Park Review: The Pines Camping Area (Salisbury, MA)

Address:  28 CCC Rd, Salisbury, MA 01952
Phone:  (717) 867-3967
Website:  http://pinescampingarea.com/
# of sites:  163
​Full hookup price:  $46/night
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
​Warnings:  mosquitos, caters to seasonals

We wanted to camp somewhere between Boston and Cape Cod and ended up staying in Salisbury, not too far from family.  This is a very wooded park which provides a discount for Good Sam members

Pros:
Aptly named, this is a very lush, green resort.  There was shade from the forest in every nook and cranny and every site was nestled in between trees and up against shrubbery.  Each site had plenty of space and there were a few large rigs camping when we arrived.  The staff was friendly and can help guide you to the Hampton Beach tourist area about a 10-minute drive away.  Several campsites face a marshland and have a view of the Merrimack River.  Plum Island with its Parker River Wildlife Refuge is also a short drive away.

Cons:
Like many of the campgrounds we've stayed at this year, The Pines has an old community of seasonal residents living in decaying or purely ancient RV's or park model homes.  It was rather depressing hiking through the campground, making us feel like we were visiting an old trailer park.

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That being said, the pathways through the park are very narrow and can take some complex maneuvering to park in or leave a site.  One turn in particular was difficult to undertake without scraping tree limbs and shrubs, and I could foresee a rig or two bottoming out in some of the ruts.

Also like many of the parks we stayed in this year, the mosquito population was exceptionally large.  The wetter-than-normal summer may have had something to do with that, but don't forget about the marsh nearby, the perfect breeding ground.

All-in-all, we would recommend The Pines to anyone traveling through and not needing a long-term stay, as long as their rig can manage its terrain.

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