Clayton, Michigan: Camping in Lake Hudson Recreation Area

May 2024, weekdays, 3 nights, campsite 38 and more

Sunset from campsite 38 in Lake Hudson Recreation Area

This was our first visit to this park, which is designated as a dark sky preserve. The campsites have electricity, there is a fresh water pump, and vault toilets only. There is no dump station or modern facilities in the park. The nightly campsite cost was $22 at the time of this post.

Arrival

We arrived a bit before the 3:00 PM check-in time. Apparently, we were the only ones arriving that day, because the staff member seemed to know who we were when I gave him our reserved site number. He told us we were all set to go. I told him this was our first visit to this park. Since there were no signs ahead, I asked how to get to the campground. He said to just follow the road left to the end. After we drove away, I regretted not having asked for a park map. We drove for over a mile before the road split, and we saw a sign for the campground and boat ramp. The road was paved until we turned onto the campground road at this point. When we got to the campground (another half mile plus), we saw two loops with no campsite number signs! Grrr -- we had made our reservation about 6 months ahead of time, and did not know which loop to choose. We ended up choosing the incorrect one, so we drove through the entire campground on dirt roads before we found our campsite. We were glad we had arrived before dark. 😳

Campsite 38 in Lake Hudson Recreation Area

Campsites 36, 37, 38

Campsites 37 and 38 have the best views of the lake. There are no photos of site 38 on the Michigan DNR reservation page, so I chose our site based on photos others have shared. There is a better lake view from campsite 37; however, site 38 is more level and shaded with less protruding roots. The ground has some clay in it, and we had a couple of small wet spots on our site (near front of big slide, and back corner of trailer not visible in photo). There had been no recent rain before our arrival.

Campsite 38 in Lake Hudson Recreation Area
Bottom photo is the view from the water

We needed to use all three of our 25' power cords to reach the power box for site 38, which is located between sites 37 and 38. 

Lake behind campsite 38 in Lake Hudson Recreation Area

Pedro, Ohio: Iron Ridge Campground in Lake Vesuvius Recreation Area / Wayne National Forest

 May 2024, weekdays - weekend, 4 nights, campsite 18

We originally thought we would stay in Hocking Hills campground on our way home this trip; however, when I saw the rates at that campground are now $36 to $50 a night, we changed our plans. We liked the hiking in Hocking Hills when we stayed there in 2016; however, most of the campsites are pretty close together. We had been lucky that year to get a semi-private site at a reasonable rate.

I happened upon Wayne National Forest as I was searching national forests in Ohio, and then we chose Iron Ridge Campground in Lake Vesuvius Recreation Area. 

Campsite 18 in Iron Ridge Campground Lake Vesuvius Recreation Area
Camper barely visible on right [below] when approaching from the entrance

Iron Ridge Campground, site 18

We reserved site 18 online about 6 months in advance. The cost with our senior pass was $14.50 a night. This campground has power, water hookup, and a dump station. We proceeded directly to our site when we arrived, as there is no staff in the campground. There was a reserved tag on our site.

Campsite 18 in Iron Ridge Campground Lake Vesuvius Recreation Area

Campsite 18 is one of the more private sites in the first section of the campground. After you pass sites 18 and 22, the road continues up a steep hill to a second loop. We were able to back directly into our site when we arrived; however, we needed to drive up the hill to turn around the day we departed. Site 18 has a slight incline uphill, and it was level side to side.

Visitor vehicles parked in tent sites 19 - 21 in Iron Ridge Campground Lake Vesuvius Recreation Area

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 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Cades Cove Campground, Hiking, Biking, and more

 May 2024, 6 nights

Cades Cove loop in Smoky Mountains National Park

We had originally thought we would stay in Look Rock Campground to visit the Smoky Mountains because it is the only National Park campground with electricity, and we wanted to stay for about a week. After more research, we decided to go with Cades Cove Campground instead. One reason we changed our minds is because there is more hiking directly from the campground in Cades Cove, and we had read there is a lot of vehicle noise by Look Rock from Foothills Parkway.

Above: Abrams Creek across from campsite
Below: campsite 68 in Cades Cove Campground

Cades Cove Campground, campsite 68 and more

I had about six campsites as top choices in Cades Cove. Campsite 68 was on this list, although it was not near the top of the list. Some of the other sites on our list were 21, 42, 69, 70, and 79. Lucky for us, most of the other sites had been reserved by the time we could make our reservation (6 months in advance). After we got to the campground, we decided campsite 68 is one of the best sites in loop B! 😄

Above: view of campsite 68 from road in Cades Cove Campground
Below: looking toward campsite 69 from campsite 68 

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!

Mammoth Cave National Park and Campground

April and May 2024, 6 nights, campsite 85

Mammoth Cave National Park loop C campsites

Campground

There was no one at the entrance booth when we arrived, so we proceeded to our reserved site. There are no tags or reserved signs on the sites, so if you do not have a reservation, it is difficult to know which sites are available. We did see staff at the entrance off and on during our stay; just not when we arrived.

Mammoth Cave National Park campsite 85 in loop C

We had reserved campsite 85, which is a pull through site in loop C on the right side of the road. It is a spacious and mostly private site; however, it floods during rain.

View from campsite 85 in Mammoth Cave National Park loop C

If you have a pull through site on the left side of the road, be aware that your camper door will be facing the road, unless you turn around and pull through backwards. You can get pretty good views of the campsites in this park on their website and on google maps. One night of our stay, a camper pulled into site 84, a pull through site across the road from us. They opted to stay parked backwards with their camper door open; facing the road and us. Since it is basically just the roadway between our tar pad and theirs, we could easily hear them when we went to bed that evening, even though our bed is at the front of our camper (they were also a loud group of 4 people).

Other than the site flooding when it rained, we liked campsite 85. A couple of other sites we liked were 90 (loop C), and 13, and 11 in B loop. There are two full hookup sites in this campground, 91 and 93, which we were not aware of before this stay. When I looked at the reservation site again during our stay, I saw that these sites are listed as FCFS. Both of these sites looked nice, although it looked like the cost might be twice as much as the other sites. 

Sign posted by restrooms in Mammoth Cave National Park loop C 

Overall, this campground was a noisy place during our stay, and no rules were enforced. During part of our stay, the person on campsite 71 ran a very loud generator (loud generators not allowed, it says) all day long. We were quite a ways away from that site, and could easily hear it. We happened to be chatting with someone at the dump station when we left a few days later, and learned he had been on the campsite across from the loud generator. He said everyone in his area was happy when that camper departed the day before us.

Laundry facilities in Mammoth Cave National Park

Amenities

Along with a sanitation station, this campground has laundry facilities, pay showers, and a post office behind the camp store. The washers were $1.75, and the dryers cost $1.50 for 45 minutes. Flush toilets and fresh water are available in each campground loop. 

Seating area in lodge in Mammoth Cave National Park

Shawnee National Forest: Pounds Hollow Recreation Area, Cave-In-Rock, Garden of the Gods, and more

April 2024, 5 nights

We visited Shawnee National Forest in 2022 and loved it. We were passing through on that trip, and did not have much time to explore, so we returned with our camper this trip. You can find more information via the 2022 link above, and there are more photos of the area in the Shawnee Forest Facebook album.

Above: View from the road around the campground looking up toward the first loop
Below: Campground registration board

Pine Ridge Campground in Pounds Hollow Recreation Area

According to the website this campground has 35 sites, which are all first come, first serve. There are actually four loops in the campground with sites numbered as high as 76. The very first loop on the right was closed in April; however, the other three loops were open. This campground has fresh water at the entrance and a couple of pit toilets in two of the loops. There is no dump station, no flush toilets (except in the picnic and beach area), and no showers. The cost is $10 per night/$5 senior rate.

Campsite 43 in Pounds Hollow Recreation Area - Pine Ridge Campground

The first loop on the left has sites with electricity. We arrived on a Tuesday, and there were only three campers in this loop. Site 41 (or first choice) was taken, so we chose site 43.  Site 43 is the most secluded site in this section with trees on all sides. The campsite is mostly flat; we had to use one leveling block under each tire on the driver's side.

Above: looking at campsite 43 from site 42 in Pine Ridge Campground
Below: campsite 37 in Pounds Hollow Recreation Area/Pine Ridge Campground

We liked most of the campsites in this campground, and I am sharing a few more photos here. The two end campsites in the primitive loop (no power) straight ahead when entering the campground area are great sites. Unfortunately, I did not get any photos of those.

Above: campsite 40
Below: campsite 41

There was quite a bit of pollen, many tent worms, and many bees during our stay in April. We did not have any mosquitoes, and the flies were not too bad. It was quiet during most of our stay. The only somewhat noisy day was our last night, which was Saturday. Overall, we loved this campground and would definitely stay here again.

Garden of the Gods in Shawnee National Forest Illinois

Recreation 

We visited Garden of the Gods again, and enjoyed it just as much as we had the first time. 

Indian Point Trail at Garden of the Gods in Illinois

Montrose, Illinois: Montrose Village Campground

April 2024, weekday, one night

Sunrise from inside our camper on site 4 in Montrose Village Campground

We had originally planned to just sleep in a Walmart parking lot or someplace similar for this one night. I learned about this self-service campground, with a minimal overnight rate, shortly before our trip, and we decided to stay here instead. The information I had read online from previous campers, said that it is $5 for a primitive site, and $15 for electricity. I could not find any actual information or a website for the campground.

Registration and firewood at Montrose Village Campground

Arrival and registration

There was a self-registration box, as others mentioned. This is on the front of the building with flush toilet restrooms. We paid $15 for a power site, and set up on site #4. I deposited a check, which was processed from our account about 10 days later. There is also a donation box for [almost free] firewood.

Our trailer is on site 4 in Montrose Village Campground