Lake Eufaula State Park, Checotah, Oklahoma

     Lake Eufaula State Park is about twelve miles from I-40 west and five miles from I-40 east.  It is a beautiful state park that is easy to access as you travel across Oklahoma on I-40.  We stayed just one night, but wouldn't have minded staying longer.  We never unhooked our car and didn't explore much of the park except what was within walking distance from our campsite.  The path to the lake was just that, I was told that people fished from there, but it really wasn't all that scenic.  The campground, however, was beautiful.  Green grass and large paved sites.  We chose our site from a campground map and it was nice, however, there were some even nicer had we drove through the park before registering.  We hit the park right after Labor Day, so it was pretty empty.  It is a perfect place to stop for a night or two while traveling across Oklahoma. 

     Lake Eufaula State Park is a great choice for an Oklahoma getaway. Whether the stay is short or long-term, a visit to this state park is guaranteed to be memorable. Formerly known as Fountainhead State Park, the park is located just south of I-40 near Checotah, in eastern Oklahoma. Situated on Lake Eufaula, a 102,000-acre reservoir, there are many activities available for visitors on both land and water.

    On land, Oklahoma's diverse foliage and wildlife can be observed on hiking trails such as the Bluebird Trail. Visitors can bring bikes to get around the expansive park and take a ride on one of the mountain bike trails. Visit the on-site Lake Eufaula Stables and saddle up for a guided horseback ride or bring your own horse and explore the trails. The Deep Fork Nature Center educates visitors about native animals and plant species, and kids and adults can participate in naturalist programs and activities. For kids, the park offers many playgrounds and a fishing pond.

     An 18-hole disc golf course is located at Hummingbird Beach and there is no fee required to play the disc golf course. Stop by the gift shop in the park office to rent disc golf equipment for a nominal fee. Nearby, the 18-hole Fountainhead Golf Course, operated by the Muscogee Creek Nation, features views of the lake, complete with a putting green and pro shop. Lake Eufaula State Park also has a Lovelock Fountain, which encourages visitors to add a personal, and lasting, touch to the park.

    While there are so many things to do on land in the park, Lake Eufaula allows visitors the opportunity to play on the water. There is a swimming area with a beach, and multiple boat ramps provide easy access to the lake. Fishing is a big attraction at Lake Eufaula State Park, and a marina located in the park makes year-round fishing possible with an enclosed, heated fishing dock, as well as a tackle shop. There is also Lake Eufaula Stables where visitors can enjoy a scenic horseback ride. Some of the largest fish in the state have been caught at Lake Eufaula.

    Various accommodations for a stay at Lake Eufaula State Park are available. Approximately 35 full hookup RV sites, 65 RV sites with water and electric and 93 tent sites are available. For a unique overnight accommodation, book a stay in one of the park’s three yurts. All yurts come with heat/ac, bedding, a microwave, mini-fridge, electrical outlets, and an LED TV. The Longhorn Loop yurt comes with one foldout futon, large picnic shelter and lake access at your doorstep, while the Hummingbird Beach yurt comes with two full-sized futon bunk beds, is ADA compliant and has great beach access. The Longhorn Loop Honeymoon yurt has a queen-sized log canopy bed indoors and two picnic tables, a grill, a fire pit, and a lantern holder outdoors. Although there is no running water within the yurts, restroom facilities are located within 50 yards of the Longhorn Loop and Hummingbird Beach yurts, and 1000 yards from the Longhorn Loop Honeymoon yurt. Pets are not allowed inside the yurts.

     Comfort stations are scattered throughout the park. Ideal for meetings or family reunions, the group camp features a fully equipped kitchen, dining hall, stocked pond and four air-conditioned bunkhouses that can accommodate up to 96 people. Lake Eufaula State Park also features an airstrip for the convenience of those who would like to fly into the park. In addition, there are coin operated washers and dryers located in the Dogwood Drive Campground.

Lake Conroe RV & Camping Resort

      On our way to Lake Conroe, we stopped at Camping World in Katy, Texas to have some work done on our hydraulic jacks.  Thinking it wasn't going to take too long we waited.  At 1:30 they were still troubleshooting but were breaking for lunch.  So we decided to drive up to the campground and see about securing a site, because it may be after dark when we finally pulled in with the coach.  Well, it was a good idea, however with Houston traffic, it took a very long time to make the 70-mile drive and as it turned out, we couldn't hold a site without our RV.  We fought traffic to get back to Camping World and it was after closing when we arrived.  The issue was fixed and for a lot less than I had expected.  So we headed back up to Lake Conroe and arrived just after dark.  Fortunately, they had just recently added 67 new paved sites at the front of the campground and finding a site was not an issue.

      The new paved sites were very nice with full hook-ups.  The rest of the campground was gravel.  There are sections for full time manufactured homes, park models, RV annuals, and regular camping.  The campground requires you to take a 50 amp site if you have a 50 amp RV and charges an extra $3/night.  I'm not sure why, but the gravel sites were almost filled, while the new paved sites were pretty much empty.   It's good to see a lot of work going into improvements on campgrounds.  Besides the new sites, they were also in the process of building a new sales office.  The amenities were pretty nice.  There is a large pool and hot tub.  There are tennis, pickleball, and basketball courts.  Also, horseshoes, shuffleboard, miniature golf, and a softball field are available.  We found the laundry to be disappointing and opted for one in town which worked out great.  Overall, the campground had everything that you'd expect in a Thousand Trails Resort.  It was well maintained and very green and welcoming.  I would enjoy returning here in the future.  We were told that the campground is very popular in the summer with lots of kids and the pool was always crowded.  We visited in April and there was a duck in the pool, but that's about it.

      While we were there we took a drive down to the south side of Houston to visit the Houston Space center.  The museum part of the Space Center was well done and very informative.  We took the 90 minute "Tram Tour" so that we could see more of the complex, like Mission Control.  Unfortunately, that was disappointing.  The young lady giving the tour was very well informed and really knew her script, but she spoke very fast in a high voice, which was impossible to understand over a speaker.  I don't think that English is the first language for a lot of the visitors, so once they realized that they couldn't understand her, they conversed among themselves drowning out any possibility for me to hear the speaker.  I believe that most of the staff were high school students and did a very good job, except for this one exception.  There's a lot of history to take in and news about future Mars missions.  Overall, it was pretty cool.  It cost $30 per person.

     Experience family camping at its best with a visit to Lake Conroe RV & Camping Resort. Perfect for water lovers, this RV campground in Texas allows you to launch your boat right from the campground. Don't have a boat? No problem. Enjoy the 22,000-acre lake with a jon boat, paddle boat, kayak, or canoe available for rent. With the marina expansion and new beach, there is even more fun to be had at this RV campground in Texas.

     For land-goers, mini golf, basketball courts, and a recreation hall are just a few of the on-site attractions. The RV & Camping Resort's convenient location also allows for nearby explorings like visits to Splash Town, the Houston Zoo, Sam Houston Museum, and the Prison Museum.

     Don't wait! Set up camp at Lake Conroe RV & Camping Resort, where 300 sites offer the perfect spot for your tent, pop-up or motorhome. Our friendly staff looks forward to making your trip one to remember!

Lake Casa Blanca International State Park

La Conner RV & Camping Resort, La Conner, Washington

Kenisee Lake RV Campground, Jefferson Ohio

     Our drive from Niagra to Kenisee Lake was an eventful one.  Our "stop engine" light and buzzer came on and it was almost an impossible find to locate an auto/RV/truck mechanic that had the equipment to analyze our trouble.  We finally did, got the issue resolved and was able to make the 173-mile drive in just a bit under eight hours.  The other thing we found is that if you're using Google Maps as your GPS coming from I-90, it will direct you to go under a ten-foot bridge just before reaching the campground.  Once we got to the campground we found that they had already chosen our site for us.  (not the norm for a Thousand Trails park)  Fortunately, it was a 50 amp site as we found that there are just a few of them. I'm guessing that the assignment was to prevent RV's without 50 amps from using the available sites.  The campground is very nice, the sites are large and all have grass lawns with full hook-ups.  There are tent sites with just water and electricity as well.  Like with most campgrounds that rent out annual sites, the better locations we filled with people who don't travel.  The campground is only open half the year.  The other half power and water are turned off, but people can keep their RV's in their sites.  We found that most of the annual sites are just used on the weekend.  The campground is very well kept up and has decent amenities.  The pool could be bigger and the shared sports court could be split up so that you didn't have to set up a net everytime you wanted to play pickleball.  The small lake is fine for boating but swimming isn't allowed.  There is also a good number of folks with ATV's and they drive them from the campground to go mudding somewhere nearby.  Overall the campground is one of the better ones we have visited, the people are very friendly and the feel of the campground is welcoming to traveling RV'ers.

     While here at the campground we didn't find a whole lot of excitement in the surrounding area.  We drove to Geneva by the Lake, (the local tourist area) then followed the road east along the lake for twenty miles or so.  Unfortunately for the town, since the 70's the lake has eaten up the beaches and businesses who once had nice beaches to draw customers in no longer have them.  We drove through town around eleven on a Monday and found most stores and attractions to be closed.  We also stopped at a couple of parks along Lake Erie and had a chance to wade out into the lake.  It was surprisingly warmer than I expected.  The problem is that the geese and seagull population at the parks is so numerous that most of the grass and beach areas are minefields and not very pleasant to hang out in.  

One Beautiful Lake, One RV Campground in Ohio

Jefferson County Lake Campground, Rigby, Idaho

      Because of the change in the weather in Yellowstone, we opted to head south from Montana and found ourselves in a county park just north of Idaho Falls.  As it turned out, this was one of the better campgrounds that we’ve visited.  Although we avoided the snow we did hit a bit of rain while here.  But because the campground was all paved and most of the sites (ie ours) have a large level concrete pad to park on the rain wasn’t the issue it could have been.  The park features a small lake, with a paved path circumnavigating it which was just about a mile and a quarter around.  The park is utilized locally for group picnics and other events.  While we were there a cross country meet was held there by several of the local schools.  Most of their race was dry, however, at one point there was quite a downpour and the kids ran on through it.  I imagine that it is a pretty popular place to swim and such during the summer.  The photo shows how hard the rain was coming down on the lake while these kids were running by.

       Idaho Falls is twelve miles to the south, so we took a day and went and explored.  The Snake River runs through the middle of town, and yes there is a waterfall in Idaho Falls.  It’s actually pretty cool and the city has done a great job with building a waterfront park around the falls.  Also, we found a great place to eat.  (Grandpa’s Southern Barbeque) We met Grandpa (the third generation of the original Grandpa) when came to our table offering us a sample of his gumbo.  It was just too good so I ordered a bowl with my meal.  The also featured buttermilk pie, which I had never tried, so we split a piece.  I can’t even begin to describe how good it was.  Needless to say, we’ll have to go back to Idaho Falls.

        Back to the campground:  The campground was across the lake from the park area with features like volleyball, basketball, the swimming area, boat rentals, and such, so it was pretty quiet.  The sites were spread out amongst the trees and had full hookups for a whopping $15 a night.  I highly recommend it for a stopover while traveling down I-15 or Idaho 20.  We stayed three nights and enjoyed it very much even with the rain.

     (from the park's website) Jefferson County Lake is a wonderful place to spend the day with a number of amenities and low fees assessed for maintenance and improvements (fees displayed below).  The lake fills naturally and is normally full the first week of July.  Amenities include 50 campsites with water and electric hookups, bathrooms, volleyball nets, playground equipment, a tennis court, sandy beaches, a lake slide, grassy areas, walking trails, a boat ramp for non-motorized boats, picnic tables, small shelters on a first come first serve basis outside the camping fee area, and large shelters by reservation only. 

Indian Creek Campground, Dear Lodge, Montana

     Originally Indian Creek was just a one night stop over on our way to Yellowstone, but after talking to friends we met at Willow Bay who had just come from there, we decided it would be worth adding a day to check out the town of Deer Lodge.  The campground is very well maintained with lots of pull-through sites.  It’s perfected for over-nighters who don’t want to disconnect their rigs.  There was also a few staying longer as well.   The sites are spaced well and each has a picnic table.  Ours was 50 amps with a full hookup but I assume not all sites had septic as there was a dump station at the exit.  When you arrive at the park they direct you to which site to take and it seemed like they try to space RV’s out so that they have as much room as possible.  The biggest impression that I took away from the park was how well kept it was. 

      Adding a day allowed us time to visit the town.  There are four museums in town and you pay once for all four and your receipt is good for two visits.  The first place we visited was the Old Montana Prison that operated from the late 19^th century until closing its doors in 1979.  Having never been to a prison myself it was interesting learning its history and trying to imagine me there as an inmate or even a guard for that matter.  They provide a self-guided tour with a couple dozen points of interest to learn about.  The photo was taken inside of the prison office, it looks like a huge rolla-dex.  But, I'm just guessing.  From the prison, we walked into the car museum.  It was the best collection of cars that I’ve ever seen in on place.  Taking the time to read the information on each car a person could spend a couple of days admiring them.  There was also a small museum that featured the history of the local area with a section on WWII and Yellowstone.  The history of the Yellowstone Trail, the first transcontinental path for cars which featured a stop in Yellowstone National Park.  It ran from Boston to the Puget Sound and was built mostly by auto enthusiasts of the day since the government was spending its money on rail transportation.  During the depression, the trail all but disappeared.  There are still yellow painted stones across the country marking the path of the trail. The final museum is a collection of someone’s obsession with Raggedy Ann dolls, along with a room of “scary dolls” and some model trains.  There is also a tourist ranch in town.

Type: GNP - Good Neighbor Park

Good Sam Rating: 7/10*/7.5

Address: 
745 Maverick Ln
Deer Lodge, MT 59722

Phone: (406) 846-3848

Fax: (406) 846-3819

Reservations Phone: (800) 294-0726

Reservations Fax: (406) 846-3819

Web Site: indiancreekcampground.net

EMail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Full Sites: 56

Partial Sites: 8

Pull-through Sites: 40

Open: Apr 15 to Oct 14

Maximum Electrical Service: 50 amps

WiFi Available: Yes

Maximum RV Length: 70 feet

Elevation: 4600

Amenities: Cable TV, hot showers (Apr 15 to Oct 15), tenting, communal fire pit, super clean restrooms, pavilion, laundry, public phone, security, golf nearby, restaurants nearby within walking distance, city swimming pool nearby, tourist attractions nearby: Frontier Montana Museum, Grant Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site, Montana Auto Museum, Old Montana Prison Museum, Old Prison Players Summer Theater, Powell County Museum, Yesterday's Playthings.

RV Notes: Rate includes 2 people, 30 amp, full hook-up, free Wi-Fi. Additional charges: 50 amp $2/night plus tax, cable $3/night. Tax. Extra wide/long pull-throughs.

Accepts Pets: Yes

Visitor Mail Accepted: Yes

Indian Cove RV Resort (The Cove), Virginia Beach, Virginia

      From our last campground in Newport, NC, the drive to Indian Cove was crazy.  I can't imagine how anyone could possibly make the trip without GPS.  The roads are narrow with no aprons on either side, but after hours of white-knuckle driving, we made it to the resort.  Other than the surprise of a $9 per night resort fee, we were very impressed with the park.  The sites had concrete pads to park on and lots of green grass to get out and enjoy.  Most every site backed-up to water and are spaced enough so that you aren't camping on top of your neighbor.  The pictures can far better describe the park than I can.  It has three pools, one is open every day and two are open just on the weekends until the middle of June and then they are open every day as well.  Our visit included a beautiful June weekend, so the park was filled with kids.  Saturday night they had a DJ and a big graduation party.  If you're a boat owner, you tie your boat up at night right at your site.  The park is very well laid-out and all the sites are very nice.  This is definitely a park for us to return to.

     While we were there, we made a couple of trips to the beach at Virginia Beach.  We had to try out my daughter's suggestion of Chick's Oyster Bar.  On the weekend we were there, there was a boardwalk art show/sell.  The boardwalk (paved) runs between the beach and the hotels, there is even a separate path for bicycles just a few feet away.  Virginia Beach is beautiful with lots to see, do, and eat.  When we visit here in the future we will plan on staying longer.

Type: Deluxe

Good Sam Rating: 9.5/9*/9

Address: 
1053 Sandbridge Rd
Virginia Beach, VA 23456
Phone: (757) 426-2601

Fax: (757) 721-6029

Reservations Phone: (757) 426-2601

Reservations Fax: (757) 721-6029

Reservations EMail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Resort Information: Two minutes from the Atlantic Ocean at Sandbridge Beach, 20 minutes from Virginia Beach. Wooded and open campsites border a freshwater channel leading to the wildlife refuge at Back Bay, with largemouth bass, speckled perch, and channel cat. Nearby: Festival Park, Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Directions: From I-64: I-264 E to Ex 17A, Independence Blvd S, bear R. L on Princess Anne Rd. L to 2nd light where road becomes Sandbridge Rd. Approx 3 mi to resort. Sandbridge Rd is a narrow, twisting rural road.

Reservation Requirements:

Web Site: indian-cove.com

EMail: jlivingston@indian_cove.com

Full Sites: 300

Check-In/Check-Out Times: 2:00 p.m./ 10:00 a.m.

RV Site Minimum Stay: 1 night

Open: Mar 2 to Dec 31

Maximum Electrical Service: 50 amp

WiFi Available: Yes

Maximum RV Length: 40 feet

Elevation: 0

Amenities: Recreation Hall, outdoor pool (3), adult lounge, shuffleboard, horseshoes, tennis, basketball, boating available, boat ramp with kayaks, canoes, paddle boats, general store, playground (2), tenting, firewood, handicap access, ice available, grocery, fire rings, ping pong, laundry, picnic tables, group activities, pool table, propane, hot showers, game room, beach, tourist attraction nearby, golf nearby, fishing nearby, boating nearby. Nearby: Festival Park, Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, beaches. Outer Banks of NC, a wildlife refuge.

RV Notes: Additional charges: Park fee $9/night collected in cash or credit card. No gas powered golf carts. No pull-through sites. Drive-ups not accepted.

Rental Notes: Rental units available. Trip Points not accepted. Contact the resort directly.

Restrictions:

Accepts Pets: Yes

Pet Restrictions: Not in rental units.

Visitor Mail Accepted: No

Visitor Mail Restrictions: Fed Ex or UPS allowed.

Ike Kinswa State Park, Silver Creek, Washington

     On our continuing quest to find new campgrounds, we found Ike Kinswa.  Since it's February, the campground was mostly empty and the trees were bare.  Even without leaves the campground is beautiful.  The sites are all paved, some back-in some pull-through. (I did notice that most of the pull-through sites were in the form of a tight arch and maybe too small for larger vehicles if they're not hitched in the middle and the back-in sites are narrow, designed for camping behind your rig)  Don't let that scare you away, the campground overall is great.  It is located on a peninsula reaching out into Mayfield Lake.  We found a nice but short hiking trail along the lake, complete with a rope swing for a warming time of year.  Also, there are several cabins for those so inclined.  They are 12 x 24 with electricity, but no plumbing.  From the outside they look quite nice.  We will have to visit here again, maybe next time in the summer, when we can enjoy the lake more.  All and all, it was a great weekend and I'm glad we found the campground.  It's about 20 miles off the interstate halfway between Portland and Seattle.  

         (From Wikipedia)  Ike Kinswa State Park is a publicly owned recreation area on the northern side of Lake Mayfield, located approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) northwest of Mossyrock in Lewis County, Washington. The state park covers 454 acres (184 ha) that include 46,000 feet (14,000 m) of shoreline mostly along the Tilton River including the point where the Tilton and Cowlitz rivers once merged. The park offers boating, fishing, swimming, waterskiing and windsurfing plus facilities for camping, hiking, and mountain biking, It is managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. The park came into existence with the construction of the Mayfield Dam in 1963. In 1971, the park's original name, Mayfield Lake State Park, was changed to Ike Kinswa State Park, in honor of a member of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe.

Huntington / Fire Fox KOA, Milton, West Virginia

     We don't usually stop at KOA campgrounds, but this was the only campground in West Virginia along our route that worked without going too far out of our way.  The campground has long pull-through sites but were very close together.  If everyone would have parked their cars or trucks in line with their RV then it would have worked.  For some reason, they didn't.  After speaking with the camp host the prior night about two trucks that would need to be moved for me to pull forward to get out, both were still parked the next morning so we had to figure something else out.  I still had the dinghy attached and didn't want to disconnect to back out.  The large 5th-wheel a site over from me was also blocked by the same two trucks and frankly, our front in.  If I backed up some, then he could fit. (I was still on my jacks)  The folks on the other side of him parked their truck behind him half in his spot so he couldn't back out.  So I quickly got things stowed away, he backed up as far as he could so that I could pull forward in front of him and head out the wrong way up the street.  That worked, I hope that he got out as well.  

     Other than the tight sites, the campground was quite nice.  It had a sandy beach on one of the three ponds with large floating toys for kids to play on.  It had a few nice rental cabins along one of the ponds.  The tent sites were set up really nice and you could even rent sites that featured patios complete with furniture and a nice fire pit.  Overall the campground was pretty decent, better than other KOA's that we have visited.  It's a great one or two-night stop-over right off the freeway.  We would return if our travels bring us that way again.