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view of the north shore Critter Pond, KOA Canandaigua NY [c] 2009 jcb

Review of Spruce Row Campground in Ithaca, NY -- We'll likely return to stay again

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by Jim Bessey

Jim and Nick enjoy a quiet game of Gin at Spruce Row Campground
Jim and Nick enjoy a quiet game of Gin at Spruce Row Campground
After 6 years of trailer camping all around our region, we decided to try a new camping resort, sight unseen. My wife wanted to see more of the Ithaca region, so I made last-minute reservations at Spruce Row Campground by phone and the pleasant voice on the other end of the line assured me we'd have a fine site, with plenty of room, grass and shade. She was right, and we're all glad we went.

By the third day at Spruce Row, we'd toured most of the roads and trails on foot. We'd also piled all four of us (Layla included) in the truck and had a whirlwind tour of Ithaca (very busy), the Cornell University Campus, and a fine hike along the Taughannock Falls Gorge. When we finally checked out on Friday under a blistering sun, we were sorry to say good-bye, especially to the awesome pool!

Here's our round-up, all on a scale of 1 to 10, with "10" for Awesome:

Spruce Row Campground
2271 Kraft Road
Ithaca, NY  14850
Phone (607) 387-9225

Location and Ease of Access:  9
Between State Routes 89 and 96, between Trumansburg and Ithaca above Cayuga Lake

Nearby Attractions: 9
THREE State Parks, swimming and hiking, wineries, the lake, museums, shopping, and the whole city of Ithaca

First Impressions:  8
Nice entry, homey store/office, pool and mini-golf up front. Pleasant staff.

Site Layout, Roads, Grass and Trees:  9
Lots of shade, grass, doggie trails. Roads designed to reduce through traffic.

Campsites: Size, variety, maintenance, hook-ups, tables and fire rings:  8
Plenty of site choices, spacious, easy to pull-thru. Tables and fire rings need upgrading.

Resort amenities: Store, pool, games and activities:  8
Pretty basic store, delightful pool, an OK mini-golf course, minimal activities and game room. Tons of green space for outdoor fun and games.

Spruce Row store (website photo)
Rules and Reg's: reasonable or intrusive?  7
Hate the speed-bumps, pool and dog rules are fine. Seasonal sites a bit unkempt.

Over-all Rating:  8.5
We'd stay there again, and recommend Spruce Row to our camping friends.
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 How about you? Do you have a campground review you'd like to share? If you'd like to submit your review for posting, you can reach me via Comments or by using the link at the top of this page.
Posted by Jim Bessey

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous9:58 AM

    On paper this place sounds great.

    The truth is that the owners need to invest some money in upgrading and maintaining their amenities.

    My kids were excited about the fishing pond - but it's too shallow and weedy. Dig it a little deeper, do something about the rampant weed growth, stock it with more fish - oh, and sell live bait in your campground store. That would be great.

    The mini-golf course is okay for little kids, but wasps had built nests in 4 of the holes.

    The Fun Hut is a mini-arcade (skee-ball, air hockey, a few arcade games) where less than half of the games are working.

    The pool is clean and well-designed - shallow at the edges and deep in the middle.

    The toilets are absolutely disgusting. I found a tree to pee behind all weekend.

    That said, my family did have a good time, but it would've been much better if we got to catch some fish and play some skee-ball.

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