Camping around Northern NJ

[jurzdevil]

im searching for a decent place to go camping for a couple of nights in northeastern PA or southern upstate NY. its becoming a real pain though. most places i find and call are to "suburbanized". im talking no campfires, no more than 5 people per site, campsites too close together, bathrooms and showers within walking distance, extra fees for more people or vehicles, family activities such as pools and games and fun bull****. that is NOT camping. thats what jerks from the city do to "get away".


im looking for a place where we go out and find a spot off the side of a crappy dirt road and chope up some dead trees for fire and get wasted if we want too. the bathroom is the hole you kick with your shoe or that bush in the corner. no family business whatsoever. pitch a tent if we feel like it or sleep on the ground.

anyone know of a place like this or as close as possible?

im in sussex county nj so if you know of one it may be close but even if its 2 hours away me and my friends have no problem driving to get there.

 

[ThePresence]

You should drive a little further north. Go to the Adriondack High Peaks region (Lake Placid area). Best camping for miles around. I spent like 8 summers camping in that area. Look at the Marcy Dam/mount Marcy areas. But don't go if you're scared of bears.
EDIT: It's a long drive from where you are, but I guarantee it's worth it.

 

[Judgement]

We used to go up onto the Appalachian (sp?) mountains in PA. I was younger so I don't remember exactly where but it was not a camp ground, there were no fees, no roads, and only a few walking paths.

If you got lost or injured, you were pretty fvcked; it was always really fun though. They had parking lots in a few places where trails started at the bottom. We would just park and then hike it a few miles up and in and find a spot flat enough to set up camp for a few days.

This is probably further away than you were looking for though, but if you can't find anything else I guess you could look into it.

 

[aphex]

<--- Originally from West Milford, but i moved when i was 10 and have been living in FL for the past 13 years so im not much help

 

[Insomnium]

Another vote for the Adirondacks. Went camping in the middle of nowhere next to a small lake there once, and it was awesome. Complete wilderness, and the next campers were about 3 football fields away. Definitely worth going there.

Have you checked out Stokes? I thought Stokes had the type of camping environment you're talking about, or at least it looked like it did the last time I went hiking there.

 

[slick230]

I went camping with a bunch of people a few years ago at Ble Rocks campground, couple of miles west of Allentown, PA. We had a campfire and got drunk as all hell and no problems, and I don't recall anyone else being too near to us. Might want to check them out if you already haven't.

Blue Rocks Campground

 

[jurzdevil]

thanks for the info...looks like its going to be the catskills or farther north like suggested.

stokes is horrible. its full of nyc people in the summer and you are harrassed by rangers for doing anything wrong. but thats expected since its in nj.

the Adirondacks are looking more and more interesting...

 

[Jzero]

If you want to camp, don't call "campgrounds," call state and nat'l parks.

Camping NJ State Parks
Although in the middle of the summer, there may still be restrictions on campfires. Maybe not because it has been reasonably wet this summer.

Edit: Didn't realize drinking was involved State parks probably don't allow it.

Edit2: You can rent a Yurt? I gotta try that. haha.

 

[Eli]

I love living in Oregon.

 

[mikebb]

My friends and I used to go up to Harriman State Park in Rockland Co, NY all the time. Technically, I don't think you were allowed to have fires, but we would just wander far enough into the woods and setup camp.

 

[badmouse]

Good question. I doubt there's anywhere left in NJ that isn't suburbia any more. You don't just wander around and set up a tent and light fires.

 

[Grey]

My friends and brother and I all go here, they never harrassed us when we got obviously drunk. Unfortunately lately there are housing developements creeping out to where they are so it isn't as rural as it used to be. Small trails and usually not that busy when we go.

http://www.beachcomber.com/Nj/Camping/Sky/mtview.html

 

[Jzero]

Originally posted by: badmouse
Good question. I doubt there's anywhere left in NJ that isn't suburbia any more. You don't just wander around and set up a tent and light fires.

Head over to Newark and camp out under a bridge with a fire in a 55-gal drum?

 

[ThePresence]

Look at these pics. I went backpacking through this area many, many times. It's gorgeous. But you gotta take bear precautions.

 

[Juno]

I went to many camping sites in the state of NJ when I was young.

Branchville, NJ and Wildwood, NJ are definitely the two best camping sites I've camped in.

 

[TitanDiddly]

NJ? Bring a gas mask...

 

[Juno]

Originally posted by: PhasmatisNox
NJ? Bring a gas mask...

:thumbsdown:

 

[civad]

originally posted by : ThePresence
Go to the Adriondack High Peaks region (Lake Placid area). Best camping for miles around

I couldn't agree with you more. Went in that area this summer; with couple of pseudo-suburbanites from the Washington, DC area. In other words, camping overnight in campgrounds
But I would LOVE to go camping in the wilderness...

 

[nageov3t]

central park.

 

[badmouse]

Originally posted by: Jzero

Originally posted by: badmouse
Good question. I doubt there's anywhere left in NJ that isn't suburbia any more. You don't just wander around and set up a tent and light fires.

Head over to Newark and camp out under a bridge with a fire in a 55-gal drum?

Last time me &amp; the kids did that, somebody stole our 55-gal drum Next time we'll do some fishing, if we can find a likely bridge over the Passaic River

 

[jurzdevil]

Originally posted by: Jzero

Originally posted by: badmouse
Good question. I doubt there's anywhere left in NJ that isn't suburbia any more. You don't just wander around and set up a tent and light fires.

Head over to Newark and camp out under a bridge with a fire in a 55-gal drum?

i go to NJIT in newark so newark has lost the thrill of the danger for me.

i think ill be going to somewhere in the Adirondacks.

 

[Pathogen03]

I went to a "suburbanized" one I guess..



We drove along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Valley Park (Virginia, real close to MD. Front Royal, VA is the entry point.)


We drove for 30 miles, pulled off the side of the road, walked 30 minutes into the forest.. In theory you cant drink, in theory you couldnt have more than 5 people, in theory you couldnt light fires.. Hah. Theories were meant to be broken.

We had two axes and had fun making a clearing (illegal), starting a bonfire with Bacardi 151 (Illegal x 2, Fire, Alcohol) Drinking ourselves into sh!tfacedness (illegal, Alcohol) and went rock climbing at these cool rocks we found nearby.

 

[Pathogen03]

Oh yeah, and Skyline drive is a FUN road. Speed limit is 40 for most of it.. we were hittin 70 and drifting around corners with a 2 foot high rock wall then a 1000 foot drop.

 

[ThePresence]

Originally posted by: Pathogen03
Oh yeah, and Skyline drive is a FUN road. Speed limit is 40 for most of it.. we were hittin 70 and drifting around corners with a 2 foot high rock wall then a 1000 foot drop.

Are you proud of stupidly risking your life? :roll:

 

[Pathogen03]

Hey, we didnt drive drunk.. That was our rule.. and we didnt do 70 on the bends, we kicked it down to 45-55