Thompson's Lake Campground — Hotel in Town of Knox

A great place to visit in the Capital Region! The park is located adjacent to the Thatcher State Park on the Helderberg Escarpment. It is about 30 minute drive from Albany or Colonie, along a scenic winding one lane highway. If driving from Albany area, you might pass through the picturesque villages of Altamont or New Scotland.

Much of the park is occupied by the campground, with dozens of numbered spots to park and put up a tent or whatever you like. We live in the area so just go on day trips. There is a beautiful lake surrounded by the park on one side and waterfront properties on the other.

There is a nature center with separate drive-up access road, with helpful staff, a tiny shop, and exhibits for kids and adults to learn about the area's geology and biology. Check their hours before you go.

The park includes a beach and a playground for kids. There are several large, conveniently located restrooms. There are a couple of parking areas, one close enough to the beach to enable folks to unload kayaks with a short carry. There is space along the shoreline you can walk down to try your luck at fishing from shore.

There is a separate driveway for boats that is outside the main park area, just drive a little ways down the highway past the entrance sign.

In the summer there are lifeguards on duty and a small designated area to keep swimmers safe from motorcraft. I went for a swim after Labor Day in chilly September water, with the beach deserted, but that's at own risk so bring a friend.

The campground is vast, with spots for all tastes, some with paths to the water, others more inland with more space for vehicles and gear. There are fire pits throughout🔥 and firewood for purchase when in season. Overall, a beautiful stretch of public lake shore to walk around and enjoy the scenery and the water, well cared for by the state and enjoyed by locals and visitors alike!

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This was our first camp trip to this nys campground and it was very nice. First 2 days we were there the bathrooms smelled of bleach which is actually refreshing compared to the Adirondack bathrooms. But saturday thru Monday toilets were clogged, not flushing, toilet paper and food on the floors. This says as much about the campers as it does the staff. On arriving Thursday, a woman at the booth told us we could buy their wood for $6 +$1 for the wood bag which will be refunded when we brought the bag back. Leaving monday, my fiance was told they haven't refunded the wood bags in years! So either this woman is swiping $1 from each unsuspecting camper over and over all season or the woman monday doesn't know her job. Also, the wood was WET! Literally squirts when you chop it. We ended up going to stewarts for bags of kiln dried wood at $11 each. We seemed to have our own piece of beach property too which was nice and we made good use of it. A down side was the people next to us brought a newborn baby to camp who screamed every hour all night for 2 of the nights we were there. Who does that?? Felt bad for the baby since it was chilly at night. We also went to lunch at Maple On The Lake restaurant which is only a 6 minute drive from camp. Did was good and portions were large. All in all... we'd go there again. It's close to home although that also means it's close to albany and the airport, which had a direct flight path over...

This was our first camp trip to this nys campground and it was very nice. First 2 days we were there the bathrooms smelled of bleach which is actually refreshing compared to the Adirondack bathrooms. But saturday thru Monday toilets were clogged, not flushing, toilet paper and food on the floors. This says as much about the campers as it does the staff. On arriving Thursday, a woman at the booth told us we could buy their wood for $6 +$1 for the wood bag which will be refunded when we brought the bag back. Leaving monday, my fiance was told they haven't refunded the wood bags in years! So either this woman is swiping $1 from each unsuspecting camper over and over all season or the woman monday doesn't know her job. Also, the wood was WET! Literally squirts when you chop it. We ended up going to stewarts for bags of kiln dried wood at $11 each. We seemed to have our own piece of beach property too which was nice and we made good use of it. A down side was the people next to us brought a newborn baby to camp who screamed every hour all night for 2 of the nights we were there. Who does that?? Felt bad for the baby since it was chilly at night. We also went to lunch at Maple On The Lake restaurant which is only a 6 minute drive from camp. Did was good and portions were large. All in all... we'd go there again. It's close to home although that also means it's close to albany and the airport, which had a direct flight path over...