It extends for 7.70 miles (12.39 km) through mostly rural areas from an intersection with NY 104 on the Greece–Parma town line to a dead end at the Lake Ontario shoreline in Greece.

The route heads northward, following the boundary between Greece and Parma as it traverses a predominantly rural portion of Monroe County.

The route continues to follow Salmon Creek into the hamlet of Braddock Heights, where NY 261 connects to the Lake Ontario State Parkway by way of an interchange.

[6] Roughly 0.5 miles (0.8 km) northeast of the Lake Ontario Parkway, NY 261 reached the lakeside hamlet of Manitou Beach.

The route turned southward before reaching the lake shore, however; instead, it parallels the shoreline for 200 yards (183 m) before terminating at an isolated dead end south of the hamlet.