Best Cabin Camping near Hull, MA

This campsite loop at Myles Standish State Forest is closest to the headquarters and borders a small pond with beach. In addition to tent/RV sites, there are 3 yurts available with bunks. Sites that appear to be near the pond are pond view rather than pondside. Approaches to Yurt JC and J5, J 26, J27 are sloped. J14 is a little awkward. J33 is probably among the largest and nicest with a pond view. The sites aren't as large as those in the Charge Pond loops, but it's a smaller campground.

The loop has flush toilets and showers. Water is available, but no electric hookups. Fire rings and picnic tables provided. Cell phone coverage throughout the forest is poor to absent; download maps for offline use if you want to be sure to know where you are or find directions. There are miles of bike trails and ponds for fishing, swimming, and boating. There's a larger beach and picnic area at College Pond.

We stayed at the campground and loved it. School started late so we were able to book after the holiday in September. Weather was still warm. Pool was good, pond was great.  It was not crowded that time of year, so it was very enjoyable. We really enjoyed the beach raft, able to kayak and did some fishing. 

Kids loved the little pool slide. Also enjoyed the golf cart rentals.  The only disappointment was that they did not have a fire pit at the rented cabin that we were allowed to use. That was disappointing. It’s one of the key things you do when camping, that needs to change. However we have booked rentals for this year and are looking forward to going back.

The campground itself is beautifully wooded with mature pine trees. However, the sites are packed so tight you can barely maneuver in and out. We only have a 17' travel trailer pulled by a Ford Explorer and had great difficulty backing it in. I did not see any pull-through sites. Our site had a picnic table, fire ring and water & electric hookups. When we arrived we were given a rules list (as customary) that strongly threatened to remove anyone who was too loud, including dogs. I was a little worried because our Border Collie sometimes barks when people walk their dogs past our campsite. Anyway... after we went to bed we were awakened by a cacophony of road noises, including trains, trucks, and tractor trailers. Planes sounded like they were flying right above our heads. Trucks sounded like they were dumping rocks only feet from our site. In between those noises, we could hear a group of people partying outside on the deck of a house very close to the campground. This went on well into the night. Even though my husband has poor hearing, he couldn't sleep through all that. And yes, the irony of the campground's stern noise warning wasn't lost on me. We were there 3 sleepless nights. I would suggest bringing quality earplugs if you go there. Oh- and they do not allow you to choose your site. You get what's assigned to you.

I found this campground in a totally roundabout way, while searching for lodging during a field trip to Plimouth Plantation. After discovering it, I decided that we HAD to plan a trip here sometime soon.

Ponkapoag Camp is run by the AMC. The camp is on a beautiful piece of wooded land surrounding a large pond/lake. There are about 25 rustic cabins, and a few tent sites dispersed throughout the camping area. There is a year round caretaker there to help folks check in, and she also sells firewood. Reservations are by mail only, although you can call the caretaker to confirm availability.

Before I continue my review, it is important to note: THERE IS NO ELECTRICITY OR RUNNING WATER.

We brought all our water from home, and it worked well. Make sure you bring campsuds or other eco-friendly soap since the toilets are just outhouses without running water much of the year.

The Cabins:

Each cabin has between 2-6 beds. The mattresses in our large cabin were brand new dorm style mattresses, which were slippery but comfortable. The cabins have assorted dressers and shelves for storage, and a table for dining on those bad weather days. The floors are wooden. Many cabins have wood stoves, which is great for the cooler parts of the year. We were there Memorial Day weekend, and needed the stove when it dipped to 40 degrees. Outside of the cabin is a pedestal grill, and a picnic table. My children found trees close by to hang their hammocks.

Upon departure from the camp, you are required to sweep and tidy up the cabin.

The Grounds:

Hiking trails abound on the property. While none of the trails are steep, they all go through beautiful ares, with views of the pond, and interesting rock formations. Blue Hill is within hiking distance, and it is a favorite spot for seeing the sunrise. Apparently you can see all the way to Boston!

The pond itself is a wonderful place for kayaking and canoeing. There are several rocky boulders poking out of the water that make fun spots to discover. The sunsets over the pond are spectacular to watch from the dock.

Getting there: The driveway to the camp is totally unmarked. It is a gate studded with two american flags. When you confirm your reservation (by mail), the caretaker will give you the access code for the gate. We enjoyed being somewhere that was so close to people, but felt so remote and had no traffic.

Downsides: One of the nights we stayed, the flight path to Logan International Airport was right over the campground. We all slept fine, but it was distracting. Thankfully, they change the flight path every night, so it should not happen every night!

WILD ZORA FOOD review:

As a Ranger with The Dyrt, I was given the opportunity to test out food from Wild Zora Foods. https://wildzora.com.

This is a premade meal company, focusing on Paleo and Primal recipes. We tried out a sampler pack of their meat bars, and then two meal-in-a-bag freeze dried entrees. We ended up eating several meat bars while making the trip to the campground, since we were stuck in traffic and everyone was hungry. Our 5 children helped do the sampling. Out of the six flavors (Parmesan Beef, BBQ beef, Mediterranean Lamb, Curry Turkey, Chili Beef, and Taco Pork), our favorites were Parmesan Beef ad Mediterranean Lamb. The other flavors seemed a bit too sweet for our liking. However, the bars were a great substitute for junk food when everyone is hungry. Everyone enjoyed eating them. I liked that they used food such as dates and dried apricots as sweeteners. My children all wanted more. I'd say that one bar would be a good snack for an adult.

We also cooked up a batch of a berry breakfast cacao bowl, and their Chicken Caldera Curry. Both meals were super convenient in their pouches that could be cooked and eaten in. We just poured boiling water in, and let them sit. The Caldera Chicken Curry was well seasoned, and very meaty. I was impressed by how filling it was without needing any rice. The texture was a bit chalky, but overall, it was a great option for a Paleo freeze-dried meal. The berry breakfast meal was less satisfying--but it tasted very fresh, and not overly sweet.

It was fun to test these foods out. When camping with kids, it is often hard to have time to cook a camp meal each night, so having quick options can really make a trip go more smoothly. I recommend checking out Wild Zora if you are interested in a preservative free, high protein freeze dried meal option.

This campground is on the banks of the Cape Cod Canal and owned and operated by the Bourne Recreational Authority. The park has a “state park” kind of feel but with amenities you would find at a private park. There is a wide diversity of activities including fishing, hiking, scheduled activities, a recreation hall with video games and jukebox, and store (outfitted with groceries, ice cream, beverages, and other miscellaneous items). The park is quite large with 465 sites, some of which have views of the canal. 

Bourne Scenic Park is conveniently located near many of Cape Cod’s attractions including beaches, golf courses, historic landmarks, restaurants and shopping. The park is approximately one hour from Boston, Providence and a 30 minute ride to the ferry terminal taking you to Martha’s Vineyard or Nantucket. Closer to the park is downtown Bourne and Buzzards Bay which are just five minutes away and have groceries, fuel, restaurants, shopping, etc. The glass museum in the nearby town of Sandwich is very interesting with live glass blowing demonstrations. You can tour the Cape Cod Chip factory which makes delicious kettle chips.

There are 465 RV sites to choose from that are water/electric (30/50 amp)/cable or no hook-up/tent sites. There are also lodges (with water, electric, cable) and rustic cabins. Of those 465 sites, 50% of them can be reserved for the entire season (April 1st – October 30th) which is nice if you want to stay long-term.  No sites have sewer; however, grey water dump stations are randomly placed throughout the campground and can be accessed with a garden hose. Some roads were paved while others were gravel/sand. Sites and patios were grass, sand, or gravel. There are six pull-thrus and the rest are back-ins. The one thing we did notice was that the site layout in some areas is not traditional meaning they are not all in the same direction and configuration. Some sites run parallel while the next one runs perpendicular. Restrooms and showers are spread throughout the park and were clean. There is a dump station located close to the park exit. 

Leveling was not an issue for us in our site (C-25) but the majority of sites would be a problem for a motorhome to get level without the aid of blocks. In fact, some sites were ridiculously unlevel and took a scary amount of blocks. We choose a pull-thru because of our length. Utilities were well-placed and all worked well. The cable hook-up yielded 99 channels. Campsites have a picnic table and fire pit. There was no wifi but our Verizon phone picked up a strong signal.

This park has lots of amenities - there are two pools, hiking/biking trails, playground, basketball courts, camp store/restaurant, pavilion, and picnic area. The park has live music on Saturday nights and various other activities like sack races and scavenger hunts. We liked that this park had a paved hiking/biking path and was big enough for a good walk. It was in a great location for exploring the Cape and the towns of Sandwich, Hyannis, Buzzards Bay and more. 

The people in the office were super nice and helpful finding us a site. They gave us a map with all available sites for our size and let us drive around to decide. Our site was nice with a large patio and while we were there just before the park closed for the season it was very quiet. 

We were there in the off season and enjoyed that very few people were in the park but we got the feel this place could be really busy in the summer. The park is a little pricey at $48/night but you are on the Cape so they can command that. 

Dog owners will appreciate the paved trail that runs the length of the canal and easily accessible from the campground. There were a couple of hiking trails thru the woods that we found which served well for a dog walk. There is no off-leash dog park but the park is plenty big enough for a long dog walk.

This is resort camping, so don’t come here expecting seclusion out in the woods. The sites fit a family tent, picnic table, fire ring (with plenty of space for chairs) and a vehicle. You don’t have any boundary or open area between sites. The resort shines in its amenities (4 pools, big dog park, disc golf course, bike park, many fields, full program of events, pristine bathrooms and much more). What is just (if not more) impressive as the facilities is the service. The staff goes way above and beyond (opened the playground early for my kids, one driving by me as I was carrying a trash bag to dumpster stopped and told me to toss it in the back of his truck because he was already headed that way (saving half mile walk), and too many more to write in a simple review. It’s much more RV centric than tent camping (80/20 if not more), but there’s a few sections dedicated to tents. Highly recommended, just remember it’s more outdoor resort and not at all living in nature with no people around.

A little tip about GPS: if you’re using Apple Maps, it will likely take you to a turn that is not the campground entrance, there’s even a hand-written sign on someone’s lawn that has directions to the entrance (seems to happen frequently, I guess). We chose this campground because we got a booking discount on the Dyrt app.

Pros: Friendly staff, clean bathrooms, clean grounds, gated campground with card key access in/out of the grounds, 2 pools (closed for the season during our stay), pavilion, activities/entertainment, fairly quiet during quiet hours, laundromat, playground, dog park, boating pond, Horse shoe & Basketball court.

Cons: No hot water for showers, no separation between some tent sites, strong sewer smell in woman’s restroom & on some campsites, late check-in (7:45 p.m.) was a bit tricky — an envelope with a key card and map were placed in a mailbox for us due to store/office closing @ 6 but no mention of this in the confirmation email & long wait time on hold to find out site # (not included in confirmation email). I believe they use a 3rd party company for reservations. You do not get a choice during the online booking to choose the campsite to reserve & the site # is not included in the confirmation email. The mailbox that had our envelope in it was difficult to locate & we may have not found it if it weren’t for a very kind camper that showed us when she saw us looking around confused at the entrance.

So this is a pro & a con, I will try to start with the negative & end with the positive- Our site was in a field that was near the bathrooms. We were on S1, near a septic pipe & there was a severely nauseating, strong smell of sewage coming from it; we went to the front desk the next day & asked to move to S5, as we were the only ones on any of the 6 tent field sites. They were completely fine with it & apologized saying that they recently had someone there to fix the septic concern. We dragged our things down by noon. Within the hr, there was a large canopy tent set up right in between us & the bathrooms that we were now much closer to & there was a band setting up for their afternoon show. The live band was cool but we had golf carts & parked vehicles pretty much surrounding us & some right on our campsite, it was a little awkward. Then around 8, there was a gentleman that started setting up for a comedy show that they would be doing that night. A staff member came to our site and let us know that there is an 18+ comedy show but there was a children’s movie being played on a big screen on the other side of the campground. This was a nice alternative, however it left us with 2 choices: leave our site (with a fire we just started) for a couple hrs & have strangers & golf carts directly on our campsite again or stay on our site, watch the stand up comedy show & hope our 9 yr old won’t get the jokes. We chose to stay. So, here’s the main positive about the events — the band was good & the stand up comedy was awesome. For the most part, the comedians kept it fairly clean & our 9 yr old did not get any of the jokes that were a little sassy. All 3 comedians were clearly aware that there was a child in the audience & one specific comedian (Rob Steen) said right from the get-go that he was going to keep it clean for his bit & use innuendos that would go right over his head. There’s a high likelihood that we wouldn’t have went to see the comedians if it were held at the pavilion because of it being an adult show so we were kind of glad everything unfolded like that because they were really fantastic. We might return to the campground again but hopefully would get the choice of picking a more secluded campsite next time.

General: Over 450 sites (tent 20 amp w/e; 30 amp w/e; 30 amp w/e/s; 50 amp w/e/s; 50 amp w/e; 30, 50 or premium seasonal) 

Site Quality: Generally good. Sites are gravel. We had originally reserved Site 98 but there was a large rock and tree roots making it challenging to position our van. We were able to move to Site 95 which was much better. Each site has a picnic table and rock firepit. Trees provide some amount of privacy between many sites. 

Bath/Shower house: Spotlessly clean. The cleaning schedule indicates it is cleaned three times daily. 

Activities/Amenities:

*Some are seasonal and were closed when we were there in October. These include three pools, a food truck, coffee, and ice cream.

* Others include a pristine laundry room (but you have to purchase a laundry card, so one load is a minimum of $10), shuffleboard, playground, tennis/pickleball, volleyball, basketball, horseshoe pit, soccer and baseball fields, firewood and propane fill, free cable and WiFi, dog park. I’ve probably forgotten a few but you get the idea… 

We chose this campground because of its proximity to the Woods Hole ferry terminal. It is not our typical preferred campground but for one night in the off-season, it was very pleasant. It is billed as a family-friendly campground, and I imagine it would be very different during high season. We gladly forgo seasonal amenities for a quieter stay. The staff was very present and welcoming. Note that it is located on a busy highway and if you are approaching from the south, the turn into the campground is hair-raising! There is some road noise at some sites but not for most of them.

We planned a brief stop in the Boston area with the intent of seeing the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum and Normandy Farms appealed to us for various reasons. One reason was the fact that they have dog walkers that will come to your site and take care of your precious pooch while you are away. Not knowing how long we would be away from the campground that service was a great option. As it turned out, we did not need to use this service but for some it would be a great perk if you were going to be gone all day. And with Boston traffic, we can see how that could happen. By the way, the library is well-worth it.

When you enter Normandy Farms it is more like checking into a hotel than campground complete with a concierge and express check-in. The park is gated and a code is needed to enter and leave giving you a sense of security but I’m not sure it is necessary. Driving in you quickly realize how huge this park is with some 400 RV sites, tent sites, yurts, lean-to’s, safari tents, and cabins. 

There are plenty of sites to choose from the “premium” full hook-up (50 amp) to basic with just water and electric and many others in between. Both back-in and pull thrus are available as are sites with shade and full sun. Premium sites have paved patios while other sites are gravel. Roads are paved and plenty wide enough for big RV’s to navigate. They offer cable television that yielded nearly 100 channels. Wifi worked well at our site and other places throughout the park. All sites come with a fire pit and picnic table. 

We chose a paved full hook-up pull thru with paved patio (Site E1). Our site was easy to navigate in and out of and was definitely big rig-friendly with ample space for our motorhome and tow car. All utilities were well-placed and functioned properly. The site was level. At the time we were there in October the campground was not very busy but we imagine that things get a little crazy when the park is full. 

There is a really long list of amenities for this campground….four pools (include an indoor heated one), fitness room (with elliptical, treadmills, bikes, machine and free weights), creative arts center, camp store, 20,000 square-foot activities building (with adult only lounge, pool table, arcade, games, wide-screen televisions, sauna, Jacuzzi), restaurant, huge off-leash dog park (you can reserve individual day kennels), BMX bike park, horse shoe pits, baseball diamond, volleyball, fishing pond, shuffleboard, disk golf, and playground, and probably a few more things I missed. During the busy summer months there is a long list of activities ranging from yoga to kids games.

Normandy Farms is approximately 35 miles from Boston. If you don’t want to drive to the city, you can park at the nearby train or subway station and ride into the city. You are just five miles from Gillette Stadium (home of the New England Patriots) and Patriot Place (a hub for shopping and dining). About a mile from the campground is Foxboro State Park where you will find 20+ miles of hiking trails. Also within a five mile radius are plenty of restaurants, shopping, hardware store, grocery store, and more. 

Some of the really good features are the huge dog park which has a dog washing station, water fountains for dogs and humans, agility-type obstacles for them to play on, dog kennels, and a bin with balls and Frisbees. I also liked (and used daily) the fitness center which had functioning equipment and a large television to help pass the time while working out – and was never crowded. The large community building has and adult-only lounge which serves as a nice place for people to get together and watch television or hang out without kids. With everything this campground has to offer you can see why it is a destination park for some people as their kids would be busy all day. 

The downside really is the price and how many sites there are. If you are looking for a quiet, peaceful getaway this is not it.