Campgrounds and RV parks near Belleplain, NJ

The centerpiece is Lake Nummy, a former cranberry bog inside the state forest. During the Depression, the Civilian Conservation Corps dug out the bog into a 26-acre recreational lake, and Lake Nummy is now the center of activities for the forest, where visitors can canoe, swim, or hike along the shore. A swimming beach and playground make it a straightforward day for families. Hikers and cyclists have room to spread out. Belleplain has over forty miles of trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding, along with hunting, fishing, camping, and stargazing. Fishing is permitted in Lake Nummy, East Creek Pond, Holly Lake, and Cedar Lake, with freshwater species mainly pickerel, sunfish, and catfish. For beach days, Sea Isle City, Avalon, Stone Harbor, and Cape May are all within a thirty-minute drive, and the Cape May-Lewes Ferry connects to Delaware from the peninsula's southern tip.

Spring is when Belleplain draws visitors from well beyond New Jersey. Belleplain State Forest is internationally known for its spring birding migration, and many warblers including the Prothonotary and Yellow-Throated Warbler call Belleplain home during spring and summer. Days are cool through April, warming quickly into May, and biting insects stay manageable until early summer. Summer is the busiest stretch. The state forest campground and the private parks near Avalon fill on weekends from Memorial Day through Labor Day, and beach traffic on the Garden State Parkway peaks on Friday afternoons and Sunday evenings. Under the canopy at Belleplain, temperatures typically run several degrees below the shore, which helps on humid August afternoons. Fall brings quieter sites, cooler nights, and reliable weather into mid-October, though October is also the wettest month of the year in Cape May County. Winter camping is limited: many private beach resorts close for the season, while Belleplain State Forest keeps campsites open year-round. During construction of the new Meisle Campground sanitary facility, lean-tos, shelters, and select campsites remain open with portable sanitation units, and access to flush toilets, showers, and water shifts to the CCC Campground.

Belleplain State Forest sites sit under a mixed pine and hardwood canopy, with sandy soil and moderate spacing between pads. Sites in the CCC loop include electric and water hookups, and flush toilets, showers, and laundry facilities are within walking distance of all sites. Cell service is patchy inside the forest, so download maps before arrival. Wildlife is part of the experience. Barred and screech owls can be heard nightly in the campground and surrounding areas, and signs of deer, coyote, bobcat, fox, rabbit, opossum, raccoon, red and gray flying squirrels, muskrat, and beaver can be found within the forest. Store food securely and expect biting insects from late May through August, especially near the swampy lowlands. Private parks closer to Avalon lean toward full hookups, paved interior roads, pools, and shorter walks to the beach, with tighter site spacing than the state forest.