Richmond, Kentucky: Fort Boonesborough State Park

May 2024, 2 nights, weekdays

Campsite 137 in Fort Boonesborough State Park

Reservations, arrival, campsite 137 and more

We made an online reservation at this campground. The cost for electric and water hookup was $33.30 a night after the 10% senior discount. There is also a $6 reservation fee.  I completed the pre-arrival email I received, and the check-in process at the camp store when we arrived, was very quick. I inquired about wifi during check-in, and the staff member told me not to buy it; she said it would only send text messages.

It had been difficult to choose a campsite online, as there are over 150 campsites in this park. In hindsight, we should have waited until we arrived, since we were staying mid-week in early May. When I viewed the campground map and photos online, I had thought site 138 would be a nice site; however, this campsite is not listed as one that can be reserved (at any time). Campsite 138 is a nice site, and the camper on it looked like it had been there for a while. There was nothing to indicate this is a host site, so I do not know why it is non-reservable.

Facing road from campsite 137 in Fort Boonesborough State Park

Campsite 137 is level and grassy. It is not too bad of a site, since there is a lot of space between sites 137 and 138, and there is a fair amount of room on the other side, next to site 136. During our stay, however, people arrived on site 136, and set up their tent with the door next to and facing our fire pit and trailer. 😳 This made it difficult to have a fire, and the view when sitting inside our trailer, was directly toward their tent door.

The section of the campground we stayed in was probably a bit quieter than the main middle area, as it is farther away from 627 with thick trees between the road and the campsites. We liked site 161, and would have chosen that site, if we had waited until we arrived to choose a site. When I looked at the campground online, it looked like that site would be close to the playground; however, it is not. It has trees along the sides, and is a good distance away from the play area. 

We were surprised that we had no TV reception in this campground, since it is pretty close to a few good-sized towns (Richmond, Lexington, and Winchester). I had Spectrum cell service, and my husband did not have any reception with Mint/ T-mobile. 

Fort Boonesborough State Park map

Recreation

We did not know the fort is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays when we made our reservation for those days. I realized this when I looked at the park again after completing our online check-in. Entrance to the fort is not included with the campground stay, and the folks in the camp store did not have much information. I was told they do not sell tickets, which they think cost $6, and that they think there is a senior discount. My husband had planned to visit the fort Wednesday morning before we departed, since I had some things to do; however, he did not end up doing that. We did view the fort from the outside, and we read the history placards posted outside the fort when we hiked the trails in the park. 

Site of Fort Boonesborough 

Hilham, Tennessee: Standing Stone State Park

April - May 2024, weekend-weekdays, 3 nights

View out side camper window on site 13 in Standing Stone State Park

Reservations and arrival

We chose this campground because it was enroute between Mammoth Caves and Smoky Mountains. We wanted a place where we could hike and charge our camper for a couple of nights, and this campground looked like it fit our needs. I made a reservation online for campsite 13. We paid a $5 reservation fee, and received a 25% senior discount on the nightly rate. 

Campground arrival/check-in sign in Standing Stone State Park

There is no staff in the campground area of this park, and there is a sign at the entrance with instructions about how to register. Our site had a tag on it with our name and the reserved dates when we got to it. 

Campsite 13 in Standing Stone State Park

Campsite 13 and more

The roads in this campground are narrow and hilly, as are most of the campsites. The campground looked neglected, and there was a lot of erosion. It took us quite a bit of effort to get level on our site because of the ground sinkage. The driver’s side of site 13 when backing in was considerably lower. We backed in as far toward the fire pit as we could get without running into the boards alongside the drive. 

Campsite 13 in Standing Stone State Park

After we tried a few of different positions and blocks of our own to level our camper side to side, we decided we needed to use the concrete slabs that had been left on the site—apparently, for campers like us!

Kentucky: Middle Fork Campground at Natural Bridge State Resort Park, Red River Gorge, and more

June 2019, Weekday-weekend, 3 nights

Below Princess Arch in Red River Gorge.

We loved this area when we visited in 2016. We stayed in Whittleton Campground then, and I previously provided a lot of information about that campground and some of the hiking trails. You can click this link for that blog post. I am providing new details in this post.

View from campsite B015 after most campers left on Sunday.
Click photo to enlarge it and see nearby labeled sites.

Middle Fork campsite B015

All of the RV campsites in this campground are the same as the ones in Whittleton with water and 20/30 amp power. Again, some of the hookups are quite a distance away, so extra hose and cord may be needed. 

Another view from campsite B015.
Our first evening before we purchased firewood!

Campsite B015 is in an excellent location on the stream, and would be a great site on quiet weeknights, or if you have kids who want to swim. We would never choose this site on a weekend again, because during our stay, the stream and back of our site became the local swimming hole. We enjoyed a peaceful Friday afternoon along the water when we first arrived, and again later in the day on Sunday after most people had left. It was very noisy on our site Friday evening, and when we returned from hiking Saturday afternoon. The road visible in the photo above only goes inside the park, so traffic from that road was not heavy or bothersome. 

Campsite B014

Newaygo, Michigan / State Campground, Hardy Pond

October 2017, Weekday-weekend, 2-nights, Campsite 84

View of Hardy Pond from campground

Reservations and check-in

The last time we had camped in Newaygo State Park was almost 40 years ago, and I did not recall much from that stay. This campground is primitive like the state forest campgrounds, and the rate is the same; $13 a night. Since it is a state park, rather than a state forest campground, you can make a reservation and choose your campsite prior to arrival. The online information was not very detailed, and we wanted to wait until we arrived to get a better look at the sites. After I learned the office is not staffed this time of year, we decided to make a reservation online. The campground is quite a distance from the self-registration kiosk and phone. If we had not made a reservation, we would have had to drive through the campground, choose a site, drive back to the registration booth, and then go back to set up. Not a fun thing to do while towing a fifth wheel! And, it would have added 20 to 30 minutes to our check-in time.

Close quarters on site 84, if you have a large RV with slides

Campsite 84

This campsite says it can accommodate a camper up to 40', and that the site is lakefront. It is not lakefront (it is across the street), and the picture on the website for this site is not accurate at the time of this post. If you have a large RV, be aware of the following:

Slide, Kentucky: Natural Bridge State Resort Park: camping, hiking, and more

September 2016, Weekdays-weekend, 3-nights, Whittleton campsite A029

View of Lookout Point from Natural Bridge

Advance reservations, arrival and check-in

When I looked at the campgrounds online in Natural Bridge State Resort Park, I thought we would want to stay in Middle Fork Campground along the stream. By the time we were ready to make our reservation, all of those sites were either reserved or not suitable, so we reserved a site in Whittleton Campground.

Labeled map

We arrived via Highway 11 from the south. The Whittleton campground sign is a short, small sign at the entrance with no forewarning, and we missed it. We pulled into the next drive north of Whittleton, which was the entrance to the skylift and lodge. We turned around after driving over the entrance bridge because the sign clearly said "No RVs" to the left. We could have also turned around by the skylift, if we had turned right. Even though the map shows a road through the picnic area after turning left, you cannot get through on that road with an RV. There is also a drive into Whittleton campground on the south side of the stream, which is a dead end with no turn around. If you happen to miss the main drive arriving from the north with an RV, I do not suggest pulling into that drive. You can enlarge the labeled map I have inserted here by clicking on it.

Harrisville, Michigan / Harrisville State Park

September 2016, Holiday weekend 3-nights, Site 25

I found some of the best park photos for Harrisville State Park on Wikipedia.

Arrival and check-in

We arrived Friday a bit before noon, and check-in time is not until 3:00 p.m. Checkout time is 1:00 p.m., and I had checked online to see if anyone was on our site Thursday evening. The site was open, so we figured it would not be a problem if we arrived early. The agent informed us of the check-in time when we arrived, and gave the impression we could not check-in early. After I inquired further, she said that if there was not anyone on our site, and maintenance was not being performed, then we could check-in. I asked if we needed to drive back there to make sure, and then come back and check-in. She then requested our confirmation information, and said she could check us in.

Site 25

Road into campsite; white truck on site 25

The roads in this campground are narrow with a lot of trees. It was tight backing into site 25, although not overly difficult. We barely fit lengthwise on the 45 x 45 site, as there are a lot of trees around the perimeter of this site. We have a 30' 5th wheel, which is a couple of feet longer including the bike rack on back; still only about 35' total. I did not see 10' to spare after we were parked.

Fire pit on site 25

The only perimeter area of this campsite that is open is by the road and fire pit. Campers on sites 23 and 162 were easily visible when seated at the fire pit on site 25. The rest of the campsite is secluded. There were a lot of trees beside the walkway, so the view out our window toward the walkway was woodsy. The site is somewhat grassy.

Myakka River State Park / Sarasota County Florida

December 2013, Christmas Eve afternoon visit

Getting there 

Getting to Myakka River State Park was an easy nine mile drive east on State Road 72 from exit 205 off Interstate 75. Park exit signs were easily visible on the interstate, and there was not much traffic on State Road 72. 

The cost to enter the park was $6 per vehicle, which could be paid by cash or credit card. We did not need to wait in line to enter the park, so we were surprised to see so many vehicles and campers inside the park on Christmas Eve after we entered.

Inside the park

We drove all of the way to the Clay Gully picnic area near the north entrance when we first arrived. We had lunch by the river, and the first few photos are from this area. A couple of vehicles drove through the area, and a couple on bicycles stopped after us. Other than that, there was not anyone else in this area. Even though there was not much activity, we did not observe any wildlife.

We then slowly made our way back past the Birdwalk and Boat Basin. We had thought we would stop and get out in the boat basin area; however, this area was very crowded, and it looked more like a tourist area. We must have stopped at the same time that a group of people were either coming or going on the airboat rides.

We stopped at the Nature Trail and Canopy Walkway & Tower.

We did not see hardly anyone after we got on the nature trail and away from the crowd in the parking area. We heard some noise in the trees; however, the only wildlife we saw were birds.  

The view from the canopy tower and walkway was fabulous! I am mildly afraid of heights, and I was surprised that I was able to walk all of the way to the top of the tower without too much trouble.

I have walked up a few high towers in the upper peninsula in Michigan; however, I do not think any of them have been as high as this one. I did not look over the edge for long, though!

enlarge this photo to see
the walkway through the trees

The rest of the photos here are from the tower and walkway.  Clicking on any photo will enlarge it.

 

Overall

We thought this was a fabulous park, and we were disappointed that we were not able to stay longer. We were relocating to new lodging the day that we stopped, and we had a 2-hour drive after leaving the park. It is definitely on our list of places to visit again the next time we are in the area! The camping looked great, too, which was $26 a night with water and electricity.