North-South Lake Campground – Delightful Sun Filled Mornings


The signs that tell you the way to go.

The campground known as North-South Lake can be found in Haines Falls, New York. Within the Forest preserve of Catskill, this campground is among the largest and most frequented of the state’s options.

Natural beauty is always appealing, and this region features scenic beauty and historical sites, including the waterfalls and alligator rocks and various other Mountain House-related sites.

It is widespread knowledge that, on a clear day, it is possible to see all five states from the escarpment, which attracts tourists and other visitors to the countryside. There are seven camping loops, 219 tent and trailer sites, two legs, and two beaches at your disposal.

This incredible location offers visitors a wealth of opportunities to investigate the natural world on various scales.

The History

On land now owned by the Catskill Forest Preserve, the North Lake campground was established in 1929. At that time, there were two different lakes with an earthen dam separating them from one another.

Only the land on Northlake was used for the construction of the campground because both Southlake and the land to the east of where Northlake Beach is now located are privately owned. That, however, shifted over the years from the original campground’s configuration of ten sites and a modest picnic area when it first opened.

In 1933, an expansion was made to the picnic area and the campground, increasing the number of sites to 43. This played a significant role in bringing in many visitors and tourists each year to that location. 1936 was the year that the development was carried out, and it was then that the beach at Northlake was finally built!

A Large Number of Campsites Is Available

The campground went through another round of expansion in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and it reached its current capacity of 219 sites in 1972. 1984 saw the completion of a second-day use area, which came about because of the purchase of South Lake.

The long history demonstrates and demonstrates how much this area has developed and how it has successfully garnered the attraction of tourists for all the right reasons. This area has also shown that it has been successful in attracting tourists for all the right reasons.

Simply because it encompasses such a large area and has more than 200 camping sites, it is an excellent location for a weekend getaway or a vacation with your family and friends.

Lots To Do at The Campsite

This is what you see when you wake up.

Tourists and visitors from all over the world can take advantage of a great deal of what the camping area has to offer. Day use typically includes a lot of camping, picnic pads, grills, picnic tables, camping pads, showers, and pavilions.

These are the types of amenities that civilians can make use of to make the most of their weekends or whenever they are found having a getaway of their own. At the trailhead for Sleepy Hollow, there are also mounting horse platforms that are easily accessible. Riding horses is another fantastic way to spend the weekend.

In addition, voting is a choice that can be made because the North Lake day use area allows for the use of canoes and boats, and there is already a paved boat ramp there. There are already kayaks, canoes, stand-up paddle boards, and paddle boards available for rental at the campground.

Fishing Is a Good Idea

If you are going to a campsite on a lake, fishing is a great activity that you must try out. Largemouth, chain pickerel, black crappie, and brown bullhead bass are the species of fish that can typically be found in the lake.

It would help if you tried this at least once in your life because it is a fun recreational activity that requires only essential fishing equipment, such as rods, and the perfect company to help you get through the patient process of finally catching a fish after a long time.

The Wildlife Experience

Hiking on the trails is a very popular activity that frequently brings you face to face with a wide variety of animals of their kind. Quite a few of the visitors to the campground have reported that they were startled to see deer with white tails while they were walking along one of the trails there.

Campers and day visitors to this multi-use recreation area just 2.5 hours north of New York City often report seeing a good cross-section of the Wildlife that is common to the Catskill mountains. This is because this multi-use recreation area is in the Catskill mountains.

The common loon, black bears, geese, ducks, and red and gray squirrels are among the migratory animals that are not difficult to spot. Although the list is lengthy, the actual exploration will take even longer. You can spot other animals like Hawks, Owls, Songbirds, and even wild Turkeys.

The Right Locations for The Right Views

Awesome lake to look at.

You will have no problem getting up close and personal with these wild animals if you give yourself sufficient time and find suitable locations.

The camp caretakers have pointed out and encouraged visitors to visit several different spots around the campground that provide the best opportunities to see a variety of wild animals.

The camp caretakers’ top recommendation for all tourists and visitors is to go hiking in a forest that features a variety of coniferous and hardwood trees.

The shores of lakes, the banks of streams, and the peaks of mountains are all wonderful places to relax and watch wild animals in their natural environments while taking in the view.

Our Final Thoughts

Camping near a lake or any other natural setting is almost always a good idea because being in nature tends to heal people in ways that are surprising. It is imperative that you make the most of the natural camping areas and organize, if not full-blown vacations, then at the very least, weekend excursions to get the most out of your life and experience everything it has to offer.

The McClain Family

We hope we helped. Please let us know of any place that you want to know about in NYS or if we did a poor job with any part of this. Our goal is to help as many people as possible.

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