I’ll start my review by saying I’ve never pitched my tent in this park but have visited many times. They added tent sites in 2019- they appear to be primitive and include a fire ring. The nice thing is the tent sites are far from the RV sites so no unwanted noises for tenters in the night.
Trails abound in and around blowing springs which connect into the back 40 trail system…you can hike the B40 but remember this is a shared trail and you will come across many mountain bikers enjoying the trails system. There is also a arbortrarium in the park towards the back, a couple caves, and a creek.
If you are in need of snacks etc it’s a quick 2 minute drive to the grocery store / sonic/ Pizza Hut.
Not my favorite of all parks but also not one to miss. Roaring river state park has a working trout fish hatchery. You can walk the holding tanks and feed the trout from baby to ready to be released into the river. There is also a cave you can walk in where you’ll find a pool of water that goes for miles underground. Roaring river has three different campgrounds. I prefer ground one and two…however the downside is the spots are not very spacious / far apart from those camping next to you. There are also several hiking trails through out the park, a visitors center, bath houses, a pool, and swimming holes (the water is very cold—great in the hot summer)
They are currently redoing the park in a multi million dollar project. The plan was to be completed already however due to COVID19 there have been some delays. I am excited to see the improvements once complete.
Great views. You’re above the clouds when you wake up in he morning. The sites are a good size and depending on you needs there are sights overlooking the mountain and others a bit further away more suitable for bringing kids. We brought kids ranging 1-9 years old and all enjoyed. Only reason I gave 4 and not 5 stars is because the campground was right next to the only road that you come up the mountain on so it could be noisy at times.
Hiking and Mountain Biking live through out the park. We hiked the rim trail…I recommend going counter clockwise on the trail and hitting the strenuous stretch climbing UP vs down. All amenities and the bath house is well maintained. Sights are pretty large—we stayed at sight 8 and was perfect for our needs (tent/ hammocks/ bikes). There is water/ electric/ hookups at each sight. Prices are a bit high compared to our usual primitive camping prices at $25 per night but probably within range for everything that comes with your site.
It’s quite the trip down the dirt road to get here. Probably will take you 20/30 minutes of gravel road. Don’t recommend bringing any type of trailer down here. The sites are nice— variety of options depending on the type of site you want. They also have hike in sites. Also the sites are FREE. No electricity/ water / hookups. Depending on when you go there could be a lot of campers. Hiking here is beautiful. Watch for Elk, you’ll probably see an armadillo or two as well. You can hike from camp to an old homestead then to the river and back. It’s probably a couple of miles but a relatively flat hike. You’ll want to grab fire wood on your way out to camp and there is no cell service.
This campsite is not for those who want amenities. There are 4 SPACIOUS sites and they are what I would call primitive. No hookups/ no electricity/ no running water. Good for star gazing. Two sites have a paved pad and two do not…depends what you’re looking for. There are quite a few trails ranging from 1.5-4.5 miles—- total of 14 miles of trails. The nature center is small but they have two bison, a coyote, and many other learning opportunities inside. Speaking of bison and coyotes… you’ll hear the coyotes all night howling and barking…the bison are roaming around which you will be able to see where they’ve been by the scat droppings around the road and trail system. Definitely something to see if you’ve never seen the plains before.