Cynthia K.

Hartford, CT

Joined August 2018

Choose your site carefully

We took the family up here for a long weekend. The weather wuickly made this an overnight stay instead, as the rain was relentless. Our site (#6) was on a slope, and there was the telltale sign of stormwater runoff tracks running through the middle. We pitched our tents to the left and the right, which worked out well because the next day we had a stream running through our site. The hiking trails were extremely wet and muddy (even before the rain) so we didn't get too explore very much.

They have great firewood here - kiiln dried cedar for $7 a bundle! And the restrooms were fairly clean. The boat launch area looked great, but we didn't get our kayaks in due to the weather.

Before we packed up, we took advantage of a break in the rain to get photos of as many sites as we could. Hopefully they'll come in handy for future campers.  These were all taken after several hours of heavy rain, so the photos should give you a good idea of what sites have drainage issues.

Not your average camping experience

We spent a weekend here on a tent site close to the beach. There was no parking at our site, but the parking lot was only 25 yards away so it was not an issue. Our site (27) was large enough for an 8 person tent, 4 person tent, EZ Up, and a pop up dog house for our pooch. We also kept our 2 kayaks on our site during our stay.

Being so close to the beach had its pros and cons. The pros were the great view, easy put in for our kayaks, and convenience for fishing and trail walking, The cons were the noise during the day from the beachgoers, and the visits from racoons and skunks at night (scavenging the food left by the beachgoers). We ended up leaving earlier than planned to avoid another night with the skunk activity, because we really didn't want to risk driving home with any skunk spray odor. 

The park has a full time bathroom attendant from 8 AM to 8 PM, so restrooms and showers were well kept. There are no ground fires allowed here, but you can rent a portable fire pit from the camp store for $10. Each campsite has a charcoal grill. Wi fi signal was pretty decent. We ordered pizza from Door Dash on our first night here, and that was a very easy experience as well. 

We definitely plan on coming back to this park, although we will probably do a mid week trip next time to avoid the heavy traffic and large crowds. Camping on the oceanfront was a rare treat!

Not My Favorite

We stayed on T67 over Labor Day weekend. This was listed as a prime waterfront site, which is what we look for so that we can launch our kayaks from our site. The map showed a short trail to the water, but it was a 40 foot drop in elevation. We still managed to get our boats down there and lock them up at night near the water. Our site was a tight squeeze for our 8 man tent, 4 man tent and an EX Up over the picnic table.  The campground is in good shape. Clean bathrooms, well maintained roads. Firewood is $6 a bundle and almost all pine. We were at the furthest point away from Rte 9 but we could still hear trucks occasionally. The sounds from within the campground were very loud by virtue of the campground topography. We could hear every shrieking kid and barking dog. But the hiking trails were really cool. I'd go back here, but it wouldn't be my top choice.

Beautifully Well Kept

We camped here for two nights for a mid-week getaway. The park is small, quiet and very well cared for. Restrooms are modern and clean. Everyone seems to adhere to quiet hours so it was easy to get a good night's sleep. There's no difficulty with fires here, because the firewood sold on site is kiln dried and kept in a shed, and the fire pits are 3 - sided concrete block. We had a waterfront site so we could launch our kayaks right from our site. The pond is very weedy, so fishing was not so great, but the hiking trails around the park were fun. Half Moon is a hidden gem!

A very busy park in summer

This state park has a campground and a separate day use area for swimming and picnicking. The campground is family friendly and most of the sites are near the water. If you are looking for privacy and quiet, I recommend the F Loop. The other loops have sites close together and it is generally quite loud during the day. Quiet hours at night are not strictly enforced so you may hear people up and around until midnight or later.

We launched our kayaks from the day use area because the campground boat launch was extremely crowded. From here, we paddled south to the end of the pond and up the Pachaug River, eventually reaching the dam at Pachaug Pond. It's an 8 mile paddle with some tricky spots to navigate, but very pretty! This park also has plenty of trails for hiking and geocaching. The pond has some really big fish, but it's heavily covered with lily pads and there are a lot of submerged trees. If you're going fishing here, a weedless rig is the way to go.

Very Pretty!

We camped here with our dog on a tent site in camping area B. I really appreciated the VT state parks interactive campground map, which allowed us to see the sites from home and choose the one that would suit us best.

The site was large and clean, and relatively quiet even though it was a holiday weekend. Hiking trails are steep, so prepare for a good workout. We were a little confused about the No Dogs signs on the hiking trails, because it contradicted the pet policy on the park map that the ranger gave us. But we were glad to have an out of the way spot to launch our kayaks and take our dog for a boat ride.

Campfire wood was a reasonable price, but all of it was very wet! Fires were a challenge. I'm assuming that this was just a wet season here. Restrooms are about average for state parks. They were definitely cleaned daily. Don't forget to bring quarters for the shower.

Overall it was a great weekend, and we can't wait return!

Great for families

This KOA provides a lot to do for kids and families. The pool is small and usually crowded, but still very well kept. And then there's mini golf, hay rides, and lots of fun planned activities. The only drawback is the proximity to Interstate 95. You can hear the highway very well at night, particularly in the safari field. There are only a couple of "primitive" sites here, and I do not recommend those sites because they are very close to the dumpsters. We always rented a Kamping Kabin when we came here, which is a very basic cabin with bunk beds and a small refrigerator.

If you are looking for a big family friendly resort campground that's close to a lot of the area attractions, this place is for you. If you are looking for more of an authentic camping experience, you can save a lot of money by going to Hopeville Pond State Park which is not too far away.

Great Geocaching!

We camped here as a group covering two sites. The lake was great for kayaking and fishing, although the boat launch is small and narrow so usually there is a wait to use it. The sites were a good size and in good shape. Very narrow parking areas on the sites. Rest rooms were well kept. We spent some time on the hiking trails and found plenty of geocaches, which was awesome.

FYI: This campground is in an area that has no cell reception for most carriers and there is no wi-fi.

Great Kayaking!

We've camped here twice so far and can't wait to be back, This campground is very small and quiet, but the lake and adjoining river offer hours of fun for small craft. Take a long paddle up the river and you'll be escorted by hundreds of bluebirds and cedar waxwings. Fishing here is all catch and release.

The park rangers and camp staff are super friendly and helpful, and the facilities are kept neat as a pin all the time. There are plenty of hiking trails that we have yet to explore, but from the trail heads they look very well maintained.

This part of CT is very rural and quiet, but there is a large grocery store less than 2 miles away for anything you need. And there's Riverside Pizza less than a mile away, I highly recommend it!