My girlfriend and I camped at Little Talbot Island State Park in February of 2018. The campsites were excellent, this might sound cheesy but it made me feel like a pirate camped on the beach. All the campsites are nestled into a sandy wooded area, and despite being quite close to one another they manage to keep a fair amount of privacy. The bathrooms were well-lit and in great shape, and all the campers we encountered were friendly so it felt very safe.

The campsites are set across the road from the beach and you can walk to the beach if you'd like. They have a breathtaking driftwood beach that is a short drive from the campsite. I haven't seen anything like it since, it has an almost eerie beauty to it. We traveled almost 14 hours to camp here, and we were very satisfied with the state of the park and campsites.

Chewacla State Park is adjacent to Auburn, AL, and it stays busy due to the proximity of the school and city. I stayed twice for a geology class and found the campsites and amenities to be wonderful. The trails around the park are not very extensive, however there are mountain biking trails covering most of the park. The main hiking trail runs down to a small waterfall where you can spread out and roam as you please. Both times I visited it was very busy, but that did little to detract from the experience. Just don't visit with the intent of seclusion.

I stayed at Inks Lake during May of 2017 while on Geology Field Camp. We were camped away from the main campsite in a more secluded section, and it couldn't have been a better spot. The sites were well spread out despite there being so many of them, and some of them sat right on the lake. The amenities are top-notch, with large bathrooms and showers close to the campsites. There are some nice swimming spots and an area to hike around that shows off the amazing geology. A great spot to bring the kids.

My girlfriend and I camped at Gorges State Park for a few days in October of 2017. The trails are excellent and they were in great condition when we visited. The waterfalls are beautiful and it isn't a very strenuous hike to Rainbow Falls.

Camping seems to be hit or miss. The campsites aren't bad, but during our stay the privy pit was nearly unusable, so we dug our own. The access road to the campsite trail was closed as well, so the hike to the campsite from the parking lot felt closer to 3 miles. Given the lack of amenities and the distance to the Raymond Fisher campgrounds, I'd advise that you snag one of the primitive backcountry sites instead. They are situated along the main trail to Rainbow Falls, and almost every backcountry site was in a nice spot with easy access to the stream. Be aware that many of these backcountry sites are directly adjacent to the trail, and hikers will probably pass by your campsite.

If you are camping, expect bears. I don't know if this is still an issue, but we had a bear messing with our stuff every night. It didn't exactly bother us, but we did have to hang our trash and food far from the campsite while we slept. It made us a little nervous because we were the only campers there and you are miles from your car, but it didn't come close enough to our tent to really frighten us.

That being said, we had an incredible time and would definitely return. Despite being in a state park campground it still felt very secluded, and we felt that all the set backs made it more of an adventure.