Best RV Parks & Resorts near Ester, AK

We camped here just this past week and it was wonderful. There are a variety of campsites, some large enough to accommodate an RV, as well as well-maintained restrooms, well-water, a dumpster, and every site had a picnic table and fire pit with grate. Some of the campsites are on the river and some are across the street from it, but there is access to the Clearwater river from the day use area for all visitors. The campsite is still close to town if you need supplies, about a 20 minute drive. This is now one of my favorite sites in the state. A quiet, beautiful spot to camp, engage in water sports, and fish.

I was concerned when I first looked at reviews when I booked this campground. It seemed to be split 50/50. Some would stay here again and some wouldnt. The KOA resort people probably wouldn't. I feel like you get what you pay for here. It was super convenient to stores/restaurants in Fairbanks.

The fairgrounds is right next door so I can see that when events take place it could be loud and bring in all sorts of people (could lead to people drinking and stealing). I saw some people mention airport noise with planes flying over, but I didn't notice the noise at all.

It's a small campground so close to your neighbors but it's in a big town. You are still in the woods. They had firewood available to purchase, a dump station, electric hookups, laundry (cheap - $2 each machine) and showers/bathrooms aren't beautiful but the showers clean and I got a nice lot shower and I hadn't had a good shower in a while! Quick RV wash offs aren't the same as a nice long hot shower. I would stay here again, oh and spot was level :).

When we first got here we were the only ones parked on a Thursday morning. We didn’t have another occupant until the evening then by Friday late morning the place was booked.

We chose spot number 4 which has a private river access for fishing/viewing. We found a path through the woods that lead to a clean rocky water area the kids spent hours in. The spot next to ours had a fire ring with benches all around and a wonderful grassy area to play in. These two spots together would be the perfect group camping spot.

There was water here but a broken off handle so no access to the water was available.

There were multiple bathrooms (3 I believe) throughout the campground.

My 7 year old daughter wanted to take videos of the campsites and boat launch so I’ve attached those.

The boat launch was a popular drop off spot for fishing boats. We didn’t catch anything but my son had fun trying. We would like to come back this fall when it’s spear flashlight fishing time.

The birch trees had a lot of these green beetles on them that seemed to enjoy landing on you. There were plenty of mosquitoes and our hand held bug zapper came in handy but not enough to ruin your trip.

The kids were able to happily bike through the campground while I followed pushing a stroller.

There were ATV trails but nothing that bothered us in the evening.

Falling asleep and waking up to the sound of the river and birds was peaceful.

Harding Lake State Recreation Area is a shady and scenic site about twenty minutes from North Pole. The lesser-known and elder cousin of the many water-themed state recreation areas that trace the Richardson Highway from Fairbanks to Delta Junction.

This large and accommodating campground boasts a boat launch into Harding Lake, a baseball field, a large group recreation area near the water, a self-guided nature trail, a trailer dump site, and unpotable bulk water--along with various bathrooms with trash receptacles. 

Our family of 5 tent camped in May and had a fantastic weekend. The sandlot-reminiscent baseball field was a rare and magical find that suited our family's wiffleball addiction perfectly. It's like wandering through a moss grove and emerging into a boreal. baseball field. A subarctic Field of Dreams. I also hit two first-pitch homeruns off my 9 and 5 year old--which may or not be related to the magic of this field--but I choose to believe.

The spacious and thoughtfully-designed campground certainly feels beyond its prime--old, unserviceable water pumps (perhaps not yet operable for the season); aspen saplings dotting the baseball infield; and many downed spruces over the nature trail. The posted maps are a little outdated. However, the campground boasted some of the cleanest bathrooms I've ever seen, anywhere-with a very friendly on-site host who came by to chat and kept the facilities in pristine condition.  The camping spots are well-placed along the loop to allow for varying degrees of privacy between sites.

Mosquitoes are everywhere in springtime Alaska--please let me know when you find a campground in a birch forest without them. That said, bring all the bug repellant and preventative measures you can muster. I was swarmed by a biblical cloud of man-eating Culicidae when we first pulled in--but they soon dispersed and only became annoying for intermittent periods. 

Overall this was a magnificent campground, quiet and clean, with plenty for the kids to do. Fantastic and memorable experience.