Whether you're an RVer or tent camper, Upper Jay, NY is a great place to post up for the weekend—or longer. Upper Jay is a great camping destination for everyone. There are tons of nearby hikes, adventurous activities, and sights to see. At The Dyrt, campers like you share their favorite spots, plus tips and photos. No matter where you're headed in Upper Jay, you'll find the best spot for you and your camping crew.
"The KOA was recently moved from a different location, so some pictures see on a Google search are no longer the location."
"I have done tent, cabin and t.v. camping here. a lot of family activity in my favorite place. the outdoor choices are plenty, but the campground is slipping trying to be too much and seems to let the infrastructure"
$30 - $40 / night
"Great campground with secluded sites most with woods behind each site, especially the tent area. The RV and tent camping is well separated and there are different kinds of RV space available as well."
"Each site includes a fire ring and picnic table. The office sells firewood. Both bath houses were adequate, even containing shampoo and body wash. Staff was friendly."
$25 - $55 / night
"We stayed at the Heart Lake Campground for a week and a half utilizing it as our home base for adventures into the High Peaks Wilderness and the greater Adirondack region."
"There’s no explaining the views around here. The mountains are beautiful, Lake Placid is beautiful, and this campsite is amazing."
$18 / night
"It's an average campground, but has a really good location between Lake Placid and Saranac Lake.
Our site had the standard DEC picnic table and fire pit."
"This is a very basic campground situated in a small village in the Adirondacks – situated between Saranac Lake and Lake Placid. "
"Sites were a medium distance apart but still spacious enough to not be close to neighbors."
"3 night stay, tent camping on a site with water and electric. The site we had was quite large, I had booked an end site (#73) hoping it would be big!"
$22 - $40 / night
"There are restrooms located convieniently throughout the park so you never have to walk more than a few sites no matter where you are."
"Most of the campsites at Fish Creek Pond are along the waterfront, offering easy access to the pond. Some campers even build temporary docks that they leave behind for subsequent campers."
$37 - $100 / night
"Spaced out under trees.
Sites 1 to 16 are close to each other.
Sites 113 to 119 are bad. Very close to each other. No redeeming qualities."
"The camp office is small, but has information on area attractions, Ice, and fire wood. The bathhouse/restrooms were well kept during our stay even with the volume of campers at the site."
"The first is where you'll find the lean-tos and the dog trail/beach. This area is super quiet, offers a bit of shade, and plenty of privacy."
"We selected it because it was nearby for our second outing with our new (used) R-Pod camper. Turns out it's a wonderful park."
"We didn't advance book, so we were in one of the last available spots. Site 2 is a flat, gravel back in, 30 amp, full hookup."
"Very nice place, easy to book reasonable price because of winter season they close the bathroom, but there is a jiffy John waste, dump station have water and laundry, if needed "
$6 - $28 / night
"Really shady and the campsites are private enough. They do really enforce those quiet hours. Also the WiFi only really works near the office and is very spotty so I wouldn’t rely on it."
"We stayed at a leanto, which have the better views of the lake! These sites are the same price, so it is worth it. The campground has a trail to the shore line, which is nice!"
TravelerI have stayed here many times over the years, usually for a 10-18 day stretch at a time. This is one of my favorite places. Most sites are right on the water. Square pond is a lovely little lake that connects to a larger lake (Upper Saranac I believe) by passing through a canal. This campground has great facilities. There are restrooms located convieniently throughout the park so you never have to walk more than a few sites no matter where you are. There are hot showers located at one end of the park and a dump station for RVs. The restrooms and showers are cleaned daily. There is a great little general store just outside the park that sells pretty much anything you could want. Sites are equipped with a table and fireplace (most have grates). There are vendors that drive through the park daily selling wood, ice cream (from an old fashioned wagon, get the moose tracks!), and ice. There is a boat supplier that travels the lake every morning and evening dropping off and picking up kayak and canoe rentals. If you love water front camping this is for you! The park is pet friendly but you need to show proof of vaccines. There are great things to do nearby like the Adirondack Museum, Lake Placid, and beautiful hiking spots. You can have power boats and jets skis on the lake as well as non motorized boats. Some of the best sunsets I have ever viewed happened right here. Quiet hours are taken very seriously and rangers walk the park at night warning rowdy fireside folks to quiet down. However, as dusk turns to night, you can always count on the chorus of yodels going back and forth across the lake. This is a wonderful spot! Check it out! You won’t be sorry! Oh, but sites go on sale nine months in advance through reserve America and the best spots wind up booked for the season pretty quickly.
LegendWe've been camping at Button Bay for years, and while it can be hot and buggy in the summer months, there is no place we'd rather be in September! There are two campground loops to choose from. The first is where you'll find the lean-tos and the dog trail/beach. This area is super quiet, offers a bit of shade, and plenty of privacy. We almost always get the Catalpa or Willow lean-to because we bring dogs and it's easy for them to run to the lake and cool off.
The second camping loop has a few waterfront camping cabins, which we are dying to check out, but haven't yet. The main camping area is essentially a huge field, so not much shade or privacy. The benefit of this area is that it's closer to everything - the playground, pool, nature center, kayak and canoe rentals, and the trail out to the point. There are also amazing views of the lake and the mountains right from the camping area.
I think this is one of the best state parks in Vermont for families with kids, and for dogs. There isn't a great place to swim in the lake here, although plenty of people swim off the point. There is a nice pool, but it closes after Labor Day weekend. If you want to swim in Lake Champlain, I highly recommend Kingsland Bay State Park, just a few miles north.
Definitely hike the short nature trail out to Button Bay Point. It's especially lovely in the evening as the sun is setting. Enjoy!
GuideThis is the only campground in the area I will stay at. It has so many benefits, I may not be able to do it justice in this review. The sites are huge. We fit two camper vans, two tents and put up a 20x20 rain tarp on Site 5. The site was freshly raked when we got there, and the leftover wood was stacked next to the fire pit. Picnic table easily seats 8. Lots of bathrooms around the park, each with showers. Firewood and Ice, along with some necessities are available at the office. Cell phone service is touchy depending on where you are in the park. There is fresh water available. Lots of activities to do here, from the Nature Center and hiking trails to seriously wicked mountain biking trails designed by Mr. Knight overlooking the reservoir where boating of all kinds is allowed. And the fishing in the river below is quite stellar. There's even an abandoned town up on top of the mountain for younto check out.
LegendWe stayed at Meadowbrook over Memorial Day weekend in 2024. It's an average campground, but has a really good location between Lake Placid and Saranac Lake.
Our site had the standard DEC picnic table and fire pit. There are showers (the hot water was broken the day we were there, but the attendant said we could go to nearby campgrounds to use theirs), toilets, and water spigots. I had decent Verizon signal.
The sites were clean, but the fire pit was showing its age. We stayed in site 37, which was a bit more private and surrounded by trees. The sites in the two loops closest to Rte 86 (#1-13, 27-34, and 51-62) were much closer together, and some didn't have trees between sites. Even at our more "isolated" site, we could still see our neighbors.
The bathroom was actually one of the nicest I've seen in a DEC campsite; it looked like it had recently been rebuilt.
There are positives and negatives about the location. On the plus side, there's ice cream and places to eat within walking distance. We also forgot lunch for our hike the next day and were able to walk to a convenience store to grab supplies. And if you're doing things in Lake Placid and Saranac, the location is tough to beat. On the minus side, there's a bit of road noise and some of the campsites looked like they had great views of a parking lot.
RangerThe KOA was recently moved from a different location, so some pictures see on a Google search are no longer the location. This newly acquired property has 2 sides, the mountain side and river side you can choose when booking they are about 1/4 mile away from one another. This campground is very maintained. The campground on the mountain side has a playground, huge store, gem mining, arcade (which needs some love), hiking trails and a common area with some games. They have cabins, tent site areas, and huge wooded camper sites. The mountain side in general is my ideal campground full of trees and nature. The bathrooms were always clean and shower areas had great water pressure. The river side is new and on the side of the river but has you baking in the sun 🌞 there is no trees at all for shade. And there is no separation between you and the next person. There is only camper sites on that side. On the river they have a small place to put in kayaks and wade in water. They have a jumping pad on that side also. Both sides have the tractor driving around, pulling the kids around. The area is awesome with beach access along the river with a huge playground. Your at the bottom of whiteface mountain which is full of hikes and watering holes to swim in, lake placid downtown area is 20 mins away. Its a beautiful area. The girl working in the store Kyla rocked and her gf Jess who drove around on the golfcart and helping out everywhere were so fun. They lived on site and were such great people who made the trip more fun!!
LegendMost of the campsites at Fish Creek Pond are along the waterfront, offering easy access to the pond. Some campers even build temporary docks that they leave behind for subsequent campers. Most of these sites are huge and provide areas that are relatively flat, even if some parts slope toward the pond. Sites in the low 130s tend to be narrower. The sites ring the pond; at night you can see the lights of campers on the opposite bank and listen to the call of the loons. At 10pm, Taps will ring out to mark the beginning of quiet hours. The firepits are deteriorating and do not have grates. Mine was half filled with debris, ash, and the previous campers discarded food.
Bathrooms throughout the campground provide toilets and running water in old CCC constructed buildings that have been renovated somewhat and are clean, but small with a single sink. They also come with a warning not to leave items plugged in because of risk of fire or theft. A newer, large, centrally located bathroom provides showers.
The day use area and beach were closed for the summer of’20 due to COVID-19 restrictions.
There are two entrances to the campground, but one of them is closed in the evening. Depending on the direction of your arrival, you may need to continue past the first entrance you reach. Signs will direct you even if Google doesn't!
There’s a trading post just over the bridge from the campground where you can buy gas, necessities, order a sandwich, pizza, or barbecue(daily menu posted in back by the deli). In the parking lot out front, there’s an ice cream truck that’s open in the afternoon. If you’re looking for paddling maps, check behind the counter at the trading post or at nearby Hickock Livery.
There's a bike trail in the campground and you'll see lots of kids on bikes. In addition to the numerous paddling opportunities in the area, several of the surrounding towns have created hiking challenges featuring 3-9 easy to moderate peaks in their vicinity. Tupper Lake offers not only a hiking triad, but a paddling triad. The reward for completing each series is a patch. Occasionally a single bar of coverage on Verizon, very spotty and random, so I left my phone on airplane mode most of the time.
On my last morning, I finally spotted through the mist the loons that had entertained me with their calls throughout my stay - 6 of them!
LegendThis is a very basic campground situated in a small village in the Adirondacks – situated between Saranac Lake and Lake Placid. Every site has a picnic table and an open fire grill and most of the sites on the outer ring have a lot of privacy as they are lined with trees and shrubs. Lots of spaces for larger RV’s, but we saw mostly tent campers.
Bathrooms are mostly clean and the showers are nice. There is a quality dishwashing sink by the bathrooms. Overall, the campground is ok, but needs a bit of a facelift, repainting, etc. Also, you can hear the sounds of the city (cars, leaf blowers, and other things that remind you that you are not truly in the woods).
The best part about this campground is that it is conveniently located between two awesome places and is relatively inexpensive, so if you don’t plan to spend much time in the campground itself, it’s perfect.
We used this campground as a basecamp to mountain bike on an awesome trail just outside of Saranac Lake, the Bloomingdale Bog trail. The following day, we did a quadrathlon that involved kayaking the length of Lake Placid, hiking to the summit of Whiteface Mountain, kayaking back, and then finished the day at Lake Placid Pub and Brewery for dinner. Highly recommended, but plan on a 9-10 hour day on the lake/trail!
With its central location, this campground is close to everything you may need, most even within walking distance.
GuideGreat campground with secluded sites most with woods behind each site, especially the tent area. The RV and tent camping is well separated and there are different kinds of RV space available as well. The showers are a bit gross, but free. The cabins look nice but a little close together. They don’t pick up the phone right away so call a few times to get ahold of someone. We had water/electric for a trailer at $35 a night in perfect location between Keene Valley and Lake Placid. Sites were clean and the fire pits were beautiful! We camped in site 45 and were pleasantly left alone.
ScoutI have done tent, cabin and t.v. camping here. a lot of family activity in my favorite place. the outdoor choices are plenty, but the campground is slipping trying to be too much and seems to let the infrastructure slip. it is owned by corporate KOA and it shows that the making money is more important than making it a home away from home that I use to love.. still will come back
Cabin camping near Upper Jay, New York, offers a perfect blend of nature and comfort, allowing you to enjoy the great outdoors without sacrificing the comforts of home.
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