Fall Trip to New England; from NC

[HAPPYHIKER]

We are planning a 2013 trip for Sept.,Oct and maybe part of Nov from western NC to Bar Harbor, ME, rummaging around NH and VT on the way back....probably coming back through NY (Lake Placid etc). We have made most of this trip many times but not in a motorhome (40 ft Plus dolly /car). I would appreciate any insight into campgrounds that are reasonably priced and yet nice to stay at for one week at each stop. We enjoy hiking and canoeing and anything outdoors.

Thanks for any all help...

Merle & Carm

[sawdust316]

CAUTION, there is a four letter word involved with the time period you mention, "SNOW". Not real good for travel in a 40' coach, not to mention the salt on the roads. I live in central Maine about 90 miles from Bar Harbor, we have had heavy snow on Halloween.

I have a 36' coach and it will go into stoarge in Oct if we don't go south.

Just a thought for you to consider.

[markstella]

^{You can take a ferry from a couple of places from VT into NY. Upper most area is into Platsburgh then south on Rt. 87 (aka Adirondack Northway) then into Lake Placid.}

^{If your looking for leaf peeping your season is a bit earlier then Oct. There is a KOA in Lake Placid. In Lake Placid you watch ski jumping, bob sledding etc. Remember that most campgrounds in this region start closing mid Sept - mid Oct. Reason, Snow and possible freezing conditions.}

^{Very beautiful region that time of year.}

[HAPPYHIKER]

Your precautionary on snow plus......is well taken. We hope to clear Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont by mid October and earlier if we must.

Thanks for the insight.

Merle

[tbutler]

For campground references, there are two resources that I think every RV traveler should have. First is the old fashioned Trailer Life (now including the former Woodall's) campground guide. Sometimes it is easier to just pick up a book and flip through the pages to decide on the campground. Ratings in this guide are pretty objective and reliable. Campgrounds details of services and utilities are standardized and very reliable. Prices are always out of date by a year by the time the guide is published but give you a good general idea of how expensive a park will be. This guide is very good about identifying those campgrounds which are seasonal (as opposed to year-round) and usually indicates closing dates and/or periods when utilities may be limited.

The second reference we use extensively is RV Campground Reviews. This resource include some campgrounds which are not published in the other guides. The reviews here are done by campers who submit their descriptions of the campground. The utilities and facilities are also identified and contact information including campground web sites are there. Some of the reviews give more detailed descriptions of sites, access and current condition. Reviews may be as recent as the current month. Prices given are the actual prices paid at the time of the visit and may be for a different hook ups than what you might want. There are usually two or three different reviews for each campground so you get differing opinions of each campground.

We never make reservations too far in advance unless we have some overriding reason that we have to stay at one specific campground. With your plans to visit the New England area in the fall you could plan to call a campground a day or two in advance when you think your plans are set and the weather won't interfere. We have found that many of the campground in this area are family campgrounds and have most campsites rented on a permanent basis. There may be a dozen or so sites for transients in a campground that has 100 sites. It can be fun to visit these campgrounds in the fall as they may have fall festival celebrations with families and children present in large numbers. You will definitely be camping there in the off season so waiting to make reservations until a day or two ahead shouldn't be a problem unless there is only one campground you wish to stay at in an area.