0
Pull-thru
USFSWhite Mountain National Forest · New Hampshire
Waterville Campground
Overview Waterville Campground is a popular home base for hikers who want to explore the southern White Mountains, including the scenic Pemigewasset Wilderness.
Sites2916 reservable
Elev.1,453ft
Comf.May-Oct6 months
Max rig30 ft
Electricnonesites
From Concord1h14real road time
The honest read
Synthesized from
RIDB · Open-Meteo
OSM · OSRM
Updated 2026-05-27
RIDB · Open-Meteo
OSM · OSRM
Updated 2026-05-27
At 1,453 ft, Waterville Campground has a 6-month comfortable window (May-Oct). Winter nights average around 11°F, so the shoulder seasons turn cold fast. 29 sites total: 16 reservable and 13 first-come, first-served. Within about 4 miles: 7 named hiking routes, 17 peaks, lake or river access.
The campground at a glance
01 · CHARACTER
Reads strongest on shade and reservability. Softest on roomy sites.
Six axes, each scored relative to every other federal campground in the region: quiet (miles to a major road), cool (elevation), roomy (average site spacing), shade, RV-fit (longest rig), and how reservable it is. All six come from data, nothing hand-tuned.
When to go
02 · CLIMATE
avg highavg lowfrost-freedriest · Mar
May-Oct
Comfortable window: nights stay above 35°F, days below 90°F.
73%
Of summer weekend-days are dry.
May 11
Last spring frost; first fall frost Oct 9.
59°F
Average July low.
Getting there
03 · ACCESS
01
Concord
59 mi
1h14
02
Manchester
76 mi
1h36
03
Boston
126 mi
2h36
By drive time
Routed road time (OSRM). Nearest major highway 8.3 mi away.
Picking your site
04 · 29 SITES
Color byShow only
26 mapped sites · dot color = seclusion · click a dot for details. Basemap © OpenStreetMap.
0
Walk-in
0
50-amp
22
Accessible
0
Prime
29
Sites
★ The standout
Site 006
WATE · shaded.
To neighbor
101 ft
Max rig
30 ft
Type
Standard
What's within four miles
05 · TRAILS · PEAKS · WATER
Trails & Peaks
Named hiking routes
7
Trail segments
196
Peaks
17
Viewpoints
4
Water & Access
Lake / river access
yes
Designated swimming
1
To nearest major road
8.3 mi
Method
We synthesize public data layers: RIDB and Recreation.gov facility and site records, Open-Meteo climate normals, OpenStreetMap roads, trails, and water, OSRM drive times, and USGS elevation. We take no bookings, no ads, and no paid placements. Independence is the entire point.