Best Lakes for Kayaking Near Rochester
New York
3 kayaking lakes within driving distance of Rochester, New York, ranked by water quality and kayaking-specific filters. Filtered for grade A, B, or C water quality, public access, and ideal paddling size (30-3,000 acres).
Rochester is not lake-dense — only 3 graded lakes are within easy reach. The cleanest of those is Canadice Lake (A).
The kayaking-specific ranking layered on top of the LakeGrade rubric is what produces the list below: a grade-good lake that does not also support the kayaking use case is less useful than a grade-decent lake that does.
| # | Lake | County | Grade | Distance | Clarity | Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canadice Lake | Ontario | A | 30.4 mi | 18.8 ft | - |
| 2 | Hemlock Lake | Livingston | B | 29.8 mi | 12.5 ft | - |
| 3 | Silver Lake | Wyoming | C | 38.5 mi | 8.5 ft | - |
Other activities near Rochester
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.