On the far eastern point of Long Island, about 120 miles from Manhattan, lies Montauk, a dreamy bohemian hamlet with world-class surf and seafood. While Montauk is known as a popular summertime getaway, its prime position occupying New York’s easternmost point was also used for another purpose. During World War II, Camp Hero was constructed near the rugged Atlantic Ocean coastline as a thriving, defensive U.S. military base that once housed nearly 640 people. It was renamed the Montauk Air Force Station in 1952. It then became a radar squadron for air-traffic surveillance, until the Air Force abandoned the base, selling off the land to state, local, and federal agencies between 1974 and 1982. Camp Hero and its surrounding acres were then transformed into Camp Hero State Park, tucked between Montauk Point Lighthouse and Ditch Plains, an iconic sandy beach known as a “surf mecca” for its consistent waves. While parts of the base were dismantled in the 1990s, remnants of Camp Hero, which is now a National Historic Site, are still standing, including the decommissioned radar tower and military buildings such as former barracks and bunkers.
Today, visitors come to this fascinating state park to hike through forested trails, admire ocean vistas, surf fish in the waves for striped bass and bluefish, and explore the abandoned base. Camp Hero has intrigued visitors since the 1992 publication of the book “The Montauk Project: Experiments in Time,” which revealed theories on eerie activities that allegedly occurred there. The book later became the basis for the Netflix series “Stranger Things.”
Camp Hero State Park is about a 2.5-hour drive or 3.5-hour train ride from New York City. The closest commercial airport to the state park is Long Island MacArthur Airport, one of America’s best small airports. Camp Hero State Park is open year round from sunrise to sunset, and entry is $8 per vehicle.
Exploring Camp Hero State Park
From Montauk Highway, turn right before the iconic Montauk Lighthouse to reach the the parking lot for Camp Hero State Park. The lot encompasses a spectacular position atop a bluff with panoramic ocean views. You can walk along the bluff for unrivaled vistas of Montauk Lighthouse, which eventually leads down to Turtle Cove, a rocky beach that fans out beneath the lighthouse and Camp Hero State Park. From there, you can join the Battery 113 trail, a 1.1-mile scenic path through dense maritime forest that will bring you to the remnants of historic Camp Hero. In the shadow of the radar tower and operations building (which are in a restricted area), you can bypass the former buildings of the military base, including the barracks, dining hall, exchange store, bowling alley, gym, and bunker. You’ll also find picnic tables, benches, and bathrooms here…