Asymmetrical Information

Is 5-6 hours a reasonable drive?
Vermont State Parks
I'm familiar with Region 2 and Region 3 Parks.
Region 2: Kingsland Bay, Button Bay, DAR - easy day hikes nearby - Mt. Philo & Snake Mountain
Region 3: Burton Island, Grand Isle
flat stretches - great for biking - Sand Bar is a great beach for toddlers - kayaks and sailboards can also be rented.

Why dyspeptic toddlers? The ones that bother you are the ones who are burping (or worse), but otherwise you're OK with them?

Sigh... Ah, to camp without children...

But then, camping WITH children has its rewards, among them the learned ability to recognize poisonous plants, insects, snakes, and other critters instantly and the fact that your kid(s) can get as dirty as they please and nobody sniffs at you about it.

Try North Point (A campsite run by NY State in the Catskills). Lake, and many good hiking trails. In particular Katterskill Falls and the peak of North Point itself. In the fall a good trip it to the summit before dawn to watch sunrise over the Hudson. Many days the river valley is in Fog but the mountain is clear.

(For those who don't know the northern catskills in the forest preserve is not the same as the Borscht Belt. Many challenging climbs and lots of suprising wild areas)

Haven't been here myself, but...

http://nysparks.state.ny.us/parks/info.asp?parkID=57

BTW..."fireplace" areas? Never heard of such a thing.

Yep, try any of Canada's excessively ordered national parks. Not only central fireplace "shelters", but often grid like campsite layouts.

In the US only the Forest Service remains both fire and dog friendly on a consistent basis!

Oops; I got my NYS Agencies wrong. This is DEC jurisdiction in the Forest Preserve, not a state park.

North South Lake.

http://www.dec.state.ny.us/website/do/camping/campgrounds/northsouth.html

It's been 20 years, but I'd look into the Delaware Water Gap.

Huh? Did I miss something or did you really go camping with "outlaws"? Were you once involved with the Hells Angels? And tell us more about the "romantic" dinner. Romance with a special someone or the romance of getting back to nature? Am I nosey or just bored? Is it 5:00 yet?

Jason, go ahead and open the beer. It's noon somewhere.

There are a whole bunch of parks along the Housatonic River and in Litchfield County, CT. Your co-blogger also owns some property up that way..

I'm a former New Yorker, displaced to Ann Arbor.

I've camped a couple of times on Lake Michigan, way up north and it is spectacular. Really. Worth the trip. Try state parks in Petoskey or Charlevoix, or try to national lakeshore in Sleeping Bear Dune. Or take the ferry out to one of the little bear islands.

For real wilderness, go to Isle Royale National Park or Pictured Rocks National parks.

Really. Well worth it. Lots to do.

JennyD: Any comments on the UP or Drummond Island? Thanks.

I spent a lot of time in Harriman/Bear Mtn. state parks when I lived out there. Very close to the city.

I'll second Harriman/Bear Mountain SPs, having hiked there on the Appalachian Trail. The area around High Point NJ isn't so terrible either. Nor, as said above, is the Housatonic area in CT. There are some nice fire-friendly places on the AT that aren't too long of a walk from roads.

I camped and hiked in this area when I was exiled to New York in the early 1980s. There were not many people around. I don't know how long it takes to drive there nowadays, but it's a world away - physically and philosophically - from Gotham.

I have to second loon's suggestion of the VT state parks, and then add New Hampshire state parks as well. I lived in Vermont for 15 years before fleeing that socialist dystopia, but I have many fond memories of the state parks there. Groton State Forest has many state parks - a quick googling yields http://areas.wildernet.com/pages/area.cfm?areaID=VTSFGT&CU_ID=1
Some of their campsites are only accesable by canoe. One thing to remember is that the more private and libertarian the site, the further it is to hot showers and flush toilets. State forests tend to have more private sites; I for one tire of state parks where you have neighbors 30' in each direction, and the town cops driving through every couple hours.

If you really want to get back to nature, check out the Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario (A very long drive from NYC, unfortunately). Roughly 60 miles square, IIRC, it has an endless maze of lakes and streams. When I spent a week there in college, we only encountered one other group (two local fishermen) the whole time. We built 15' bonfires on the beach each night, and canoed right up to a loon and 6 or 8 babies, before they dove, and emerged 50' away. A wonderful time. They do have problems with an occasional predacious bear, though.

If you want to camp by the seashore, you can't beat Assateague Island National Seashore (http://www.nps.gov/asis/). Wild ponies wander up and eat your hamburger buns right off your picnic table. Reservations are a necessity since this place fills up quickly.

You must have visited some rather urban campsites to not be allowed a personal fire! (If you do build a fire, pour water on it and stir it well before you leave or go to bed, says Smokey.)

I still own 65 hilly & wooded acres in central VT, just outside Montpelier - you are more than welcome to camp and explore there.

As a Jersey/New York/PA kind of guy, i can say there are several very good state parks that allow camping and are only a few hours out of the city. In NY you have Harriman/Bear Mtn. or one of the many commercial campsites. (I like the KOA facities and this ones pretty convenient to the NY Thruway--that's I-87.)

NJ has some excellent state parks in the northwest highlands area. I particularly like both High Point and Worthington. Both have sections of the AT moving through them.
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/camping.html

Good luck and have fun.

Forgot to mention that these are all within 2-3 hours of the city--if you can get over the GW or through the Lincoln.

If you start in Georgia, New York is pretty nice when you get there (on the way to Maine.)
It only costs a dollar to hike the AT (the pedestrian fare at the bear mountain bridge).

http://www.appalachiantrail.org/site/c.jkLXJ8MQKtH/b.715465/k.9731/Hike_The_Trail.htm

Harriman state park is nice for a weekend overnight.

regards,

vtrtl

I'll propose Mongaup Pond, in Livingston Manor, NY - roughly two hours from NYC. Individual sites and fireplaces, bathrooms in each "loop," a beautiful lake with canoe rentals and a beach area, and shower facilities at the main gate. Excellent biking and hiking, too. I've been going there for roughly 10 years, recently with children, and we've found it to be a nice place for "out-of-the-trunk" camping.

Vermont! Fuhgeddaboudit. There is plenty of great places a lot closer to NYC.

Harriman/Bear Camp Grounds can be a bit urban this time of year.

all of the dec campgrounds are nice in the Catskills We camped here (Devils Tombstone)
http://www.dec.state.ny.us/website/do/camping/campgrounds/devilstombstone.html
a few years back with our then 3 year old and had a great time. We went during the week and had the place to ourselves. The only drawback in order to take a hot shower we had go to another campground about ~ 2 miles away. However there is only 24 sites so you do get privacy.

Another nice place was (Woodland Valley)
http://www.dec.state.ny.us/website/do/camping/campgrounds/woodland.html. This campground had very clean showers.

If you want to do the Hamptons on the cheap Cedar Point Suffolk County Campground is very nice.(http://204.126.240.51/reserve/default.asp)
Plenty of hiking, swimming and biking and I can gurantee no celebrity sightings at the campground or large mountains to hike. Bathrooms just average ... seen a lot worse, seen better.

All these campgrounds have fire pits. However if it gets to dry they may prohibit camp fires.

Have fun!

I don't know about campsites, but there are wonderful hiking trails (for all levels) just north, in the Adirondacks. The trail to Marcy dam is easy, and there are many shelters in the area (for backpackers). I have a favorite shelter near Mt. Marcy, which is just beside the river...
The Alpine Club of Canada (Montreal Section) has a nice house in Keene, NY. I'm pretty sure that it's open to non-members. They also have some campsites in the meadow.

Sandy Hook (New Jersey) is about 15 minutes from the Atlantic Highlands Ferry. A forty minute high speed boat takes you to South Street Seaport (or 34th) both in Manhatten. URL http://www.seastreak.com/SeaStreak/Locations+and+Directions/Atlantic+Highlands.htm

The park has beach type camping. The URL http://www.nps.gov/gate/pphtml/activities.html

Call ahead or use the web site for reservations as the Jersey Shore gets busy, particularly on weekends.

Another vote for Harriman, especially if you're willing to go outside the developed campgrounds. As of the late '80s it was bus-accessible from NYC (walking a mile or so from the bus to the park entrance). Email if you need more info and can't find it in the obvious on-line places.

North Lake near Hunter Mountain is pretty good.
For a longer ride, probably 5 hours, the Lake Placid KOA is fantastic. Get lean-to number 1. It's at the bottom of one hellacious hill that you have to walk, but it's secluded, right on the Ausable River and you can either sleep in the lean-to (a three-sided shack) or set up your tent.
We go there every year. I drive 10 hours from DC to get there. Fantastic.
Devil's Something (Lake?) near Chichester NY is very nice too. It's a state park. You take exit 20 or 21 (same as North Lake) on the Thruway.
The town near North Lake is pretty cool. It's very rustic. That's where I got my first bull-whip.

Please send me an email if you want any additional advice. I am a Mom who camped with toddler. I think some of the other posters are backpackers who don't fully understand the logistics of camping with little ones. Harriman has nice trails but I am assuming with toddler you will be car camping in the developed campground ... DO NOT GO TO HARRIMAN.

Second the North-South suggestion, but note that they're pretty booked for August. Check with ReserveAmerica.

Jane - We're really glad to see your taking a vacation...we were just worrying about you. See post...

The Real Jane Galt

Find a good campsite...relax. We were recently at one; we'll find that name and post again.

But you really need to take care of yourself.

but there are wonderful hiking trails (for all levels) just north, in the Adirondacks. The trail to Marcy dam is easy

There's also a Loj there. The trail past Marcy to Mt. Marcy is not so easy, but it's basically just a long slog.

In Lake Placid I stayed at the Whispering Pines campground. I wanted a motel room, but except for the "cheapest" motel room (Saint Moritz at $45 on Friday), the moteliers there were a-holes.

In addition to seconding the "'Dacks", let me suggest a visit to the "'Gunks". Take a rock climbing course from EMS, and they can probably suggest a suitable campsite. There's also a nearby upscale (?) KOA.

Consider also WV. The climbing school in Seneca Rocks seems like a quality outlet, but the verticality of S.R. might be a bit foreboding as a first experience.

Acadia in Maine is incredible, but it would be very crowded right now.

The Delaware Water Gap supposedly has a high crime rate.

So let me ask when you go rock climbing with a toddler do you strap them to your back or do they get their own hareness?

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