New England Camping

camping in and around new England

One of the things we love to do as a family is to go camping. We found out living in Stamford, that going camping is more of a challenge on the East Coast than in other parts of the country. One, there is the weather. Camping season is rather short. May to early November. And secondly, driving distances to really great parks, e.g.. National Parks, are rather long. There are some great spots we have gone for shorter weekend trips where we try to keep the driving time between 1.5-3.5h. Besides the driving distance our criteria for selecting campgrounds/parks is the "nature" entertainment value. We usually try to find a park where we can either go hiking, fishing, or kayaking. Sometimes we can even do all three!!!

campground reservations

Some states, for example: Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, use reserveamerica.com for campground reservations.
For the Adirondacks and Catskills use the Department of Environmental Conservation website.
For New Jersey State Park reservations go to the NJ Parks and Forestry webpage.

You can book a certain number of campsites in advance via their website. They usually charge a $9 online booking fee. They also have detailed information about the campgrounds and the parks.

To see the campground locations on a map click here.
To see a great site where users can post campground ratings go to thatscamping.com

campgrounds

Lake Waramaug SP, CT We loved Lake Waramaug (see google map). It is very busy in the summer and you should book a campsite in advance. Most of the campsites are fairly open and a lot of them have a view of the lake. The walk to the lake is very short. Unfortunately, between the campground and the lake runs W. Shore Rd. The good part is, it isn't very busy. At least not the weekend we were there. We had site #67 which was nice, flat and close to the lake. Great for swimming, kayaking and fishing.
Kettletown SP, CT Kettletown State park (see google map) was a great spot to fish. The campground itself is a 5 minute walk from the recreation area. This is the closest water access point to the campground. Which means you do have to lug your fishing and boating equipment for a short trip. The shore is very steep and forested and there is no access from the campground to the river .The beach is even farther down the road. The main loop (sites 1-30) are in an open area with a slope in between. If I remember correctly between site 15 and 14 it went "downhill". Either site #14 or site 17 had a steep incline. Sites 22-6 were in the lower flat portion. The sites 31-40 are farther up the hill in a more shady, forested part. They had a nice evening program for kids and adults, where they showed movies outside. Great for swimming, kayaking and fishing.
Spruce Run SP, NJ Spruce Run (see google map) is a great campground right at the lake. The best camp sites are right at lake sites #41 -17. We went there in April and it was rather windy. Great for swimming, kayaking and fishing.
Shawme-Crowell State Forest, Cape Cod, MA
The only reason we staid at Shawme (see google map) was that we couldn't get any reservations at Nickerson State Park.

Nickerson is supposed to be the nicest public campground on Cape Cod and booked out well in advanced during summer weekends.

Picture to the left at the Cape Cod National Seashore visitor center. They have great guided kayak tours.
Lakota Wolf Preserve, NJ (see google map) Great wolf habitat. They have 3-4 different species, as well as bobcats. The staff is knowledgeable. You can either hike to the wolf preserve or take the shuttle bus. The tours start at certain times, so make sure you are there on time. They also have a campground, Camp Taylor, nearby which is nice. We camped right next to a brook and the kids had fun sailing little make shift boats. Picture to the right is taken at the Sterling Hill Mining Museum which is about 47 miles north-east of the Lakota Wolf Preserve. Great underground tour through the zinc mine that was closed in 1986. The Zobel Exhibit hall is worth seeing and our tour guide was actually a miner that worked in the mine before it was closed.
Devil's Tombstone Campground, Catskill Mountains, NY (see google map) You can either use reserveamerica or the DEC webpage for reservations. This is one of the "traditional" state park campgrounds. My husband calls them "a road through the forest with a tiny clearance for your camp". Not much more. I guess it is ok for staying overnight but not a whole lot to do around the campground itself. The advertised campground was rather small. We didn't do any hiking so I can't comment on that. Catskills Mountain Railroad 1.5h train ride, nice scenery.
Cheesequake SP, NJ (see google map) We were pleasantly surprised by this small park. They have a nice trail system that is good for a 2-3 hour hike with kids. Beware, there is a bridge with a 11' clearance before entering the campground. As a neighboring camper had to find out, his RV was 11' high and it "relocated" his air conditioning unit a couple inches farther back.
Covered Bridge Campground - Livingston Manore, NY (see google maps) Great campground with a lot of regulars. Kids can play/fish in the river.
Kenneth L. Wilson Campground, Catskills, Mt. Tremper, NY (see google maps) We visited the campground in 2005.
Crystal Grove Diamond Mine and Campground, St. Johnsville, Adirondack Mountains, NY (see google maps) I can't remember a lot about the campground. We visited it in 2005. But our kids (and we) had a blast mining for "diamonds" in the mining area next to the campground. For a small fee you get a hammer, sieve, and a bucket.
Hershey Highmeadow Campground, Hershey, PA (see google maps) Now, that was a bummer of a campground. For $40/night you get a freight train that runs past the campground every two hours. Throughout the night!! The train sounded as if it ran right through our tent. There was no way we could sleep. I would not recommend that campground to anybody. The only redeeming factor is how close to Hershey Park it is.