Other places

The following are brief summaries of camping locales outside the Camp Chicago area.

Arizona

Coronado National Forest

Anderson Butte (Clarkdale, Ariz.)
Pulled off of a forest service road and set up amid pinyons and junipers. Pleasant views of Jerome and surrounding red rock country.

Chiricahua Mountains (Cochise County, Ariz.)
Many secluded primitive areas to choose from in coniferous forests above 6,000 feet.

Dragoon Mountains (Cochise County, Ariz.)
Car camped amid the rocky outcrops of the western edge of this range in the Coronado National Forest.

Humphreys Peak Trailhead (Flagstaff, Ariz.)
Base camp at 9,000' for alpine summit near Snow Bowl ski station.

Picacho Peak State Park (Picacho, Ariz.)
Tenting amid RVs and saguaros. Nice vistas of volcanic mountains along I-10.

Molino Basin (Tucson, Ariz.)
Well-designed national forest campground surrounded by Santa Catalina Mountains. Complete with high-quality storage lockers, fire rings/grill and lantern posts.

Wet Beaver Creek (McGuireville, Ariz.)
Camped on a gravel bar near The Crack, an idyllic swimming hole, in Coconino National Forest. Watch for the ringtails!

West Clear Creek (Camp Verde, Ariz.)
Year-round swimming holes in a canyon on the slopes of the Mogollon RIm.

Wilson Mountain (Sedona, Ariz.)
Camped at overlook of Sedona, part of Coconino National Forest. Beautiful hike up mountain through pinyon-juniper zone to ponderosa pine forest.

California

Big Lagoon County Park (Trinidad, Calif.)
Sites alongside namesake lagoon that spills into Pacific. Good place to look for varied thrushes.

Navarro Redwoods State Park (Navarro, Calif.)
Camping in Northern California in a second-growth redwood forest along the Navarro River.

Florida

Highlands Hammock State Park (Sebring, Fla.)
Crowded car campground on a sweltering March day. Surrounded by woodlands.

Kansas

Perry State Park (Ozawkie, Kan.)
Plenty of spacious primitive sites available, on a July 4 weekend no less, amid rolling prairie and woodlands of eastern Kansas.

Michigan

Bay Furnace Campground (Christmas, Mich.)
Car camping with stellar views of Lake Superior in Hiawatha National Forest.

Lake Michigan Campground (St. Ignace, Mich.)
Car camping on sand along scenic northern Lake Michigan. Within Hiawatha National Forest.

Pine River Paddlesports Center (Wellston, Mich.)
Immaculate private campground within Manistee National Forest. Wilderness activities abound.

Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park (Silver City, Mich.)
Premier Midwestern backpacking locale with a variety of campground experiences.

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (Empire, Mich.)
Offers quality car camping along Lake Michigan close to popular dunes.

Tahquamenon Falls State Park (Paradise, Mich.)
Car camping in the Upper Peninsula along scenic Tahquamenon River. Near Whitefish Point Bird Observatory.

Van Riper State Park (Champion, Mich.) 
Dismal car campground amid the splendor of the U.P. You can do better.

North Carolina

Cape Hatteras National Seashore (Frisco, N.C.)
Camped amid the dunes (no fires allowed) in car campground. Easy access to beach.

Ohio

Archer's Fork (Hohman, Ohio)
Strenuous 9.5-mile trail in Wayne National Forest skirts rock formations, a natural bridge and a cave. Probably best suited as a day hike as viable camping locations were limited.

Burr Oak Cove (Corning, Ohio)
Solid car camping, with walk-ins and decent privacy, in the rolling terrain above Burr Oak Lake.

Hocking Hills State Park (Logan, Ohio)
Rugged system of gorges and caves in southern Ohio. Walk-ins are nice and secluded, but this is one of the most popular spots in the Buckeye State.

Mohican State Park (Loudonville, Ohio)
Standard car campground along the Mohican River. Popular canoeing spot.

Rustic Knolls Campsites (Mount Vernon, Ohio)
Classic private campground. We had an isolated spot on our own hillside.

Shawnee State Forest (Friendship, Ohio)
Brutal backpacking trail shuns switchbacks for pure uphill grinding. Solitude save for a few squirrel hunters (in September).

Wildcat Hollow (Corning, Ohio)
Satisfying backpacking loop with scenic campsites along the way within Wayne National Forest. Update: 15-mile loop overgrown in 2009.

Zaleski State Forest (Zaleski, Ohio)
Another quality southern Ohio backpacking spot in Appalachian foothills.  

Ontario

Near Noelville, Ontario

Flamboro Valley Camping Resort (Flamborough, Ontario)
Gem of a private campground about an hour southwest of Toronto.

Near Noelville, Ontario
Wilderness utopia.

Rock Point Provincial Park (Port Maitland, Ontario)
Huge car campground with several trails accessing Lake Erie and fossil bed.

Wheatley Provincial Park (Wheatley, Ontario)
Car camping along Lake Erie near Point Pelee.

Pennsylvania

Kooser State Park (Somerset, Pa.)
Standard car campground in bucolic Laurel Highlands.

Ohiopyle State Park (Ohiopyle, Pa.)
Wooded car camping in area featuring waterfall and rafting on Youghiogheny River.

Washington Township Park (Edinboro, Pa.)
Dispersed camping along “inlet” of Lake Edinboro.

Quebec

Lac des Cypres

Parc du National Mont-Tremblant (Lac Superieur, Quebec)
Rugged beauty in the Laurentian Mountains north of Montreal. Recreational activities abound.

Texas

Krause Springs (Spicewood, Texas)
Private campground next to incredible natural swimming hole. Look for the black-crested titmice. 

Virginia

Bear Creek Lake State Park (Cumberland, Va.)
Unique for its ground-rubber camp pads, Bear Creek offers bread-and-butter car camping. Recreation in the surrounding Cumberland State Forest.

Crabtree Meadows (Montebello, Va.)
Perched just below The Priest in George Washington National Forest, this location offers serene car camping with a number of hiking and off-roading options.

False Cape State Park (Virginia Beach, Va.)
Primitive sites in dunes and beach offer solitude. Walk from Sandbridge area to campground. Vehicles use beach as road in this area.

James River State Park (Gladstone, Va.)
In the Appalachian foothills along the Upper James, this park offers a woodland camping loop that is worth checking out.

John H. Kerr Dam and Reservoir, “Buggs Island” (Boydton, Va.)
Stayed in Army Corps of Engineers campground. Nice off-season spot.

Lake Moomaw (Covington, Va.)
Car camping with idyllic backdrop of Lake Moomaw and mountains. Caught a small northern pike in the lake.

Montebello Camping and Fishing Resort (Montebello, Va.)
Private car campground nestled along Blue Ridge Parkway.

Mount Rogers National Recreation Area (Trout Dale, Va.)
Wilderness camping along trail flanking highest point in Virginia.

Seashore/First Landing State Park (Virginia Beach, Va.)
Car campground situated on inland dunes under canopy of live oaks. Great access to the beach.

Smith Mountain Lake State Park (Huddleston, Va.)
Wooded car campground a short hike from one of the arms of the reservoir.

West Virginia

Dolly Sods Wilderness (Red Creek, W.Va.)
Great backpacking along Red Creek Canyon and bizarre mountaintop bogs.

Wisconsin

Brule River State Forest (Brule, Wis.)
Pleasant car camping in the North Woods with access to paddling opportunities.

Nicolet National Forest (Florence, Wis.)
Plenty of recreational opportunities amid the serenity of the North Woods.

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