Questions about camping in NY

[Gary R]

My wife and I are taking a sight seeing trip in upstate NY this summer. We are totally self contained and do not need camping facilities. Are there any options for free camping in the state? Example, here in PA you can camp almost anywhere in the Allegheny National Forest for free and no questions. PA state forests you can camp many places for free but you do need to "register", (let them know where and when). Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[PerryW]

My wife & I camped in the Adirondack area and the thousand islands area last summer and I didn't remember seeing the free camping option. Mostly state parks and Adirondack (state park) which don't seem to have the dispersed use option that the national forests sometimes have. You could check Googling New York National Forest dispersed use.

In NH, the national forests have some free camping options (they charge a few bucks for the parking though). they fill up fast in summer months however.

have fun, we will be headed there again this summer, but half motel and half tenting.

[Thompson's Tree Farm]

Most state land is open to primitive camping and there is no fee. You must either camp in a designated spot (marked) or locate your tent at least 150 feet from a trail or water. There is virtually no federal land in NY so that option is out. State parks have camping areas that you pay for.
I have about a square mile that you are welcome to camp about anywhere on:)

[PerryW]

I heard the parking lots at Walmart allow RV's.

[nutsy]

While a lot of WALMART'S allow RV to park overnight, some of the town's have put a stop to this practice-seems that a lot of should-we-say less than "LEGAL" things where happening in the RV's, and some near by merchants were also unhappy about the practice of overnight parking.

[Gary R]

Thompson Tree Farm, thank you very much for the offer. This trip we will probably stay near the Finger Lakes region. DeKalb must be a small town. It wasn't in my Atlas, I had to Google it. We will travel to that area some day. I will research online about the State Forest's. We do have a 4X4 RV. I wouldn't worry about small dirt roads.

I knew about the Walmart thing. We're out to sight see, Walmart would be a last resort.

Thanks for the help!

[PerryW]

The state parks in the Adirondack area and along the St. Lawrence Seaway are busy and it will cost you a fee, but the locations can't be beat. We stayed at Cranberry Lake and Lime Kiln Lake Lake and could dive into the crystal clear water right from the campsite.


Thompson Tree Farm, thank you very much for the offer. This trip we will probably stay near the Finger Lakes region. DeKalb must be a small town. It wasn't in my Atlas, I had to Google it. We will travel to that area some day. I will research online about the State Forest's. We do have a 4X4 RV. I wouldn't worry about small dirt roads.

I knew about the Walmart thing. We're out to sight see, Walmart would be a last resort.

Thanks for the help!

[Noseguard76]

Check out the Finger Lakes Trail. Not sure about the western NY portion but do know that in Onondaga County you can camp for free at primitive locations on the Finger Lakes Trail such as Spruce Pond on Morgan Hill for free. Just need to register.

Enjoy your stay

Noseguard

[talahi maple products]

There's a campsite in Martinsburg that's called Whitaker Park that's free. Has water at certain spots to fill your tank.and a spectacular view of the Black river valley.Located on Roaring Brook.and right at the Tug Hill Plateau for ATV or Jeep riding.It's also in upper NY near Lowville NY.
I'm just down the creek from them, and I have a old Girls scout day camp that's been restored that you can pull into and stay with a self contained camper.Great view, and on a beautiful part of the brook with waterfalls.

[delivron]

NYS Guidelines for the Adirondacks http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/7872.html

Now for the bad news there is only one Walmart in the Adirondacks and it is in Ticonderoga, NY.

Welcome to my backyard!

[PerryW]

thanks for the link deliveron. we are headed to your area in july for 3 weeks. Last year my wife & I spend 3 nites at the Adirondak Loj and climbed Mt Marcy. (Long hike!, but beautiful). I think we needed to backpack something like 2 miles before we could camp and needed a bear canister so we decided to day hike it. We also stayed in Wilmington at the North Pole Motel and one nite in the campground. Did a lot of mountain biking and some on the trails on at Whiteface. Also drove up whiteface to escape the heat in the valleys during the heat wave. It was 20 degreees cooler on the summit.

The a couple nites in the Hotel Saranac (Hot Sara), Tupper Lake and over to Thousand Islands area and lake ontario. Back to Old forge, Lime Kiln State Park, Long Lake and over to Lake George for the carnival atmospere. I see you are at Schroon Lake. How is that area? We are looking for easy mountain bike trails and some hiking as well as cheap motels and good camping areas? We mite throw the canoe on and do a couple nites camping on a river/lake.

[Paddymountain]

Hey Gary R the Finger Lakes National Forest above Watkins Glenn on the east side of Seneca Lake allows primitive camping . pm me and I'll fill in the details

[Gary R]

Thanks for all the additional info guys. I have already been on the NY DEC website. There is a fair amount of State land in the southern half of all of Finger Lakes Region. Camping is free at the "camp here" disc's and possibly log landings. I've emailed the DEC for a guide as to where those spots may be. I wish the wife would take more time off of work so we could go to Adirondack's and New England. We have been to all those area's back in the day. Canoeing overnight and backpacking. We are getting older and softer:)

Paddymountain, we are headed out your way in a couple of weeks. I'll PM you and see if we can meet.

[Gary R]

An update guy's. I got discouraged about camping in western NY. We decided to take an extra day off and head for the Adirondack's. We leave next Wednesday evening. Any exciting events or camping locations for next weekend?

Thanks!

[Mill Race]

Hi Gary! I would be willing for you to hook up to my sugar shack. Give me a call for more details. Floyd Parker 607-543-1126

[jimsudz]

Hey Gary, Just got back from the Adirondacks this morning The weather was perfect and the see-nary was awesome. Whe camp at state parks that charge a fee. Whe went to Buck Pond In Franklin County, There is one place on Osgood pond that allows camping at no fee but there is usually some one there,only a few sites.I hate for you to go all that way and not have a site reserved. There are several public sites on Rainbow Lake but there are for tents only.All the sites we went by on all the lakes were full this past weekend. Hope this helps

[spud]

When I was a young boy my parents always took us camping in up state New York. We went every summer to Brant Lake to a camp ground named Hidden Pond Campsite. A lot of fond memory's of that place. My folks would take us to Chester Town to a DQ for lunch and we thought we were in heaven. Are there any Trader's from this area of New York?

Spud

[Gary R]

A small fee at a primitive state campground is no problem. Some private campgrounds are at $30-$40 a night. We have all our own utilities. Then you get stacked in like cord wood on a small lot:) You guys' have given some ideas. I just might call on one of ya! I hope to stop at a sugar house or two.

[delivron]

When I was a young boy my parents always took us camping in up state New York. We went every summer to Brant Lake to a camp ground named Hidden Pond Campsite. A lot of fond memory's of that place. My folks would take us to Chester Town to a DQ for lunch and we thought we were in heaven. Are there any Trader's from this area of New York?

Spud

Sorry Spud you can't go to the DQ any more that disappeared about 10 our more years ago. But the campsite is alive and well.http://hiddenpondcampsites.webs.com/.

[SeanD]

Sorry all, I'm briefly hijacking this thread just to say what a beautiful state you have here. We're currently on a road trip out to Buffalo/Niagra Falls. My favorite part of the drive was a stretch of Rt. 20 we were on from Albany to Auburn with a detour down to Cooperstown. It's nice to see so much active farmland for mile after mile. I saw a couple of signs for maple producers along the way, too. I wonder if they belong to members here.

Sean

[stoweski]

Sorry all, I'm briefly hijacking this thread just to say what a beautiful state you have here. We're currently on a road trip out to Buffalo/Niagra Falls. My favorite part of the drive was a stretch of Rt. 20 we were on from Albany to Auburn with a detour down to Cooperstown. It's nice to see so much active farmland for mile after mile. I saw a couple of signs for maple producers along the way, too. I wonder if they belong to members here.

Sean

Were about 1000' from my house as you drove outside of Guilderland and past Duckpond Farms (route 20/158 intersection). Only problem with 20 west are the deer. Population out that way is increasing it seems.

[Mill Race]

Gary our sugar house is about two miles from the finger lakes trail near Greek peak ski resort also my wife will be at our camp in Lowville next weekend the 25 to 27. call me if you want 607-543-1126

[Gary R]

Mill Race, thanks for the offer. This trip we're planning on staying in the Adirondack's.

[Mill Race]

Gary that's why i told about the wife. Our camp is by Beaver Lake and about 15 miles up the road from the Stillwater reservior.