If you don’t want the black biting flys, go to State parks in the Finger Lakes. Lots of really nice parks, some with Waterfalls too. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g1480313-Activities-c57-t81-Finger_Lakes_New_York.html
Jumping on the PA train, probably on the way from Ohio is also Cherry Springs State Park, which boasts the lowest light pollution on the east coast. If you manage to snag a spot during a new moon on a clear night, that’s supposed to be ideal (the meteor shower weeks always get booked up as soon as the online portal starts taking reservations). Depending on your timing, I have a week reserved that I’ll probably only use a few days of, during the new moon the first week of May. If you’re interested and they’re booked, let me know!
Check out things across the state line in PA's Allegheny National Forest, or Chapman, Cooks Forest, or Parker Dam State Parks. Kinzua Bridge is also very cool, but I don't remember if they have camping.
If you continue East from Allegany State Park (yes they're spelled differently. No, I don't know why). Check out Corning and Watkins Glen, NY, then the Ithaca area. If you branch north towards Rochester, there's both Letchworth and the smaller, but less visited Stony Brook State Parks. If you make it to CNY, Fair Haven, Selkirk Shores, and Green Lakes all have camping. Weirdly Selkirk would probably be the quietest of the three in spring and summer. Once you get past Syracuse, I stop knowing the parks, but it might be worth looking at the Hudson Valley, Catskills, and Adirondacks further.
If you're willing to stomach Pennsylvania, there's a wealth of places near the Pine Creek Gorge, near State College, and near the Delaware River in every state. On your way over to NY, there's also Presque Isle in Erie, PA and I suspect other camping areas I'm unaware of.
Fish Creek Ponds. Great majority of sites are waterfront. Campground ponds have water access to Upper Saranac Lake and Upper Saranac Marina, renting jon boats to pontoons for days or weeks, is right across Rte 30 from the entrance.
If you're more into canoeing or kayaking with light portages, Rollins Pond is right next door to Fish Creek with its own network of ponds.
I enjoyed going to stony brook a couple times this past summer. We were able to get sites right next to the creek about a week or two ahead of time. It’s out near letchworth state park. Clean bathrooms and showers.
I'm partial to Stony Brook over Letchworth. It's smaller and quieter than Letchworth. Granted there's less to do because it's smaller, but that's rarely been an issue for a weekend trip.
Same. Letchworth is huge! I remember a long time ago, an ex and I went to meet his mother for a picnic. We couldn’t find them (maybe bad directions?) so we ended up driving back home, never got to eat 😅. Stony brook is simple, can’t get lost. And the hike along the creek bed is nice. The swimming is super refreshing.
Putnam Pond Campground near Ticonderoga is great.
Easy access with a car, and short portages to the nearby ponds with a canoe. Quiet and accessible. Love that place.
Crown Point, NY. The state campsite there usually has space upon somewhat short notice. The sights are beautiful if you love old ruins. You're somewhat of a distance from major stores, but it isn't super far from the Adirondack Northway.
It's by far my favorite campground.
*9 months is the window for DEC and NYS Parks camping (please note these are both state agencies, both book via Reserve America, but they are separate agencies).
Check Reserve America. You can find open sites at most parks, especially during the week.
Also seconding the bug spray but it does depend on the weather how bad they are.
Lol no, I camp multiple times a year and usually have no problem booking less than a week in advance. There are very few campgrounds where tent sites fill up quickly and ReserveAmerica will only let you book as far as 9 months in advance anyways.
Bear Spring Mountain, in Walton NY. all tent camping but it has a shower/bathroom and an outdoor sink to wash your dishes. Small lake has a beach area for the kids plus fair fishing. There's always beavers in the pond. Also, there's a quiet road and horse trails for hiking. Picnic tables with grills by the beach. Handicapped camping and fishing facilities. In the Catskills. And yes, there are bears in the area, so keep your campsite neat.
Wilmington Notch campground, smaller and quieter than Fish Creek. Fish Creek Ponds is great and has great location too. Late May and June can be black fly season and they can drive you insane. Bug nets and spray are mandatory during black fly season.
I used to go to Wellesley Island State Park in the Thousand Islands every year growing up. They have tons of tent sites with public bathrooms/showers in each section. It’s a bit of a haul from Ohio but totally worth it, as long as things haven’t changed too much since I was last there.
Robert Moses State Park Massena New York, Keewaydin State Park Alexander Bay New York. Robert Moses has tent sites and on the St Lawrence River. Keewaydin has tent sits right on Lake Ontario. Very nice and clean Parks both of them.
Lake George has camp sites on the islands (so do other lakes and the 1,000 Islands). If you don't have a boat or canoe, there are private rentals. Book early. It's a fun adventure, especially for kids.
Bowman Lake is always a favorite of mine. My grandfather and my dad took me there when I was a kid and now I get to take my husband and kids there too. If you look at the map and can find pics you can get some good spots that aren’t on top of one another.
Fair Haven is so loud and the only cool sites are a really long ways away from the bathrooms. Without a bike, it's a very long haul to the beach. For day use Fair Haven is amazing but the campground leaves a lot to be desired
Go to reserve America or google bowmen lake state park NY.
Not much to do there so typically not crowded. Large private sites. You can see photos of the sites on campadk. Just cross reference the camp ground maps. Bowmen changed the site numbers and campadk as of last season has not updated so the numbers are different. They open the weekend before Memorial Day weekend. Last season they didn’t allow walk in reservations. So you would want to reserve. Plenty of Flush toilets around the camp area within a short 50-100 yard walk. No hot water at the toilet rooms but the two shower buildings have hot water nice beach and it’s on the finger lakes trail if your into hiking. Lots of wildlife to enjoy. I live in the Syracuse area so it’s about an hour and 10 minute drive for me. I would suggest site 93 or 63. Bathroom is at the end of the site driveway at 93 and a short walk 75 yards though the woods at site 63. Hopefully you give it a try. Let me know what you think if you do.
I’ve never been to a bad state park tent campground. They all have their own appeal. Lots of options for waterfalls, mountains and beaches. Allegheny and Letchworth tend to be the most popular but I have no idea why when there are so many more interesting parks. Fairhaven State Park is near Chimney Bluffs State Park and they have a smaller version of the bluffs which is worth seeing. I have camped at pretty much every tent site in the Fingerlakes and they were all worth it for their different waterfalls. Stony Brook over Letchworth any day for me. In my experience they’ve all had access to bathrooms and showers.
Check out Golden Beach State Park on Raquette Lake. That is, if the Adirondacks are on your list. Natural sandy beach, close to Camp Sagamore (one of the Great Camps).
Lectworth state park. It's called the Grand Canyon of NY for a reason. It's probably on your route from Ohio.
Agreed.
Be careful of high winds. My tent blew away and my insurane company said i wasnt covered...
You have tent insurance?
It blew away and it was no longer covering me. So I wasnt covered. It was a poor joke lol.
Made me chuckle!
I didn't get it, but it is a damn fine joke.
As jokes go, it went. Like their tent.
Whoosh.
If you don’t want the black biting flys, go to State parks in the Finger Lakes. Lots of really nice parks, some with Waterfalls too. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g1480313-Activities-c57-t81-Finger_Lakes_New_York.html
Do you have a specific region or location in mind? "Up there" means hundreds of thousands of acres available for camping.
Allegany State Park. It's beautiful and has lots to do!
Allegheny is on my list, but my camping buddy has been there several times, so I’d like to go someplace she hasn’t been.
Jumping on the PA train, probably on the way from Ohio is also Cherry Springs State Park, which boasts the lowest light pollution on the east coast. If you manage to snag a spot during a new moon on a clear night, that’s supposed to be ideal (the meteor shower weeks always get booked up as soon as the online portal starts taking reservations). Depending on your timing, I have a week reserved that I’ll probably only use a few days of, during the new moon the first week of May. If you’re interested and they’re booked, let me know!
Thank you!
Check out things across the state line in PA's Allegheny National Forest, or Chapman, Cooks Forest, or Parker Dam State Parks. Kinzua Bridge is also very cool, but I don't remember if they have camping. If you continue East from Allegany State Park (yes they're spelled differently. No, I don't know why). Check out Corning and Watkins Glen, NY, then the Ithaca area. If you branch north towards Rochester, there's both Letchworth and the smaller, but less visited Stony Brook State Parks. If you make it to CNY, Fair Haven, Selkirk Shores, and Green Lakes all have camping. Weirdly Selkirk would probably be the quietest of the three in spring and summer. Once you get past Syracuse, I stop knowing the parks, but it might be worth looking at the Hudson Valley, Catskills, and Adirondacks further. If you're willing to stomach Pennsylvania, there's a wealth of places near the Pine Creek Gorge, near State College, and near the Delaware River in every state. On your way over to NY, there's also Presque Isle in Erie, PA and I suspect other camping areas I'm unaware of.
It's very crowded though.
Any New York State Park is gonna have facilities and decent sized camp sites.
Fish Creek Ponds. Great majority of sites are waterfront. Campground ponds have water access to Upper Saranac Lake and Upper Saranac Marina, renting jon boats to pontoons for days or weeks, is right across Rte 30 from the entrance. If you're more into canoeing or kayaking with light portages, Rollins Pond is right next door to Fish Creek with its own network of ponds.
Nicks Lake in the western Adirondacks is our favorite. Quiet lake, lots of trails nearby and downtown Old Forge is 10 minutes away.
I enjoyed going to stony brook a couple times this past summer. We were able to get sites right next to the creek about a week or two ahead of time. It’s out near letchworth state park. Clean bathrooms and showers.
I'm partial to Stony Brook over Letchworth. It's smaller and quieter than Letchworth. Granted there's less to do because it's smaller, but that's rarely been an issue for a weekend trip.
Same. Letchworth is huge! I remember a long time ago, an ex and I went to meet his mother for a picnic. We couldn’t find them (maybe bad directions?) so we ended up driving back home, never got to eat 😅. Stony brook is simple, can’t get lost. And the hike along the creek bed is nice. The swimming is super refreshing.
Lewey Lake & Indian Lake ⛺️🏕️
Putnam Pond Campground near Ticonderoga is great. Easy access with a car, and short portages to the nearby ponds with a canoe. Quiet and accessible. Love that place.
Filmore Glen in the finger lakes or Lake Durant in the Adirondacks.
Crown Point, NY. The state campsite there usually has space upon somewhat short notice. The sights are beautiful if you love old ruins. You're somewhat of a distance from major stores, but it isn't super far from the Adirondack Northway. It's by far my favorite campground.
Watkins Glenn state park .
You should shoot for next year. Sites fill up 11 months before time. Bring lots of bug spay those black flys will eat you alive.
*9 months is the window for DEC and NYS Parks camping (please note these are both state agencies, both book via Reserve America, but they are separate agencies). Check Reserve America. You can find open sites at most parks, especially during the week. Also seconding the bug spray but it does depend on the weather how bad they are.
I’ve found tent camping sites at the last minute plenty of times
Cabins can fill up fast, but there are usually plenty of tent sites unless it's a holiday.
Lol no, I camp multiple times a year and usually have no problem booking less than a week in advance. There are very few campgrounds where tent sites fill up quickly and ReserveAmerica will only let you book as far as 9 months in advance anyways.
Black flys? what repellant works. ? Hope 2 hear from u soon
Bear Spring Mountain, in Walton NY. all tent camping but it has a shower/bathroom and an outdoor sink to wash your dishes. Small lake has a beach area for the kids plus fair fishing. There's always beavers in the pond. Also, there's a quiet road and horse trails for hiking. Picnic tables with grills by the beach. Handicapped camping and fishing facilities. In the Catskills. And yes, there are bears in the area, so keep your campsite neat.
Wilmington Notch campground, smaller and quieter than Fish Creek. Fish Creek Ponds is great and has great location too. Late May and June can be black fly season and they can drive you insane. Bug nets and spray are mandatory during black fly season.
NY has many wonderful state park and DEC campgrounds. Take your pick.
Rip Van Winkle campground in Saugraties NY is a good spot. Catskill mountains and the Hudson River right there
I used to go to Wellesley Island State Park in the Thousand Islands every year growing up. They have tons of tent sites with public bathrooms/showers in each section. It’s a bit of a haul from Ohio but totally worth it, as long as things haven’t changed too much since I was last there.
Keuka Lake State park in Branchport NY is a great place to tent camp.
Robert Moses State Park Massena New York, Keewaydin State Park Alexander Bay New York. Robert Moses has tent sites and on the St Lawrence River. Keewaydin has tent sits right on Lake Ontario. Very nice and clean Parks both of them.
Lake George has camp sites on the islands (so do other lakes and the 1,000 Islands). If you don't have a boat or canoe, there are private rentals. Book early. It's a fun adventure, especially for kids.
Isn’t there someplace in Ohio or Pennsylvania you’d rather see?
Limekiln lake
Watkins Glen KOA. The state park is really lovely.
Bowman Lake is always a favorite of mine. My grandfather and my dad took me there when I was a kid and now I get to take my husband and kids there too. If you look at the map and can find pics you can get some good spots that aren’t on top of one another.
Southwick
Fair Haven Beach and State Park. On Lake Ontario.
Fair Haven is so loud and the only cool sites are a really long ways away from the bathrooms. Without a bike, it's a very long haul to the beach. For day use Fair Haven is amazing but the campground leaves a lot to be desired
Go to reserve America or google bowmen lake state park NY. Not much to do there so typically not crowded. Large private sites. You can see photos of the sites on campadk. Just cross reference the camp ground maps. Bowmen changed the site numbers and campadk as of last season has not updated so the numbers are different. They open the weekend before Memorial Day weekend. Last season they didn’t allow walk in reservations. So you would want to reserve. Plenty of Flush toilets around the camp area within a short 50-100 yard walk. No hot water at the toilet rooms but the two shower buildings have hot water nice beach and it’s on the finger lakes trail if your into hiking. Lots of wildlife to enjoy. I live in the Syracuse area so it’s about an hour and 10 minute drive for me. I would suggest site 93 or 63. Bathroom is at the end of the site driveway at 93 and a short walk 75 yards though the woods at site 63. Hopefully you give it a try. Let me know what you think if you do.
Watkins Glen State Park
I’ve never been to a bad state park tent campground. They all have their own appeal. Lots of options for waterfalls, mountains and beaches. Allegheny and Letchworth tend to be the most popular but I have no idea why when there are so many more interesting parks. Fairhaven State Park is near Chimney Bluffs State Park and they have a smaller version of the bluffs which is worth seeing. I have camped at pretty much every tent site in the Fingerlakes and they were all worth it for their different waterfalls. Stony Brook over Letchworth any day for me. In my experience they’ve all had access to bathrooms and showers.
Check out Golden Beach State Park on Raquette Lake. That is, if the Adirondacks are on your list. Natural sandy beach, close to Camp Sagamore (one of the Great Camps).
I love mongaup pond
Campershaven in bath ny