Ben Keene - Camping New York: A Comprehensive Guide To Public Tent And Rv Campgrounds

Family farms dot the countryside in the Catskills and the Hudson Valley.

Max. RV Length: All RV lengths are in feet.
Hookups: W = Water, E = Electric, S = Sewer
Toilets: F = Flushing, NF = Not flushing
Showers: N = No, Y = Yes
Drinking Water: N = No, Y = Yes
Dump Station: N = No, Y = Yes
Recreation: F = Fishing, H = Hiking, B = Boating, S = Swimming, C = Biking, P = Playground, L = Boat launch, R = Horseback riding
Fee: $ = Less than $15; $$ = $15 to $24; $$$ = $25 or more
Reservations: N = No, Y = Yes

Some things have naturally changed since the first Dutch settlers cleared land for livestock and agriculture, but a short trip beyond the suburban sprawl of the Big Apple will deliver the traveler to the same landscapes that inspired the Hudson School of artists. West of the river, parks in Orange and Rockland counties offer all sorts of outdoor opportunities for New Yorkers in need of a quick escape or a longer break from the pressures of city living. On a map, Harriman State Park is the biggest patch of green in the Lower Hudson Valley, and campers will find an outlet for almost any type of outdoor activity here, from biking to boating and hiking to swimming. Meanwhile, to the east, a few smaller parks in Westchester and Putnam counties make the task of planning to spend a night or two under the stars seem less daunting to campers who might be new to the activity.

Farther north, the Catskills themselves rise from the rolling hills that border them to the south, beckoning weekend adventurers to find their way to its many wet-lands, waterfalls, high peaks, and hiking trails. Spread across the Allegheny Plateau in Ulster, Greene, Delaware, and Sullivan Counties, the Catskill Park contains thirty-five mountains with elevations over 3,500 feet and an abundance of campgrounds for the people who aspire to climb them. And with close to 300,000 acres of state land to explore, this is an area to return to again and again. Back on the other side of the river, the Taconic Mountains rise suddenly along the state borders of Connecticut and Massachusetts, descending abruptly into the Housatonic River Valley to the east. Although the elevations in the Taconics dont quite match those of their neighboring peaks to the west, they do provide excellent views of the popular Berkshire range and are similarly close to Manhattan.