Mt. Ascutney is a monadnock, which means it's a mountain all on its own and not actually part of the Green Mountains. The campground is nestled into the base of the mountain. It's definitely a hiking destination. Otherwise there isn't much to do besides eat s'mores and relax at camp. There's a bit of road noise from the campground, but it's pretty quiet at night.

There are four different trails up the mountain of varying levels of difficulty. You can also drive right to the top and hike around on the summit trails, which are really pretty and pop out onto ledges with gorgeous vistas. There's a nice fire tower at the top, giving you a 360 degree view across the Green Mountains to the east and the White Mountains to the west. You can also see much of the Connecticut River Valley, which is just beautiful.

I almost forgot to tell you about the hang gliders. There's a launch on the summit, and you can watch the gliders on almost any decent day in the summer. It's so much fun. There 's also a great swimming hole called 20-foot hole not far from the base of the mountain. Wilgus State Park is a few miles away. It's a great park for Connecticut River access, especially for paddlers.