Best RV Parks & Resorts near Madera, CA

We have stayed at this campground many times and recently revisited in September’24. This COE is on a small lake that is used for irrigation during the summer resulting in a much lower water level than in the spring. Fishing is good. The Corps have added more electric sites over the years and there were 5-6 that fit our 43’ Blue Bird. We marked this as “big rig” friendly. Springtime has the grasses green with abundant wild flowers in late Feb through early March. Summer can be hot as the elevation is low in the California Central Valley and the grasses are brown. Sites are asphalt. Many sites may take some time to level. Back in and pull through are available. A nice dump stations is available within the COE park. Fall has a Tarantula migration and you will definitely see them. Coyote, Bobcat, and deer are frequently seen. Codorniz is 21 miles from Chowchilla. One way in and one way out cuts down on traffic.

This park is absolutely stunning this time of year. There are wildflowers everywhere and the weather was a perfect low 70s in the daytime and 50s at night. We stayed in spot 33 which says for 53’ or less… we are 42’ and barely fit so be careful there. Additionally, you will NOT fit here if you can’t take your rig past a 90* turn safely. It was a bit of a nightmare getting turned around to back in here (we have a 42’ toy hauler and a 3500 ram DRW with an Andersen hitch), BUT we’ve had an incredible week here. Stars were beautiful, the nature trail was perfect for our three boys, and the views are absolutely stunning. Worth the $20 a night. If you’re a big rig, park in overflow or the upper loop. Trust me on this.

We have been coming to Camp Edison annually for the past 15 years and have never been disappointed. Each site has plenty of room and includes a picnic table and fire pit. It’s a short walk to Shaver Lake from virtually any of the sites, and several have a nice view of the lake. Fishing, boating, swimming or just picnicking on one of the many beaches surrounding the lake is a great way to spend your time. Some sites have full hook ups, but most have just electricity and cable TV, with water faucets nearby to fill your RV or use as needed if dry camping. There is a dump station on site and also a “honey wagon” that will come to your site and pump out your waste water, if you desire. Restrooms are clean and plentiful and each has a shower (25 cents for 2 minutes). The laundromat has come in handy several times, too. Camp Edison has great activities during the summer season including guided educational nature walks, both day and evening, as well as kids’ movies in the amphitheater. There is also a museum on site that offers activities and fun events like an ice cream social.

I’ll start with the positive. If you need anything stores are close and entrance to Yosemite is 15 min up the road. Now for the negative. We have 29 foot travel trailer and we reserved a premium pull through spot. Although we could pull through the spaces were very tight and we just happen to get lucky that nobody was across from us as there is only in one way in and one way out. We were able to use other empty spot across from us to turn around. Had it been full we would have had a heck of a time getting out. One family came in last night and their spot was at the very end and they had to back all the way out of the park so they could back their trailer all the way back in. It is ridiculous. Our spot was also very hard to try and level our trailer. We never did quite get it leveled the way we would’ve liked. The bathrooms aren’t very clean and the “beach” is over grown and i wouldn’t really even let my dog in the stagnant water. Bottom line this place is not good for your larger travel trailers our size or bigger. Especially if you are in a spot like we had which was spot 34 or a spot towards the end. Maybe better spot near the entrance. Class c generally would have no problem.

Easy check in and no extra fee for our 3 Aussies! We stayed at site c-1 for 2 nights and found it to be both clean and level.

RV sites have water and 30 amp hookups. Hookups are seemingly on the wrong side of your vehicle in many sites. If you want easy access to the picnic table, you’ll need to run your hose and power cord under your vehicle. We chose to pull in straight as we weren’t planning to use the picnic table anyway so it was not an issue for us.

While there are no sewer hookups, the is s convenient dump station at Lake McSwain on your way out.

Despite the low water levels in the lake, the views are still great. Loved the constant parade of turkeys. The campground was extremely quiet, but keep in mind that we were there midweek in March. Not sure we’d have the same experience during peak summer season. We’ll definitely keep this on our list of off-season campgrounds.