Wabasis Lake County Park

We’ve stayed here a few times over the last several years and it’s been great every time! Whether we’re in the area for the mtn bike trails, or for an event in Grand Rapids, this is the place we always try to stay at if they have an opening.

Would recommend. Really small and quiet.

We have loved this campground for its sites right on the park, and great beach area with park at the beach also. Lots of trails for hiking and exploring but unfortunately this summer swimmers itch got us!

Lots and lots of raccoons, that aren’t shy at all!

I stayed in a tent with my family. It was nice at night very quiet, during the day it was very busy, the site was very big. The lake access was extremely busy , there is options to rent a tube and boat

We stayed in tents. At night it was peaceful, during the day it was very busy. The lake access was very busy.

I stayed in a friend's camper with my son for several nights in late September. The campground is very nice! The sites were large enough that it could hold a large camper and two vehicles easily.  Some of the sites are a little uneven (the camper needed wood blocks underneath it so that the wheels weren't off the ground after leveling.

There are nice firepits and the firewood is cheap! 8 large pieces for $6, a wheelbarrow full of tinder for another $6. Bring a hatchet or axe because the wood pieces are huge!

There is a large beach with playground equipment, kayak and boat rentals (although those were closed due to COVID.

Modern bathrooms with showers, but honestly I never needed to use them (we had the trailer).

There are a few downsides:

1. Because it's so close to Grand Rapids and some other cities, it typically is full on the weekends. Booking a site can be troublesome. Our friends booked the site from Tuesday through Monday and it was totally full on Friday and Saturday night.

2. The lake is effectively a plate, so don't expect to do much fishing from shore. The water is incredibly shallow. (But that makes for a very nice beach!)

Overall, I wouldn't tent camp here simply because of the crowds on the weekend, but I'm glad I went. If you have a trailer and like the camping community, you would like this. If you're looking to get away from people for a while, keep looking. This isn't for you.

Get cozy with your very close neighbor campers. Little or no tree cover and tight sites make it good for camping with friends or making new ones. Sites on the shoreline are great for fishing (although shallow and weedy) or boating in.

This is a small campground with fairly good size sites. There is a playground in the center which was very handy for our little ones. They could play and we could watch from our site. The area was beautiful. The beach was clean and even had a snack shop where you could get a realest and rent a canoe or kayak.

The office was nice. It had a lot of good items, which I really appreciate when I come in late and needed to grab something quick to make (hotdogs!). There is also a candy shoppe in it. My kiddos could take a quarter to the office and pick out a treat.

The sites were very shaded and the bathrooms were very clean. If there is a downfall, it would be that the pieces of wood hat can be bought were huge! They had to be cut smaller to use well.

It has great nature opportunities too!!

Product Review:

In addition to camping, I also had the opportunity to review the Midland X-Talker Radio. In addition to the write-up below, check out my product videos on this post.

Midland X-Talker Radio: The X-Talker radios come with both removable AAA batteries and an integrated rechargeable battery. The radios have very good range (up and over hills, too), a call feature, many channels to choose from so you don’t end up chatting with your neighbors (unless you want to). They also have an option to switch over to the weather radio to get forecasts and storm warnings. I really like the weather radio right with the X-Talker, so that even if I am not using my radio, I can throw it in my backpack or into a drawer in the camper and when the weather turns, I will be able to know what is coming.

Campground Review:

There was a big mixup on Friday night that caused us not to be able to check-into our cabins and we had to scramble to find a new place to stay because the office unexpectedly closed at 9:00 pm instead of at 10:30 pm (the time posted on their website). However, we were able to get a hold of the staff the next day, we were refunded for our first night, and had a great second night at Wabasis Lake staying in the camper cabins. Each cabin had a living room, two bedrooms, kitchen work counter, dining table, microwave, and a small fridge. One of the rooms contains a queen size bed, and the other bedroom contains two sets of bunk beds. There is also a large couch in the living room, where you could sleep another person (or two if you laid the couch cushion/futon mattress on the floor.

The cabins are located just across the road and slightly up the hill from Lake Wabasis, and facing almost due east, which leads to wonderful early morning sunrises over the lake from the front porch of the cabins. There are two sets of bathrooms at Wabasis Lake, one set (toilets only) at the boat house near the lake, and a second set that has newly renovated showers and toilets as well.

Despite the mix up at the front desk, and a pretty frustrating Friday night, I would be happy to head back to Wabasis Lake for future trips.

Product Review:

In addition to camping, I also had the opportunity to review the Renogy Solar Backpack. In addition to the write-up below, check out my product videos on this post.

Renogy Solar Backpack: The backpack has an integrated solar panel on the rear outside of the pack, which can also be flipped over for added protection when not charging. The backpack has several pockets on the outside, including expandable pockets on both sides of the unit. The side pockets are large enough for about a 20 oz. water bottle, but nothing larger. I wish I could fit a full size Nalgene bottle in there. The pack charges when in direct sunlight only, so if you have a device to charge, you need to make sure you stay in the sun. I would recommend connecting a small battery to the solar panel to charge all day while you’re out hiking (or detach the solar panel and leave it to charge back at camp while you go out and adventure) and then use that stored power from the battery pack later that day.

I would like the pack to be a little more rugged, something more akin to a daypack for hiking rather than a standard issue backpack, but it made up for deficiencies in this area with plenty of extra pockets, including a hip pocket and laptop sleeve.