Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Tonganoxie, KS

Getting to the state park off I 29 and through the countryside was easy as the route had Weston Bend SP signage. We followed the SP signs to the campground(CG) where the gate was not manned so we headed to get water, but someone was sitting in the dump station waiting for another person to arrive so we went around this one-loop CG to see if there was a convenient spigot. There are spigots but with a larger rig, you will block the road, and/or you will be on a hill. We went back around and the person moved so we could get water. After that, we headed to pull through site 28 with electric(50/30/20 AMP) only. The site is long but has a 1/4 moon turn so we had to pull back around to get better positioned on the pad so we could disconnect our 39’ 5th wheel and F450 for our 3-night stay. There were tree branches overhead that we could not avoid. RVers next to us in site 30 had just arrived as well and were having trouble getting their travel trailer unhitched and leveled due to the pad’s slight incline and unlevel asphalt. They got their trailer positioned so they could get somewhat level. We got a solid two bars on both Verizon and T-Mobile. Due to our proximity to Kansas City, we got a lot of OTA channels. A satellite connection would be iffy in most sites here due to the number of mature trees. The trees in a lot of sites would also scrape the top of larger rigs. There’s a variety of sites with most being good for regular trailers versus tall rigs, and tent sites. They have a nice shower house with 1 washer and 1 dryer both for$1.50. There are also vaulted toilets here and there. There’s a 1.7-acre fenced dog park that includes one large area for large dogs and two other areas with one dedicated to smaller dogs. The dog area is at the front park entrance away from the campground and it would be a long walk to get there, so we drove up. There are a lot of hiking trails here plus an old tobacco barn that’s worth a look.

This Love’s RV Hook Up is right off I-29. We’ve enjoyed several stays at these new Love’s campgrounds(CG) and they are normally away from the main car and truck fueling areas. After cruising around the truck area, we found that we needed to go to the car area as the CG is literally off the auto-side fuel pumps/parking lot. There is a lane that we could have driven through from the truck area and this would've put us in the right position to back into our site. However, there was a Love's fuel truck parked there the whole time of our stay. There are six back-in sites with water and electric. They give you a code if you want to use the dump station. We reserved site 1 with water and electric(50/30/20 AMP). It still could have been an easy back-in but there was a big U-Haul truck parked outside of the formal parking areas in our path. We were still able to maneuver around and get in our site. After parking, we checked in online to activate our utilities. We quickly found out when we auto-leveled that site 1 was not a level site as our passenger side tires were off the ground. And whoever designed these sites thought boulders between sites was a good idea? We had to position our rig to avoid a boulder on the pad, so that we could open our basement slide drawer. The utilities are at the far backside of the pad and based on our rig’s configuration with the wet bay towards the front, we needed 25’ or more of hose and electric cord. The water pressure here is good. The WiFi is also for general public use and not very fast. We got 3 bars on Verizon and used our MiFi for internet as we were not comfortable putting out Starlink in this general public area. We were next to Love’s two-sided dog park, which if not for dog poop on the inside and around the outside would have been a great convenience. Concerning the uncomfortable comment, two stealth campers in cars were in parking spaces adjacent to our site for the night. We shared the CG with a Scottish Rugby cycling team traversing the USA raising AHS awareness. We did not know that starting around 6:00 AM the sprinklers came on and all of their gear got wet. The sprinklers also make mud puddles at the dog park entrance. Loves should gravel the small and large dog entrances. There should also be signs to let campers know about the sprinklers. The other Love’s RV Stops we stayed in had restroom and shower facilities, here you go in the main building and pay to use the trucker showers. The dump station is hard to get into with a large rig. Wrapping up this unpleasant stay, this Love’s was one up on a Walmart parking lot as it had water and electric.

When we began our fulltime journey we stayed at this park for a couple of months and learned a lot about it. The management team was very friendly and would often disclose a lot about what was happening at the park. The park was in need of some improvements but it was clean and nice. The spaces are very tight in the travelers section and more spread out in the long term section. Many sites in the park were occupied by storage and the owners never showed up. To walk your dogs at the little park at night, you had to walk through there area. We called this the storage lot. The out of state contractors often had many loud and drunk guests which was obnoxious. They often harassed females walking their dogs to the park through the narrow street, and they were in the back section.

They had reasonable rates when we first stayed there ($40/night for in the city and $500/month). Now it is much more expensive, one night for our rig is $76 according to their website.

We never felt like it was genuinely part of the RV Community, it was more of a stop through or people were staying in the area for a job or to finish a house. It didn’t house many fulltime RVers that would continue traveling. They love to host NASCAR fans and know they are one of the closest parks to the Speedway.

Ammenities: Laundry Small Store Showers/Restroom Facilities Little dog park on the north end. Occasional BBq They were putting in Google Fiber internet when we stayed there in 2017 so I’m not sure if they completed it. Dump Propane Trash Mail

This location was the closest to our family’s homes so we have stayed there three times all together. There is a lot to do nearby and the main draw of this RV Park is definitely the location. You’re not far from downtown Kansas City, and still in the suburbs of Kansas City.

Great please to camp, not to crowded. Got busier on the weekends, empty on the week. Nice showers and toilets, laundry. Campsites were large, many had a good footprint enough to set up a large tent. We have a 20’ round yurt and had plenty of room. Lots of hiking trails in this park, some paved. Nice lookout point. Dog park was nice, well gated and taken care of, had water station for thirsty dogs. We spent 25$ a night for a 30amp electric site. Campground was well maintained. Only minutes from the historic town of Westin, amazing parks, lots of pubs and little restaurants. Nice place to walk around. I would camp here again.

We made a last minute decision and decided to stay somewhere near KC after a long cross country trip. With it being Memorial Day weekend, we new it would be hard to find a place that would allow a same day reservation. Mark and Kyle at Walnut Grove could not have been more friendly and accommodating when we called to try to reserve a spot.

When we arrived, the staff flagged us in and showed us to our site. There was free WiFi, clean restrooms, and a nice little shop. Our site had a 50amp hookup for electric, and water/sewer. There is also a small area for dogs to run around in, while I wouldn’t consider it a true “dog park”, it still was nice to have a designated area to take your dog.

The most negative thing about this place is that the sites are right on top of each other. I would estimate about 6 feet separated our camper from the RV next to us. For the price to stay here, I would have liked a little more room/privacy, and a few more options for things to do within the campground.

If it weren’t for the super cool staff, I’d probably rate this location with fewer stars. It worked great as a short term stay, but in my opinion it’s not a place I’d want to stay for several days/nights.