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Facilities

Established Camping

Shawme Crowell State Forest

Shawme Crowell State Forest, near Sandwich, Massachusetts, is a solid choice for campers looking to enjoy the great outdoors while being close to Cape Cod. This campground offers a mix of tent sites, RV spots, and even yurts for those who want a little more comfort in their camping experience.

The sites are surrounded by tall pines, providing a nice sense of privacy and shade. Many visitors have praised the spaciousness of the campsites, making it a great spot for families. One camper noted, “The campsite we had was very large, private, and shady,” which is a big plus during those hot summer days.

Amenities include clean bathrooms with hot showers, though some campers have mentioned that they could use a bit of upkeep. There’s also a playground nearby that’s a hit with kids, making it a family-friendly spot. Plus, you’re just a short drive from beautiful beaches, biking, and hiking trails, so there’s no shortage of activities to keep you busy.

If you’re looking for a quiet escape away from the hustle and bustle, Shawme Crowell State Forest offers a peaceful atmosphere while still being close to the attractions of Cape Cod. Whether you’re roasting marshmallows by the campfire or exploring the local area, this campground has a lot to offer.

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Location

Shawme Crowell State Forest is located in Massachusetts

Detail location of campground

Coordinates

41.76336619 N
70.51974227 W

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Access

  • Drive-In
    Park next to your site

Stay Connected

  • WiFi
    Available
  • Verizon
    Unknown
  • AT&T
    Unknown
  • T-Mobile
    Unknown

Site Types

  • Tent Sites
  • RV Sites
  • Standard (Tent/RV)
  • Dispersed
  • Group
  • Tent Cabin
  • Yurts

Features

For Campers

  • Market
  • ADA Access
  • Trash
  • Picnic Table
  • Firewood Available
  • Phone Service
  • Reservable
  • Showers
  • Drinking Water
  • Toilets
  • Pets
  • Fires

For Vehicles

  • Sanitary Dump
  • Big Rig Friendly

Contact

General Info


Reviews

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20 Reviews

Reviewed Sep. 21, 2024

Quiet camping

In Sept the campground was quiet and sparsely populated. Sites were big and fairly well spaced.

There’s 12 miles of hiking trails to explore. You can hear the highway from many of the sites and trails, but for the most part it’s just part of the background noise with the insects and other nature noises.

The park was easily accessible from the highway and easy to get through with a trailer.

Site21A
Month of VisitSeptember
Reviewed Jul. 8, 2024

Very nice and private

We really enjoyed our stay. The privacy, facilities and near by local places to go and explore exceededour expectations.

Month of VisitMay
Reviewed May. 27, 2024

Great place to stay with access to all of Cape Cod

We had an amazing stay at Shawme Crowell State Forest. The campsite we had was very large, private and shady. The playground was also just up the hill from us and was a HUGE hit with our 3 year old. Beaches, biking and hiking all close by along with grocery stores and restaurants if needed. Bathrooms were super updated and always clean!

Site006C
Month of VisitMay
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Kaileigh K., May 27, 2024
Reviewed Sep. 28, 2022

A forest in close proximity to cape Cod Canal.

Each site is nestled in between pines.  Although this is definitely dry camping-water spigots are conveniently placed between sites. Bug spray and fans are a definite when sitting outside due to mosquitoes. If there’s not a full moon be sure to have a reliable flashlight to navigate pathways. The restrooms do have hot showers although unkept and unclean-I was informed they are being upgraded. The woman that are employed here were extremely accommodating, polite and helpful-(hopefully you can read between the lines in this statement).   The campground abuts Heritage Museum and Gardens which is 100 acres of well maintained flowering gardens. Several unique buildings exist on the rolling paved walkways, each with a theme of antique cars, toys etc-there is an admission fee. There is a climbing and propelling area in the back of the property, however neighboring residents discouraged it from staying open-The Pilot House Restaurant as well as Fisherman’s View offer a variety of delicious appetizers, entrees, and martinis. And on a last note -check out Treehouse Brewery-great beer and another beautiful view-log onto their website to preorder tickets.

Month of VisitSeptember
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Kelly F., September 28, 2022
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Kelly F., September 28, 2022
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Kelly F., September 28, 2022
  • (4) View All
Reviewed Jul. 30, 2021

Get what you pay for

MA residents pay only $17. This place is old. Sites not well maintained and not well labeled. Bathroom were old and could could use updating. No services for an RV. But, you are on Cape Cod.

SiteE5
Month of VisitJuly
Reviewed Jul. 28, 2021

Quiet away from the crowd

We have stayed here during our exploration around cape cod. It's a but farther away from the main location, but we loved the quiet and tranquility of this campground.

Hot showers available, but the bathroom is not thoroughly cleaned. I use the same shower stall for 3 nights straight and the same soap was stuck on the exact same spot on the wall for 3 nights straight. The floor is old-dirty due to age, but the shower curtains could use a wash or two.

Dumpster is near the dump station, and that's the only one I found. There are 3 dumpsters and we're overfilled for 3 days. Dump station was clean.

Camp store is near the entrance and it is really hilly to get to on a bike, and a bit too far to walk with a bundle of woods.

Campground 2 (the one in the back), has a really nice playground. The bathroom next to it was clogged when I was there.

At least on weekdays when we were there, it was quiet except for a few revving cars at the nearby roads at night. Staff were all very nice and friendly.

Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Jae H., July 28, 2021
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Jae H., July 28, 2021
Reviewed Jul. 12, 2021

My favorite campground in Mass!

Tents, yurts, powered or not powered. You can have remote-feeling sites, or ones that are close in…and all are “floored” with nice flat cover of dry pine needles from the towering white pines local to this area. A few miles from the north coast of Cape Cod (town of Sandwich), close to beaches and to a lovely long narrow “board walk” across a sea grass / marshland. You can have a campsite with a mountain bike trails leaving your space and ride through miles of trails. You can walk to fabulous shower and bath houses; you can also rent yurts!

Site1 tent site & 1 yurt
Month of VisitOctober
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Barbara G., July 12, 2021
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Barbara G., July 12, 2021
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Barbara G., July 12, 2021
Reviewed Nov. 19, 2020

Great spot for families

Nice spot right over the Cape Cod Canal. Spent many summers here as a kid and was fun to return with my family. We did tent camping here and didn't really explore the grounds. But, our spot was nice. I could hear the cars on the highway off in the distance (hardly).

Reviewed Nov. 16, 2020

Stay here because you want to explore the area

This state forest campground is located just over the Sagamore bridge, across the Cape Cod canal. It's a basic, no-frills campground, with more than half the sites designated as tent only; a few of the sites are designated for tent/pop-up. The tent sites tend to be on short spurs that may be hilly and uneven, so would be difficult to navigate with a trailer or larger vehicle. If you don't have camping gear, there are 6 yurts available for rent, though they were not available during the 2020 covid season. The bathrooms offer showers and are undergoing some renovations in 2020. No hookups, but there is a dump station. 

If you have young kids, they'll love the new playground area. That's really about the only attraction within the campground, though there are some hiking and biking trails. The Cape Cod Canal Bikeway is nearby and provides easy biking and exploration. If you're looking for a beach experience and you'll be there a few days, consider buying a weekly parking pass. During the week, it may be worthwhile to cross back across the Sagamore bridge to visit Scusset Beach State Reservation, but weekend summer traffic will likely make that prohibitive.

If you forgot food, Market Basket is a short distance away.

  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Jean C., November 16, 2020
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Jean C., November 16, 2020
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Jean C., November 16, 2020
  • (113) View All
Reviewed Sep. 14, 2020

Small and cute

Good value for the money. Could hear the traffic on rte 3 in the background at night. No electricity on sites. Good for a couple of nights, but wouldn't want to stay longer than that.

  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Douglas L., September 14, 2020
Reviewed Aug. 22, 2020

Great for the price

The cons: Very basic. No electricity at sites. Small camp store

The pros: Decent privacy.
Not too loud. Wonderful location Awesome playground. Price cant be beat

  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Stacey , August 22, 2020
Reviewed Jul. 31, 2019

Good but a little boring

I like this campground because it is close to home.  There isn't much to do here within the campground.  It has two areas.  The one nearer the camp entrance is smaller than the second.  The second one has a playground while the first one does not.  I would not recommend the first area if you have small children for this reason.  The playground is being revamped and looks awesome so far.  Unfortunately the bathroom right next to it is closed while the playground is being updated.  It is very hilly but many people enjoy riding their bikes here.  When driving, be careful of them.  I've hiked the trails and you have to be careful. They aren't always well maintained or marked.  They are right next to the main highway so you get car noise and can usually see them as well.  I find them to be uninteresting.  There is no swimming on site either.  On the positive side, the campground is within driving distance of great fishing, biking and tourist areas.

Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Paula T., July 31, 2019
Reviewed Aug. 31, 2018

Plenty of sites, perfect for car campers, right price for cape "lodging"

One of my all time favorites. Not super fancy. Your basic car camping. Perfect for new(er) campers and families..

Great way to get on Cape Cod in the summer without a reservations (and off the cape). Super close to Sandwich Town & Scusset beaches. Nice shady sites, clean, well kept, friendly, helpful rangers. Many quaint, private sites considering the number of sites available.

Enjoy!

Reviewed Aug. 25, 2018

Cheapest way to stay at the cape

I would love this place and give 5 stars, IF they didn’t have gypsy moth caterpillar infestation in the spring. I do intend to visit at the end of summer one year.

Everything else about this place is top notch.

Month of VisitJune
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Jessica W., August 25, 2018
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Jessica W., August 25, 2018
Reviewed Aug. 6, 2018

Nice remote campground

We stayed here in October and it was a little too chilly for us to camp but we gave it a shot. The campground wasn't too big and the sites offered a lot of privacy, and some hiking trails within the campground. Would definitely recommend!

Month of VisitOctober
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Gina M., August 6, 2018
Reviewed Jun. 3, 2018

Great camping at Cape Cod

Lot's of sites...pretty pine forrest...nice home base to explore the Cape. Dog friendly, fire ring at sites. Good shower houses.

Month of VisitAugust
Reviewed Jan. 9, 2018

Great location. Nice rangers. Basic sites.

My husband and I love Cape Cod. During the summer, you can’t beat camping here. You’re close to great beaches, you can bike the whole stretch of the cape. There’s a ton to do out and about, so even though the sites here are pretty uninspiring (no views or much happening right around the campground) you likely won’t be hanging out there for long.

Just be very careful of ticks! This is Cape Cod, so take tick prevention seriously.

The reason I wouldn’t give this a 5 star review is how close the sites are to each other. We (unluckily) were next to a couple who stayed up late talking, and even though we tried to set up our tent as far from them as we could, we became intimately aware of every detail of their lives!

Site79B
Month of VisitAugust
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Gena F., January 9, 2018
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Gena F., January 9, 2018
Reviewed Sep. 14, 2016

Great Location

The campground at Shawme Crowell is fairly large with a lot of sites to choose from as well as plenty for bigger groups. Most of the sites themselves are also on the larger size. The showers are strategically placed in the middle so could be a longer walk depending on what site you are at. The campground is located in the adorable town of Sandwich, full of beautiful colonial houses and cute shops and restaurants. It's also in Cape Cod so getting to Provincetown, only takes about an hour. Location is great however, I found the traffic from nearby roads, highways and maybe even an airport to be surprisingly loud. If that doesn't bother you than should be a fine place to stay and dog friendly!

  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Kristen B., September 14, 2016
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Kristen B., September 14, 2016
  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Kristen B., September 14, 2016
  • (6) View All
Reviewed Jun. 30, 2016

Shame Crowell

Great forest. Nothing like the rest of cape cod. Lots of pines and trails through the woods. Plenty of space/availability.

  • Review photo of Shawme Crowell State Forest by Matt H., June 30, 2016

Frequently Asked Questions

  • How much does it cost to camp at Shawme Crowell State Forest?

    Camping at Shawme Crowell State Forest can cost between $17.00 and $27.00 depending on the site.

  • Are fires allowed at Shawme Crowell State Forest?

    Yes, according to campers on TheDyrt.com, fires are allowed at Shawme Crowell State Forest, although make sure to check current fire restrictions in the area.