Forked Lake Campground

Forked Lake Campground is a state run campground located in the Adirondacks of upstate New York. It’s about a five hour drive from Boston. Unlike most of the places we camp, this isn’t a state park but rather a state run campground. This means there aren’t a lot of trails that start right at, or close by, the campground. But there are a lot of lakes, rivers, and state parks in this area so the campground provides a great home-base to venture forth. Or you can hang out all day the campsite because the lake is fantastic. 

This is a very primitive campground. There is one small bathroom (not gonna lie it doesn’t smell great) and no showers on-site. The tent-sites have an outhouse. Yeah…this is not glamping. The upside? Almost all of the sites are waterfront. In fact they’re so waterfront that a good chunk of them you have to boat to. The first 15 or so campsites you can walk to along a dirt path, but rest are only accessible by boat. For the ones you can walk to, it’s about a quarter-mile hike depending on how far down the path your site is. There are a few campsites around the boat launch and trail-head area that allow RV’s/campers but the rest are tent-only. In addition to the campsites around the lake there are also three campsites that are on islands in the lake. I’ve been trying for years to get one of these sites but they go fast. So if you want one of those be prepared to book it the second it’s available and/or be flexible about the dates you can go. 

When we camp here we tend to spend most of our time at our site or on the lake. The lake doesn’t allow motorboats which makes it nice for kayaks and canoes. There is a boat launch area and many of the campsites have either a floating dock or an area to easily stash your boat. Along the dirt road to the campground is a trailhead for Buttermilk Falls which are some small waterfalls, the trail is very short, you basically park and walk two minutes and you’re at the waterfalls. The towns near the campground are nice, lots of breweries and takeout places if you want a break from cooking.