Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) State Forest

July 19, 2020 Sunny

The DAR State Forest is known for the clear waters of the Upper Highland Lake. We went on an unusually hot day and the before noon the parking lot to the beach was quickly filling up.

There was a small grassy area with picnic benches and grills. Families were clearly planning to spend a good part of the day there. We found a picnic bench in the shade and had some sandwiches we bought from the Goshen General Store, and then we changed. The bathrooms were clean, and there were outdoor changing areas as well.

The beach was wide and sandy. When we first got there the lifeguards were conducting a safety check. They were essentially looking for trash or dangerous things left in the water.

We found the water to be very clean and free of pond weeds. It was very well maintained. The water was a bit cold, but felt very refreshing on a hot day.

The kids had a fun time splashing around. The swimming area was quite large, and it got a little deep for Miles at the boundary. The beach started to get more crowded, and there were more and more people in the water, making social distancing very hard.

Outside the swimming area, there were many kayakers and boaters. Some of these people jumped in the water, but the lifeguards repeatedly called and warned them to not swim outside the swimming area.

After spending a few hours by the lake, we decided to drive up Moore Hill Road to the Fire Tower. We parked on the side of the road, and took a short side trail.

There was a “No Trespassing” sign but no fence around it. We climbed up the tower. It was a little rickety and some of us felt kind of scared (not the kids, of course). The cabin at the top was closed. We sat on the top steps and took in a great view of the surrounding areas.

This was a special treat to a great day on the beach.

• Clean beach with clear and refreshing water. Plenty of shaded picnic tables to enjoy the lake. Fire tower had good views.
• Nice beach. Clean. Fire tower is fun.
• Great beach, clean water, amazing fire tower. I’d come back here 10/10.
• The lake was fun and I made a water de-purifier (with sand).
• The water was cold but it was pretty good because I was hot, and I found a friend and it was pretty fun. And the fire tower was closed at the top but we got to go really high.

For more information: DAR State Forest official site.