I'd really appreciate hearing from some folks who have camped at some state parks in the New York Finger Lakes region. We'll likely have about 3-4 days to camp there and want to park our Class C MH at one park for the duration and use our toad to explore the area. We like to use state parks for their generally more spacious site, lower prices and, most importantly, scenic beauty. Closer to time, I'll ask for input about things to see in the area (wineries are definitely on our agenda), but for now I'm just looking for the best state park to set up in for our 4 day stay in the region. We plan on being there in mid-September. Thanks in advance, Mel
Letchworth and Fair Haven state parks are your options. Using Canandaigua as a reference point, both parks are about an hour to. Letchworth would be my pick. The hiking trails and the views of the canyon and waterfalls are phenomenal. Fair Haven is on Lake Ontario and has a nice beach area attached to it. Both parks are nice, well-kept. Letchworth is bigger (I think) and may have more options have a larger rig. However, when we were there we had a 25' TT, so I didn't pay attention to big rig accessibility. Fair Haven puts you closer to Syracuse, Letchworth to Rochester. So if you like hiking and scenic views, it's Letchworth. If you want beach and lake "stuff" it's Fair Haven. Both are about the same to the western end of the Finger Lakes, though Fair Haven is closer to Seneca Lake which is where the better wineries (IMO) are.
QUOTE(BoomerNY @ Aug 17 2014, 06:56 AM) [snapback]37733[/snapback] Letchworth and Fair Haven state parks are your options. Using Canandaigua as a reference point, both parks are about an hour to. Letchworth would be my pick. The hiking trails and the views of the canyon and waterfalls are phenomenal. Fair Haven is on Lake Ontario and has a nice beach area attached to it. Both parks are nice, well-kept. Letchworth is bigger (I think) and may have more options have a larger rig. However, when we were there we had a 25' TT, so I didn't pay attention to big rig accessibility. Fair Haven puts you closer to Syracuse, Letchworth to Rochester. So if you like hiking and scenic views, it's Letchworth. If you want beach and lake "stuff" it's Fair Haven. Both are about the same to the western end of the Finger Lakes, though Fair Haven is closer to Seneca Lake which is where the better wineries (IMO) are. Thanks for the info, Boomer. Letchworth sounds and looks (I went to the NY State Park web site and checked it out) like a park we'd really enjoy. We will definitely put it in our plans. Do you know anything about Keuka Lake State Park? I read that it is in the hear of wine country. We enjoy boutique, "mom and pop" wineries. We'd like to spend a couple of days camped right in the middle of wine country so we can hop in the toad and spend the day touring & tasting and not have far to drive to get back to our campsite. For that kind of thing, I'm open to privately owned campgrounds that would put us proximate to wineries. Thanks again for the reply. I was beginning to wonder if I'd get any responses to my inquiry! Mel
IIRC Keuka SP is small and only electric hookups. We've not stayed there so I can't help with that review. KOA Canandaigua is on the north end of Canandaigua Lake, and Watkins Glen KOA at the south end of Seneca Lake. Both would be solid options, though Watkins Glen has some better terrain and scenery. If you go to nycampgrounds.com you can choose the region and get a list of the parks in that area. We've only stayed at a couple on their list, but none were right in the heart of the wineries. (living in Syacuse, we tend to head out of the area when we go camping). At a quick glance through the list, the FL region encompasses a LOT more than the FL - as far south as Cortland, as far East as Memphis - which I don't consider the Finger Lakes, but I digress... There's Conesus Lake Campground but there's few wineries out that way. I'd stay as close to Seneca Lake as you can get. The only park I can recommend is the KOA at Watkins Glen. I've not been to any others in that region. Seneca Lake has the best wineries (Wiemer, Hazlitt, Glenora...) so that's where I'd focus. Again, can't help on the smaller private campgrounds, sorry about that. But Watkins is a nice area, hiking, scenery, etc. and puts you on the south end of the lake.
www.fingerlakeswinecountry.com --- lists all the wineries and location. You can search by area/lake to see what's where. Also, Canandaigua has a race track and small casino (if horses and slot machines are your thing). Waterloo has an outlet mall with some good shops (just off I90/NYS Thruway). It's a nice area. You'll enjoy it if you've never been. Fall is a great time to be there (unsure when your travel plans are).
QUOTE(BoomerNY @ Aug 18 2014, 10:31 AM) [snapback]37750[/snapback] www.fingerlakeswinecountry.com --- lists all the wineries and location. You can search by area/lake to see what's where. Also, Canandaigua has a race track and small casino (if horses and slot machines are your thing). Waterloo has an outlet mall with some good shops (just off I90/NYS Thruway). It's a nice area. You'll enjoy it if you've never been. Fall is a great time to be there (unsure when your travel plans are). Ok, we'll do a few days at Letchfield. Then move to Watkins for 3 nights. We will focus on Seneca Lake area. Not interested in casinos (have made all the "donations" to tribes in the SW I'm going to make and don't want to darken another casino door!) but will visit your recommended wineries. Always good to get input from a local resident! Thanks again for the great info. Mel
QUOTE(MelBtraveln @ Aug 15 2014, 01:40 PM) [snapback]37712[/snapback] I'd really appreciate hearing from some folks who have camped at some state parks in the New York Finger Lakes region. We'll likely have about 3-4 days to camp there and want to park our Class C MH at one park for the duration and use our toad to explore the area. We like to use state parks for their generally more spacious site, lower prices and, most importantly, scenic beauty. Closer to time, I'll ask for input about things to see in the area (wineries are definitely on our agenda), but for now I'm just looking for the best state park to set up in for our 4 day stay in the region. We plan on being there in mid-September. Thanks in advance, Mel We are current at Watkins Glen State Park. Large shaded sites with clean restrooms.
We stayed at Watkins Glen State Park over Labor Day. The sites are nice and large but one word of warning.....we also have a Class C and do not tow a car. When we needed to go into town we unhooked and left. When we returned after a day in town our chairs, table and firewood were stolen. Other than that unfortunate incident we had a great time.
QUOTE(pkd31780 @ Sep 13 2014, 04:58 PM) [snapback]38298[/snapback] We stayed at Watkins Glen State Park over Labor Day. The sites are nice and large but one word of warning.....we also have a Class C and do not tow a car. When we needed to go into town we unhooked and left. When we returned after a day in town our chairs, table and firewood were stolen. Other than that unfortunate incident we had a great time. Man, that sucks. Sorry to hear that. It's funny... Of all the trips we've done and have left stuff out, only once have we ever had anything stolen - our cooler during the night. Our beer cooler. The "eff bombs" were flying amidst the scrambles that morning I can tell you. Mel, let us know how your trip goes!
I have stayed at Letchworth and it is a great park to stay at. This year we are looking at staying at Sampson State Park which is right on Seneca Lake.
