decide what kind of experience he prefer. To each his own. So morning weekday for the peace, weekend for the BBQ party.

3 stars feels about right.
Came here on Labor day for the first time. $ 8 to park, but you’re able to bring all your own food and drinks as well as use their grills to BBQ, so you could make a nice cheap day of it.
Seeing as it was Labor day, you’d think they’d have all of the lake sections open for swimming. Unfortunately half the lake was «closed», so hundreds of people were packed like sardines in the other half. Not much point in going swimming if there’s no room to actually swim. This was a womp womp situation for me, but I’m sure I would’ve enjoyed it much more if I hadn’t gone on one of their busiest days.
$ 5 for domestic, $ 6 for imported beers. You’re not allowed to bring your own alcohol so if ya wanna get tipsy you’re stuck with that.
I tried their black bean burger which wasn’t too bad, and props to them for having a veg option. They also have other typical snacks and sandwiches, all at pretty good prices. Only trouble was waiting on the long line, but then again, it was Labor day.
I will definitely return, hopefully on a less busy day so I can enjoy the refreshing beauty of the lake without feeling claustrophobic. Will update if so. See ya then, Lake Welch.

It’s really like a 2.5, but I suppose that rounds up to a 3.
When you think of an afternoon on a lake I can pretty much guarantee that you are not envisioning the experience of Lake Welch Beach. We thought we were heading to a sleepy little swimming hole an hour or so outside of the city. We arrived at a very busy and very crowded lake. Be prepared for such things as heavy, heavy crowds, cookouts galore going on (GA-​LORE!), some group with a radio blaring every 20 – 30 feet or so. Not the ideal picture. It was a bit of a shock when we stepped onto the beach. I thought I was in the twilight zone — this was not really where we had come, was it?
Honestly, putting all that aside, the water was clean, the bathrooms were clean, our family had a nice time, and it was an easy drive. Undecided if we would make the effort to go back on a weekend again, but I’m curious as to what a mid-​week experience would be like.

Been to this spot twice. Once last year and last weekend. Eight bucks to park your car which is reasonable.
I think you are much better off BBQing here as opposed to buying the overpriced food. I paid 3 bucks for a slice of pizza that tasted like cardboard. Sure enough I spotted the slices sitting under a dreaded heat lamp. Keeping it warm but flavorless. Pretzels were also hard as a rock. Did get to try the black bean burger and it was the only edible thing I ate. Stick to burger and fry type of stuff if you are not grilling.
And I must also mention no alcohol allowed off the patio section and beer is 5 bucks! Wish it was possible byob but it is prohibited. Lots of cops and security.
Any item they could possibly charge you for they can and will! They are price gauging people for sure.
Now onto the lake. This place is super packed inside and outside of the water. Lots of kids and families everywhere. If this bothers you don’t bother coming here. I’m ok with it but it can be annoying. Kind of wish you could swim out further but rope cuts you off at around the 50 ft mark. When I’m swimming here I’m praying to god no kids pee in the water, although I’m sure some do. The kids always add a gross factor but they are hard to escape from anywhere!
Not the greatest place but it’s nice for BBQing and day trips. I realistically would come here once or twice in a year.

We saw it driving down highway and really happy to know there’s a beach and water so close to Nyack and Piermont. Was pleasantly surprised by the beach and water. Met our expectations and will be back!!!:)

Folks do not visit this place. This is a man made beach that was made wrong. First the sand is not soft like sand should be, instead they put this rough gravel that is horrible to walk on. Next, they confine you to a sectioned off area in the water where everybody is standing shoulder to shoulder on top of each other. Finally, the kind of people that it attracts are not the kind you want to be with. If you want a nice beach to visit — go elsewhere.
The people in charge should do something about making this a better place.

I live in north jersey and the closest lake to me is Hopatcong… after going there on a Friday afternoon with my family we loved it… nice, clean, and quiet. we decided to return on a Sunday thinking we would have the same experience, as we are driving up to the park we see that the entrance is closed off by police officers and we soon learn that the park is full to capacity… at 12PM ??? I was baffled lol… so the next best thing was to search for a new spot, I had heard about lake welch but never been… we drove for about ³⁰⁄₄₀ min and when we got there ohhhh boy was this placed PACKED… I could barely hear my own thoughts with all the noise going on… parking was impossible, there were no picnic areas available so we had to set up our own little spot on the side of the parking lot, which was fine but uncomfortable. as to the actual beach, I loved the water and the sand. it was crowded but I chose to make the best of it. I would definitely go again but on a week day.

During the week, this place is a quick get away for those living in the area… quiet, lots of room, tractor rolling around cleaning the sand. Then Saturday rolls in and OH MY! Loud music, trash on the beach, kids peeing on the sand (yes, in front of my towel) and as you say something about said kid peeing– the parents turn away as if they don’t hear you. Dogs in the water (not allowed) and thousands of people bunched together because there are not enough lifeguards. You will here a whistle every 15 seconds, really!?, they are in 3 feet of water! You may also encounter groups of people getting baptized with music and chanting… they had their own state lifeguard who would not let others in the water… What?! I won’t mention the lighter fluid and charcoal fumes, smokers, and just loud, screaming people. They are ruining this place.

After reading other reviews, I learned that there are two very different groups with two very different opinions on this. People coming from NYC seem to like it. The local folks believe it’s ruined by the city slickers, and it looks like many of them hate families, especially the kids.
I have some roots in both groups. I’m from a rural area, but I now live in Manhattan. I also have a child. I think Lake Welch is great, but it does have some faults. I’ve never seen all of the life guard stations open. Not even during busy weekends. I really wish they’d fix that. How much does it cost to get a 16 year old to sit on a big chair with a whistle? Come on. There are also a lot of idiots there, but it’s a public park. People are stupid and I hate them. They are in fewer numbers during the week.
All in all, I gave this Lake Welch four stars because there isn’t an option for 3.5 so I rounded up, and because it’s cheap, conveniently located, relatively clean compared to city options, and the staff is also much friendlier than their city dwelling counterparts. It’s not perfect, but it’s a nice for a day trip.

I’ve been here before and it tends to get over crowded on the weekends. This was the first time that I’ve ever come during the week and it was perfect.
There were just enough people, the weather was nice, and the best part was that there was no waiting on long lines to use the restrooms or to purchase something at the snack bar.
All in all, my boyfriend and I had a nice and relaxing day and it was well worth the drive up from the City. If you’ve never been here before I recommend visiting at least once and judging for yourself. You might be pleasantly surprised.
I gave it a three star rating because I took into consideration the cleanliness of the lake.

After reading all the reviews I thought that the lake was going to be super dirty lol. Glad it wasn’t. Sunday before Memorial Day and it was great. The little stand they have has food & beer. We bought French fries until the BBQ was done. They were good. $ 3.00 a small batch. Not bad a little pricey but its understandable. we didn’t go in the water. Sand was clean no trash picnic area was clean we had a trash bag easy access to toss our trash not really bad at all I usually go to sabego but we did lake welch and it was a great day. Enjoy and please be courteous clean up after yourselves

I love this lake the secret is to avoid the weekends. If your here on the weekends you will want yo hang yourself best dates with my experience is Tuesday and Wednesday.

I’ve been going here for years. Yes it can get crowded. Reserve your spot early. But it has everything in one location. Water is usually good. Lifeguards usually open another section when it’s too crowded. Great food. Chicken & Fries are delish if you don’t want 2 bbq. I seen a lot more cleaning up. Garbage cans repeatedly emptied. $ 8 parking fee. Cash.

Love it as always! Beautiful place to spend the day relaxing with family. The employees drive up to you to offer garage bags. They have a food/​snack bar the food is awesome!

The worst! Never in my life have I seen a beach this bad. It was exactly how my boyfriend said it, «They brought Brooklyn/​NYC to this beach.» I was expecting to be at a quiet, relaxing beach. However, it was extremely overcrowded! The place was dirty, hundreds of families BBQ-​ing everywhere, and limited water for us to play in. We literally couldn’t swim anywhere in the water because there were so many people in the water. I don’t understand why they restricted other parts of the lake. Ridiculous. And not to mention, the lifeguards aren’t doing their job — I saw kids trying to pull dangerous tricks in the water. Thank goodness, we only stayed there for an hour. I felt disgusting being in the water for a few minutes.

A beautiful spot… ruined by the people. When city folks get to the country, most don’t know how to act. Ergo, the country becomes the city. It’s everything I intended to escape for a day. Screaming kids, mobs of people, mariachi music, garbage everywhere, dudes revving their bikes. I walked along the shore through the woods looking for a spot to relax and fish– stepped in a pile of human sh*t. Sweet.

I hd a pretty good time here on a cloudy late summer Sunday, but the park rangers are a bit too vigilant on the alcohol restrictions. We escaped scrutiny because we were with some kids, but our neighbors weren’t so lucky.
I’d imagine a sunnier weekend day would bring heavier crowds. Another negative is the parking fee.
Its proximity to most of Rockland is really its only strong suit.

This little find is such a gem in the middle of the woods!
Granted, it’s not everyday that I might find myself driving an hour or so up north for a beach by the lake, but omg, if you want to hike? And lay out? This is PERFECT!
You can totally tell the sand is not real — well, knowing the beach is man-​made, you can than totally see that it isn’t real. The water was clear — it reminded me of Caribbean water, just a little less «bluey-​clear» but do you EVER get to see your tooties so clear in the Atlantic? Uh uh…
Though, I will admit, there was some unappealing things — i think a pigeons wing was one where the water meets the beach — you can see the sand turning a bit rusty too, so I was unsure if it was polluted water or not …
The park also has picnic benches and tables, making it a great spot
Def a place I’ll wander to on a summer day if in the mood to hike — than just relax, swim and tan at the beach!

If I did a one word review it would be, OVERCROWDED!
I’ve been to Lake Welch for fishing countless times and the one time I tried the beach/​picnic park area was my last time. This place gets way overcrowded with a lot of people from the NYC area. Get there after 9am & you can forget about using anything that is available by the parks department (i.e. grills).

3.5 stars…
This is the biggest beach at a lake I’ve ever been to (or seen), it’s huge. Unfortunately all the picnic tables (and there are many) were taken by huge groups of BBQers and the beach was full of New Yorkers. The people here were even less diverse than Coney Island, I think me and my girlfriend were two of the only white people here when we happened to go last summer. The parking lot costs a few dollars so make sure to bring a little cash with you (they also have a concession stand here with a few items). What I did like besides the huge beach that was much cleaner than Coney Island was that because it’s a lake the water was much warmer than the ocean and isn’t salty (you’re just missing out on the waves) so you can actually go swimming in the summer without freezing. I love Harriman State Park and this beach is just another reason to take the short drive up north for the day.