The best camping near
Clarktown, OHIO

The coordinator / grounds guy of the park also works with the police dept. We called and spoke to him about reservations for a week for a tent spot and he was very friendly and helped us with any questions and concerns! Would recommend this spot to anyone! Fishing, camping , hiking. Beautiful Point Pleasant WV

Beautiful, secluded group camping. Shelter and pit bathrooms. Wide open space for lots of campers. Nice access to trails.

A great family getaway. Lots of camp sights, convenient playgrounds, putt putt, nature center, trails and climbing area. Bathrooms were standard & bring shower shoes. Otherwise fantastic.

Best place to stay for the racing. Rick will treat you good.

Jelly stone had just taken over, but you could tell updates were on the way. The shower house needs some attention, but they were usable. Kids really enjoyed everything. Free tricycles to ride around. Bouncy area, lake with a trampoline and activities all the time.

We loved it. Our kids had a blast and didn’t run out of things to do or kids to play with. We weren’t very far from mold Mans Cave either.

Honestly this is a really solid camp ground and my partner and I stayed for about a week. We were able to camp right by the lake. The trails are great for hiking and some more intermediate mountain biking. And there are boat rentals of many different types. All and all a great camp ground with lots of activities and hiking to be had.

Hocking Hills State Park, Oh-Site 89. https://thehockinghills.org/

Hocking Hills State Park offers close proximity to most of the popular natural attractions…Old Man’s Cave, Ash Cave, Cantwell Cliffs, etc….but for a tent camper that prefers solitude and space, I found it unappealing.

I did arrive late on a Monday evening, mid-October and got one of the last available sites. Packed on a Monday night!

I found the camping sites a bit cramped both in depth and width. Site 89 and 90 shared the same parking pad. Limited flat locations existed for a tent and my tent footprint is fairly small. You do have a firepit and picnic table with all three in fairly close proximity, so you must be extremely cautious with wind direction when deciding for a fire, else you’ll have embers dotting your tent and picnic table. Even though the neighbors were trying to be respectfully quiet…you heard every conversation and saw their every move.

No electric, which is fine in my book…the water spigot is centrally located on the loop and happened to be next to my site.

The restroom/shower facilities were not well cared for upon my visit. The floors were very muddy and trash was piled up in the corner of one stall and out of necessities.

Construction and dump truck noise started early with a project behind the restrooms.

The visitor’s center was well-stocked and the employee was pleasant. Cell service is unavailable and even sketchy at the visitor’s center. Wood can be purchased at the visitor’s center.

Close proximity to local attractions and a swimming pool are likely the big draw.

Knowing that I prefer solitude and distance when camping, I’ll likely not return but choose nearby Lake Hope State Park for my local visits.

Ranger Review: Morsel Spork at Pike Lake State Park

Campground Review:

We stayed at site 67 next to the camp host. The camp site was nicely shaded with a small creek behind it. We had a lot of shade and didn't feel like we were on top of our neighbors. Not all the sites were as spacious as ours so be careful which one you choose. In fact, there was one so small, I'm not sure where a tent would go…maybe plan on sleeping in your vehicle? The campground has drop toilets in a few spots (very clean) and up front they had a great shower house. There were four in total that had the toilet and shower all in one. There are baby changing stations in each of them as well. They were kept nice and clean. We walked up to the camp store which had a ton of items. If you forgot to bring it, they probably had it. There are two playgrounds, one in the campground and one right across the way. There is a small pond/lake that has a beach you can kayak or canoe and fish (renting them is an option). We like to hike and there were plenty of trails to follow. Some of the trails are horse and some are not. There is no cell phone service - we didn't get service until we were on our hike on top of the hill. We will definitely go back again.

Product Review:

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time- today I am testing the Morsel Spork and Morsel XL. I was able to get 4 products. I ordered 2 Morsel Sporks and 2 Morsel XL. I got green (my favorite color) and my husband got blue. They stay in our kitchen box that we use for camping. For dinner we had a salad and mashed potatoes with Backpackers Shepherd Pie. The fork part of the spork was used for the salad and did just fine. I then used the spoon part of the spork to scrape up the small leftovers (cheese, crouton crumbs, etc.), it cleaned up really well. My husband was able to use the XL Spork to stir in the Backpackers bag, and guess what? It reached the bottom without his hand having to go deep inside to reach the bottom. The rubber edge on the spoon part is like having your own little spatula to make sure you get every last piece of your food. In the morning we had Biscuits and Gravy (in a bag) and again we used the XL Spork and ate right out of the bag instead of dirtying more dishes. They are dishwasher safe, but as my husband tells you, it's clean…I just licked everything off.

I'd recommend getting a Morsel Spork - find the size you need, they have a few to choose from.

Maybe I am not used to KOA prices but $52 a night for a FHU seems high! The owners were nice and accommodating! The site while somewhat level was gravel and wet from day’s storm (poor drainage) ! I booked from afar and was not able to find other campgrounds near Charleston, WV.