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Description: The Grand Isle, about fourteen miles long by three miles wide, is also known as South Hero. The Hero Islands were named to commemorate early Vermonters who had served in the American Revolution. The park, located on the east shore of the island off U.S. Route 2, began in 1959 with the purchase of Birchcliff, a private summer resort, by the state of Vermont. The original acquisition of 54 acres came with a hotel-like main building and accompanying rental cabins. The Activity Center in today's park is an original Birchcliff building.
There are 117 tent/trailer sites, 36 lean-to sites, and 4 cabin sites that make this Vermont's second-largest state campground. Rest rooms have running water and hot showers ($). There is a trailer sanitary station but no hookups. Fifty percent of the sites are large enough to accommodate self-contained RVs. Lakeshore areas permit water access for swimming and shore fishing. There is a boat launching ramp for registered campers and kayaks and rowboats for rent through the park office. Check the Nature Center for interpretive programs, games, or entertainment. There is sand-court volleyball, horseshoes, a play area and a nature walk, all within the park. Campers are also allowed free entry to the sand beach at Knight Point State Park seven miles north and Alburg Dunes State Park nineteen miles north.
Area Attractions: Hacketts' Orchard, South Hero; Chazy Reef (world's oldest fossil reef), Isle LaMotte; St. Anne's Shrine, Isle LaMotte; Hyde Log Cabin (nation's oldest), Grand Isle; Grand Isle State Fish Hatchery, Grand Isle; Snowfarm Vineyard, South Hero; Lake Champlain Ferries, Grand Isle; Shelburne Museum, Shelburne; Vermont Teddy Bear Factory, Shelburne; Church Street Marketplace, Burlington; ECHO: Lake Aquarium & Science Center, Burlington; Royal Lipizzan Stallions at Knight Point State Park, North Hero; North Hero State Park, North Hero; Alburg Dunes State Park, Alburg; Sand Bar State Park, Milton;
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