After looking at the weather the end of March and seeing perfect temperatures, we decided to book a last minute camping trip. Many campgrounds near us don’t open until April, and the ones that are open are booked already so we landed on Jonestown/Hershey NE KOA in Jonestown, PA. We are KOA reward members so stay at KOAs often.
We booked a riverfront site. These are nice because they run parallel to the river giving you more waterfront room. In the summer you can rent kayaks and float down the river.
The campground store was well stocked and also had an outdoor window to order icecream and adult slushies!
It was Apollo’s first camping trip and he enjoyed the dog run. It was just a simple gated open space but it gave him lots of room to run!
The kids enjoyed the playground and met lots of friends! They also liked the mini golf (this was $5 per person but a fairly new course)
Since we were so close to Hershey we decided to visit Chocolate World! This is reservation only right now due to COVID but reservations are free. They do take your temperature at arrival. The chocolate ride was open and they were wiping down between riders. They were still giving out the free samples after, as well as some bonus free samples in the store area. The kids decided they wanted milkshakes and the line moved fairly quickly. As a bonus the Chocolate Easter bunny was available with no line!
After Hershey we tried to visit Troegs Brewing nearby. It was a very long wait and we had the kids, so we opted to visit the store and take some back to the campsite instead.
The highlight of everyone’s trip was a nearby hike we found in a local state park. Swatara State Park was a short drive away and we decided to do the Borders Cabin Trail, which was 3.1 miles roundtrip. This was an easy trail, most was flat and paved but it took you over a beautiful bridge and was very scenic. At the end, you came to Acgriggs Falls. Pictures don’t do it justice, it was large and the kids had a great time scrambling around the nearby rocks. There was also a cabin next to it built in 1939 with some cool history about a guy who built it and refused to let the park take it over.
To get to the trailhead takes Sand Siding Road until the parking lot at the end. Make a left on the trail as you come out of the main parking lot. Watch for bikes as this is part of the Swatara Rail Trail. About a 1/4 mile in you will see a bridge on your left, cross the bridge and keep going until you reach an intersection. At the intersection make a left on the trail and follow until you see the cabin and falls. This is a great hike for dogs and also jogging strollers as most is paved or crushed stone.
Another great option nearby if you brought bikes would be the Swatara Rail Trail which goes for 10 miles.
All in all we had a great trip and really enjoyed the campground and especially the hike!
Camping with the Kennedys 