Home is the place in the world where we can just be. For me, this is home. Maybe it's because I was born and raised not so far away, and I've visited the park for years, marking my growth by the granite boulders dispersed throughout the park. Yet, even as a child, I was always drawn to Pawtuckaway, the still waters, the quiet sunset, the loons calling across the ripples in the lake, and the soft pine needles below bare feet.

Pawtuckaway is a great spot to set up camp in New England. It is a preserve for loons and dotted with islands where they nest. It is close enough to the White Mountains of NH and all they have to offer (Lost River, Flume Gorge, etc.), NH's seacoast and colonial Portsmouth, the seacoast of Southern Maine with its widow's walks and seafaring charm, and Boston with all of its heritage, history, and great food.

The campground and park offer several amenities, including a swimming beach, boat rentals, snack bar, playground, showers, and a small campstore where firewood and ice are sold. There is a grocery store, a laundromat, and a Dunkin' Donuts only a few minutes from the park. If you are not from New England, you may not understand the Dunkin' Donuts reference, but trust me, it's relevant. There are several shower houses, although hot water may be an issue--or maybe it was just getting in after a woman decided to stand under the shower for 40 minutes while others were waiting?

The camping is divided into three main areas: Horse Island, Big Island, and Neal's Cove. All offer lakefront campsites, and there is at least one remote, hike-in site on Big Island. The lakefront sites easily accommodate kayaks and canoes for instant access to the water. The campsites are all very spacious and fairly private.

When visiting, site selection is everything (as we discovered). We first ended up with an interior site. A handful of the sites on Big Island, and even in Neal's Cove may be lying next to a wet, muddy and wooded area--and # 97 was one of those. In the evening so many mosquitos swarmed our site that we couldn't stand outside long enough to cook (we didn't even dare to open our mouths). That was a Saturday night. On Sunday, campsites opened up that were otherwise available for the rest of our stay. We swapped our reservation to site number 6 on Horse Island. Our family picked up the still-pitched tent and marched it down the road with air mattresses hanging out of the back of our van. Site 6 was absolutely amazing (and there wasn't a single mosquito). The breeze from the lake and lack of standing water makes these sites ideal (not to mention, they are lakefront). Lesson learned: be weary of interior sites! Some of the interior sites are on high ground and quite fabulous, offering few mosquitos, but a few them are an absolute disaster.