stokes state forest

Beautiful Winter Wonderland, so very peaceful. They say there is hunting however I didn't hear any shot. I advise orange but believe most hunters do not want to hunt near the trails. I hike the trail off the Pavilion, make sure you walk down by the creek and check out the ice formation simply beautiful.The is no fee in the Winter Months.

Stokes is already one of our favorite destinations. The park is beautiful in any season. Because of the season, my older son and I rented a lean-to, a small enclosed wooden structure without furnishings. The lean-to does come with a wood burning stove, but you need to purchase wood. You are strongly encouraged not to bring in firewood from home, but purchase wood from the forest office. We used a combination of purchased wood and firelogs. The stove keeps the structure warm enough, and at times, actually too warm. each lean-to has a fire ring and picnic table for those brave enough to cook and eat outside during the winter months. There are three distinct camping areas. The lean-tos are located in the Shotwell area. There are flush toilets in the area but no showers, you need to travel to other sections of the park for showers which can present a problem at times. There are plenty of hiking opportunities during any season. Be warned, most of the park is open to hunting and if you do go during the fall and winter months, it is advisable to wear high visibility colors for safety reasons. All in all, a great time.

I hike here every day! This is an absolutely beautiful, well kept park. I am so happy it isn't exploited. I am also so happy to see that people do respect this park by taking their trash with them. The only thing that stinks is...when people have a campsite near the creek...you don't get to enjoy that part of the creek. It is very serene...if you need to get away from the city, Stokes State is the place....

When choosing a campground, being able to relax in the peace and quiet of nature is my main goal. Camping at Stokes for the first time, I was nervous to be stuck next to rowdy neighbors or cramped in too closely with others. My husband and I chose the more rustic Steam Mill campground and selected site #209. Could not have been happier with our choice! The site was tucked away from the road with a comfortable buffer of trees between us and our neighbors. Other campers were quiet and respectful. We made full use of the fire pit's built-in grill. The bathroom was very basic, just a pit toilet with no sink or running water or lights, and it was in bad need of de-cobwebbing, but it didn't phase us. We did a couple nice hikes within Stokes during our stay. The Tillman Ravine trail is supposed to be a loop, though we wandered off the loop in spite of trying to follow the trail markers and ended up at an old cemetery. Never did find the other part of the trail, but at least we eventually found our way back to our car!

The trees, the trails, the woods...makes you forget you are in New Jersey. Took a hike from the side of the park that does not enter the park. We hiked up 3.5 miles of the 7 mine road to the top and saw an awesome view of mountains and valley. Hiked back down and then drove the road out stopping at the other scenic over pass..

The hike was fun and I loved the scenic overlook. Though we got lost the map isn't that reliable I still had a great time

We enjoyed our 2 night stay at steam mill camp site in states state forest. Perfect site for camping in woods. A small creek runs by the campsite which was beautiful. I wish we could have stayed more. We will definitely come back.

We stayed in the Steammill campground over the July 4th weekend and were sad to leave! Our site (T216) was set back from the road and backed up to a really lovely wooded area with a creek running through it. The sites on that side of the road were spread out and felt very private - there were people on both sides of us but we could hardly see them. We drove through the other camping areas in the park and Steammill seemed to be the most secluded and had the best nature (Oquittunk area was really nice, too) - for us, it was worth not having easy access to flush toilets and showers. Our only complaint was that the camping area was a little tricky to get to and the roads were not well marked. We arrived after the park office was closed (I'm sure they'd have given us directions to the camping area otherwise), and fortunately they had brochures out front with maps, or we'd have never made it to the site. Just something to keep in mind if you will be arriving after the office closes at 4pm. We didn't explore Stokes much beyond our camping area because the weekend entry fee (for anything accessed through the main entry) is a little pricey for out-of-staters ($20/day). Raymondskill Falls, Dingmans Falls, and Childs' Park were all great for free hiking, though, and there were several free hiking paths in/around the Steammill camping area.

You would never guess this place was fifty miles from NYC. This is a very large state park with thousands of acres and miles of trails. Recommended: Drive slowly up Sunrise Mountain Road. This is a one way road up the long side of Sunrise Mountain. (you make a big circle to exit) At times the road is completely covered by the tree canopy. Do not miss the overlook near the end where you can watch hawks and eagles soar and catch the updrafts coming from the overlook. From here you can hike part of the Appalachian Trail fifty feet away. The price is FREE.Coursen Road to Stony Lake is a great lake to take the family. This facility does have a fee. There are picnic tables and grills available along with bathroom facilities. The beach is large enough to handle moderate sized crowds.

We camped at steam mill because we wanted to feel far away from anyone. I think we were the only ones there. There was a creek behind our site and just woods. A truly great campsite. The pit toilets are gross and smelly so be prepared for that. The drinking water is delicious. There are many miles of beautiful hikes. Unfortunately didn't see any bears. We will definitely return because there was so much left to explore.

Really nice cabins to rent. Fireplaces, refrigerator, stove, bunk beds, etc. outdoor fire put, grill, picnic table. Have to reserve a year in advance. I walked around and saw tent camping and smaller cabins near the lake. Nearby you can drive to waterfalls and beautiful scenic overlooks. Wonderful area, clean, quiet, peaceful and totally in the woods. Space farms is nearby, which is a good attraction for families. I believe there is no fee to just hike or enjoy the lake and trails. Camping of course has a fee.

A great day of hiking for my girlfriend, dog, and I. The park is beautiful landscaped when you first enter as the stone walls lead you to the picnic and lake for swimming. The hiking trails were wide and a bit rocky as we enjoyed all the greenery, lake, and streams. There are snakes and bears in the area. We came across a few eaten and half eaten snakes and fish. Of all my visits to NJ and PA state parks this is the first and only time I've encountered a bear. It looked at us, we looked at it...our dog thought about instigating play with his "new friend" but thankfully chose to keep walking forward on the trail instead. There are also nearby vistas with panoramic views of the surrounding areas perfect for pictures. The day of our visit we were fortunate to come across the Chatterbox classic style drive-in which happened to be hosting a free classic car show that was flooded with beautifully restored classic cars from the 30s to 70's. It was just the cherry on top of a great day.

What a great weekend at Stokes! My boyfriend and I camped for 2 nights at Shotwell campsite this past weekend. We had a great site (103) it was private but close enough to walk to the bathrooms when we needed to.We set up our ten on the raised platform and had no problems with mud or bugs (it did rain a bit at night). We were able to cook all our food on grill that was attached to the fire ring. Although there were no showers at the Shotwell site, we drove over to Stony Lake and used the showers there. They had great water pressure.We went for a drive to a local winery called Westfall on the recommendation of one of the park employees. We lucked out, because it was Oktoberfest there. The cost for entrance was $5, and we enjoyed free wine tasting, free hamburgers and hotdogs and they had a live band. We had a great afternoon there.Overall we had a great weekend. Next time we will be doing some more hiking, as there are many trails in the park. p.s. Take a drive up to Sunrise Mountain and then walk to the pavilion, you won't be disappointed with the views...

We had a great time camping at Stokes. Good time with family and friends. Looking forward to next year !

Whether you like camping, fishing, hunting or picnics, this park has everything for you! Go to the waterfalls at buttermilk or enjoy either of the two lakes. The hikes are great for all levels of ability and fitness. Fishing is good both in lakes and the streams (reel and fly fishing). Good places to go eat lunch or dinner around here. If you like camping, you have your choice of great sites regardless of where you decide to set up a tent. We come here almost every month of the year and always find something interesting to do.