Inks Lake State Park

About Inks Lake State Park

Inks Lake State Park is one of the oldest and most popular parks in the United States. The park was acquired in 1940 and opened to the public in 1950 by the US Army Corps of Engineers and the New York State Department of Natural Resources (NYSDNR).

Inks Lake is located in the granite hills that surround it, about 30 miles south of Albany, New York.

Water levels in InksLake are normally unaffected by droughts and are maintained at normal levels most of the time. The water level rises during flooding, as the flood water is channelled downstream into Inkes Lake from other lakes.

Since the mid-19th century, the park has been used for livestock breeding, and the land remained part of several farms until it was acquired by the state in the 1940s.

A thoroughfare through the park was built in the 1930s and is one of the first public access roads to Inks Lake State Park. The most commonly caught fish are perch, cappie and catfish, but other fish species such as trout, perch, bluefin, pike, salmon and whale are also plentiful in and around the parks.

Current conditions, including fire bans and water levels, may vary from day to day and may refer to a nearby park.

For more information, please contact the parking office at (888) 784-5555 or the valet service at (877) 788-8477. The park is located at the southern end of Kins Lake State Park, just south of the parking lot on the east side of Interstate 5. Walk two miles south of the park headquarters and park at the intersection of I-5 and Interstate 10.