Best Tent Camping near Fort Calhoun, NE

I arrived just in time to see the beautiful sunset over the small lake near the primitive campground closest to the Park Office. It only cost $10 for tent camping and $3 for a vehicle pass. Campground and vault toilets were pretty clean. There is a fire ring and picnic table at each tent campsite and there are plenty to choose from near the water. You can bring your own kayak or canoe and even fish here. We had a nice encounter from the campground employee who explained how to put the stake out to claim our campsite. Right away, I saw abundant wildlife, including turkey, deer, black squirrels, woodpeckers, geese, ducks and bats. Come prepared for the mosquitoes but overall I would highly recommend this place!

This is a nice small campground that is well taken care of. We stayed at site number 8 which may be one of the more unlevel spots. The passenger side of our 5th wheel was about 7" lower than driver side and rear of fifth wheel was about 3" lower than front before we levelled out. 

Pros:

-Well maintained walking trails that are perfect for dogs

-Most sites have 30 and 50 amp hookups

-Fire rings and picnic tables at most sites

-$18 a night for electric hookups

-Quiet

Cons:

-Some sites are very unlevel  

-No water or dump station

Our family and another family shared a primitive tent site near the back of the park. We were first and foremost impressed with the freedom we had in choosing our site. Tent camping here is non-reservable, but once you enter the park, you may choose from any spots containing a fire pit outside of RV loops. Tent sites range from lake-front, to playground side, to more private sites on the outer rim of the park. We chose a large, private site at the back of the park. This site was well maintained and had enough space to easily accommodate two families of four. We even had a picnic shelter all to ourselves. Our site was lined by woods and farmland and had a good view of a small pond. The night was full of exciting animal noises from both the nearby farm and pond. Vault toilets were a short walk away with clean shower facilities just a few loops away. The kids enjoyed riding bikes up and down gravel roads, looking for frogs, and playing on the playground. Canoe and paddle boat rental is extremely reasonable. Hiking trails near the park entrance are rugged. The staff was incredibly kind and easy-going, yet attentive. Just a short drive from neighboring towns, this is a good starter campground for families with younger kids. We hope to return in winter to check out the camping cabins.

Lake Wanahoo is a fairly new lake in Saunders county Nebraska. The lake is part of the local NRD and was originally managed by the state parks department. You used to be able to use your state park permit to gain entry, but now you need to either buy a day pass or a yearly pass from the NRD.

There are plenty of places to camp here including gravel pads and grass pads for RV’s. While most people seem to prefer the gravel pads closer to the lake, we actually prefer grass pads because they are 2-3 larger, so you have more room to setup.

The tent camping area is huge and there always seems to be plenty of availability. We were the only tent in the entire area. The tiered tent area allows you to have a great view of the lake from wherever you setup. All RV and tent spots have picnic tables and fire rings. Unfortunately when the lake and campground were built they planted saplings, so during the hot months there is no shade to be found.

The is still plenty to do at the lake from getting the fishing boat out, using their three wide boat ramp or fishing from the shore using bank or using a jetty. There is a gravel trail that goes all the way around the lake, which provides about a three mile loop. The trail also leads down into the town of Wahoo. There are two large play areas for kids. One is in the campground and one is across the lake in the day use area.

No matter where you go you are not far from a restroom. There are nice clean vault toilets available all around the lake. There is also a large bathroom/shower house in the campground. The shower house does have a change machine on the outside of the build to get change for the showers. These are kept very clean and tidy.

When pulling your RV out here the water fill is in an awkward spot in a parking lot of the campground. To get to the dump station you have to leave the campground, get on the highway and drive to the opposite side of the lake to the day use area. These were just installed a couple years ago. They are nice and level, but just add a bit of driving to get to them.

All-in-all this is a nice place and in a few more years of tree growth, it could be even better!

Campground Review

I stayed in this Louisville Rec area a few nights, moving around to three different areas of this HUGE campground are nestled in Nebraska. My plan was to spend a few days taking advantage of the many amenities and activity options this area appeared to have, and I since this is a popular destination option many are considering, I sought to provide a review of the grounds from the perspective of someone who is considering staying in the west, central, or east area of the grounds. This review is for the west area.

General Info on this overall campground

This is a state-funded park, so non-Nebraska plated cars have an additional fee. A HUGE campground with around 250 total sites, with options ranging from walk-in camping tent-only sites to RV areas. There is a 3 decent-size lakes spread evenly across the grounds. Near the central lake ("Lake 2") there is a small shop which has a market where basic kick knacks and firewood are available. This is also where you can rent boats like canoes, kayaks, and stand up paddleboards for hrs, half and daily rates. There is a trail in the woods running parallel to the North Platte River. The path is in a heavily wooded area, so no lakeside views, just a nice, quiet hike with the very occasional hummm of a mosquito. There is a swim area along the beach of Lake 2. There is canoe access at the far west side of the park. In summer, it was common to see people wading across the river as it was neither a fast moving current nor deep. This is a Rec area, so day use is also an option. There are numerous locations for picnics, including Grills, and for fishing in the lakes from some roof-covered docks. Coin-operated showers (takes quarters, change machines take $1 and $5 bills) and full-service, ADA-friendly bathrooms scatter the park as well. There is a play area in the center which has a basic jungle gym. Each site has at least a picnic table and a fire pit. All tent sites are park and walk. If you want to have your car next to your picnic table, you need a padded spot. Each area of the park has these options, as well as electrical, then RV. Most sites are reservable and there are some allocated for first come, first serve. Gates will close at 10pm so make sure your road trip stops before they do. Also, packing earplugs is a must, but it won't completely help you. There is a train that goes very near the grounds - the track basically borders the south side of the campgrounds - and it needs to use its horn while passing through, which happens A LOT.

Central location-specific Info

The harsh part of being located here is if you are looking for any kind of spot that accommodates a flat plot, like sites 206 - 236, you are butted up against the train tracks and that train is LOUD! You will have no chance of a solid night's sleep since the train uses its horn very often. I was in campsite 11 another night, literally as far away from the tracks as possible and wore ear plugs and there was no avoiding it - I was waking up at 5am no matter what. This is the place you want to camp if you are tent camping. The reserve sites or tucked away from a lot of the more family-friendly activities, so you'll get some reprieve from that energy, plus can have some spots that are very close to the N Platte river's edge.

Ranger Review

I was given a pair of the Midland X-TALKER TV1P3 Walkie Talkies to test out from Midland. Since they come with a hands-free option with a compatible accessory, I also got a pair of the AVPH3 Surveillance headsets.

These came in handy (pardon the pun) when I was biking with a friend and skiing. By hooking in the headset to the side of the radio it allowed me to leave the radio in the bag, run a wire and clip a little mic with a talk on/off button to my jacket, then put a little earpiece in around my ear that was out of the way of my helmet. This also protected the radio from debris, as water is easy to collect on electronics when skiing and dust when biking.

• Watch the video review below

These radios aren't big, but they're packed with a lot of features. I personally love the weather scan capability. It locks into the NOAA weather broadcasts to deliver you a forecast. This is very useful while you are on a backpacking trip or in my case doing some kayaking because it helps me plan my routes and assess risk for my activities. They also charge through micro USB if you don't want to pack the included charging cradle (AC powered), so recharging them on the go is pretty simple since you already pack those cables and a portable USB power bank for other electronics.

The 28 mile range is a bit of a stretch (pardon the pun) but this is up to 28 miles. It worked fine for me over some densely forested lakes 2 miles away and even further over open water. I had these up at my cottage in Northern Ontario with me and I was able to get reception on these when I kayaked from one family friend's cottage from ours 8 miles away. It was getting crackly at that point but there is A LOT of interference over that distance so I was shocked they worked at all.

They have 22 channels and 38 privacy codes, so it's easy to create your own network and stay uninterrupted. I also got these working with another pair of radios I had, so they work with other brands. There are some other features, and the product support on their site is great. hey have a reference guide and a user manual to learn how to operate things like the quiet mode - if so inclined.

Overall Pros

• Weather Alert channel
• 28 mile range
• Clips included
• Clips included, help with Hands-Free option
• Long battery life
• 22 channels & 28 privacy codes. Can work with other radio brands.
• Silent operation

Overall Cons

• None really. It has so many features so to avoid getting lost in the technical stuff, I recommend downloading the product spec sheet to get the gist. It covers nearly everything. The real techies may want to check out the user manual.