Best Equestrian Camping near Clarence J. Brown Dam and Reservoir

Alum Creek is just beautiful, nice sites, most of them are at least partially shaded, lots of woods, hiking trails, the lake, it is what I think of when I think of State Park campground camping in Ohio. There are a couple problems. 1. Only ONE little dump station. This is a big campground, so if you're leaving Sunday, you better get up at the crack of dawn to get to the station, otherwise be prepared to wait in a long long line of RV's. We by-passed the long line and stopped at a different State Park campground on the way home and paid 10.00 to use their dump station. 2. They never answer their phone at the campground office. I mean NEVER. If you have a question you will just have to deal with the reserveamerica people who really know nothing other than what they read on the campground website. So basically you know as much as they do. It's maddening. We will go back, but it's a 2 hour drive so it won't be anytime soon.

This is part of the Dayton Metro Parks (Five Rivers Metro Parks) and it is at the Twin Creek metro park.  This is an old boy scout camp (Camp Hook) back in the day. 

During these COVID-19 times we wanted a place to park that wasn't the traditional Ohio State Parks camp site. We didn't want to share a common bathroom/bath house or playground area.  We picked this as the Twin Creek camp site only has 3 camp sites within the park.  Even then they are out of side from each other. You can somewhat hear the other two camp sites (rarely).  This meant with two little ones we wouldn't have to constantly remind them to socially distance or put on masks.  We were alone but had plenty of park supports. We had two great park volunteers/security stop by to make sure we had everything we need. 

The nice thing about the Dayton metro parks is that each night in the front county camp sites they include a bundle of fire wood. This is not the small sad bundle that you often buy at gas stations or other markets.  This is a huge bundle. It is dry and cut in an easy to use manner. It is also kept in a little box so it is dry even if you do have weather while camping. If you wish to add an additional bundle of firewood the price is very reasonable at $10.00. I do this every time I camp there to support their campsites/metro parks. I have yet to use up their firewood in the box when I camp for a whole weekend. It is also nice that we don't have to put it in our cars so less clean up after camping. It also helps with the whole burn local fire wood so you are not transporting bugs. Or you don't have to cross your fingers and hope someone close by sells firewood. 

The nice thing about their site is the additional tables made it easy for us to socially distance.  When I camp at local state parks and we only have one table it can be tricky to keep coolers, food, and people separated. We also were able to have kids do craft at one of the tables while we were preparing meals. This camp site is listed as a 10 person camp site. There is no water on site so make sure you bring all the water that you will need. 

We also were able to hike the easy trails around the camp site. No need to put the kids in the car unless we wanted to.  Which we still did:) 

We drove into town and discovered a covered bridge that I had missed on an earlier camping trip. (Germantown).  This town also has the Florentine which is one of the oldest inns in Ohio. It was closed while we were in town but it is well worth a stop. The town also has a community pool as well that you can buy a day pool pass. 

The campsite does have two spots that would be neat for a wedding. You can reserve an amphitheater. 

The campsites during peak season are $20 during week days and $28 for weekends. I still find this to be one of the best values for camping in Ohio. Especially, when you consider the level of privacy that you have on these sites.  The vault toilets are one of the best as they are always clean. We have hand sanitizer and toilet paper. We didn't have to share our vault toilet with any other family units. 

All of these small touches really made COVID-19 camping with kids much easier. We look forward to being back at this camp site in the fall. 

Here is the website to make a reservation https://www.metroparks.org/rentals-permits/reserve-a-campsite/?id=786190&api=facilities&type=camp

This is a huge campground! I tent camped by myself--felt very safe.  Happened to be next to the park host. No choice of where to locate my large tent.  Showers/bathrooms were OK--older facilities.  Wish this park had a laundry facility--another Ohio park I recently stayed at had a fairly new shower facility that included a laundry facility!  Did not appreciate the waste management company emptying the dumpsters at 4:00 AM!!!  There is a huge, lakeside beach that was just packed with people (no social distancing) and there was trash everywhere--not enough dumpsters.  Near to shopping (Polaris), if you are interested.  Will try to get a lakeside site next time.

Cowan Lake State Park is near Wilmington, Ohio and they have been making a lot of improvements to the park.  It is a great location between Cincinnati and Columbus with easy access from the highway.  This is good if you want to meet with friends somewhat in between.  It isn't too close to the highway so you don't hear the road noise as it is a few miles away but it is an easy drive to the park. 

They have been revamping the Nature Center to make it more accessible to folks as they have recently added a ramp. The Nature Center actually has two buildings side by side used for different purposes.  Then behind the Nature Center they have a location where several birds are located in cages.  Then next to where the birds are kept you will notice a new paw print trail that is a short but informative hike.

The commissary has great pizza and ice cream.  We also bought our firewood and ice from them as well.  We didn't need to leave the park.  We had a few trails to pick from and picked two of the shorter ones for members in our group.  

The cabins have been revamped as well.  They are all close to each other so if you wanted to have a family reunion or a get together this would be a great spot to do so.  At the end of the main road it will lead you to the lake.  You can use the dock to put your boat out (kayak and certain motor boats).  Folks are fishing at the lake or simply enjoying the beauty of the lake.  

The beach is simple but that is part of the charm.  It is clean and we were able to swim on the hot days that we had while camping.

This was a last minute reservation and only available due to a cancellation. The campground was full for the weekend. The campground is pretty big with different types of sites. Some are smaller, close to neighbors while other have seclusion with trees. From past experience, if it rains, some of the sites do flood. We had great weather this weekend. The site we reserved had a hill right next to the passenger side/door side of your camper. If you had a big camper, it might be tight to open your slides and an awning. You most likely would not sit right outside your camper door. In fact, the fire ring is behind the site and up a small hill. We set up our ez-up in the back and out of the way, it worked for us. There was also a path that led you into the playground. Speaking of playgrounds, you will hear a lot of kids if the weather is nice. We were right across from the camp host (very nice lady) and very short walk to the bathhouse. The bathhouse had 4 flushable toilets and I think 3 showers. The showers did not have benches in the stall, only on the outside directly across. With a full campground, the bathrooms were kept very clean with the amount of people using it. We walked around and noticed a lot of bathhouses and another playground. We took a hike that led us to the lodge - it was an in and out and just under 5 miles. On our way back we stopped at the camp store which was well stocked with items you may need or not. There is a putt putt course, frisbee disc course, horse trails, dog park, nature center, golf course and more trails nearby. There are plenty of things to do if you like to keep busy or are trying to keep kids entertained. (The bees and stinkbugs were out and about while we were there.)

I've stayed here in the past and Cowan Lake does not disappoint. The B site campground is all non-electric tent camping, and far enough away from the larger RV pads that it's a quiet little campsite! Also, these sites are super close to the bathrooms on the beach, which were very clean during our stay. I was incredibly impressed, because the beach gets pretty busy during the day. The beach itself was clean (for a lakeside beach- there are geese, it's Ohio) and the lake was gorgeous! I will say, the only MILD annoyance is that some of the other campers would drive to the parking lot in front of our campsite and park there into the evening hours to fish or head down to the docks. I'm an early riser, so the headlights and car doors slamming were mildly annoying after about 10p. Not enough to make me choose a different campsite, but worth noting. We rented a tandem kayak and explored the lake, and the equipment was all in good condition. The Commisary is pretty limited but they do have a small kitchen and ice cream, as well as the basics like firewood and ice, as well as the boat rentals. Overall, one of my favorite lakeside campgrounds!

This state park spans over 2,000 acres and is just north of the cute Ohio town of Delaware. We stayed here for two nights while visiting friends in the area but wished we would have stayed to enjoy all that the park had to offer. The campground was really nice and quiet when we stayed there which was during the week and in the spring and not very crowded. We can imagine that this park is pretty full in the summer with all their amenities and close proximity to major Ohio cities. 

The 'pod' layout of the campground made for large campsites (some sites are over 90 feet in length and well suited for large RV’s) with good separation between sites. There are 212 sites that have 50 amp electric. The campground also has yurts for rent (May through October) that are furnished with beds, table and chairs, a cooler, ceiling fan, outdoor charcoal grill and a picnic table with canopy. This is a great option for those wanting to stay in something more than a tent but don’t have an RV.

There is no sewer or water at individual sites but there is a dump station and water fill station near the park entrance. Roads and campsites are paved with grassy patios that feature picnic tables and fire pits. The park does not provide wifi but our Verizon hotspot and 4G phone worked well. There are centrally located bath/shower houses with coin-operated laundry facilities.  

The park is open year-round and great for outdoor activities; especially, those that are water-related. There are numerous boat launches, fully equipped marina, and swimming area. We launched our kayaks and had a great time paddling around the lake.  Be aware that there is no horsepower limits for boats on the lake and weekends are very popular for anglers in high-powered bass boats. The northern portion of the lake is a “no wake zone” which makes for a more pleasant paddling environment.  If you don’t have a boat, boat rentals are available at the marina. 

For those wanting to hike there are plenty of hiking/biking trails for you to get out and explore the park.  Many of the trails link together so you can decide how long you want to hike. The Lakeview Trail was perfect for us as our dog loved jumping in the water during our hike. Other amenities in the park include a nature center, 18-hole disk golf, hunting, archery, volleyball, horse shoe pits, picnic areas, and an 800-foot designated swimming area.  At the camp store/office you can rent bikes as well as other sporting equipment.

If you decide to venture out of the park you are only about 40 miles from downtown Columbus and less than 20 miles to the world-renowned Columbus Zoo (which is definitely worth a visit). The nearby town of Delaware is really nice with downtown shopping, restaurants, a historic theater and brewery (Stass Brewing Company has great Belgian-style beer with a fun atmosphere).  

Would definitely camp here again if we were in the area.