Wonderfully quiet campground in the northern end of the park. Primitive camping only (no electricity/no showers/pit toilets). No pets allowed. Only the lean-to sites have water views of South Branch Pond, the rest of the sites are in the woods. Some sites are very close together and would be suitable for people camping together -- 4 and 5, 6 and 7, 21 and 22 -- but might be uncomfortably cozy if you are seeking solitude. Aside from the walk-in sites, those that appear to offer the most privacy were 3, 8, 16, 20, and 30. Lean-to sites 1 and 2 have little privacy from the campground road. We were worried about mosquitoes and black flies because of the proximity of the pond and brook. There were black flies near the brook in the morning and evening (early July), but we had none at all in the campsites in the woods and there weren't many mosquitoes anywhere in the campground. You will need bug dope for the hiking trails. Canoes and kayaks can be rented for $1/hr or $8/day at the ranger station. Cash payment and on a first come/first served basis, but there seemed to be plenty as the campground was nearly empty (and this a week adjacent to a holiday weekend). You can boat not only South Branch Pond, but also Upper South Branch Pond via a small portage. South Branch Pond campground has 2 walk-in sites, one a lean-to and one a tent site, situated on South Branch Pond. You could either walk in (make sure you have waterproof shoes as you must cross the brook and there is no bridge) or canoe/kayak to them. The same is true for the back-country Upper South Branch lean-to, which could likewise be easily reached by water or trail. There are several hiking trails at this campground including Traveler Loop (rugged), Pogy Notch (goes to Russell Pond), South Branch Mountain, the "Ledges" (short and easy with a good view), and Howe Brook (intermediate to stream with water slide and deep kettles). Howe Brook was our kids' favorite (it's the one on the Baxter Park map that is encircled by Traveler loop. Not recommended for small children). We had it all to ourselves the day we hiked it. The rangers were very helpful and friendly and the facilities were very clean. There is a small picnic area near the ranger station with a pavilion, which the ranger said we could use in case of a rainy day. You are allowed to swim in the pond - watch for leeches. There were lots of chipmunks and wood warblers around the campsite and garter snakes,frogs, ducks and mergansers on the pond, but no loons.
Note that you must make reservations to camp in Baxter. I do not recommend using the on-line camping reservation system as I do not believe it is accurate. It continually showed that ALL campgrounds in the park were completely full the weeks surrounding the 4th of July weekend with no sites available even for just overnight. This did seem possible because of the holiday, but as we really wanted to stay in Baxter at South Branch Pond I called to see if we could be put on a waiting list. I was happily surprised to be able to reserve a site. As it turned out, we were one of only a handful of campsites occupied in this campground with about 30 campsites. Even if you decide to add BSP to your vacation plans at the last minute, it might be possible to get a site.
Call to make reservations: 207-723-5140.