Sunken Meadow State Park

Sunken Meadow State Park

Boardwalk at the beachfront at Sunken Meadow State Park

Location of Sunken Meadow State Park within New York State

Type State park
Location Rte. 25A and Sunken Meadow Parkway
Kings Park, New York[1]
Nearest city Kings Park, New York
Coordinates 40°54′00″N 73°15′18″W / 40.9°N 73.255°W / 40.9; -73.255Coordinates: 40°54′00″N 73°15′18″W / 40.9°N 73.255°W / 40.9; -73.255
Area 1,287 acres (5.21 km2)[2]
Created 1926 (1926)[2]
Operated by New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
Visitors 2,042,449 (in 2014)[3]
Open All year
Website Sunken Meadow State Park

Sunken Meadow State Park, also known as Governor Alfred E. Smith State Park, is a 1,287-acre (5.21 km2) state park located in the Town of Smithtown in Suffolk County, New York in the USA on the north shore of Long Island. The park, accessible via the Sunken Meadow State Parkway, contains the 27-hole Sunken Meadow State Park Golf Course.

Park description

Beach at Sunken Meadow State Park

Sunken Meadow State Park is open year round from sunrise to sunset. The park's features include three miles (4.8 km) of beaches on the Long Island Sound, a three-quarters-mile-long (1.2 km) boardwalk, six miles (9.7 km) of hiking trails, and facilities for biking, horseback riding, watersports, and general recreation. Playgrounds, softball fields, and a soccer fields are also available at the park.[2] A wedding and event facility known as "The Pavilion" is available during the summer.

The Sunken Meadow State Park Golf Course features 27 holes that may be played as either nine or 18 holes, in addition to a driving range and putting green. The first two nine-hole courses, Red and Green, were built in 1962, followed by the Blue Course in 1964. All three courses were designed by Alfred Tull. A bar and snack food restaurant near the course is available and open to the public.[4]

Steep coast and beach at Sunken Meadow State Park

The park's grounds are used as a venue for cross country running, and host competitions for cross country teams from local high schools and runners' clubs. The five-kilometer course, featuring the deliberately named "Cardiac Hill", is regarded as one of the most difficult cross country courses in the US.[5][6]

The 31-mile (50 km) Long Island Greenbelt Trail connects Sunken Meadow State Park with Heckscher State Park.

See also

References

  1. ↑ NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation. "Sunken Meadow State Park - Getting There". Parks.ny.gov. Retrieved October 25, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation (March 3, 2011). "Information Packet for the Draft Master Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement, Public Information Meeting, Governor Alfred E. Smith/Sunken Meadow State Park" (PDF). Parks.ny.gov. Retrieved October 25, 2015.
  3. ↑ "State Park Annual Attendance Figures by Facility: Beginning 2003". Data.ny.gov. Retrieved October 25, 2015.
  4. ↑ NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation. "Sunken Meadow State Park". Parks.ny.gov. Retrieved October 25, 2015.
  5. ↑ Dye, John. "Toughest Cross Country Courses". DyeStat. Archived from the original on December 11, 2011. Retrieved October 25, 2015.
  6. ↑ Ford, Warwick; Ford, Nola (2009). Fun on Foot in New York. Aspen, CO: Wyltan Books. pp. 272–273. ISBN 0976524422.

External links

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