Best RV Parks & Resorts near Afton, NY

Not cheap but we’ll within area norms. This camp has many long term campers that are friendly and helpful and some have children with them. Some full-time rigs are weekend campers. Some weekend events are planned. Most sites have full hookups with 50 amp electric only so if needed have an adapter (available at the small camp store. We had an unplanned extension on our visit that included a weekend where a group was scheduled and the park was booked including our site. The friendly staff worked to ensure a temporary site for us for the weekend.

The owners do a fantastic job keeping the campground shipshape. Restrooms/showers are immaculate any time of day. Heated swimming pool and the splash pad for kiddies is spotless as well. Nice, pull-through on gravel pad withfull-hookups that can take large rigs. Lake is lovely for fishing/kayaks/canoes. Seasonal campers are tidy. Only a few tent sites with water & electricity tucked into woods. Larger pull-through sites don't get a lot of shade, but there are back-in sites for shorter campers in wooded sites and shaded lake front, as well. Campground store sells ice-cream & nachos and supplies. Campground is pretty quiet during the week, but fills up on weekends with guests using own (or renting) golf carts. Activities on weekends. The campground sits atop one of NEPA's "rolling hills" in quiet, rural farming area. Cell service is spotty. Local winery/cafe just down the road for tastings and lunch. Row boat, paddle boat rentals.

We were just passing through on a rainy night, but this park would be a good choice for a multi-night stay. 

Activities for a Multi-Day Stay

• Swimming in the lake, golfing, boating, fishing, multi-use trails for hiking or mountain biking

• You're only about 20 minutes from the Binghamton/Johnson City area. For us, that means food and craft beer.

Sites in the Chipmunk Camping Area

• Parking pads in the non-electric section are dirt/grass. Some of the pads are short; this section is geared toward tent campers. We found a site long enough to easily accommodate our vehicle and teardrop trailer (30 ft total) since we didn't want to detach for a one night stay. Even if the pad wasn't that long, there are other pads wide enough to handle a vehicle and trailer like ours side by side.

• Parking pads in the electric loops (30 amps and 50 amps) have a good amount of gravel.

• We usually prefer sites on the outer part of a loop, and this was no exception. The sites have more trees.

Amenities

• Electricity at about 1/3 of the sites

• Pretty good restrooms/showers

• Water spigots on the loops and more water at the dump station

• Trash disposal

• Playground at the beach area, not the campground

Wildlife

• Beware of raccoons. They are brazen thieves here...and every campground they inhabit. Just don't leave your food out.

• The park brochure warns of the occasional bear but that's true even in towns all over NY. I doubt you'll see one.

• Deer are all over. Watch out for them on the roads. We had four that were feeding behind our site in the morning.

We tried this campground a few times for short stays and ended up going seasonal last year and will do the same this year. It is a little off the beaten path but is great for families (plenty of activities for kids) and pets (our dog LOVES it there). They have a pool, fishing pond, hiking trails, mini golf, playground, large grassy areas for kids to play, and horseshoe pits. There is a store (stocked with grocery staples/snacks but also TONS of RV specific supplies/parts), laundry and showers (a new and improved bath house is currently being built). There are planned activities almost every weekend during the 'season' but they are open all year with some winter sites available. They have all sites available from tent right up to 50 amp full hook-ups. I can't wait for the new season to begin in April!

Had a great summer camping weekend at Little Pond.

Pros:

- Near wonderful, little-used hiking trails - challenging ones, too!

- Close to Catskill town options to explore, e.g. Livingston Manor

- picnic table and room to park at your site

- there is a dump station and recycling center.

- Clean bathrooms and shower facilities

- Nice tent sites with well-maintained fire pits (have rack for grilling over coals, very large fire pits, sturdy)

- payphone near entrance/park ranger's office

- firewood for sale at ranger's office

-wildlife: hummingbirds on the path around Little Pond, frogs, deer, birds

- foraging: plaintain, raspberries near camp, blueberries and huckleberries on hike

- views on hike

- ruins on hike

Cons

- no cell service, however, if you hike to a mountain top can have fun joking with those you call about that's what it took to be able to get a signal and be in touch with them :-)

- weekend around the lake is more like a park with day-trippers, as opposed to serene wilderness/lakeside camping. 

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There was a high school group (on Satuday?) there that made it feel more like a family/public place than a wilderness getaway. The hiking, however, more than made up for it. The trail we took to get to the top and, at last, have cell phone service and AWESOME views more than made up for that.

The Park Rangers were helpful and unobtrusive. They drove their carts around periodically but not like they were hovering in any one spot or making trouble for anyone. 

We like visiting the nearby towns and breweries. It was a wondrful weekend. They have some tent sites right on the lake for hike-ins. If you drive, you have to carry all your stuff for awhile before you get to yourcamp site. However, these are right on the lake in supreme spots, even with "old school" outhouses a stone's throw away.

I recommend Little Pond for a weekend. If you stay longer, be sure to check  out the surrounding area. We stayed at campsite 2, which was ok, but not on the lake. Go for a site on the lake, even if you have to carry your stuff to set up, it was breathtaking in the morning to see the mist rising off the lake.

From the park: 

Campground Phone:(845) 439-5480 Regional Office Phone:(607) 652-2032 Make Your Camping Reservation: ReserveAmerica

Little Pond is a quiet picturesque campground located in the Catskill Forest Preserve which offers a leisurely hiking trail around a 13-acre pond, and the opportunity to venture along trails leading to the ruins of an old farm or enjoy breathtaking views atop the Touchmenot Mountains.

The campgrounds, beach, boat rental, and Junior Naturalist Program offers fun for all ages; and for the primitive camper, we offer remote sites on the back side of the pond. Little Pond is located minutes from Beaverkill, a world renowned fly fishing stream. Amenities = 67 tent and trailer sites; 8"remote" tent sites; picnic area with tables, grills, or fireplaces; pavilion rental; playground; volleyball; horseshoes; soccer; basketball; ice sales; firewood sales; flush toilets; hot showers; trailer dump station; recycling center; sand beach; boat launch; rowboat, paddle boat, kayak and canoe rentals.

The campground offers accessible campsites with a mile long trail around the pond. A newly constructed ADA fishing platform is at the end of the trail near the day use area. There is also a new ADA path to the beach. Full listing of DEC's Accessible Recreation Destinations. Campsite Restoration Project This campground has sites that have been selected for restoration. While undergoing restoration the chosen sites will be closed. For the list of sites and more information on the project visit the Campsite Restoration Project page. People using the accessible trail at Little Pond Featured Activities boating Boating No motor boats allowed. Rowboats and canoes allowed. Rowboat, paddle boat, kayak and canoe rentals available. fishing Fishing A variety of pan fish.

The Beaverkill, renowned fly fishing stream, is with minutes from the campground. The Pepacton Reservoir is also close by. A special permit is needed to fish in this reservoir and can be obtained from the city of New York Board of Water Supply. Record sized brown trout and smallmouth bass have been caught in the reservoir. Fishing licenses are no longer being sold at any of our campground facilities, but can be conveniently purchased on-line or by phone.

Hiking Trailheads for both the campground trail and Little Pond trail are located within the campground. These trails connect the campground to the 33 miles of foot trails located on the 27,000+ acre Delaware Wild Forest, which boarders the campground to the north. swimming

Wildlife to Watch: White-tailed deer Wild turkeys Bald eagles Bears Coyotes Foxes

Historic Interest: The campground was constructed between 1965 and 1968. It opened for camping in 1968 with 67 sites; the picnic area and the beach in 1968. The 8 remote sites were added at a later date. The shower house was constructed in 1984. In celebration of the 100th year anniversary of the Forest Preserve in July 1985, a time capsule was buried in the campground. This capsule, containing the names of the persons camping in the campground at that time, was entombed in the base of a stone monument located in front of the facility supervisor's office. The capsule is scheduled to be opened on the 200th anniversary of the Forest Preserve.

We had a great time despite cold wet weather. Our site was probably one of the worst in the place but we were able to scope out others that we would prefer for our next visit. We didn’t have a view of the lake, instead we were in someone’s back yard lol. It wasn’t a big deal. The site was well maintained and flat which were the most important. Most of the sites seem to be on the smaller size when compared to other campgrounds we’ve been too. That said we had plenty of space, it was just very close to the next site. We were on the far side of the lake which is not really within walking distance of the beach, pool and store. We knew this going in and were totally OK with it. I seemed less busy where we were as far as cars and people which is what we were looking for. We hopped in the car and drove the 2 mins to get to the beach. There was always parking. If you stay closer to those things it would be easy to walk & ride bikes to the different activities. The bathrooms were the cleanest we’ve ever experienced at a campground. *The showers are coin operated. The staff were so accommodating and everyone was super nice. There is a lot for younger kids to do and the grounds are pet friendly which was a huge plus for us. My kids really loved having a pool to swim in,in addition to the lake.

My take always:

• Get a site on the lake.

• You won’t have a ton of privacy but you’ll have space for your stuff.

• If you don’t want to drive during your stay, camp on the side w/ the beach and pool.

• The store has a huge selection of necessities, so no need to worry about forgetting things.

• This is a great place to bring an RV.

• Great for families. It would be a great place to camp with extended family.

• Pet friendly. They have a beach for swimming with your dogs

This park is technically a “state park” because the land for it was donated to the state for public use. However, once the state became the official stewards, there werent funds in the state budget to maintain it as a park. A lical group, the Friends of Salt Springs, stepped up and offered to maintain the park with funds raised by their group. The result is a small but unique property open to the public for day use (picnicking and hiking and fishing) along with 2 small rustic campgrounds. One campground has a large open mowed grassy meadow with level sites for car camping or small campers, no hookups are available but each site has a fire ring and picnic table. On the other side of the parks trout stream are seven secluded primitive hike-in tent sites along with three basic camper cabins. The Friends of Salt Springs makes a good effort to maintain these two rustic campgrounds, however it seems there isnt a ranger on site at night so a camper said the meadow campground can get a little noisy some nights. The hike in sites are relatively quiet and secluded though, and are positioned nicely along the stream, one site actually adjacent to a good swimming hole.

The camper cabins are basic with bunks, bring all your own gear. They are fairly new and have electricity but no water or heat.

On the grounds in the day use area are picnic spits, a pavilion, and an activity barn. When I was there, the barn was featuring a local quilt show.

The special aspect of this park are the hiking trails through old growth hemlock forest, said to be the largest hemlocks in Pennsylvania. The trout stream also cascades through some some waterfalls, and there are gorges with unique geology.

There is a village nearby with limited supplies, you may want to stock up on groceries before heading out to this somewhat remote park. There is, however, a local brewery, plus an odd coffee shop featuring both donuts and ammo, an unusual combination…..