Summer Is So Much Better In The Mountains
You can take that heat from Vegas and completely forget you are in Nevada when you travel just outside the city and to McWilliams Campground and Mount Charleston area. But because of this break in the heat all summer you have to make reservations, even though they say there are walk up sites I wouldn't suggest banking on them to be there.
This campground is dry camping but with the setting of the mountains it hardly seems like any kind of inconvenience. There is a nice bathroom facility here without showers but plenty good for enjoying this place it is heated which makes for a lot better user experience especially I assume during winter months.
When I was there I saw a lot of RVs and Tents alike all pulled into spots and comfortable. While I didn't seem boxed in and overcrowded I did speak to someone who said when it is filled with more RVs it tends to get a little claustrophobic feeling.
Sleeping in a tent here I noticed that I could hear my neighbors pretty easily until around 11 p.m. after that it got pretty quiet and short of a few animal noises here and there it was silent. Temperatures dipped considerably at night so even though it was summer, in a tent I was finding I needed a little more cover than expected and pulled out the sleeping bag for some warmth.
Something I loved about this site was the set up for campers with the fire ring and table. The slab around the ring gives you a flat surface if you have camp chairs and also allows you do better manage your space and keep debris out of your fire.
TIPS:
- Bring a light or headlamp. Not sure if it really doesn't have light or if it was just burned out, I didn't check again, but the bathroom was dark at night so you want to have a way to see.
- Bring Cash or Check they didn't accept cards for the $25 nightly fee.