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Camping in Brooklyn!

August 16, 2011 by Melissa A. Trainer · 1 Comment

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Okay, fellow campers, you know that camping is really going mainstream when a campground grows in Brooklyn!! Yes, that’s correct, there is now a campground in Brooklyn.

I chuckled in disbelief when I was sitting at breakfast reading The Wall Street Journal last week. I was tired of reading about the world’s financial carnage, but an article by Barry Newman ignited my enthusiasm. The article is entitled ”A Campground Grows in Brooklyn, Bringing a New York Edge to Roughing It” and reports on the new campground at Floyd Bennett Field near Jamaica Bay.

Floyd Bennett Field is on the National Register of Historic places–it was New York’s first municipal airport. The National Park Service recently added forty campsites. Most of the sites are for tent campers, but six are suitable for recreational vehicles. There are even fire rings, grills, and picnic tables at each site.

I was born and raised on Long Island only a stone’s throw from Brooklyn. As a born and bred New Yorker, I know that camping is not part of mainstream culture in The Big Apple region. When I was growing up, we rarely saw campers and only a few families that I knew ever camped. I think the fact that a campground is growing in Brooklyn is a remarkable sign of the times at hand. Interesting and noteworthy for sure, I suppose it surely gives a reprieve from the city for some. And, for others, it certainly provides an inexpensive launching pad for touring one of our country’s most expensive tourist destinations.

I just spoke to John Warren, Public Affairs Specialist at Gateway National Recreation Area. As a child, Warren grew up camping and traveling thoughout the national parks with his family. He is incredibly enthusiastic about the new campsites and explained, ”We wanted people in the city to have a national park experience right here in Brooklyn…It’s also the first time we’ve had specific spaces for RV camping. It’s something that’s bringing people in and we are delighted.” According to Warren, the response has been awesome and far reaching.

–Melissa A. Trainer