Get ready for the longest day of the year! With all that sunlight on the summer solstice, you can bet we outdoorsy folks at Hipcamp will be outside enjoying it. Here are a few tips and some inspiration to help you make the most of the most sunshine-soaked day of the year.
Seek Epic Sunsets
If you’re camping the weekend of the summer solstice, prepare yourself for a sunset for the books after all that daylight. Will beams of light spill through the trees, or will you be at a national park with candy-coated colors filling up a wide-open sky? Find out what you’re signing yourself up for before claiming your spot at a public or private campground. Simply check out the “vibe at this campground”, in addition to beautiful photos and relevant articles. We’ll help you find that spot where you’ll have the best day ever, followed by the best slumber of the summer.
Camp 4, Yosemite National Park – Photo via Hipcamp Voyager, Peter Amend.
Recommended campsites for inspirational views:
- Button Bay State Park, VT – The beach at Button Bay Campground offers some of the best sunsets over the Adirondacks.
- Four Mile Creek State Park, NY – The sailboats from the campground at Four-Mile Creek State Park.
- Yosemite National Park, CA – The sun takes its time rising behind granite walls before filtering into the campsite.
Hike The Day Away
There are endless adventures you can get into on the solstice, depending on the location. and season. Go for a hike, find a place to cool off or just chill back at camp in your hammock. However you choose to wear yourself out during the day, make sure you have some s’mores to treat yourself to at the end of the longest day of the year!
Mt. Whitney – Photo via Hipcamp Voyager, Alyx Schwarz
Find inspiration from these activities:
- Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, MI – Hike down (and up!) a 450 ft. dune on the shore of Lake Michigan. Signs at the top of the dune before your descent warn that a hike back up the dune can take up to two hours!
- Sequoia National Park, CA – Hike to Moro Rock! Friends, dark chocolate and beverage of choice. The climb up to the top of Moro is SOOO worth it.
- Mt. Whitney Trailhead, Inyo National Forest, CA – This walk-in backpackers’ campground is the perfect place to acclimatize and stage your Whitney summit.
The More, The Merrier!
Many Native American spiritual traditions celebrate the summer solstice with days of dancing and rituals. Start your own tradition by getting the group together and booking a group campsite for the weekend. Find a few of the best party campsites in California below, and let us know where the best place is in your neck of the woods for a group gathering!
- Juanita Lake Group Campground, Klamath National Forest, CA – Hiking, canoeing, fishing, birding and more—this campground is loaded with activities. It’s also ADA accessible and is nicely secluded, a short walk from the lake. Site Capacity: 50 People
- Sky Meadow Group Camps, Big Basin Redwoods State Park, CA – Two group sites near each other can be rented out together for extra-large groups. The campground is hike-in, but parking is nearby. Site Capacity: 40 People
- Masterson Group Campground, Mendocino National Forest, CA – Located one mile from Lake Plaskett, this site is ideal for a summer retreat and offers canoeing, kayaking and good fishing. Bountiful in birds and wildlife, this is also a wonderful spot for birding and photography. Site Capacity: 75 People
How will you spend the long summer days?
Feature photo via Hipcamp Voyager, Sarah Vaughn.