Nearly all travel has ground to a halt in the past few months due to the coronavirus pandemic. The social isolation of quarantine has caused more and more people to experience cabin fever. Some have been dealing with this lockdown by making future travel plans as something to look forward to once the quarantine is lifted; however, we don’t really know what post-pandemic travel might look like, yet. As futurist Glen Hiemstra said in a recent issue of Fodor’s Travel, “It’s hard to say what the world is going to look like in six months because we know so little about what the world is going to look like in one month.” As the Fodor’s article suggests, when travel does eventually restart, it will likely be in incremental stages.
All of this to say, one of the first waves of travel to return may be people taking camping trips since camping, and outdoor activities require minimal contact, can be done closer to home, and don’t involve crowds, hotel stays, or air travel. For those living in the Long Island area, I decided to take a look at our local campgrounds and pull out some highlights.
Long Island State Pine Barrens Preserve
Within the Long Island State Pine Barrens Preserve, there are several campgrounds available to the general public. Campgrounds included in the Pine Barrens Preserve are Cathedral Pines County Park, Sears Bellows County Park, Indian Island County Park, Shinnecock East County Park, Southaven County Park, and Meschutt Beach County Park. Sears Bellows County Park offers several recreational activities such as boating, hiking, and fishing, and Shinnecock East County Park is a barrier beach park with access to both the ocean and the bay for recreational activities. Southaven County Park offers both rowboat rentals and kayaking on the Carmans River. Meschutt Beach County Park is located on the Great Peconic Bay; opportunities exist here for scuba diving, windsurfing, and sailing.
Wildwood State Park
Overlooking Long Island Sound, Wildwood State Park offers 600 acres of hardwood forest. The park includes trailer and tent camping sites as well as the recent addition of cottages for those who prefer not to “rough it.” Activities available at the park are picnicking, fishing, hiking, and swimming. It also has a nearby playground for the kids.
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While these are not the only campgrounds in the Long Island area, they are the most extensive ones with activities for everyone to enjoy. So, if you’ve got cabin fever and are hoping to take a getaway as soon as you’re able, these are great options.
For more by Andrew Lombara, please visit AndrewLombara.org