Two stars even a few years ago might have been generous. But it's 2020 and 3 months into COVID and they've reopened. People seemed to be social distancing for the most part -- except for the group of 10 dudes smoking the marijuana just past the beach markers, UPWIND of the families with small children. Apparently it's legal to smoke in the open here. The beach is kind of a mixture of dirt and sand, more dirt than sand. The shallower parts were clear enough but wade out a little deeper and it's murky. Older reviews talk about the smell there. Well, to be fair it smells marine. Look across the water and you see cattails, so it's a little marshy. So, it has subtle sulfur odor. Went during the week so parking not an issue. Maybe 60 people there total? Oh and my kid got a leech on his ankle. Granted, there's probably leeches in all the lakes in NH. read more

Awesome place for kids! There's frogs, turtles, muck, a playground and hiking! Not to mention they also rent out a bunch of equipment. They let people use floaties, noodles etc... It's a lot of fun, even on a cooler day (72 F today). During Covid they require a reservation, which you can get on the website. read more

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We went to this beach for the first time ever. We paid $12 to get in and honestly, I'm not sure why. There's grass growing in the sand, it smells like feces, dead snails all over the shore area and it just looks run down and dirty. Everytime my kids dug in the sand there was a huge stench of poop that filled the air! My kids were even disgusted. We left after 45min! I'm not even sure how anyone could of been swimming in that water with the smell. We'll never go back. read more

Please do not go here, you basically get charged to get some weird skin thing because the water is gross. They say they treated it but you still end up in the hospital‍ take the drive to Merrimack NH or even Hampton it's not worth it. read more

This USED to be a great park. There's a small play area (a slide and a few swings) and a larger grassy area to play ball in. There are many picnic tables and bbq pits. There's a snack shack that has cheap snacks like ice cream and chips. There's a small building with bathrooms and changing rooms. The beach and water used to be pristine. Sorry to say it, but it's been overrun by people from Lowell. Kids pooping in the water, people leaving trash around. It's a real shame. It's way too over crowded now. My kids got the shingella virus from swimming there last summer. It was in the news that so many people got that virus from there. I think they need to up the price in order to get fewer people to go just to let the land and water recover from overuse. read more

I stay on this lake at a private residence seasonally... the state park bring that value of our properties down! More often than not, the lake is testing positive for bactria. Come Monday, the town dump seems to have changed locations... trash is all over the place! Most weekends, there is a cop on the property to keep things to a low roar! I currently can't sail, canoe, paddle boat or anything on the lake because it has tested positive for bacteria thanks to the lake of care from attendies at the State Park... IF YOU WANT A WEEK OFF FROM WORK due to illess.... COME HERE! read more

I went here twice but couldn't figure out where he lake was. Now I know that,According to other reviews, the entrance is across the parking lot. They have huge parking lot tho. They should have better sign or posting to guide people who are not familiar with the park. read more

Reading the past comments from 6 years ago I can clearly see that the park they speak of is no longer what we have now. Silver Lake State Park has been cleaned up, properly managed and aesthetically improved. While the majority of its visitors are from Massachusetts, the families all get along and share the water and cooking areas with little issue. Its really turned into a diverse and accepting park. Over the summer I have seen the park be issued 1 bacteria advisory that lasted a weekend. This was do to a flock of geese that causes bacteria levels to rise according to DES. Not from the visitors. While Silver Lake more frequently than the rest of the state gets Cyano Algae Advisories, it is actually a sign that the lake is incredibly healthy. It is a naturally occurring plant. According to the BBC documentaries it creates 80% of the worlds oxygen. To keep their visitors safe, the staff does a visual inspection EVERY morning before the park opens. If there is a possible bloom they contact DES immediately and post the advisory as a caution till DES tests the water. They change the parks voicemail and encourage guests that they may call before arriving so they can find out the conditions before driving up. What's more, the park staff take and groom the sand and the weeds from the waters edge EVERY morning as well. To keep the beach as pristine as naturally possible. But remember, this is a state park, it's nature. This is not supposed to be a Sandals Resort. A word on the store; it is older buildings here in the park. While the State system is self funded, it takes time to rebuild older parks. With no federal/state funding from taxes the parks work hard with what they have and do their best for up keep. That being said the store sells a good variety of newer beach toys, drinks and snacks all at normal if not lower prices. So the deals are worth it. They also rebt out canoes and kayaks. Now with 3 new boats they are able to keep up with the busy weekend demands. The property has been changed to include new mulch beds and painted rocks. This has been used to accent the parks entry way, bathrooms and store. The hosta flowers bloom a beautiful blue/purple in July, and the Lilac trees a gorgeous white. While the park is old and in need of new structures, the staff have done an incredible job with what they have. The park is always clean, rigorous trash runs and focus on informing guests on the NH state law of "Carry in- Carry Out". The parks exist to preserve the environmental sanctity and enjoyment of its visitors. So we should do our part to stay green at our parks. I WILL be back to see what new improvements happen at Silver Lake. And I can't wait to come back and enjoy what is still an unknown gem. read more

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Not to be confused with LA's Silverlake. The park has been cleaned up&while most of its visitors are from neighboring nearby Massachusetts, it's not that bad. Not that good, either. It's OK for hanging out on a sunny, warm day. There are plenty of other parks in the area if this one is meh. It's hard to imagine that Boston isn't that far away. New Hampshire has many picturesque spots, especially in the White Mountains, Monadnock&Lakes regions. This one could be considered a glorified rest stop with beautiful views. read more

What a terrible lake park. Do yourself a favor and don't bother. Lake is filty, with visible trash on the bottom. Beach is small and dirty. Found a chicken bone visible in the sand. Grass is growing on the beach and visible trash bags are laying out in the open. Although this is a take out beach, beach goers did not take their trash with them. With all of this going on a church group still found time for a baptism right in front of us. Beach goers are rough to say the least. My children have certainly learned a new language today. Not a good beach at all to visit. STAY AWAY read more

If you go be sure to get your vaccines first! It is always getting shut down for Ecoli in the water. From all the duck crap Id imagine. Nasty. Parents dont watch their kids either, so label all your kids toys or they will get taken and not returned. read more

Excellent little lake and beach. Granted, we showed up at 10:30 am on the Friday before Labor Day and we're the only ones here, but we really liked it. I could see where it might get quite crowded, but at less busy times, very nice. read more

So, my family and I show up to the lake at 10:15. We unpack the car and head across the street to pay and go into the beach to have a nice day with each other. There was a family in front of us, who pays to get in and after paying the park fee they were informed, " oh by the way you wont be able to use the lake do to bacteria in the water." What the hell. To top it all off. When I got home I looked on the parks website and there was no indication about the water. Being hazardous to swim in. WAY TO GO HOLLIS read more

Entrance fees are fair and there is plenty of parking. The water seemed nice as well. The beach area is just a bucket on nonsense. - lots of people smoking - as a result of the above there are butts all over the place - trash on the beach - trash on the shoreline - little to no parental supervision of kids The major downside to this place is that very few people keep track of their kids! My daughter and I were hanging out on the beach, and kids came over to play with us, and thats great! However after 2 hours it dawned on me that nobody seemed to be checking on the their kids! No joke I was pretty much running an impromptu daycare on the beach it seemed. At one point I had to call it, as we wanted to get lunch so I got to pack up all the kids and search for their families! I just don't understand how other parents can be that lackadaisical with their kids! I don't think I would bother going back any time soon, as I do enjoy being a baby-sitter for other peoples children. read more

Awful... I went with my two kids and was charged for not even an hour stay... I brought a lunch, towels, sand buckets & shovels, floats and etc. I set everything up while the kids were swimming. My 5 year old came out of the water and sat down next to me and said he wanted to leave to go back to our house and swim in our pool. I asked why and he said he thought the water was "dirty". I went over to my daughter and thats when I stepped in the water and bent down to pick up a cool looking shell and I was walking away I noticed an awful smell. I smelt my hands and I started gagging. I went back to the water to wash my hands & I had assumed the smell was from the shell. It wasn't! I made my daughter get out ASAP and she smelled awful!! The kids and I ran back to our car quickly changing out of our bathing suits and sanitizing our hands to quickly remove that smell and it would not go away until we came home and showered... NEVER AGAIN!!!!! Most dirty disgusting smelly water I have ever been around. Also there were gross things floating around on the top of the water. YUCK read more

This is a great place to spend some good quality summer time with family and friends no matter your race or color or if your from lowell,lawrence or boston 4th of july here we come. read more

I will not go back! Poop on the beach and nasty smell. Water wasn't clean. Dirty toilets. Not crowded (Friday afternoon), if that's what you looking for. read more

I agree with the other two reviews, ive lived in a nearby town for 19 years and silver lake used to be really nice and a fun place to spend the day. But now the type of people the parks gets is down right disgusting! It is true that it is the people from lowell and lawrence, they are dirty and dont care about how it looks cause they live so far away, and you can tell the park maintenance has also lost the desire to keep cleaning up after them, I dont blame them when I drive by the place looks gross, I agree that out of state people should have to pay more and it will keep certain people from coming back, then we could take that money and bring our park back from the landfill it is! this is also happening to greenfield state park read more

Used to go here when I was a kid, went there today and won't go back. Dirty, trash everywhere, dirty diapers, tampons, just nasty. People not paying any attention to their kids. Jjust awful. Very dissapointed. read more

Terrible place to bring your kids. My son got the shigella virus from playing in the water. Too much bacteria is this lake, been like that for at least 3 years. Stay away if you want to stay healthy. read more