Fall leaves cover a pond in Thousand Acre Swamp preserve. Visitor Information Ten trails on the property show you a world of wildflowers, animals, birds, and other natural wonders. Find out more and get directions. The Thousand Acre Swamp hosts a variety of hikes throughout the year.  Check out our hike brochure! Click here to see a larger version of this map. Help Protect New York!   Join The Nature Conservancy today.  Your donation will help us protect areas in New York and across the world.   Great Blue Herons congregate on a branch.

With a history reaching back to the Ice Ages, the Thousand Acre Swamp in Penfield is full of unique habitats ranging from marshy lowlands to forested upland tracts.

An extensive boardwalk and trail system winds through the preserve, allowing visitors to observe a unique variety of plants and wildlife.  The swamp is one of Monroe County's largest wetland systems, and plays a particularly vital role due to its location and immense biological diversity.
 

Location: Monroe County, New York

Size: 500 acres

What to See: Animals
Thousand Acre Swamp boasts a remarkable variety of animal wildlife, including some rare or unusual species.  You may see foxes, white-tailed deer, weasels, and coyotes. 

The preserve is also a great place to do some birdwatching.  Visitors have spotted, among other species, eastern bluebirds, great blue herons, green herons, black-throated green warblers, wood ducks, woodpeckers, and ruffed grouse.

What to See: Plants
As you walk the trails, look for red and white trillium, jack-in-the-pulpits, trout lilies, marsh marigolds, blue cohosh, witchhazel and cattails. Thousand Acre Swamp also features a number of large silver maple and ash trees.

Why the Conservancy Selected this Site:
The Thousand Acre Swamp is one of Monroe County, New York’s largest wetland systems, and plays a particularly important wetland role due to its location and biological diversity. 

The swamp serves as the headwaters of Hipp Brook, which drains into Irondequoit Bay, and Four Mile Creek, which drains into Lake Ontario.  The Swamp is also important habitat to many species of plants and animals, including several protected and vulnerable species.

What The Nature Conservancy Has Done:
In 2001, The Nature Conservancy teamed up with the Town of Penfield to protect a 90-acre farm on the west side of Thousand Acre Swamp.

In Fall 2004, TNC reconstructed the 610 foot boardwalk on the preserve using environmentally friendly materials.

Visiting the Preserve
The Thousand Acre Swamp preserve is located in the Town of Penfield, just outside of Rochester. Ten trails on the property show you a world of wildflowers, animals, birds, and other natural wonders. Join us for more than 30 different professionally guided hikes and field trips every year.

Please contact the Central & Western Chapter for a free brochure.

At the intersection of I-490 and I-590 east of Rochester, take I-590 north one mile to NY-286.
Drive east on NY-286 approximately 4.9 miles and then turn left (north) on Jackson Road.
Drive approximately 0.5 miles on Jackson Road.
The entrance to the Thousand Acre Swamp Sanctuary is indicated by a wooden sign on the west side of Jackson Road (just north of the Sheriff's substation and adjacent to the Penfield Volunteer Ambulance.
Turn left and follow the narrow driveway, passing to the left of the house at the end of the drive.  Parking is available in the gravel lot (closed in winter).
Please do not park in the driveway at any time.  A well-traveled path leads about two hundred yards to the forest edge and the beginning of the trail system.

Partners:
The Nature Conservancy works with a variety of partners to keep the Thousand Acre Swamp protected, including: Thousand Acre Swamp Preservation Committee; Town of Penfield; New York State Office of Parks; Senator Jim Alesi; Eastman Kodak Company; and the Daisy Marquis Jones Foundation. 
 

Back to Top

Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Photo © Jay Greenberg (fall leaves); Photo © Elinor Osborn.