Welcome to Brighton State Park, located on the shores of Spectacle Pond. The outstanding attraction of this area is its remoteness: mountains with tree-covered slopes, fast running streams, and clear lakes. It is common to hear loons calling at night. The wild lands to the northeast and southeast of the town of Island Pond are suited to the angler, the hunter, or the outdoor lover who likes to roam away from developed roads or towns. Logging roads into the deeper reaches of this area offer adventurous side trips.

Island Pond enjoyed a heyday from the late 1800's until the Depression years, along with the fortunes of the Grand Trunk railroad between Montreal, Canada and Portland, Maine. Island Pond was the site of the first international railroad junction in the United States. At the height of the town’s population, its streets were lively with railroad men and loggers, most of whom rode in on one of the 13 rail tracks that passed through town. A mere two tracks remain today. The unique wooden bridge, which once held all 13 tracks, is gone, but the heritage of railroading is still evident in the well-kept train station and a few associated structures at the north end of town.

Cabin at Brighton State Park
The park has five cabins available to rent
There are 5 cabins, 54 tent/RV sites and 23 lean-to's. All three restrooms have flush toilets, hot and cold running water and coin-operated hot showers. A sanitary dump station is available, but there are no hookups. There are hiking trails, a campers' beach with boat rentals, a nature museum, an amphitheater, a garage theater, and a play area. At the nearby day use area (at the southern end of Island Pond) there is a long, sandy beach, a bathhouse with restrooms, and boats available to rent.

There are 5 cabins at the park that are available to rent. They are all located near the waterfront.

Brighton State Park Campground

A beautiful cozy little park with allot to do for the whole family, we went late to see or hear allot of loans but we still heard some we'll definitely be camping here again!

The Northeast is the best! 

Great campground with VERY clean restrooms. Campsites are private and the place is often not busy affording extra privacy. 

Great for biking KT

great place to relax, good for kids, hiking, biking, kayaking, and canoeing

peaceful

I usually don't camp near other people, but I really like this site. I think every site has a waterfront view. They rake the sites after people leave so everything is neat and tidy and as flat as possible for your tent. The bathroom is pretty large. Has running water and flushing toilets. I believe even a shower if I remember correctly. The easy boat access from right our our tent flaps basically, was awesome. I loved being able to just jump in the boat and float around, especially at night to look at the sky. There were loons calling every night also which I love.

Near by are all sorts of awesome hiking trails. Boreal forest. THE best. Some of my favorite photos from hiking, and the trail names/maps are below. The Moose Observation Platform is no lie. We saw one, crossing the road right by it when we were about to give up! it was too dark for a good photo at that point, but at least we found one!

Great Group Camping area

Many campsites, some close together, some more remote, all very pleasant and well kept. Ice and fire wood for sale on site.

Woodlands/lakeside

Clean, beautiful state park.  Love camping in the lean-tos!  My boyfriend &amp; I camp here on a yearly basis with his fam.  Love listening to the loons in the morning. 

Yearly Trip

We stayed here only a few days after the campground opened due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. They were certainly quite busy for only their 3rd day open this season. It was also evident that they are still working out a few kinks as they adjust and adapt to serve campers among lot's of new mandates. Be patient with the staff, as they are busy and appear to be under staffed. 

  

Note: there are several services that are not available due to the pandemic and cabins are not available for the 2020 camping season. Check in is at 2 and check out is at 11, it was our experience that early check-ins and late check outs are not allowed so just know that upon arrival.

  

There are just over 60 sites available in three separate loops. The second loop has a new bath house that is very clean and provides 3 toilets per gender and 4 unisex quarter operated showers. The showers are very clean and nice, as well as reasonably priced in my opinion. The bath house buildings in the other two loops are older and offer three toilets and a single coin operated shower inside the bathroom. The price (see photo) is quite non-specific. 

  

There are many lean-to shelters available which we thoroughly enjoyed given that it rained almost the entire time we were there (most of the pictures are from the day we arrived, and the only dry moments we had). The lean-to made our stay much more enjoyable than it would have been otherwise. 

  

Most sites are up above the water, well shaded and quite large. There are a few sites that are down on Spectacle Pond. The fishing was super slow but still fun. And as others have said, the loons are quite vocal during the evening and morning hours. 

  

The park manager, Ryan, was nice but seemed overwhelmed when we arrived. Again, they just opened with a ton of new rules so I can understand why he seemed frazzled. He did ask if there was anything else we needed to make our stay more enjoyable.

  

Just down the road is a nice day use area with a beach, changing rooms and restrooms. If you arrive early, it is a nice place to spend a little time while you wait for 2:00 p.m. to come around.

Great Vermont State Park

We did a lot of camping this year, but we really loved the remoteness of Brighton State Park in September. It was too cold for swimming, but the leaves were just starting to turn. We stayed in the Poplar lean-to, which was very private, with a short trail leading down to the lake. Some of the other sites are right on the water, which would have been nice too!

  

Great trails right in the park, including the Shore Trail and the Boreal Forest loop. There are lots more trails to discover just a short drive from the park. We visited just as the foliage season was getting underway, end of September (right now) is peak this year. 

  

100% recommend this campground and am already planning next year's trip!

Best Camping of 2020!

The campsite itself is beautiful. Maintance on campground is very well attended and kept very clean all over. It is on a gorgeous lake to sit by on the beach and watch the stars at night. Camp sites are not too close together for privacy. Cleanest showers I’ve seen at any campsite so far. ￼￼

Amazing !!

Wooded sites, some a bit less private than others. Beach for swimming / paddling. Lean to options. There were some larger groups while there. Staff very helpful. 