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Established Camping

Crappie Cove Campground

Crappie Cove Campground near Paola, KS, is situated in a region characterized by flat terrain with scattered trees. The area experiences temperatures ranging from the 30s in winter to the 90s in summer. Nearby, Hillsdale Lake offers opportunities for fishing and boating, while Hillsdale State Park provides trails for hiking and wildlife observation.

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Location

Crappie Cove Campground is located in Kansas

Detail location of campground

Address

26001 W 255th St
Paola, KS 66071

Coordinates

38.65917876 N
94.92448355 W

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Access

  • Drive-In
    Park next to your site
  • Boat-In
    Sites accessible by watercraft.

Stay Connected

  • WiFi
    Unknown
  • Verizon
    Good
  • AT&T
    Unknown
  • T-Mobile
    Available

Site Types

  • Tent Sites
  • RV Sites
  • Standard (Tent/RV)
  • Group

Features

For Campers

  • ADA Access
  • Trash
  • Picnic Table
  • Firewood Available
  • Phone Service
  • Reservable
  • Showers
  • Drinking Water
  • Electric Hookups
  • Toilets
  • Alcohol
  • Pets
  • Fires

For Vehicles

  • Sanitary Dump
  • Sewer Hookups
  • Water Hookups
  • Pull-Through Sites
  • 30 Amp Hookups
  • Big Rig Friendly

Contact

General Info

Drive Time


Reviews

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4.0

out of 5

6 Reviews

Reviewed Aug. 9, 2022

Nice campground

This was our first trip to Crappie Cove at Hillsdale Lake. Overall, it's a very nice, clean and well layed out campground with several areas available with different names. Most have 50amp power and water with one area having full hookups and concrete pads available. There are many primitive sites avaliable as well. We will be revisiting on a regular basis now.

Sitesite 14
Month of VisitJuly
Reviewed Oct. 11, 2020

Beautiful

This is a very nice area to camp. Quiet. The shower/ bath houses are clean. I had a great time kayaking the coves to this gorgeous lake.

Reviewed Mar. 5, 2020

Pretty view

This is not a campsite I will go back to. When we drove into the park and paid the entrance fee, we were told to find a place that wasn't occupied then go get a tag from the host. We found a site and started getting our stuff out of the car and pretty soon the campground host came by and told us we had to leave. She assigned campsites when people drove in, which is not what we were told. After telling her we wouldn't leave, she left, then came back and said we could stay. 

The campground itself was pretty, but a lot of people in RV's (we tent camp) who were there to fish and party, so I thought it was noisy.

Month of VisitMay
  • Review photo of Crappie Cove Campground by Janice  O., March 5, 2020
  • Review photo of Crappie Cove Campground by Janice  O., March 5, 2020
Reviewed Aug. 30, 2018

Nice area to camp and fish

There are limited sites for camping at Hillsdale Lake.  But they are all nice and many offer waterfront access.  Great fishing on Hillsdale and they have a really nice Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Recreation operated firearms outdoor range facility too.

Month of VisitAugust
Reviewed Aug. 6, 2018

Great site. poorly maintained

We stayed for a week in Crappie Cove. We have relatives in the area and have always heard folks rave about weekends at Hillsdale lake. We are spending 3 months this summer in our RV traveling the country and this was one of the stops along our way.

Pros:

  • spacious site
  • lots of trees/shade
  • Mostly quiet location
  • great playground for kids (though not shaded)
  • each site had a table and fire pit
  • far enough away from the city to see stars at night. :)
  • Lots of different camping loops - from primitive to full hookups.

Cons:

  • NEVER saw the camp host.
  • not sure the showers/toilets were cleaned in the 7 days we were there. There were always puddles everywhere in the bathroom, so much that the heat made them smell very bad. One toilet would never seem to hold water. Most of the time it was empty/clogged.
  • many many cars on some sites
  • standing pond of water covered in moss/algae and caused lots of bugs/mosquitoes to be around
  • Shower curtains had black mold all over them

This campground has great potential and we found some other bathrooms that were actually decent on another loop, so walked there daily instead of the one in our loop.

No one at the front booth when we checked in (middle of the afternoon on a Sunday) but we had already paid, so we just proceeded to our site, which was already marked with our name and dates. We went in and out of the park every day with no issue. On the 7th day of our stay, my husband is stopped and asked where his parking permit is. No one came by our site after we checked in. No one ever asked in 7 days, not even the camp host who should monitor that stuff. We had ONE vehicle on our site and everywhere we have ever camped, one vehicle is included in your camping fee. We were told we had to pay an additional fee per day for the vehicle we used to pull our camper to the site. AFTER we had been parking there a week already and it was the day we were leaving. None of the other cars in our loop had permits in their windows or windshields.

We have stayed at many state parks across the country and this is one of the worst, in my opinion. Camp hosts were non-existent until the last minute and then they were rude. Facilities are not well maintained (on the Crappie Cove loop).

Site37
Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Crappie Cove Campground by Kristine  S., August 6, 2018
  • Review photo of Crappie Cove Campground by Kristine  S., August 6, 2018
  • Review photo of Crappie Cove Campground by Kristine  S., August 6, 2018
  • (5) View All

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Crappie Cove Campground have RV hookups?

According to TheDyrt.com, Crappie Cove Campground has 30 amp electric hookups, water hookups and sewer hookups.

What is the max vehicle length at Crappie Cove Campground?

Crappie Cove Campground allows vehicles up to 21 feet.

Are fires allowed at Crappie Cove Campground?

Yes, according to campers on TheDyrt.com, fires are allowed at Crappie Cove Campground, although make sure to check current fire restrictions in the area.

Does Crappie Cove Campground have wifi?

No, according to campers on TheDyrt.com, Crappie Cove Campground does not have wifi.

Is there cell phone reception at Crappie Cove Campground?

According to campers on TheDyrt.com, Verizon signal is good, AT&T is unknown, and T-Mobile is available.