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Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park
Staatsburg, Hyde Park, New York
- Dates: October 12–14, 2007.
- Site Number: 045
- With: The Clarks
- Vibe: On a wooded hillside overlooking the Hudson River.
- Weather:
- Friday: Cool. Morning rain clears out by the time we arrive.
- Saturday: Cool morning, but partly sunny. Clear night sky.
- Sunday: Getting warmer, partly sunny.
- Pros: Marina in the park. Responsive staff. Close to NYC.
- Cons: No contact station. Not a lot of activities. Rocky sites.
- Verdict: Pretty good, overall. Worth a second stay (bring bikes next time...). Historic estates nearby. Staatsburg's Portofino Restaurant was a tasty surprise!
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Steve's Review:
This campground wasn't high on my list. Most of the time, we stay in parks that are located in the mountains on a swimming lake, or by the ocean. By October, however, swimming is no longer on our list of activities. So, while I might have overlooked this campground in summer, by fall it did have some things going for it:
- It's only 75 miles north of Manhattan, located on the Hudson River in Dutchess County.
- It's open a bit later than most New York State campgrounds, which close either right after Labor Day, or after Columbus Day.
- It's at a relatively low altitude, which at this time of year could mean a frost-free night.
- There are a number of hiking trails to explore.
(As it turns out, this October is pretty mild. Even as of the third week we still have not had a frost, but since I book a campsite weeks in advance, I don't know what kind of weather I'll be expecting.)
The campground is in one of two adjoining state parks. Ogden and Ruth Livingston Mills State Park has a historic mansion, Staatsburgh (aka Mills Mansion), that's open to the public. Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park contains the campground, an evironmental center and a 145-slip marina. There's also a public golf course here.
Facilities were nothing to write home about, but we did have a bathhouse with flush toilets and hot showers. There's not a lot of privacy between sites, but the sites are not too close together. Our site, number 45, had a connecting path to the white trail along the river, so we frequently had hikers wandering through our site.
We camped with our good friends Ina & Kevin, and their daughter, Hayley, who was a daycare buddy of Ben's. We were hoping another buddy, Alec, and his parents would join us, but rain earlier in the day put them off. We arrived around 7 PM, which normally would be fine, but at this time of year it's pretty dark. I was able to get the tent up solo, while Roberta and Ina went shopping for food. After this, I helped Kevin raise his tent. By the time the girls got back, we were all hungry and that Italian joint up the road was sounding really good. "That Italian joint," Portofino Restaurant, turned out to vastly exceed our expectations! The food was unusually good, the service was terrific and the respectable Zagats rating didn't hurt either. The good people of Staatsburg are understandably keeping this place secret—it's located on Old Post Road, which is now bypassed by Route 9.
After Dinner, Kevin, Gordon and I relaxed by the fire. During the night, we couldn't see the boats, except for the occasional starboard or port running lights, but we could hear them moving slowly up or down the river. We could also hear the distant murmur of freight trains across the river. There were also a couple of trains on our side: the tracks for the New York-Albany-Montreal route pass through Norrie Park.
I don't think we did a damn thing on Saturday, other than cook... another perfect day camping! We did spend a few minutes down at the park's marina which has a pleasant day-use area, including picnic tables with a great river view.
Saturday night we sat around the fire and cracked jokes. We had a visit from Jackie O.—Jackie O'Lantern—who danced around the firepit until he lost his head to the flames. By the time 10 PM rolled around we were ready for bed. (All that relaxing takes its toll...) Unfortunately, that's when a rowdy group in the cabin area started playing drums and whooping around. I'm told the park staff quickly took care of it. All I know is that my head hit the pillow and I was out.
On Sunday, Hayley and Ben entertained us with a Tango they'd rehearsed. Seeing Ben laugh and smile made me remember why I love doing this camping thing. All three kids had a great weekend until Gordon got a blister on his thumb when he impatiently grabbed the metal skewer with his hot dog on it. Later, as we hiked along the river, he ran, caught a root with his foot, and face-planted. He ended up with a nice bump on his forehead. Good thing he'd been applying a bag of ice to his thumb, because we needed it for his head! (No long-term damage, though)
After leisurely packing up, we left at 2:30 PM and were unloading the car in White Plains by 4:30. I enjoyed this park much more than I expected and will probably go back there some time. It would alo be a great place to camp if you're travelling by boat.
In addition to Staatsburgh, the area has other significant estates nearby. Frederick William Vanderbilt, lucky grandson of Railroad magnate Cornelius, built an ostentatious mansion a couple of miles south in Hyde Park. Hyde Park's most famous resident, however, was Franklin Delano Roosevelt; his home, Springwood, the presidential library and the burial site of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, are also just a few miles south of the campground. Also nearby, is Val-Kill, Eleanor's "cottage." All three homes are administered by the National Park Service as the Roosevelt-Vanderbilt National Historic Site.
By the way, Margaret Lewis Norrie was active in the women's suffrage movement in Dutchess County, along with such notable figures as Amy Springairn and Carrie Chapman Catt. Upon her death, her sister donated the riverfront farm to New York State. Given the proximity of FDR's house, perhaps it is not too surprising that this property became a New Deal-era Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp in 1933. Most of the campground's structures were built during this period.
—SBW
