**Campground Review: **
For years my family and friends have been making Fort Stevens our go-to for large family camping trips. I have experienced the park as a small child, teen, and adult, and can honestly say that it is the park that holds the most memories for me as a camper. The park used to be a military installation consisting of gun placements, defenses, etc. It has a tremendous amount of history as well as beautiful attractions such as the Peter Iredale shipwreck, beautiful beaches, and Coffenbury Lake. It has 174 full hookup sites(including some pull through), 302 partial hookup sites, 6 tent sites, Yurts, Cabins, a camp for hikers and bikers, and great day use areas. Some of the other amenities include heated showers, flush toilets, bike rentals, ice and firewood for sale, and a fairly new disc golf course. The camp sites are typically private with tree/underbrush dividing each site.
My family booked 5 separate sites in 1 of the 12 campground loops and 1 other in a neighboring loop that had full hookups for my inlaws RV. Each site came with a paved pad to park your vehicle on, fire pit, and picnic table. We stayed in a partial hookup site though we were only tent camping, and having the water and electric right in our site was very convenient for charging phones/accessories and doing the dishes. We also truly appreciated having the paved pad, where we set up our tent which provided a great, level place that did not flood and stayed fairly dry(despite the 2 straight days of rain we received during our 5 day stay:)
We thoroughly enjoyed the bike paths at the park, taking multiple bike trips as large groups or just my family by itself. From the campground you are able to ride to the beach, the lake, the Battery Russel(a military installation), and many other locations, though some are quite a distance away. All the bike paths are well paved and wide.
Our stay was also unique in that my wife and I got married in one of the day use shelters that are available for rent, and are located near Coffenbury Lake. The shelters can be rented for 50$ a day and have a sink, indoor fire pit, electricity, and include seating for up to 300 people(though this many would be a stretch to fit under the structure). The area surrounding the structure has horseshoe pits and a volleyball court. This was a fantastic way to spend our wedding with our small family group who attended(20-25 people), and we enjoyed every minute we had at this beautiful location.
Needless to say, Fort Stephens will always have a special place in my heart, and I highly recommend it as a must-stay location to anyone visiting the area.
**Product Review: **
As a Ranger, I sometimes receive gear to test from the awesome people at The Dyrt, and on this trip I had the opportunity to review the Midland X-Talker T65VP3 Two-Way Radio.
This radio is awesome! It comes in a woodland camo color which was very cool, and boasts a 32 mile range when out in the open. Other specs include 36 channels, 121 privacy codes, an option to channel scan, and Midland’s patented weather alert and weather scan technology. I was able to use this radio in many different locations while camping at Fort Stephens State Park on the Oregon coast, and was very impressed by its durability, clear sound when listening and talking, and the battery life.
We mostly used the radios as a way to communicate between myself, my wife, and my in laws while camping in the part because the cell reception was very poor. Our in-laws were camping in a completely different loop so these radios made communication easy. We also used it with our son when he would want to go off on his own(he is 11 years old). We would hand him the radio and off he would go, with the missive that he had to check in via radio every 10 minutes or so. This was so convenient and such a great piece of mind.
We tested the range of the radio while driving on the coast in multiple vehicles, walking through the coastal woodlands, on the beach, and in the campground. When unobstructed we were able to get signal at quite a distance(the furthest we tested was around 10 miles), but when in the forest or obstructed driving through the woods we were only able to get around 1-2 miles apart before losing signal. The landscape in Oregon is very heavily wooded and I attribute much of this loss of signal to the obstruction.
The battery life was also great and we were able to leave the radio on when traveling around the park for nearly 24 hours with varied levels of use before recharging was necessary. The durability was great and they sustained many drops from bicycles and even sat in a puddle inside a tent overnight without any ill effects(take this with a grain of salt however since I don’t believe the electronics were submerged but just the shell).
The quality showed when using this product, and I will definitely buy Midland products again!
