May 2022, Weekend-weekdays, 4-nights
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| Campsite 23 in Fort Custer Recreation Area |
Fort Custer Recreation Area, Campsite 23
We arrived at this campground from Waterloo State Recreation Area without having dumped our tank or filled with fresh water, since the sanitation station in that park is not near the campground we stayed in. Upon arrival at this park, we learned there had been a construction issue a few days before our arrival, and there was no water at the sanitation station. We were able to dump our tank with no rinsing, and then had to drive a mile back out to the ranger station to fill our water tank. It would have been nice, if the state had sent an email providing this info to incoming campers before arrival! I mean, they do send us many confirmation and reminder emails before arrival. 😳 In talking with the staff member at the check-in booth, we learned that the campground host would be delivering fresh water to campers that needed it later that evening. I was glad I had learned about this, and then observed the host delivering the water, because he did not stop at our site. He stopped to give a case of water to campers across the road from us, who already had water from the days before, and then prepared to exit on his cart. I walked up to talk with him, and then we received a case of water, as well. Nice that our state park provided this; sad that the campground host was not doing his job.
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| Campsite 23 in Fort Custer Recreation Area Fire pit on the right in the bottom photo is on site 21 |
Most of the campsites in this campground are quite nice with shade and privacy trees. We made our reservation last minute, and site 23 is just an okay site, in my opinion. It is secluded on the two backsides, and open to the road and campsite 21. It is level, and the ground covering is mostly dirt. Fortunately, campsite 21 was not in use during our entire stay. Two different campers stayed for only one night each during our four-night stay.
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| Whitford Lake picnic area in Fort Custer Recreation Area |
Recreation and local area
We took our kayaks out on Eagle Lake this visit. There is a boat launch ramp just past the swimming beach and picnic area on this lake. The beach area is sandy, although the rest of the lake was murky looking. We saw many different fish during our paddle. People were fishing, swimming, and on the water in small boats. There is also access to the North Branch Kalamazoo River inside the park. Hiking around the two smaller lakes was again a great hike! You can find more information about activities in this park in the post from our stay in September 2016.
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| Screenshot of Battle Creek Linear Park trail |
We biked over 12 miles on Battle Creek Linear Park trail. We started near starting point 1 on the map above. Both times we have biked this trail, the trail map showed a parking lot (circle 1) on the corner of Brady and Dickman Roads; however, there is no parking lot there. We found another parking lot nearby that did not say no parking. This is a scenic trail along the river; however, it is in pretty rough shape with many bumps and cracks from roots, etc.
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| Above: disc golf course behind Territorial Brewing Company Below: Beers at Handmap Brewing |
We visited Territorial Brewing Company in Springfield and Handmap Brewing downtown Battle Creek. There is free disc golf course behind Territorial Brewing, and you can take your beers out to play. The beers at Handmap Brewing were delicious; however, they were also quite expensive. We would not have purchased $10 beers at this location, if we had not had the 50% discounts from Reel Craft Pass. Territorial Brewing has 50% discounts in HopPassport.
We visited two other locations near the campground that are listed in HopPassport: Gull Lake Distilling Company, and Soil Friends Hard Cider Company. We enjoyed both of these locations! They both have seating inside and outside, the beverages were great, and so was the service. They are located about 5 miles from the campground.
There is plenty to do inside Fort Custer Recreation Area and nearby. Let me know if you have any questions!
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