The Greenwood Lake Marina is on a mission to attract more people to the water, particularly those who don’t actually own a boat.
”You don’t have to own a boat,” said owner Elena Dykstra. “You can still have fun on the lake.”
According to its website, the Greenwood Lake Marina is the largest on the lake, and has been in business for over 30 years.
Dykstra, a West Milford local, took over in 2006.
“I used to own a sporting goods store in Wanaque and loved (the) boating part of it and not the rest,” said Dykstra. “So I sold that and purchased this.”
According to Dykstra, the marina used to only offer dock space but now does more boat rentals and repairs.
Dykstra, however, is determined to expand to attract more non-boat-owners, which is why the marina now also offers cruises on the lake and other fun new attractions.
”We want to give people who don’t own a boat more exposure to the lake,” Dykstra said.
The marina’s efforts to accomplish that mission include creating what they call, “the Greenwood Lake Experience.”
So, in addition to selling, leasing, and renting regular boats, the marina is now offering a yacht and a jungle float, which is basically a floating playground with trampolines, a water slide, rope swings, etc.
The marina will soon also offer a tiki boat and house boat for overnight stays.
It’s not just boats, either, as the marina is now carrying kymeras as well, which are electric body boards that offer people another way to traverse the lake.
The different kinds of cruises, which include a dessert cruise, and a variety of history tours, are also all part of the new “experience.”
“Those tours people are going nuts for, the jungle float people are going nuts for, and the kymera,” said Dykstra’s daughter, Rebecca Dykstra, who grew up around the marina.
Rebecca Dykstra also runs a non-profit organization out of the marina called the North East Therapeutic Boating Organization, which takes disabled children and adults out weekly on a pontoon boat equipped with wheelchair locks and a ramp.
“Some of the adults lived here their whole lives and (have) never been on the lake, because it wasn’t convenient,” said Dykstra.
Dykstra started NETBO after sustaining a traumatic brain injury in 2014 and realizing the healing potentials of boating.
While the marina’s busy season is now fully underway, the Dykstras said they and the rest of the staff have been preparing for it for months.
“We have to put the docks back in, we have to put thousands of boats back in the water, charge the batteries, get them all ready for the next three months,” Elena Dykstra said. “It’s a lot of fun, (but) it’s a lot of work.”
According to the Dykstras, the weekends have been very busy, but they suggest coming to the lake during the week, and it’s not just because of the reduced prices.
”During the week it’s a lot calmer, there’s less people here, you have the whole lake to yourself,” said Rebecca Dykstra. “Escape the crowds, escape the wake.”
You can learn more about the Greenwood Lake Marina by visiting their website at www.greenwoodlakemarina.info.