Melissa W.

Cincinnati , OH

Joined May 2018

Great spot outside of Hot Springs

The Hot Springs NP campground was closed for the season so we stayed at Lake Ouachita SP Campground for 3 nights. We are tent camper and this was the best it gets! The tent sites are well separated from the RVs and generators. The sit right on the lake so they can get windy but are peaceful and beautiful. Each tent site has a level pad for tents, picnics tables, and fire-ring. A small down-side, you have to park and walk your gear to your site but it's not terribly far or a big deal. The lake is beautiful and all tent sites have access to the water. It's a bit of a walk to the bathrooms but they are wonderfully clean (and heated). The camp store had decent wood for sale. The only thing to beware of is the crows. They are relentless and even took a bag of sealed, in it's original container, tortilla chips and tried carrying them away and pecking the bag open. So don't leave anything unsupervised (even in closed container or bags).

Great spot while traveling between cities

We planned on staying here to break up our travel along the Glenn going from Palmer to Valdez. This was the perfect place for the night. We had the pleasure of being there on the last day they were open for the season. It was pouring down rain so we joined the owners in their roadhouse for a bowl of chili and pizza instead of sitting outside in the rain. We ended up chatting with them for hours and enjoyed sharing stories about camping and campers we're encountered. As the only tent campers left, they told us to pick any site that looked nice. They were all great tent sites with a stream that runs behind them. Even though it's right off the main highway, the traffic noise is minimal. The tent sites are large with a picnic table, fire ring, and plenty of trees. The shower houses were clean and water warm.

Great secluded camping

This place is so far out of the way and worth it. We only stayed one night but there was enough around and the site was so great, I wish we could have stayed for two. The road to get here isn't hard, just extremely long. When it's wet and the potholes are full of water, you have to treat each of them like they're a foot deep since you have no depth perception. It took us about 3 hours on Nabsena road in our rental jeep compass. We were here in shoulder season and had our pick of spots. We set up right along the water. It was extremely peaceful and relaxing. You could sit here to just enjoy the scenery. Walking into McCarthy is fun too and has a couple of dining options. The city's public outhouses are night, the home made pits on the campground are okay (the dimensions are a little off and they're awkward to sit on). I can't remember if they have wood available but don't count on any amenities. Being shoulder season, we were treated to less than 10 others in the campground (any RV's should be prepared to bondock). Plenty of bear tracks sited hiking in the area and locals said the grizzly's were coming out at night. We even got a glimpse of the Northern Lights but the stars alone are incredible here. This site was well worth travelling for.

Great for location

Tent camping review. Being in the middle of a small city, this place was great. It's proximity to everything was extremely convenient. The tent sites aren't huge but there's plenty of privacy between them (I can't remember what site we picked but we were in shoulder season and the only ones there). The showers were hot and bathrooms were clean. Available coin laundry is also a bonus (even though we didn't need to use them). I believe the sites usually have a fire ring and picnic table but we were there when they were getting ready to close. The campground owner did warn us of a black bear that had been wandering around the campground. There was scat and we did hear him one night but didn't have any problems sharing the space with him.

Excellent tent spots

I needed a place to stay between Anchorage and Glen Allen. I was shocked this campground wasn't in Dyrt (found it on google). We actually ended up staying here two separate times- on our way North east and coming back South West. This State Rec Area is extremely clean. It's nice that there are tent sites separated from their RV sites (nothing worse than being in a tent and stuck hearing an RV's generator or TV all night). The RV lot is basically a parking lot but without many other options it would probably do the trick for an RV. The tent sites in the back are great. They are huge and have privacy between them. There's a vault toilet which is kept clean. No services or amenities but it's not far to the town of palmer. Despite being right off the state route, it stays pretty quiet from the road traffic because of all the trees. There's a pay station to pay when you arrive and pick your site. This was perfect in the shoulder season and in-between cities. I apologize I didn't get any campground pictures to post!

Ok considering the option

Tent review. This would not be my first pick of campgrounds, however, travelling in shoulder season, options are limited. Since we are tent campers, we stayed in that section in Resurrection Sound. The sites are tight with zero privacy. As long as you have good neighbors, its not a problem. Our first couple nights were fairly enjoyable. The homeless family living in a site 2 down from us weren't too bad except for them splitting wood after dark when we were trying to sleep. It was labor day weekend and our last night was miserable. The campground filled up with locals there to party. They set up pop up tents, brought amplifiers, music, instruments and were up until 2 or 3 in the morning getting drunk. The views were okay. The walking path along the campground is very nice. The public park bathrooms were fairly clean considering their use. We had to drive into the city to use the harbor showers. They are coin operated. They were fairly clean.

Great location, nice sites

Tent camping review. This was a great camp ground. Very clean and quiet. You can't beat the proximity to the park and hiking. Some of the sites even have great views. Each site has plenty of privacy, so even with intermixed RV's it stays pretty quiet. The showers were okay, not the cleanest and not the hottest but got the job done. My only complaint was coming after dark the first night to someone clearly squatting with their RV in our site. The camp hosts do not mark each site with the booked reservations (even though the posts clearly say that the section we were in were "reservation only". So people just drop in and take sites, assuming they aren't reserved. We attempted to solicit the camphosts help but in the 4 nights we stayed there, we never saw the hosts available once. We asked the people to move the next morning in daylight- not wanting to start anything or end up shot by knocking on their door and asking them to move that first night. However, that meant that we set up in someone else's potentially reserved site and started a huge domino effect. So I recommend getting there early to make sure your reserved spot isn't taken.

Best campsite of week long Oregon trip

Great campground! Some of the sites don't have the best tent pad (not level) and some don't have great privacy but it's still worth staying here. The sites that sit along the beach are fantastic. Even the sites that are not beach side on the inside loop are well wooded and have privacy with a little bit of an ocean view. The campground is far enough from the 101 that there's not any highway traffic, only the sound of the ocean. The USFS still lists this as pit toilets but they have plumbing and flush toilets now. Unfortunately, they did not install showers though. The bathrooms were clean. They did sell firewood (we did not buy any so I can not comment on quality). The sites are close enough to get ocean spray, so items do stay damp that are left out.

Surprised this campground gets great reviews

This campground was okay but not great. Mostly because of the noise. It sits right on the 101 and tractor trailers all night long are very loud. While the sites are flat, they don't have the best privacy. We stayed in the "upper loop" (the lower loop was closed for off-season). So maybe the lower loop offers is quieter with less traffic noise and more privacy. I also thought that this campground would have much closer beach access. We ended up driving up the road for 5 miles to find a beach and watch the sunset. The bathroom was clean and the shower was hot so that was a big bonus. The wood we bought here is stored in a large shed so we expected it to be dry and burn well but it was not great. Overall, I'm guessing there are better camping options nearby (less noise, more privacy, better beach access).

Wish we could stay longer

Awesome campground. Very quiet (it's a little remote) but pretty accessible to California Redwoods. I would recommend it for a place to stop in between the Oregon and California coastline. Sites are flat and all of them have great tree coverage. Bathrooms are clean. I wouldn't describe the showers as hot, but they are warm. They are quarter operated but there is not a quarter machine. If I remember correctly, $1.00 is a 6 minute shower.

Good option outside Bend

We only stayed for one night on a trip through the state but it was a decent campground. It's convenient to both hiking in the surrounding area and the city to check out a brewery in the evening. Bathrooms were clean, sites were clean, sufficient enough space between sites. The busy road that runs along the campground can be a little noisy but wasn't bad overnight. There was also a dog in the neighborhood nearby that was left outside to bark for a long time which was annoying until they brought him inside. We also heard coyotes overnight as well. Worth noting, this campground had the best firewood we purchased of our week long stay in Oregon.

Great location, amazing restaurant, ok tent sites

I really want to give this campground 5 stars but the tent sites left something to be desired. The sites with the views that sit on top of a hill are for RVs (even for RVs, they are pretty tight spots). The tent sites sit in a field and like a previous review states, have little privacy. However the sites are flat which is a huge bonus. We were lucky and the tent sites were not very busy so we were not terribly disturbed. Site 68 is decent as there is an opening set back in the trees for your tent. Most of the fire rings and picnic tables are set pretty close together. The bathrooms were nice and there was always plenty of hot water, even when showering during the busy evening times. The restaurant is fantastic and we ate there 3 nights in a row. The night time stars are fantastic and the location is great for east glacier and many glacier (30 minute drive to many glacier). The campground is VERY clean and staff is super friendly.

Good location

Giving this campground 4 stars instead of 5 because of the physical sites themselves and the showers. We stayed in the C loop. Chose this loop because it doesn't accommodate larger RVs and tends to be quieter (we are tent campers). While this was true (quieter, no generators), it is a hilly loop and many of the sites are small pull-throughs on both sides of the road. It also is pretty well forested so there are not any sights but does offer good shade if it's hot out. Some of the sites would not be great for tents because of how tight they are and the hills (true of site C127 which barely fit our small tent and was still very close to the fire ring). The bathrooms are adequate however, there are only 4 showers for a 200+ sized campground and they are in loop A which is a bit of a walk from C or D loops. If you opt to drive to the showers, there is no where to park nearby and you have to park at the amphitheater and walk. 

The bonus: great location! You couldn't get any closer to Apgar visitor center which makes it easy to catch the shuttles in the early morning or beat the traffic coming into the park. Campground was clean and C loop was quiet.

Excellent camping

Tons of campsites and most have decent trees and privacy (even many of the electric/RV spaces looked nice). As tent campers, we stayed in raccoon ridge which was excellent (quiet). Pit toilets at the back of the loop were probably the cleanest pits I've ever used. Bonus that there are dedicated mens/womens pits. The shower house at the top of the loop was dated but completely adequate with hot water (works for me). The picnic tables in the park are a bit odd (very short) but was plenty of space for my husband and I. With larger groups, it might be difficult to fit everyone around the table. 

The park has so many activities. We visited the nature center which was nothing spectacular but still something nice to do. We also hiked on 3 of the trails and went up the fire tower. It's nice to have a bike to explore since the park is so big. I wish I was a mountain biker, the trails looked amazing and the park was packed with mountain bikers. 

We will definitely keep this park on our list of semi-local camping for weekend trips.

Iffy tent camping

I think there is a HUGE difference between the RV section and the tent section of this campground. We are tent campers and were in the back area. It was a reasonable walk from our campsite to the beach. The beach was nice. Showers take tokens but machines that take dollar bills are outside restroom/shower building. Showers were hot. The campground was clean (surprisingly, considering my following comments). 

Now for the negatives. It's a bit noisy (you can hear road traffic). Sites have a bit of space between them but virtually no privacy. My biggest issue with the campground are the homeless people. I highly doubt that many of them squat in the RV section and I think they hang out in the back in the tent section. Sadly, many of them had obvious mental health illnesses. Several of them go into the bathrooms and lock the doors to sleep overnight with a roof over their head. They mostly kept to themselves but it made me a little uneasy. We left our stuff to go into town for dinner and our tent, sleeping bags, etc. were not messed with (stolen) while we were gone.

Orchard Hill Loop

Giving this campground 4 stars instead of 5 because the some of the sites are very close to each other. Our site (31) was separated from the one next to us by a fence. Luckily, we never got neighbors but they would have been VERY close. Also, the showers take tokens which are inconvenient to go buy from the camp host. After all that effort, the water was ice cold even after letting the sinks run per the suggestion of the camp host. The location is a little off the beaten path (we were on a PCH trip). Many of the sites are not level at all which is another reason I'm giving it 4 stars. You can also hear some of the road traffic from the campsites.

West Pinewood Campground

Campsites are level and have enough space between them for adequate privacy. Our site along the beach side allowed for an easy walk to to the ocean. Sunset was fantastic and at sunrise, sea lions were out playing and sunning on rocks which were fun to watch. Bathrooms were completely adequate with flushing toilets and showers. My shower in the womens bathroom was cold but my husband said his was scalding hot. Showers take quarters. The wood sold at the ranger station was damp but still burned great (bonus, it was pine and smells fantastic). Another plus is how close it is to "downtown". Lots of fresh seafood places so it was nice to go out for a hot meal and good food.

Location!

This campground is all about the location. Its a world away from anything. As others mention, the graded road is rough. Our rental Corolla did fine, just drive slow. The sites along the beach line are particularly great but none of them are terrible. The bathrooms are questionable. I'd rather have nice pits than the poorly working plumbing that's there. About half the toilets weren't working or didn't flush. The showers were gross and I didn't even attempt one (unlikely to be warm water considering the sink water). If you want a fire, bring wood with you- there wasn't any being sold at the campground. All that being said, the location is fantastic. You can hear the waves all night. Fern Canyon trail nearby is short but great too.

Great State Park

Dillon State Park was a perfect weekend spot outside of Cincinnati (2.5 hours). Campground was immaculate. Despite being a very hilly area, all the sites are level. The bathrooms we had access to were heated and perfectly clean (although the bathrooms closest to our site were locked). The park is gigantic. Despite that we had the entire campground to ourselves over New Years Eve weekend. Because the campground is so large(>150 sites), I'd image it feels a bit cramped during busy season. However, there's a decent amount of trees and the sites along tree lines wouldn't be bad in peak season. It was re-assuring to see the ODNR officers drive through multiple times over the weekend even though it was empty. There is plenty to explore and see and it's easy to run into downtown Zanesville if you need something but you still feel pretty isolated at the campground. The beach was fantastic and we also walked the storybook trail. We didn't attempt any other trails because of the mud but the park had plenty to offer. Last note, if rain is predicted, the place turns into a complete mudpit (see pictures of standing water), plan accordingly. We will be back (with our bikes and kayaks next time when it doesn't rain).

Good location, ok campground

Negatives: This campground is pretty hilly. Many of the spots don't have a great space for a tent. The flattest spots are in the middle of the circle with an open field behind them (but then you won't have any privacy or tree coverage). Even the RV camping on the inside of the loop across from us had its front tires suspended about a foot in the air to make it level though. Considering the flat spots are very limited, I don't think its a great tent campground and geared more towards RVs. One side of the campground runs against a golf course. If you're tent camping over a weekend, be prepared to have golfers tee-ing off next to you beginning at 7am. On Monday morning, be prepared for them to start mowing at 7am. The opposite side of the campground sits against a tree-line and therefore has much better spots. Many of the picnic tables are in pretty rough shape. The ones that have been replaced were done with the metal style that is dipped in plastic and are much sturdier. Likewise, some of the firepits are in pretty bad shape. I'd recommend having a grill grate with you just in case if you cook over the fire like we do. The firewood that is sold at the campground is kept in a shed but it was very wet, there also aren't any options around for buying wood outside the park. The office is supposed to be open until 6pm but one night it was closed earlier and the camp host wasn't on premises all weekend so we were stuck resorting to finding and burning downfall to get dinner cooked. 

The positives: Its a good location and there are plenty of kayaking spots on Grayson Lake. Going to "The Grotto" aka Clifty Falls is a must (4.5 mile round trip). The same boat ramp has a decent place to get in and swim. Lick Falls Loop hike can be done from the campground and was nice (4.5 miles). We also kayaked the Southern portion of Grayson Lake in Laurel Gorge and that was much quieter than the Clifty Falls area. The campground bathrooms were clean. Most of the campsites were a decent size.