Photos left to right: kids jumping into the water near kayakers. Resting in a hammock watching a paddle boarder. A scarlet tanger on a branch.

They keep us wanting to go back for more.

If I mention to my teenage sons, “Maybe we should sell the fifth wheel,” their reaction is a horrified “NO!”  So apparently, we have been doing something right all these years that they still want to go camping with us.

Our annual trip to the Adirondacks and Lake George is always a highlight of our summer. Over the years we have rented boats and spent the day on Lake George, gone horseback riding, hiked, explored the Olympic sites at Lake Placid, swam and cliff jumped at the Flumes on the Ausable River and so much more. We have also enjoyed spending time at the campground bike riding, playing candy bar bingo, playing a game of dodgeball, watching live entertainment, swimming in the pool and of course sitting by a campfire. All these little moments are making the big adventure for our family and keep us wanting to come back for more.

Last summer we got up early and packed lunches, snorkels, tubes, stand up paddle boards, a kayak, hammocks, fishing gear and camping chairs and headed to the east side of the Lake George. We spent the day floating on the lake in our tubes, SUPing, relaxing in our hammocks and the kids caught dozens of fish. It was a spectacular day on the lake. Then we returned to the campground and watched an exciting Wild West Show followed by a dip in the pool and then a campfire. 

One thing we love about camping in NY is our campsites.  There is nothing better than sitting next to a fire and star gazing. One night I was up photographing star trails and there was a meteor shower. I stayed up for hours watching the meteors shoot across the sky. Another time I saw a scarlet tanager land on a tree branch just above my camp chair. I had been trying to photograph that bird for months with no luck and there it was sitting in a tree watching me knit a sweater. It’s those moments that wow and astonish me and make me so glad we have an RV and can spend so much quality time outdoors.  It is nice to break free from the high paced work and family life and just unwind outdoors.

One of our best days camping in New York was when we rented a deck boat along with our friends for a day on Lake George.  We spent an amazing day exploring the different island sections.  We reserved a beautiful day use site on West Dollar Island. The kids snorkeled, swam and cliff jumped while the adults relaxed on our site and took in the views of the beautiful lake. We continued the day stopping to swim at the different island sections of the lake. Everyone also had a great time tubing even my husband who had an epic wipe out.  It was a fantastic day, and we had a wonderful time sitting around the campfire that night talking about how much fun we had.

While camping can have its amazing moments it can also have its scary and unfortunate moments. I think it is how you handle the bad moments and work through them that leaves the lasting memories. All the little moments keep us wanting to go back for more like finding a good great cliff jumping spot, winning a round of candy bar bingo, seeing a meteor shower, or going for an early morning walk with the dogs and watching the sunrise. Of course, we could do without flat tires, blown fuses, slides not working, the AC deciding to drain into the living room onto the pull-out bed to name a few. In the end all the little moments add up to make the big adventure and, in our case, wonderful family memories.

Andee Fagan is the president of Andee Fagan Fiber Arts & Photography LLC and the executive director of Living Level RV. She combines her passion for camping adventures with her photography, knitting and RV travel guides. Find her at AndeeKF.com and on Instagram at Living Level.

Unless otherwise noted, photos for this story provided by and copyright of Andee K. Fagan.