When you come to a park on a mountain, most of the time you find your campsite is riddled with rocks, uneven or somehow an attempt to make a level surface has been made. Fact is, most of the time the ability to address such an issue is ill thought and you spend a lot of your time setting up to find the spot which best suits.

But not here! Here they have built platforms for making camping easier, even in the worst of hilly conditions.

These little mini decks are spread throughout the park and made available for campers in tents as well as RVs, depending on the area you select your site. It is like a deck built to withstand heavy objects.

Let me just explain the level of confusion I had when I arrived at my site and saw this however…lol. As a tent camper I had all the normal questions you might have when seeing a deck: What is this? How do I secure my tent to it? Do I park on it too? Is this going to make my floor of my tent feel weird?

It wasn't to long after I saw another tent camper, also on one of these pads, that my entire world made sense and soon I was settled in and enjoying a great view, all thanks to my elevated and even pad. It was almost spoiling me!

The typical amenities are present, picnic table, grill, power (some not all sites) and nearby was a nice bathhouse and store. It was a great retreat.

The lake itself was beautiful, just made me wish I had a canoe with me to enjoy it a bit more. But since I couldn't I enjoyed the outdoor spaces lining the shoreline instead and checked out some of the hiking trails here. LOVED the hiking here!!

Inside the Visitor Center you also can find a really cool observation tower that if you are willing to put the foot work in and climb you can see some of the awesome views from high atop the world!!

TIPS:

• Watch for deer!! There seems to be a deer around every bend here and around dusk they have zero fear of the road.
• Rent a kayak from the store just across the street from the main entrance, they have day and week rates available.