Otter River State Forest

Very peaceful! Little hidden gem! We loved our weekend away

I have a special place in my heart for state parks, and this one is great!

My site (number 1) was good for not being on top of my neighbor but it was next to the tanger station. Some sites are pretty out in the open, close to the campsite road so they feel less like the woods. I would say the best site that feels most like you are in the woods and have the most space is 28. I would book there. The pond is kind of deceiving. There are 2 roped off spots where you can swim and those spots are small and not deep.  You cannot have floats. So its better for a quick dip than a hang out. Bathrooms are fine. Could use one more as its a hike in the morning when you really have to go(!) depending on your site. One thing with my site (1), it was listed as a shaded site but it absolutely was not a shade site. During mid day there is no shade at all. In the morning, as the sun rose (when I took the pics) there was some shade but thats because the sun was still rising. It was big enough to fit a 10 and 12 person tent with a canopy. Not all sites are that big but this one worked. Verizon service was limited to none depending on location, ATT was good

Stayed here a few times summer of 2021. Like the title states, if you are looking to get away and unwind this is a great place to do it in. Ample trails and the great river running through the area. Would go back again.

Went for a weekend away with some friends and it was just a relaxing weekend in the woods with some good friends. Good facilities, good location, no cell signal so your not on your phone a ton

I found some more pictures from my camping trip here, and I wanted to share them. I loved it here, it was a great little campground for massachusetts

I stayed here in the summer of 2020.  The camp ground is clean nice with lots of trails for hiking and biking.  The bathrooms were clean and water was easy close to the camp ground.  If you drive they have a great breakfast place about two miles from the camp ground.  I would go again for people who want to be outside, but don’t want to rough it to much.

FYI Verizon cell service was pretty good

This is a smaller campground with a few loops of campsites. The sites that are near the small pond are generally larger and have better space for pitching a tent. The sites on the first two loops/spur roads are smaller and most of them are designated for tents only or tents/popups. Site 33 is large and level, suitable for an RV, but Group B site is right behind it, which may or may not be an issue.  Group A & C sites are also in the first two loops.

65, 67, 68 are walk-in sites, with the tent area lower, closer to the water.  At the top of the hill, there are several yurts available.

Dump station and additional swimming/water activities are a little farther down the road at Lake Dennison .

I loved this little campground, it was relaxing, beautiful, and had enough to keep us busy!

So clean, quiet, friendly staff, great trails and lots of exploring and lounging by the fire

This campground is clean and well kept. Lots of families here. Swimming in a pond or a short drive to a bigger lake (camping pass covers both). One of my favorites. It's kind of a hidden gem in north central Massachusetts.

Otter River State Park is located in Winchendon, in north central MA proximate to the NH border. The park was certainly lovely, facilities clean and my stay pleasant. Sites were a bit small. The hiking trails in and around the camp trail were nice, but not overly remarkable. Don’t recall there being a ton to do in and around the neighboring towns. Really, this is a good, low-key spot for families looking to spend a couple days out of the city. It’s about a 1 1/2 hour drive from Boston. Kids can play safely and bike throughout the grounds.

I went with a group of 4 in mid-July. The campground was clean and well-maintained but the sites are quite small and close together. There were a ton of kids and it was pretty noisy until about 11pm and then starting again around 7am.

The hiking in the area isn't great. There are a few trails but not a lot of interesting features and very little elevation change. The biggest pro is that it's only an hour from Boston.

Checking in is a big process here - it took about 5-10 minutes to get past the front gate because they ask for so much info about your party.

One additional perk is the rangers leave you completely alone.

With the exception of a handful of the sites at this campground (mainly, the ones on the pond that go exceptionally quickly), the sites are too small, too close together, and there are a ton of kids. From my site, I could hear our neighbors blasting their radio all day (even after quiet hours), and another group of people somewhere further away singing pretty much all night.

The pluses are it's relatively close to Boston and Worcester if you need a day or two away (and can book one of the quieter sites), the bathrooms and showers are clean (and free), and the rangers are exceptionally friendly.