Campground Review: 

We camped at Red Bluff at the beginning of the off season, so it was a lot quieter than I bet it can be in full swing. As everyone else will tell you, the sites on the bluff provide a fantastic view! Right now there are about 5 sites up there, but they are under construction for what appears to be adding an additional loop with a view and I heard rumor of electricity being added up there too. Because we wanted air conditioning, we opted for the lower sites near the river. We camped at site# 28 and it was just right. We were not on the river but close enough to hear it. With the camper parked to the left, we could not really see or hear the neighbors from that direction well. To the right we had a large and long site with a tree line and hill between us and the neighbors. We could see them through the trees but it was not like we were “hanging out together” close at all. Sites 27 and 28 faced the woods so another angle where you felt secluded. A few sites down was a little spot that you could walk right down into the water. It was a tad too cold for us but the heat of the day made us really want to wade in. It was crystal clear and you could see a gravel bar not far from there. I believe in another area of the grounds you can walk out onto one. They do have double sites, some of which were huge! The fire pit we had was awesome, it had a ring that lifted up or down onto a raised concrete circle and had a grill that you could turn out and away if not in use. We are actually going to look for a ring like that for our home. This site also had what we were calling a cooking station. It was a tall covered set of shelves. We put our cook stove on it. The site also had a lantern holder which we used to tie up the dog when we needed to too. While there were flood level signs everywhere and you coud see where flash floods had happened on the lowest level of camp, our site was high enough to not need to worry. One day while we were there we went to Dillard’s Mill- a nearby park with an old water powered grain mill on site. It was peaceful and pretty, no swimming there anymore though. Lots of picnic areas. There is no ATV use on the camp grounds, so we went up to an area of the forest that you can ride in. It was not far from camp. The camp host was very friendly. The only thing that could have made this ground better was a dump station. Maybe that is in the plan with the construction too. I was hesitant to try here at first because of all the raccoon complaints but we did not see even one the entire time. So don’t let those comments deter you! All in all a great site and we will be back with the kids, maybe hit the bluff next time.

Product Review: 

As a Ranger for the Dyrt, sometimes we get products to test from their partners. This radio is a fun and handy addition to our now growing Midland collection. It does ALL the things. We liked and utilized the NOAA Weather Alert Radio to help us to decide when was a good time to take our ATV’s for a ride through the National Forest. We used the AM/FM radio at the site for some tunes around the fire and the flashlight to take the dog for a nightly walk. The handle and shoulder strap made it easy to carry. Since we are new ATV owners, we were especially looking to test the range for this radio (because separation and possible emergencies seem inevitable lol). My brother in law lives near the campground so we set him up on his porch with the base camp and headed away to the ATV trails at the National Forest entrance. Every so often we would stop and check in “breaker niner niner…John can you hear me?” Sure enough, clear as day we got back a “YUP that’s an affirmative over”. So we got to the end of our trail, which we had mapped as 1.5ish miles as the crow flies and home could hear us, we got a response, then we spoke again and no response back (though he was trying). Occasionally in our trek the responses from home were a tad crackly but we still clearly got what was being said. There were so many features on this thing that we were not able to test them all in our weekend getaway, but I would recommend it if you have multiple radios from Midland in use. It has 5 ways to charge it, one being hand crank so it can be used in an emergency and a USB connector to recharge your phone with. My husband was excited about the eVox Hands free operation option. This will be great for camping and emergencies! We give it 5/5 stars for our needs.

https://midlandusa.com/product/xt511-base-camp/

For our annual cousin campout in our ancestral home of Davisville we reserved site 24 and the group site (2) directly behind it. It was beautiful and perfect (a long walk from parking on the group site to cooking on the group site). Unfortunately it was in a flash flood hazard zone and hurricane Barry was dumping rain on us. There are new campsites under construction, farther back from the river. We’ll still try to get the old sites in the future but it will be nice to have another option if the weather isn’t cooperating. The Huzzah creek is rocky but beautiful. You have to be careful because there are sudden drop-offs, it can be two feet deep and then you take a few steps and it’s seven feet deep. The campground host is diligent but he slips around like a shadow in the night, don’t let it freak you out. I just hope with the new sites and even a shower house Red Bluff doesn’t get crowded. It would break my heart.

Took me a bit to find where to pay for my site. If you can get a site at the top loop. You're a little further away from the other sites and the view is to die for. Wake up early and watch the fog roll through the valley

Smaller campsite located in Mark Twain National Forest. RV hook ups and tent sites. Views in the bluff area or stay across from Huzzah Creek for easy access to swimming.

This summer we stayed at site 26 which is a double electric site. Lots of shade and several level spots for tents. It’s right next to the vault toilet, whose stench only wafted over to the campsite a few times, and right across from the spigot. There were maybe five other campsites booked while we were there (weekdays in mid-July). As ever the creek was beautiful. Parents take caution, the water can be very shallow in some spots and suddenly drop off to six or seven feet deep. It was teeming with tadpoles and crawdads and various fish this summer. The raccoons weren’t quite as aggressive this summer but we still had a couple fights wake us up. My sons like to stay up late and do battle with the raccoons. Also, not a single tick on any of us this year. This may have been one of our most enjoyable summers camping in my ancestral home.

We stayed at site 21. We were supposed to be at a different site but didn’t Iike it when we got there and the campground host let us choose another unreserved site. This site was completely shaded, primitive, a mix of rocky and grassy and mostly level. It rained on us all weekend and I tried not to freak out because this area is known for flash floods (that’s why it’s so rocky). The spigot was right next to our site so that was handy. There are two vault toilets, one in the center of the loop and the other down the path in the picture. Lots of ticks, LOTS of brazen raccoons, horseflies galore. No cell service. At all. You come here for the Huzzah Creek, which is a glorious place especially for kids.

This campground is in a small village that is my ancestral home. As a kid I spent my summers just up the road at my grandparents’ house. That being said, you don’t go to this campground to be comfortable. It’s fairly primitive. One loop is mostly rocks. It didn’t used to be that way but there was a devastating flood a few years back and now if you camp in that loop you’re likely going to be on rocks. Unfortunately the far end of the other loop is mostly rock now too. There are vault toilets, a grand total of three in the campground. They are usually kept clean. No showers. Water is at the spigot. The campground host doesn’t bother with quiet hours. The raccoon population is out of control. Basically if you’re camping here it’s just for the crystal clear waters of the Huzzah Creek. There are large boulders to jump from, some small fish to catch, tadpoles to observe, and lots of pretty shells to dig out of the rocky beach. The river will keep the kids busy all day. Most of the sites on the straights are grassy. The loops tend to be rocky. Ample shade at most sites as well as an abundance of ticks, chiggers, and horseflies.

The Red Bluffs are beautiful and the creek is named Huzzah Creek, can’t beat that. The sites are along the river amongst the trees and are only semi-private. The group sites are more private (we had 3 families there, it was so great). The swimming can be a little dangerous, I wouldn’t want kids swimming in most of the areas here. There is only a very short and easy trail (as of 2014), but good wildlife since it’s in such a large forest.

The campground hosts are always very nice and the restrooms are clean! Pit toilets only, but they really aren't bad. The sites are all separated enough from each other that you don't feel like you are camping with strangers. The sites are close to the Huzzah creek, some of them right on it. It's a beautiful and well maintained campground that our whole group loved, even if it did rain the entire weekend!