The Wandering Chickadee

General Information:

Durham Leisure Campground is a family-owned campground located in Durham, Maine and is about 25 minutes north of Greater Portland and next door to Freeport, Maine.

Every year we like to stay to do some 2-night/weekend camping and staying local is a great choice when looking to maximize our camping time.  We love that this campground is only 35 minutes from our house!

This campground gives you easy access to Outlet Shopping in Freeport, Bradbury Mtn. State Park, Wolfe Neck State Park, Pineland Farms, the Maine Wildlife Park, and so much more!

This is a 36-site RV ONLY (no tenters, sorry!) campground.  There are a combination of back-in and pull-through sites.  All the sites are full hook-up and offer plenty of shade.  They also have some cabins available for rent.  Durham Leisure Campground appears to have some expansion plans in the works as noted with the campsites marked ‘XX’ on the map.  During our stay, you can definitely see the expansion work being done.

Upon arrival, you will check in at the front office; if the owners are not there, you are directed to call them on the cell phone number provided.  For our stay this year, we had to call and had no issues with check in! From there, the owners will lead you to your site and offer a recommendation for where to park on the site and then leave you to settle in on your site.

Reservations are made through a reservation request form online or you can call the campground.  We have now stayed at Durham Leisure Campground twice and both times I have called to book our reservation.  Honestly, I think calling campgrounds to book reservations is always the way to go.  You can ask for site recommendations and get the nitty-gritty details about the site you book that you wouldn’t see when booking online.

Quiet hours are 10pm-8am.  Again, another VERY quiet campground for us!  There are a host of seasonal sites at this campground and I happen to know they welcome and cater to the traveling nurses and contracted Bath Iron Works employees.  Therefore, it was ALWAYS quiet, day or night, with many campers away from their sites for the day.

As you know by now, I like to get out and walk in the morning.  There is a trail (not marked) on the property that you can venture down.  I didn’t explore the trail but did get a good workout going up and down the entrance hill to the campground.  A loop up-and-down the hill was about .4 miles… so I did that a couple of times.

The salt water pool is by far our favorite campground pool to date!  Mostly because we were usually the only family using the pool. They have a HUGE shallow area that would be perfect for those younger kiddos to sit and splash around it.  They have some rules around floaties and noodles but you can find a bin of pool toys for kids….think of a random collection of “sinkies”.  A hot tub is also within the pool compound.

A playground is available behind the camp office and is really geared for the 5 and under crew and in the camp office, you will find a great play area for kids, a wonderfully stocked children’s and adult libraries and a good selection of DVDs you can check out during your stay.

Now for the Google Reviews…I normally do not include or address reviews because to each their own on how much they weigh these reviews in their decision to stay at a campground or not.

BUT…I need to address two things I noticed about those 1-star reviews you will see if you do a search of their Google reviews.  

1.)  Many of these 1-star reviews are over 3 years old.  Personally, I think Google reviews should be no older than 2 years old.  Because a lot can happen within those two years.. ownership changes, management changes, expansion, etc.

2.) There were a couple of mentions regarding the owners’ religious viewpoints.  From the religious books noted on the shelves, I could deduce their religious preferences.  However, did the owners EVER push their views and opinions on us?  ABSOLUTELY NOT.  And frankly, I have had more pushy sales people knock on my door trying to sell me on solar farms than anything we ever encountered at Durham Leisure Campground.

So with that, I encourage you to check out Durham Leisure Campground for yourself! I promise you will not be disappointed!

Cleanliness of Site/Site Details:

With mature tree growth, every site has a good portion of shade for the day.  The sites are very clean with a mostly gravel site.   Sites vary with the amount of grass they have on them.  

Sites can accommodate some pretty big rigs as we observed during check in that a 45 foot, triple axle RV was calling the campground home.   We did not feel like we were right on top of our neighbors but close enough that we were mindful of our noise in the morning before quiet hours were over. 

There really isn’t a bad site at Durham Leisure Campground.  We have stayed in the pull-through sites #26 and #27 and they were fantastic.  The sites were very clean and relatively level.  #26 has a very cool fire pit created with some boulders and rocks while site #27 has a great ball-like metal fire pit.

The only site I would probably stay away from due to have to back in around some pretty big trees is site #29.  However, it appears that it’s being used as a seasonal site but…doesn’t hurt to ask to not be put in that site.

The picnic table was a standard size, at 5 feet long.   I love our picnic table covers, especially because they come in a variety of sizes…including 5 feet long!

Site Costs:

We stayed at a pull-through (20/30/50 AMP) site for $60/night.  Durham Leisure Campground is one of the least expensive nightly rates of our summer of camping!  In looking at their website, rates range from $60-70/night and must be dependent on the size of your rig as $60/night was the rate we paid last year as well.

They do require a 2-night minimum and 3-night minimum on holiday weekends.

Additionally, we had booked for a 3-night weekend trip but due to some rain storms and schedule glitches, we had to rearrange our camping schedule a bit and could only come for 2 nights.    The owners were great to work with and gave us a 1 night credit to use this year or next year.  I really love when campgrounds can work with campers like this!

Amenities:

• Playground
• Outdoor Salt Water Pool
• Hot Tub
• Hiking Trail
• FREE Wireless Internet
• Coin-Op Laundry ($4.00 for washer/$2.00 dryer)
• Children & Adult Libraries
• Free DVD rentals
• Indoor Play Area
• Dedicated Bathrooms and Free Showers within the Campground (more on that later)

Bathroom Low Down:

There are 2 all-gender bathrooms located in the camp office building.  One is accessible within the camp office building and the other, accessible through a door on the exterior of the building.  You will find a toilet and urinal in each of the bathrooms along with air blades to dry your hands to reduce on paper trash.

There are also two shower rooms accessible on the exterior of the building.  There are benches and places to hang your towels as well as shower caddies in the stalls to place your toiletries.  Again, VERY clean rooms!

The bathrooms and laundry are housed in one building with sex-separated bathrooms.  Showers are attached in the same building as the bathrooms and laundry.  They are accessible outside.  There are 4 individual shower stalls all with their own exterior doors. 

Bathroom Rating: A+

The bathrooms and shower rooms are very clean and very new!  You can still smell that “new-build” smell when you walk in.

Overview of our Experience:

Durham Leisure Campground was a reset weekend for us.  After a couple of week long trips with longer drive times, we were looking forward to staying close to home.  

I made a reservation over the phone and really enjoyed talking to Qwenn.  She then always texts to make sure that we have her contact information with us, should we ever need it!    I think that is a great customer service touch before we even set foot into the campground!

When we arrived, we met the husband-owner of the campground and were escorted to our site, a pull through full hook-up site.  He made some recommendations for how to best get into the site and then went off on his way!

My daughter’s priority is to patiently wait until we are unhitched, jacks are down, and slide is out.  Once that is done, she knows she can quickly change into her bathing suit and head with me down to the pool…which is exactly what we did! 

TBH, I love getting us away from the campsite so that my hubby can get everything hooked up and into place with a little peace and quiet…and then he will come down and tag me out and I will go set up the inside of the camper along with our outdoor living space. 

#teamworkmakesthedreamwork

After a little swim session, we headed into Freeport for some quick shopping and dinner.  We returned for a quiet campfire (again, this place is SO QUIET) and an early bedtime. PS-They have the best rate on bundles of wood…$6 for a HUGE bundle of wood.

On Saturday, we got ready to hike Bradbury Mountain in hopes of seeing the hot-air balloons from the festival in Lewiston/Auburn.  However, the winds and wildfire smoke canceled the balloons and made for less than great views.  However, we enjoyed our hike nevertheless!

After a quick lunch at the campsite, we spent the afternoon at the saltwater pool.  Sidenote:  I have really come to enjoy a busy morning of activities and then a slower afternoon at the campground.  It’s a pace that really works for us.

Later in the afternoon, we adventured over the Desert of Maine for some mini-golf.  And..I have to say, I’ve blogged about the Desert of Maine but not the mini-golf..and wow, it was a great, high-quality course! 

We returned to the campground for another quiet night of campfires and games.  

Sunday was another day spent packing up in the rain, which seems to be a trend this year!  However, instead of packing up in the rain and driving 2+ hours, we had a 30 minute drive and were home before 12pm!

If you are local to Southern Maine or are looking to do some camping near Portland or Brunswick, you have to check out Durham Leisure Campground!  This campground is centrally located to both cities with many opportunities to check out hiking trails and two state parks.

For more on our trip to the Freeport- area as well as all of other adventures, check out my posts on Instagram and Facebook.

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Happy Adventuring!

~Natalie

Campground Overview:

Sea Swell Campground has two locations in Rockport, Maine: Camden Hills Campground and Megunticook Campground.  We stayed at the Megunticook Campground, located on Route 1, and about a 2 hour drive from Portland.  

We chose this location because it was pretty much halfway between Camden and Rockland making for easy access to state parks and both charming downtown villages.

Everything that we wanted to do was within a 30 minute drive of the campground, which made it easy to get out and adventure and then come back and relax at our site, take a dip in the pool, and spend time with friends.

There are a variety of RV and tent sites at this roughly 95-site campground.  RV sites are primarily gravel sites while tent sites are made up of gravel and grass.  RV sites include pull through and back in sites along with your choice of full hookups or just water and electric.  A dump station is on site.

There is also a pet-free cottage and 10 primitive cabins available for rent.

At Megunticook Campground, the lock-in fee for their sites is $30. It appears the lock-in fee is $30 whether you have a 2-, 3-, and 4 night stay. For our 3-night stay, we did lock in our site because we had friends coming to camp with us one night and wanted to be close to them. 

Otherwise, you are given a site upon arrival based on what you selected (pull through vs. back in, full hook up v. water and electric).

DISCOUNT ALERT: Mainers get 20% of their stay!  I did not see this discount until the day before we were set to arrive and I emailed them to see if this could be applied to our reservation and they said yes!

Note:  Some conditions regarding the number of nights you stay need to be met and it applies only to your nightly rate and not to taxes or the lock-in fee, if you use that feature.

NOTE ON THEIR RESERVATION SYSTEM: It is for BOTH THEIR CAMPGROUNDS.  When you pull up your preferred dates, all the available sites for BOTH CAMPGROUNDS will appear.  Be sure when completing your reservation you confirm it is for your preferred Sea Swell Campground (Camden Hills OR Megunticook)

While the campground sits just back from the ocean, you do not have any direct view of the ocean from the sites.  However, there is a great overlook area complete with a deck with picnic tables, adirondack chairs, wooden swings, and a privy accessible from the campground (see ‘deck area’ on campground map).

It is down a rather big hill and those with mobility concerns may have issues accessing the overlook area.

Quiet hours are 10pm-8am.  This was another relatively quiet campground.  There were no issues with loudness in the evening and the most noise we heard in the morning were from early morning dog-walkers and those getting a headstart on their day’s adventures.

Typically, I will walk the campground in the morning.  However, this was the second campground of the week for us and we planned some hiking and some state park adventures while we were here so I took the opportunity to sleep in.  

However, you could definitely do some laps on the campground road and for an extra kick walk up and down the hill to the overlook area for some extra cardio.

Finally, the pool and playground… 

Both are centrally located to the campground.  The pool does not appear to be heated and several of us adults used the word ‘refreshing’ when plunging in.  🙂   There are lounges as well as tables and chairs to access within the pool area.  Shady spots are limited and be ready for full afternoon sun.

The playground is a rather large CedarWorks play structure (Cedar Works HQ’s is located in Rockport, Maine!!) and really geared for kiddos over the age of 5.

Cleanliness of Site/Site Details:

Most of the sites are tucked away into a wooded area so you have a really good chance of having shade for a portion of your day at your site.  The only sites that looked to get full sun appeared to be their seasonal sites.

Sites are mid-range in size; not too small and not overly spacious.  We did not feel like we were right on top of our neighbors but close enough that we were mindful of our noise in the morning before quiet hours were over. 

We stayed at site #56 and really liked it.  There was plenty of room for our outdoor carpet and outdoor kitchen set up as well as space around the picnic table and fire pit.

Our site was very clean and relatively level.  Recent rains made for some mud near the water and sewer hook ups but the gravel side of the site was perfect!  

The picnic table was a rather large one, at 8 feet long.   I love our picnic table covers, especially because they come in a variety of sizes…including 8 feet long!

If I had to recommend any RV sites they would be: Sites 55-57.   They are on a little corner of the campground and are full hook up sites.

Site Costs:

We stayed at a back-in full hookup (30 AMP) site for about $64/night plus the $30 lock-in fee($51/night with the Mainer Discount) for 3 nights during peak season.

Pull through sites will run about $10/night more and sites with 50 AMP electricity about $20/night more.

Prices significantly drop after Labor Day Weekend.  The same site we booked for July will be $15 less per night or about $50/night after Labor Day weekend.  TBH…visiting Camden and Rockland in fall months sounds dreamy and these off-peak prices are tempting for a weekend getaway!

If you need the internet, you will need to pay for it at Megunticook Campground. It’s roughly $8/day. You will struggle to access the internet on your phone, as I can confirm. However, I can’t share with you how well the it worked as we chose to un-plug for this trip.

Amenities:

• Playground
• Outdoor Pool
• Wireless Internet (available for purchase)
• Coin-Op Laundry
• Well Stocked Camp Store
• Dedicated Bathrooms and Free Showers within the Campground (more on that later)

Bathroom Low Down:

The bathrooms and laundry are housed in one building with sex-separated bathrooms.  Showers are attached in the same building as the bathrooms and laundry.  They are accessible outside.  There are 4 individual shower stalls all with their own exterior doors. 

The bathrooms were all stocked with toilet paper and paper towels and there is a little area for you, in the women’s bathroom at least, to get ready (i.e. counter with mirror to blow dry hair, put on makeup, etc.).

In my opinion, these bathrooms could have been a bit more clean.  There was a small amount of trash on the floor and the bathroom smelled like…a bathroom, if that makes sense.

But to be fair, and give them the benefit of the doubt, I did check out these bathrooms during the pre-dinner hours and after the morning rush to use the facilities AND there were a ton of small children using them.

There is also 1 privy/composting bathroom at the overlook.

Bathroom Rating: B-

The bathrooms and showers definitely show their age and could have used a bit more frequent cleaning.

Overview of our Experience:

Megunticook Campground was our 2nd stop during this week-long camping trip. We just spent the first part of our week at Searsports Shores. You can find my review of Searsport Shores here.

We had rain on our departure/travel day from Searsport Shores and our plans for adventuring in Camden Hills State Park (and parking the truck/camper there) prior to checking in to Megunticook Campground disappeared with the weather. 

So after a quick phone call to Megunticook Campground, we got the OK to arrive early.  It was so nice they could accommodate us, especially on this rainy day, and I appreciated not having to scramble to find something to do that could accommodate our truck/camper given it was a travel day.

Upon arrival, you will check in at the front office; which is housed in a former carriage house of sorts.  The transformation of the carriage house into a campground office is REALLY NEAT.  Stalls have been maintained but they serve as aisles for camping supplies and essentials for purchase as well as offices for the campground staff.

Speaking of campground staff: They were wonderful during every interaction we had with them. From checking in, to our wood and beer purchases, to reporting a pool incident to them…they were fantastic!  

With lots of children around the campground, it was great to hear splashing in the pool, playing on the playground, and bikes roaming the campground.  

With the exception of some fussy babies at bedtimes, some dogs greeting each other in the morning, and vehicles slowly getting out to start their adventures, quiet hours were well respected.

On our last day at Megunticook Campground, our friends came to stay with us.  They were able to snag a 1-night tenting site.  With kiddos about the same age, we had planned for an afternoon at the pool and a group dinner at the campground.

However, an incident involving some vomit shut down the pool for the afternoon.  The girls were bummed but we pivoted to arts and crafts and decided to meet at the overlook at the campground to do them.  And with great surprise, we were able to see the Camden Classic Cup sailboat race taking place while the girls did arts and crafts!!!

While I couldn’t tell you who was in the lead or what they were doing, it was great to watching a whole bunch of sailboats out on the ocean.

Afterwards, we had a great cookout and even managed to get the girls into the pool on the morning of our departure!

If you are looking for a campground to call home while adventuring around the Camden and Rockland areas, this is it!  Because this campground is centrally located to both Camden and Rockland, nothing felt like it was too much of a drive, too far from our campground, etc.. 

We explored both villages of Rockland and Camden, hiked Mt. Megunticook in Camden Hills State Park, as well as visited Owls Head and Birch Point State Parks.

We really enjoyed calling this campground home for a couple of nights while we adventured around midcoast Maine.

For a more in-depth look at Megunticook Campground, check out this aerial video. The only thing, I believe, that has changed from this video made in 2020 to today is the playground has been updated with a newer CedarWorks structure.

For more on our trip to the midcoast area as well as all of other adventures, check out my posts on Instagram and Facebook.

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~Natalie