Best Tent Camping near Washington, NH
Several tent campgrounds dot the rural landscape surrounding Washington, New Hampshire, offering a mix of established sites and backcountry options for tent campers. Tully Lake Recreation Area provides walk-in tent sites with picnic tables and fire rings, while Cardigan Campsites offers more primitive tent camping options near Mount Cardigan. Both locations maintain vault toilets, though amenities vary significantly between different tent camping areas in the region.
Most tent sites in the Washington area require campers to park in designated lots and walk to their camping locations, with distances ranging from 50 yards to nearly a mile at some locations. Sites typically feature basic dirt or gravel tent pads with minimal improvements. Toilets are available at established campgrounds like Tully Lake and Sunapee State Park, but many backcountry sites along the Appalachian Trail have only basic privies. Several tent campgrounds enforce fire restrictions during dry periods, and campers should verify current regulations before arrival. Water sources can be seasonal and unreliable, particularly at primitive tent sites.
The tent camping experience near Washington provides significant privacy compared to RV-focused campgrounds. Areas with walk-in tent sites often feature more secluded camping spots surrounded by forest. The Appalachian Trail shelters offer rustic backcountry tent camping options with varying terrain quality for pitching tents. Tent sites at Tully Lake offer waterfront access for swimming and paddling, with rental equipment available at some locations. A visitor commented, "We stayed at site 1, which was HUGE and extremely private. Sites closer to the water were less private, but still very peaceful and spread out." Backcountry tent campers should note that cell service is spotty to non-existent at most primitive tent sites in the region.
