Best Equestrian Camping near Valparaiso, NE

Camping area 2 has a lot to offer, even if you don't own a horse.

The area is well known for being the equestrian camping area at one of the finest lakes in Nebraska. Pull through sites with full hookups, equestrian trails, and corals. Yet few people realize that there is a nice RV and tent camping area, lovely inlet with lakesides slabs, Boat docks, and Boat ramps. Showers are not available at area #2 but are available at a closeby area #1.

The lake has some nice trails including the equestrian trail that comes from the park. The park has several beaches 2 of them very close. There are archery and shotgun ranges at the lake and a decent disc golf course.

At a popular lake, this is a nice yet secluded camping area that often gets overlooked.

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.

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 east 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

I personally this this area has the best spots on the grounds. I was loving campsite 11. I had a river-side view to a nice sunset and sat at my picnic table and watched fireworks go off on the other side of the river (4th of July long weekend). These sites are also furthest from the train, which isn't really helping all too much because it's loud anyway, but you're also away from all the noise of the main rec area and central market. Less kids in this area for that reason as well.

Ranger Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I am sometimes given products to test and this time I am testing the FlatPak Toiletry Bottle and the NanoDry Shower Towel (large).

The NanoDry Shower Towel

I have other travel towels, but nothing this size that is this light, this packable, and this quick drying. It's a total keeper. Well, I actually forgot it at a different campground a few days later, but it's something I am happy to pay to replace. I would wake up, have a shower, lay out the towel on the picnic table, and 10 min later it was dry. Speaking of really cool, let me take a sec to talk about the carry case. It's this silicone thing that comes with a carabiner, so I can hook it outside my bag if it's still wet to keep it away from other stuff but also let it air dry a bit.

Overall Positives

• Towel has a loop near the middle to hang in shower stalls or hang dry
• Very absorbent fabric. 2.3x it's own weight in water, to be exact. I didn't think the large size (47 x 24 inches, 142 grams) was going to be enough material to dry me after a soak, but it was.
• NanoDry fabric dries soooo fast.
• Antimicrobial coating so there's no mildew build up
• Silicone case clips to anything and keeps it away from your other items in case it's not quite dry

Overall Negatives

• I forgot it at a campground a few days later

The FlatPak Toiletry Bottle

I decided to get a few of these guys to solve a few pain points. Usually 'travel size' anything is a little pricier compared to the 'economy size' option, so now I just leave bigger bottles of things like shampoo at home and fill up one of these. Secondly, it's a case that's crazy light so you're pretty much taking whatever liquids, gels, and pastes you use with you with as little added weight possible. It's a travel accessory, so it should be TSA approved, and it is.

Overall Positives

• Snap loop makes it easy to attach these to toiletry and day use bags for outdoor adventures, weekend trips, or a gym session.
• The screw top opening is easy to remove and wide enough to make it easy to fill
• There's a place to write a note about the contents of the bag so you don't wind up brushing your teeth with hand lotion.
• It's waterproof, so go ahead and use it in the shower

Overall Negatives

• Because of it's compact size and weight design, it's going to be near impossible to clean out completely after use, so get enough for each category of your liquids, gels, and pastes. Sure, one sunscreen vs another is totally reasonable when it comes time for a refill, so all I'm saying is get the 3 pack because you'll like these things and you'll want one for your toothpaste, another for sunscreen, one for shampoo, another for conditioner, maybe you use shower gel, and maybe everyone else you camp with is going to need them now too.
• I didn't buy enough
• Only comes in 1 color