Camp Gateway Brooklyn Map (click to enlarge)
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LOCATION
Camp Gateway Brooklyn is the official name for the campground at Floyd Bennett Field. It is located on the northwest side of the airport near Hangar B. If you can’t get a campsite at the Fort Wadsworth Campground, then this is the closest campground to New York City. When I asked a park Ranger if people camping at Floyd Bennett Field were here to see Gateway National Recreation Area, she just laughed and said, “Nobody camps here unless they are trying to save money on a trip to Manhattan.”
SEASONS AND HOURS
Camp Gateway Brooklyn is typically open from mid-May through mid-October.
TYPE OF CAMPING
Both tent campers and those with RVs are welcome at the Floyd Bennett Field Campground. No pets are allowed in the tent sites.
Tent site at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Floyd Bennett Field in Gateway National Recreation Area
NUMBER OF SITES
Camp Gateway Brooklyn has 32 tent sites and 17 RV sites and is divided into five sections. Tent sites can accommodate up to four people and two tents. No tents are allowed in the RV section.
GOLDENROD
Goldenrod is a tent section with 14 sites. It is the closest section to the modern restrooms and camp store. There is a small field next to the entrance where you can unload your gear and carry it to your site, but afterwards you must park across the runway at the camp store. The closest three sites to the loading area are G33, G32, and G34, all of which are less than 50 yards away. The farthest sites are a little over a hundred yards away.
TAMARACK
Tamarack is a tent section with 13 sites. It has a separate entrance from Goldenrod. You can unload your gear at the street and carry it in. Sites range from 100 to 150 yards from the road. When done, you must park at the lot near the camp store.
WILEY POST A
There are two sites at Wiley Post A. Though not specifically stated, these sites are geared for handicap visitors because you can unload at the site.
WILEY POST B
There are three sites at Wiley Post B. As with Wiley Post A, you can unload your gear at the site, but you must still park at the camp store.
AMELIA EARHART RV CAMPGROUND
The Floyd Bennett Field Campground has 17 RV sites, but why there is a limit, I have no idea. You could fit a million RVs on the concrete plaza, particularly since there is no water or electric hookups. It’s the Bonneville Salt Flats of concrete.
Expansiveness of the cement plaza at Floyd Bennett Field, Gateway National Recreation Area
TERRAIN
Nearly all campsites at Floyd Bennett Field are on level ground. I camped in late June and there were plenty of gnats and a few mosquitoes. From other reviews I’ve seen, mosquitoes are a big problem from July through October.
Satellite view of the Goldenrod and Tamarack campgrounds at Camp Gateway Brooklyn
GOLDENROD
The camping surface at Goldenrod is a combination of grass, dirt, and gravel. Sites are grouped into small alcoves. Within a group there are no barriers between campsites, so there is no privacy.
While all of the sites are backed up against vegetation, not all have shade because some of the vegetation is nothing more than tall shrubs. I camped in G33 and there was no shade at all, but G34 had shade. It was also a much larger site with a lot more grass. G32 was similar to mine. All three sites are grouped together.
Goldenrod Site G33 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Goldenrod Site G34 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
G31 is off by itself. It is a huge site with four picnic tables, so it may be geared for groups. The Recreation.gov reservation website states that up to 12 people can stay at it, whereas all other sites are limited to 6 people. However, there is nothing on the website that indicates that it is a group campsite. It has plenty of shade, but the camp surface is mainly dirt and pine straw.
Goldenrod Site G31 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
The next group of sites is G28, G29, and G30. All I saw was a sign for G28 and a bunch of picnic tables and grills, so I guess campers in the other sites can just pick a spot at one of the grills. There is plenty of shade and the area is grassy.
Goldenrod Site G28 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Six sites are located along a small, open field with plenty of grass, but no shade at all. Sites G20, G21, G22, and G23 are on one side of the field and G26 and G27 are on the other side. There is no G24. These sites are much larger than the other Goldenrod sites, allowing you to easily fit two large tents.
Typical of sites G20 through G27 at the Goldenrod section of Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
G25 is the only site that is secluded from the rest. However, it is not completely private because there is a walkway to the Tamarack section, exposing it to view from some of those sites.
Goldenrod Site G25 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
There is a pavilion next to G20, but it can be used by any of the campers, not just those in G20.
Covered picnic tables at the Goldenrod section of Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
TAMARACK
All of the sites at the Tamarack section of the campground are located along the perimeter of a large, grassy field. Each site has a fence between it but nothing else that would offer any privacy.
Campsites surround an open field at the Tamarack section of Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Most of the sites are exposed to the sun and have no shade. If you are camping in the spring or fall, the Tamarack section is definitely preferable to Goldenrod; in the summer I would choose Goldenrod. The campsites are large and will have no problem holding two tents, the maximum allowed per site. The largest is T12.
Campsite typical of those at the Tamarack section of Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Tamarack Site T13 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Only sites T14 and T15 have any shade; the rest are out in the open. Furthermore, T14 is not very big. You could fit two small tents, but it would be tight.
Tamarack Site T15 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Tamarack Site T14 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
As with Goldenrod, there is a pavilion that can be used by all campers.
Picnic pavilion at the Tamarack section of Camp Gateway Brooklyn at Floyd Bennett Field, Gateway National Recreation Area
WILEY POST A
Satellite view of the Wiley Post campsites at Camp Gateway Brooklyn
The two sites at Wiley Post A are quite small and have no shade at all, plus they are on a slight slope. They are also side-by-side, so there is no privacy. On a positive note, you can unload your gear right next to the campsite, making these and the sites at Wiley Post B the most handicap-friendly at Floyd Bennett Field. You do, however, still have to park your vehicle in the parking lot by the camp store.
Wiley Post A Site W38 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Wiley Post A Site W37 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
WILEY POST B
There are three sites at Wiley Post B. W39 and W40 are out in the open, but W41 does have a small shade tree. These sites are large, and you should have no problem pitching two tents. Unlike Wiley Post A, these sites are on level terrain.
Wiley Post B Site W39 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Wiley Post B Site W40 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
Wiley Post B Site W41 at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
AMELIA EARHART RV SITES
The RV campground is the concrete plaza located next to Hangar B. Three of the sites are backed up to the Wiley Post A tent campground and three more are backed up to Wiley Post B, so you have some vegetation behind you. Depending on the time of day and the angle of the sun, you may have some shade. The other sites are in the middle of the plaza with no chance of shade at any time.
Amelia Earhart RV sites next to the Wiley Post B tent campground at Camp Gateway Brooklyn, Gateway National Recreation Area
RV sites at the Amelia Earhart section of Camp Gateway Brooklyn at Floyd Bennett Field
AMENITIES
All tent sites at Camp Gateway Brooklyn have a picnic table, a stand-up grill, and a fire ring for campfires. There is no electricity or water at the sites.
RV sites have no water or electric hookups either, but there is a dump station and generators are allowed from 8 AM to 10 PM. There are picnic tables at each site, but only one grill / firepit for use by the entire RV campground on a first come, first served basis.
Amelia Earhart section of Camp Gateway Brooklyn at Floyd Bennett Field, Gateway National Recreation Area
All campers have access to a modern restroom and shower that are housed in a mobile home-type building next to the camp store. However, the restroom is only open when the store is open, which is from 9 AM until 2 PM, so you can’t take a shower in the evening after a day of sweating or use the flush toilets. There is a chemical toilet—a fancy outhouse—available for after-hours use located between the Tamarack and Wiley Post B sections of the campground.
The Camp Store sells firewood, drinks, food, and basic camping supplies.
RESERVATIONS
Reservations can be made up to six months in advance online at Recreation.gov, or you can just show up and hope a site is available. They are easier to get at Floyd Bennett Field than at Fort Wadsworth. When I camped in late June there were only a few other people, and checking Recreation.gov three weeks before Labor Day I saw that there were plenty of openings for the holiday weekend (though they may be gone by the time Labor Day rolls around). However, unless you simply don’t have a credit or debit card, use the reservation system so you don’t have to worry about arriving and not being able to get a campsite.
FEES
At the time of this writing the cost to camp at Floyd Bennett Field is $30. The latest prices are given on Recreation.gov.
CAMPGROUND RULES
• Check-in is noon and check-out is 10 AM
• Quiet hours are from 10 PM to 8 AM
• Generators are allowed from 8 AM to 10 PM in the RV campground only
• Camping is limited to 14 consecutive nights
• No alcohol, glass containers, charcoal grills, or pets allowed (in tent sites)
• Fires are only permitted in the fire ring provided at each campsite
• Firewood cannot be brought into the park, but it is sold at the camp store
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Last updated on December 6, 2024
