Camping with your pup is a great way to get outdoors. It does make your trip slightly more complicated though, when it comes to planning, packing, and being able to enjoy yourself. We have some tips and tricks that we’ve learned throughout the years that may help.
Camden is a coastal town in Maine that brings on the charm and nautical lifestyle. A must stop town in a road trip across Maine.
We bought our Forest River Grey Wolf 26RR Limited new in 2020. We have camped 3 full seasons with it and have a few things that we love and a few things that we wish were different in our unit. Overall it is a great camper for beginners and provides room for growth. We based our overall rating on a few categories: maintenance, floor plan and base utilities.
Hitch Weight: 775 lb.
Cargo Carrying Capacity: 2,745 lb.
Gross Vehicle Weight: 7,775 lb.
Unloaded Vehicle Weight: 5,030 lb.
Exterior Width: 96″
Exterior Length: 30′ 10″
Exterior Height: 10’6″
Awning Length: 15′
Fresh Water: 40 gallons
Gray Water: 38 gallons
Black Water:38 gallons
No slides, one main door, and one toy hauler door.
This is without a doubt my favorite section of the camper and where the Grey Wolf excels. The “garage” section of the camper can be a bit of a pain compared to another unit with a dedicated space for a garage. You have to move couch cushions and fold up the benches to create space for whatever you are storing. The advantage is that if you are only storing kayaks you could do just one side and not the other. The real disadvantage is if you are storing things under the table seats, everything needs to be moved.
The patio is well worth it when you have a beautiful site to enjoy. We set up our chairs and camp table on the deck when it is nice out and is easily my favorite time to spend in the campsite. The downside to this particular setup is the screen door. It serves its purpose by keeping most bugs out but it lacks quality. It is attached to the inside of the garage from the ceiling, and velcros to the walls. The bottom of the screen doesn’t attach because it is also a door, and that allows the wind to blow it around. Clip-on weights solved the problem in the short term but it is a design flaw.
Storage Downfalls:
General maintenance is quite easy with this unit. Changing the water heater anode, tires, winterization, black tank cleaning, battery, and propane access is doable.
There are a few things that went wrong and have proved to be an issue for us over the last three summers. The way that the manufacturer made the electrical and plumbing can make it difficult to trace lines back to their origin.
This Grey Wolf is a great unit to have as a first camper, or even as your final camper. Even with its quirks and downfalls, they are not major problems to have. You need to be handy or have basic knowledge of your unit no matter what type or brand of camper you have. If you liked this camper but want a smaller version of it check out the Forest River Grey Wolf Pup. It is basically the same thing but shorter in length (with minor floor plan changes). We hope this review of our Forest River Grey Wolf 26RR Limited will help you on your journey to picking out or learning about campers.
A guide to all camper accessories and necessities to get you set up successfully for your camping first camping season.
Buying your first camper can be daunting, but it won’t be as bad as you think it might. Knowing what to look for is 99% of the battle.
Lily Bay State Park
13 Myrle’s Way, Greenville
Lakefront: Moosehead Lake
RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill Up Station, No Hookups
Lily Bay has 90 campsites to choose from, some of them are pristine waterfront sites. There are two halves to the campground, Dunn Point and Rowell Cove. Dunn Point is the more family-friendly side with the playground and beach access. Rowell Cove has a boat ramp close by and fairly quiet, private sites. Some of the most beautiful sites are the walk-in sites, where you would need to park a little way down the path and walk to your site.
Lily Bay State Park is growing in popularity by the year, so be sure to book your site as early as you can. There is plenty to do in the surrounding area from little shops to hikes.
Peaks Kenney State Park
401 State Park Road, Dover-Foxcroft
Lakefront: Sebec Lake
RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill-up Station, Some* Electric Sites
Peaks Kenney State Park is one of the medium-sized state parks with 56 sites. Some of these sites have electric hookups, but they are the very first sites to be booked for the year so don’t wait to book. There are sites that are closer to the water and within walking distance of the beach. The beach here is beautiful and great for kids. The water depth doesn’t drop off for quite a distance and is great for wading.
Rangeley Lake State Park
1 State Park Road, Rangeley
Lakefront: Rangeley Lake
RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill-up Station, Some* Electric Sites with Water Hookups
Rangeley Lake State Park has 50 Sites that are mostly wooded. It is another popular northern state park campground because it overlooks Rangeley Lake. There is a little more distance between the beach and the campground section of the park here compared to the other parks. It isn’t far but it is a farther walk or a very small drive to the beach.
Sebago Lake State Park
3 Campground Road, Naples
Lakefront: Sebago Lake
RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill-up Station, Some* sites with water and electric hookups
Sebago lake is the biggest and most popular state park campground in Maine. Because of this, the park chooses to open its reservations on a separate day before the rest of the parks. There are two halves to the park, one with Naples Beach and the other with Witch Cove Beach. This park is busy and great for families, but, if you’re looking for solitude you should try a different park. There is also *no dogs* allowed here, an important note if you usually camp with your pup.
Bradbury Mountain State Park
528 Hollowell Road, Pownal
Lakefront: N/A
RV Amenities: N/A
The campground is a very small campground across the street from the park itself. There is no water feature at this campground but it has some of the best mountain biking right in the park. There are no hookups and relatively small sites, so be cautious when you book about what you bring for equipment. Freeport is just a few minutes down the road with great shopping and restaurants.
Camden Hills State Park
US RT1, Camden
Oceanfront
RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill-up Station, Some* sites with water and electric hookups
The campground is across the street from the state park, on the uphill side. Camden Hills is equipped to handle bigger RV’s in the field sites closest to the gate but check with the park to make sure yours will fit before booking. The state park has beautiful ocean views and walking paths. Downtown Camden has lots of shops and restaurants, as well as opportunities to get out on the water.
Cobscook Bay State Park
40 South Edmunds Road, Edmunds TWP
Oceanfront
RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill-Up Station
Cobscook Bay is a beautiful oceanfront campground. It might be a long drive out there but it is worth the drive to be able to camp near the ocean like this.
Lamoine State Park
23 State Park Road, Lamoine
Oceanfront
RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill-Up Station
If you’re looking for beautiful Downeast Maine oceanfront but don’t want to travel all the way out to Cobscook Bay, then Lamoine is your best pick. The park is located a short (in the Maine way) distance from Acadia National Park and downtown Ellsworth in the opposite direction.
Mt. Blue State Park
187 Webb Beach Road, Weld
Lakefront: Webb Lake
RV Amenities: RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill-up Station, Some* sites with water and electric hookups
Weld is a beautiful hiking town, with Tumbledown Mountain nearby. The campground is in a wooded area, but some of the sites are quite close together. The larger loop of the campground has sites set farther apart than the smaller one.
Aroostook State Park
US RT1, Presque Isle
Lakefront: Echo Lake
RV Amenities: Dump Station, Water Fill-up Station, Some* sites with water and electric hookups
If you’re looking for secluded Maine, you’ve found it. Aroostook State Park campground is a small, wooded campground with hiking trail access and a smaller lakefront on Echo Lake.
If you’re interested in staying at one of the Maine State Campgrounds you can make a reservation by calling the park or using their online reservation system. Summertime reservations begin in February prior to the season. If you plan on taking your RV or camper be sure to check which site you book and that your setup will fit.
Getting there is just as beautiful as being in the park. Nine miles outside of Bryce Canyon on Scenic Byway 12 is Red Canyon. It should be added to your “must see” list, and simply driving through could be good enough. This is where you …
Baxter State Park is a gem for Maine. It is not the typical “state park” as most state parks are run and funded entirely by the state, but Baxter State Park has a different history. Baxter State Park was created by Percival Baxter, when he …
Maine has some of the best hiking trails around, However, finding which ones you want to do is incredibly difficult! We use Alltrails to find our perfect fit for the day but it can be hard to weed through all of the “destination” hikes. We won’t focus on Acadia National Park or Baxter State Park where a majority of the hikes in Maine reside. You will notice we did feature one from each though, because they won their spot on the list.
1) Mt. Katahdin
Baxter State Park
7-15 miles depending on trail choice
Mt. Katahdin is by far the winner on most every “best hikes” list in Maine and for good reason. Mt. Katahdin will forever be one of our favorite, yet most difficult hikes. Check out our Mt.Katahdin guide for more information on the hike. It is not for the faint of heart, but it is completable for most ages.
2) Tumbledown
Four Ponds Public Reserved Land/Mt.Blue State Park, Weld
4-8 Miles depending on trail choice
Parking can fill up fast on the prime summer days, the day we visited we did not have much of a problem parking. We usually arrive at hikes quite early in the morning though. We parked in the second parking lot, about a mile up the road from the first lot. We took the loop trail up, and the Parker Ridge Trail down. Doing the trail in this direction has you climbing up the steepest part and going down the longer, more flat part. The way down was still quite the descent.
Highlights: The pond at the top of the mountain is beautiful! We took a plunge before we hiked back down. Just as we were leaving we crossed paths with a couple going up for fly fishing. We could visually see the fish while swimming so you could say that would be a hit.If you intend to do the same we highly recommend water shoes, the rocks are both sharp and slippery. Quite a ways up the Loop Trail there is a chimney that requires a technical move. We ended up throwing our backpacks over the boulder and hoisting ourselves up because the hole doesn’t allow for much movement with backpacks on. In total it took us 6 hours including our swim and lunch.
3) Fire Wardens, Horns Pond and Appalachian Trail Loop
Bigelow Preserve, Stratton
This trail is part of the Bigelow Range, a very popular multi day hike. This trail is 13 miles long, and took us 8 hours including rest stops. Heading toward the parking lot you’ll drive down what looks like a residential dirt road but it does lead to the trailhead.
We took the counter-clockwise route, starting by Stratton Brook Pond. There is a water source on near the first summit as well as several tent platforms. We wished we were able to camp there when we saw them, the views must be spectacular for sunrise and sunset. At the top of Avery Peak there is an old fire tower base that makes for an awesome photography spot. We are frequent hikers and did not find this trail overly difficult.
4) Gulf Hagas
AMC 100 Mile Wilderness
Visiting Gulf Hagas requires travelling about 11 miles down the Katahdin Iron Works Road, which is a high traffic logging road. It is an active logging road, and logging trucks have the right of way. Make sure to keep that in mind if you do visit. There is an entrance fee to get into Katahdin Iron Works which has been increasing slightly each year. On the way in (or out) check out the historic iron furnace right next to the gate house.
There are multiple routes that you could take to hike the Gulf Hagas loop, but the Rim Trail from Pleasant River Tote is the most popular. This hike is a long one even though there isn’t a significant elevation change, there are a lot of ups and downs. To get to some of the key features you may need to boulder or go down steep slopes.
You’ll start the hike off with a river crossing, so come prepared with some water shoes! When you get to the trail junction to the Rim Trail if you go left you will hit all of the attractions first, starting with Screw Auger Falls. From Screw Auger Falls you’ll move on to Hammond Street Pitch, Cole’s Corner, Buttermilk Falls, Billings Falls and Stair Falls. Each one is beautiful and you’ll often see people swimming where they can. If you choose to swim be aware that leaches do dwell in the water rather plentifully, don’t let that stop you though! Just be prepared in the event that they are around.
5) The Beehive Loop Trail
Acadia National Park
The Loop Trail is 1.5 miles and very heavily used. Acadia National Park is an exceptionally busy place, so this is not a very secluded trail. That does not take away from the beauty! It is a must do trail if you are in the area. I do not recommend it if you are afraid of heights, however. The views are among some of the best ocean views you’ll see from a hike.
6) Borestone Mountain Trail
Guilford
The trail is 3.5 Miles long and took us 2.5 hours with lunch. The views are great and we marked this as an easy hike.
7) Table Rock Trail
Grafton Notch State Park
This trail is 2.7 Miles long and took us about 2 hours to complete with a quick rest to take in the views. Be careful on trail to make sure you stay on the marked trail, it was a little easy to get off course. Completing this trail does require nimble feet and some minor bouldering.
8) Speckled Mountain via Spruce Hill
White Mountain National Forest
The drive out to this hike is equally as beautiful as the hike itself. The trail is 5.8 miles and it took me about 4.5 hours to complete. I didn’t take many breaks and kept moving so I would plan for a bit more time if you choose this one.
9) Caribou Mountain via Bog Road
White Mountain National Forest
This is a great springtime or fall hike. We hiked it in the spring as a warm up hike to the hiking season. The trail is 5.6 miles long and took us about 3.5 hours to complete. Lots of cool flora and fauna to see along the way up!
10) Mt. Megunticook
Camden
There are a few different paths to summit Mt. Megunticook. We took the path from Camden Hills State Park Campground. This is a great afternoon hike that won’t take you much time and gives you the great views of a larger hike.