From the Adirondack Mountains to the Catskills, from the St. Lawrence River to the Hudson, wilderness in New York State abounds for tent campers. Here are the 50 most peaceful and scenic campgrounds by lakes, on islands, near beaches, along rivers, and deep in the woods. Most are accessible by car, with a handful of boat-only and hike-in sites for the more adventurous. Each site description includes hiking trails, local attractions, tidbits, and wildlife information, as well as star ratings and maps for easy planning..
The Best in Tent Camping
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About the Author
Cate Wells began her outdoor adventures as a Brownie and continues to camp on travels around the world. She works in publishing in New York City and enjoys nature as a welcome change from city life.
Aaron Starmer is a freelance writer and avid camper who grew up exploring the wilds of upstate New York. He has worked for years in the travel industry as an editor for Longitude Books in New York City.
Tim Starmer has been exploring and camping in New York since he was a child. Love of the outdoors has taken him across the country and as far away as the Overland Trek in Tasmania. He currently resides in Upstate New York where he works as a timber framer.
Aaron Starmer is a freelance writer and avid camper who grew up exploring the wilds of upstate New York. He has worked for years in the travel industry as an editor for Longitude Books in New York City.
Tim Starmer has been exploring and camping in New York since he was a child. Love of the outdoors has taken him across the country and as far away as the Overland Trek in Tasmania. He currently resides in Upstate New York where he works as a timber framer.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
With Nicoll Bay on its eastern edge and the Great South Bay forming its southern boundary, Heckscher is largely surrounded by water. Less than 50 miles from New York City, it is a convenient getaway for many urban dwellers, who constitute a very high volume of day-users. The park, located at the end of the aptly named Heckscher State Parkway, has well-maintained, clean, and secure facilities. Park police are a common site; day visitors are shuffled out at sundown; and the main campground gate closes at 10 p.m. In addition, campers are not allowed in areas outside the campground after sundown.
The campground is nestled in the woods, set off from Hecksher Parkway loop by an open field. As you enter, look for the campground office on your right. Arranged in a simple rectangle, and divided into four rows, the sites are closely spaced, but nicely shaded, well manicured and flat. One large comfort station serves the campground in the center.
Use the grill for cooking. Other fires are permitted only in metal bottom containers that the camper must provide. Each basic site features a cement platform and RVs (limited to less than 11 feet high) are not an uncommon site. However, there are no electrical or water hookups and quiet hours (during which time generators must be off) are strictly enforced. At the back of the far loop, you will find the quietest sites, with 67 and 68 being the most spacious. Activities are organized in the summer for children, and families find it an ideal place to find respite from the more trafficked sections of the park.
The campground is nestled in the woods, set off from Hecksher Parkway loop by an open field. As you enter, look for the campground office on your right. Arranged in a simple rectangle, and divided into four rows, the sites are closely spaced, but nicely shaded, well manicured and flat. One large comfort station serves the campground in the center.
Use the grill for cooking. Other fires are permitted only in metal bottom containers that the camper must provide. Each basic site features a cement platform and RVs (limited to less than 11 feet high) are not an uncommon site. However, there are no electrical or water hookups and quiet hours (during which time generators must be off) are strictly enforced. At the back of the far loop, you will find the quietest sites, with 67 and 68 being the most spacious. Activities are organized in the summer for children, and families find it an ideal place to find respite from the more trafficked sections of the park.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
By Camperkat
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I had set great hopes on this book, as we love tent camping and "hate RVs, concrete slabs and loud portable stereos" (the book's subtitle).
I spent a great deal of time reading this book, making notations, going on [...] (DEC campground rez website) and finally selected Brown Tract Pond in Raquette Lake, the Adirondacks--site 69, to be specific. There were factual errors in the book (no showers at this campground, for one thing) and long story short, I don't know when the authors last visited this particular campground but site 69, described as having "breathtaking views of the pond and wilderness" was so overgrown you could not see the lake or much of anything else, and it was sandwiched between two other sites and was literally 5 feet away from other campers (one of whom had a loud dog.) There were a great many exposed tree roots cobbling site 69, so bad that you could not pitch a tent--and the site was at a huge slant--totally not level--no mention of this at all in the book. Luckily, the caretaker at the campground let us drive around and select another campsite that was open for the time period we had booked, otherwise we would have been miserable. So, I'd say this book it "OK", that it definitely gives you a broad idea, but it's not the end-all and it definitely has accuracy issues.
I spent a great deal of time reading this book, making notations, going on [...] (DEC campground rez website) and finally selected Brown Tract Pond in Raquette Lake, the Adirondacks--site 69, to be specific. There were factual errors in the book (no showers at this campground, for one thing) and long story short, I don't know when the authors last visited this particular campground but site 69, described as having "breathtaking views of the pond and wilderness" was so overgrown you could not see the lake or much of anything else, and it was sandwiched between two other sites and was literally 5 feet away from other campers (one of whom had a loud dog.) There were a great many exposed tree roots cobbling site 69, so bad that you could not pitch a tent--and the site was at a huge slant--totally not level--no mention of this at all in the book. Luckily, the caretaker at the campground let us drive around and select another campsite that was open for the time period we had booked, otherwise we would have been miserable. So, I'd say this book it "OK", that it definitely gives you a broad idea, but it's not the end-all and it definitely has accuracy issues.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By jo-jo
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
As first time campers with 2 young kids, we didn't know what to expect. We booked a campsite site unseen and hoped for the best. This guide outlined various campgrounds and detailed info on the sites within the campground. We were pleasantly surprised and were able to choose the perfect campsite for our family. I would definitely recommend this book - we've already booked our next trip at the same campground and are planning more in the future at different campsites mentioned in the book.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By A. Noel
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a very good camping book. I like the list of features it has for every campground, including whether dogs are allowed or not (very useful for us, we have 2 dogs). We definitely will try visiting a few of these campgrounds in the future. I also liked the camping packing list in the back of the book, it's a good checklist to check out before any trip to make sure you don't forget anything important.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
looks great!
will have fun reading and using it... & then know even more how the info suits our lifestyle and works for us
Published 2 months ago by yello
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tent camping guide is excellent
This was well thought out and informative.It was hard trying to figure out where the campsites were, but once I got a map of New York from AAA I was able to plot my trip. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Michele Morrissey
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent campsite reviews and info
My only regret is not buying this book sooner. The maps and rating system are extremely helpful. My favorite part is that it has some suggestions for what parts of the individual... Read more
Published 13 months ago by Joe V.
2.0 out of 5 stars
For our trip, not a very helpful book
I would give this 2 1/2 stars if I could but I'm being honest based on the area of NY we want to camp - this book may be helpful to others for other areas in NY State. Read more
Published 15 months ago by KAV
5.0 out of 5 stars
Time-saving resource
This is our second "best tent camping" book in the series. The first one (for New England) hasn't steered us wrong yet and we've gone to at least five of the campgrounds. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Louise L.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good resource...
...to check the internet with.
All you need to do is check the table of contents to see which places they recommend and then look it up in the NYC DEC website. Read more
All you need to do is check the table of contents to see which places they recommend and then look it up in the NYC DEC website. Read more
Published on January 18, 2011 by G. Carlson
5.0 out of 5 stars
My favorite titles
The best in tent camping, is my favorite guides for finding the best campsites around my places!! If you are looking to find a very quiet campsite, this is it.
Published on September 13, 2009 by Kentaro Nishimura
5.0 out of 5 stars
This book is superb.
I think this book is great. It has lots of information and I found it to be perfect for my needs. Kudos to the authors!
Published on August 9, 2008 by b-dog
5.0 out of 5 stars
great resource!
Had a book in this series for camping in Virginia, which was very helpful and this New York version hasn't let me down either. Read more
Published on August 16, 2007 by S. Lee
