Montauk Fishing JournalMontauk, New York

Guide · October 1, 2026

Montauk Shore Access for Anglers: Who Runs Which Beach, and What You Need to Park

A site-by-site guide to Montauk's public shoreline for people who fish from land: the two state parks at the Point, the Town of East Hampton's sites, and the parking and drive-on permits each one requires.

By Montauk Fishing Journal editors

Montauk has more public shoreline than almost anywhere on Long Island, but it doesn't all belong to one agency. There's no single pass that covers all of it. The land around the lighthouse and the ocean bluffs to its west are New York State parks. The harbor beaches, the bay-side preserves and most of the ocean beaches near town belong to the Town of East Hampton. Each has its own permits, hours and rules. Getting them mixed up is the most common way a shore-fishing trip turns into a parking ticket.

This guide goes site by site, using the state's and town's own pages as they read on Sept. 27, 2026. It covers access and parking. It doesn't claim any particular spot will have fish. For the Point itself, including state-park fishing permits and safety on the rocks, see our surfcasting guide.

One rule applies everywhere. If you're 16 or older and fishing for saltwater species from any of these places, NYSDEC requires you to be enrolled in the state's Recreational Marine Fishing Registry. The exceptions are Connecticut and Rhode Island residents holding their home state's marine license.

The state parks

Montauk Point State Park (2000 Montauk Highway) surrounds the lighthouse. State Parks sells an annual sport fishing permit, available again from Sept. 8 through Dec. 31, 2026, and lists a separate night sport fishing permit and a four-wheel-drive beach vehicle permit. Car entry is $8 when fees are collected (8 a.m.–4 p.m., daily through Oct. 12, 2026, then weekends and holidays Oct. 17–Nov. 11). The park is open sunrise to sunset. Night fishing and beach-vehicle permits are handled by phone at (631) 669-1000.

Camp Hero State Park (1898 Montauk Highway), just west of the Point on the ocean side, requires its own Camp Hero fishing permit: $40 a year for New York residents and $75 for out-of-state residents, for the Apr. 1–Dec. 31, 2026 season. State Parks says the park's surf fishing locations are "open 24 hours a day to fishermen with permits." Swimming is not permitted.

State Parks lists other state parks near the Point: Montauk Downs, Hither Hills, Shadmoor and Napeague.

The Town of East Hampton's Montauk sites

The town lists these Montauk sites on its beaches page: Culloden Point, Ditch Plains Beach, East Lake Beach (Gin Beach), South Edison Beach, Fort Pond Bay, Hither Woods, Kirk Park Beach, South Lake Beach and West Lake Drive. Below are the ones we could document from the town's own pages. Every town page describes use as "at your own risk."

Around the harbor

East Lake Beach (Gin Beach), 555 East Lake Drive. The town places it "at the end of East Lake Drive in Montauk." The beach is open year-round. It's a lifeguarded bay beach in summer (swimming only 10 a.m.–5 p.m. when guards are on duty), and restrooms are open mid-May to mid-October. Parking requires a Town of East Hampton parking permit. A town drive-on pass is required for vehicle beach access, in designated areas only. The site has ADA-accessible restrooms, and a surf wheelchair is available when lifeguards are on duty.

West Lake Drive, 487 West Lake Drive, on the fleet side of the harbor. It's open year-round with year-round ADA-accessible restrooms. Swimming is prohibited. Check with the Town before you park.

South Lake Beach, at the end of South Lake Drive. It has picnic tables and restrooms: a comfort station open mid-May to mid-October and a composting restroom open year-round. Swimming is prohibited. Parking requires a town permit.

Fort Pond Bay and the north woods

Fort Pond Bay Park / Rod's Valley, at the end of Navy Road. The town describes it as "a 22-acre park with breathtaking views overlooking Fort Pond Bay." It has a dirt parking lot, picnic tables, "a small launching ramp suitable for kayaks or canoes," and "a long fishing pier known as the 'Edward V. Ecker Sr. Pier.'" Of the town sites here, it's the only one whose page mentions fishing directly. It's open sunrise to sunset unless otherwise permitted. Swimming is prohibited. Parking requires a town permit, and vehicle beach access requires a town drive-on pass. The page also gives the origin of the name. The valley is named for Rod, an axeman who worked a timber concession in Hither Woods around 1871 and lived with his wife, Riah, on the west shore of Fort Pond Bay.

Hither Woods Preserve, also reached from Navy Road and Fort Pond Bay Park. The town says it covers "over 500-acres of preserved woodland" with hiking trails. The rules match Fort Pond Bay: sunrise to sunset, no swimming, town parking permit, drive-on pass for beach vehicles, and no motorized vehicles on trails. The town notes that the Paumanok Path's campsite here is "only 14 miles from the Paumanok Path trail's end at Montauk Lighthouse."

Culloden Point Preserve, off the dirt section of Soundview Drive/Road B, with a second trail entrance off Flamingo Road. The town says it "overlooks the meeting of Fort Pond Bay and Block Island Sound." It has "a small dirt parking lot with access to the beach below by stairway." It's also "a popular spot for divers seeking the fortunes from the HMS Culloden." It's open sunrise to sunset unless otherwise permitted. Swimming is prohibited, parking requires a town permit, and it's carry-in, carry-out.

The ocean side near town

Ditch Plains Beach, 6 Deforest Road. A lifeguarded ocean beach in summer, with swimming 9 a.m.–5 p.m. when guards are on duty. The important detail for visitors: parking is for Town of East Hampton residents only ("Parking requires a resident Town of East Hampton parking permit"). A town drive-on pass is required for vehicle beach access in designated areas. The Rheinstein Park trails start at the parking-lot entrance.

Kirk Park Beach, South Emerson Avenue. The town's beaches page lists it as a lifeguarded beach, open for swimming 9 a.m.–5 p.m. in season. It's one of two town beaches where the Town Clerk lists a daily parking fee: $35 at Kirk Park. (The other is Atlantic Avenue Beach in Amagansett, at $50.)

Town permits: what they cost and where to get them

Town beach parking and beach-driving permits come from the East Hampton Town Clerk, not from State Parks. As the Clerk's page read on Sept. 27, 2026:

  • Residents: parking and drive-on permits are free. Resident permits "expire on the 31st of December in the years ending in a 0 or 5."
  • Non-resident parking permits: family (up to 2) $175; cooperative ownership $175; commercial lodging facility $175; general non-resident $600.
  • Non-resident beach-driving permits: cooperative ownership $135; general non-resident $450.
  • Non-resident launch-ramp permit: $175.
  • Daily beach parking: Atlantic Avenue Beach $50; Kirk Park Beach $35.
  • Where: the Clerk's Office at 159 Pantigo Road in East Hampton (office hours 9 a.m.–3:30 p.m. weekdays), the Clerk's annex at the Montauk Playhouse, by mail, or online for resident permits. Phone: (631) 324-4142.

The Clerk's page notes that "fees and total permits authorized are subject to change by further Resolution of the Town Board." If you're staying in Montauk, ask your lodging whether it provides a town parking permit. The "commercial lodging facility" category above exists for that purpose.

Putting it together

For a visitor without a town permit, Montauk's state parks are the most straightforward legal access. You buy the state fishing permit that fits the park and pay the day-use fee when it's collected. The town's harbor and bay sites add a lot of shoreline, but most need a town parking permit, and Ditch Plains is limited to residents. Wherever you fish, plan around the posted hours. Most town preserves close at sunset "unless otherwise permitted."

Access rules at the east end change often, by town resolution and by state season. We'll update this page when they do.

How we reported this. We compiled this guide on Sept. 27, 2026 from New York State Parks' pages for Montauk Point and Camp Hero, the Town of East Hampton's pages for each Montauk site and for the Town Clerk's permits, and NYSDEC's registry page. We haven't visited these sites for this piece or called the town or the parks. Corrections are welcome, and we'll note any changes.

Sources (all accessed Sept. 27, 2026)

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