Bluestone Wild Forest Tent Site #1 [DEC #228428] (Bluestone Wild Forest)

FREE backcountry primitive camping near the north end of Onteora Lake in the Bluestone Wild Forest, a low Catskill-FRINGE unit of New York's Forest Preserve about 3 miles northwest of uptown Kingston (Ulster County, DEC Region 3), around Onteora Lake. This is a DEC-designated primitive tent site ('Bluestone Wild Forest Tent Site #1 [DEC #228428]'), and New York provides it at NO CHARGE: the DEC Bluestone Wild Forest page lists the fee as 'Free' and the unit as open year-round, first-come first-served (no reservations), with free parking at the Onteora Lake trailhead. It is near the north end of Onteora Lake, reached on foot from the Onteora Lake trailhead via the loop trail system -- a hike-in wild-forest site. COUNT DISCLOSURE: the DEC unit page says the Bluestone Wild Forest 'contains six designated campsites that can be accessed from the Onteora Lake trailhead' but does not individually name or number them; DEC's mapping data returns six 'Primitive Tent Site' points ('Bluestone Site #1' through '#6'). One of the six -- the site closest to the Onteora Lake Parking Lot on the Onteora Lake Loop Trail -- has been closed indefinitely by DEC and is EXCLUDED, so this batch lists the other five (two at high confidence on the Onteora Lake shore and loop trail, three at medium confidence on named forest loop trails). The '#N' labels are DEC's own GIS identifiers, not a claim about a name on the public page. No pins were invented. IMPORTANT -- DEC has CLOSED INDEFINITELY, for public-safety reasons, the one designated campsite closest to the Onteora Lake Parking Lot on the Onteora Lake Loop Trail. That closed site is NOT this one and is not listed here, but because DEC's page numbers the sites only in its mapping data (not in the public text) you should confirm the current status of this specific site with the DEC Region 3 New Paltz office (845-256-3076) before relying on it. This is free, first-come Forest Preserve backcountry camping in the Bluestone Wild Forest around Onteora Lake -- day use and parking are free and there is NO fee campground on Onteora Lake; do NOT confuse it with a reservable fee campground (the nearest, Kenneth L. Wilson near Mount Tremper, is 10+ miles west and gates nothing here). SEASON / ACCESS: DEC lists Bluestone Wild Forest as open YEAR-ROUND and free, but every site here is reached on foot along a hiking/multi-use trail from the Onteora Lake trailhead -- trails can be wet, muddy, snow-covered or blowdown-blocked, so confirm current trail and site conditions with the DEC Region 3 New Paltz office (845-256-3076) or the unit page before you go. RULES: no reservation and no fee; camp only at a designated site (look for the round yellow DEC 'Camp Here' disc) or, elsewhere in the wild forest, more than 150 feet from any road, trail or water; a free Forest Ranger permit is required only if you stay more than 3 nights or camp with a group of 10 or more (arrange it through the DEC Region 3 Office in New Paltz at (845) 256-3076 (Forest Rangers via 911 or DEC dispatch 1-833-NYS-RANGERS)). This site is around 450 feet elevation. These are primitive sites: expect at most a fire ring -- no hookups, no showers and no potable water, so bring water or treat what you take from the lake. Pack out all trash, follow Leave No Trace and the DEC fire rules, and store food from bears (this is black-bear country). Confirm current rules, trail status and this specific site's status on the DEC page (dec.ny.gov/places/bluestone-wild-forest) or with the New Paltz office (845-256-3076) before you go; we have not visited.

USGS topo — contours & terrain

Aerial — USGS / NAIP

Nearby restrooms — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)

• Highway rest areaUlster Travel Plaza · ~4.6 mi NE
• Highway rest areaParking/Rest Area · ~6.9 mi NE
• Highway rest areaParking/Rest Area · ~10.4 mi NE
• Highway rest areaMalden Travel Plaza · ~10.7 mi NE

Open this spot elsewhere

Other camps nearby

If this one is full, gated or washed out.

• Bluestone Wild Forest Tent Site #2 [DEC #228468] (Bluestone Wild Forest)~0.0 mi
• Bluestone Wild Forest Tent Site #4 [DEC #228433] (Bluestone Wild Forest)~0.3 mi
• Bluestone Wild Forest Tent Site #3 [DEC #228432] (Bluestone Wild Forest)~0.6 mi
• Bluestone Wild Forest Tent Site #6 [DEC #228431] (Bluestone Wild Forest)~0.6 mi

How we know this

What we don’t know

A land record can put you within a few metres of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.

• Road surface & last-mile access
• How many rigs actually fit
• Cell coverage by carrier
• Seasonal & winter access
• Current fire restrictions
• Whether any water here is drinkable
• Shade & wind exposure
• Noise and who else shows up

Before you go