NFS Campground Review – Columbine Canyon, Questa, NM

Enjoying a glass by the stream next to our RV site at Columbine Canyon

A lovely forest campground next to a running stream near Questa on the Enchanted Circle in NE New Mexico.

Link to campground here: Columbine Canyon, Carson Forest, NM
Link to map location here: Columbine Canyon, Carson Forest, NM

1. Site Quality = 4/5
   Very nice site quality here, especially for a National Forest. All sites are paved with a good selection of larger and relatively flat ones. The entrance to the campground has a small circle of 8 large, perfectly flat open sites easily accessible to big rigs, but with limited shade/privacy. The remainder of the campground runs away from the main road up alongside a creek and has more private and dispersed forested sites of varying size/flatness. On left a selection of back-ins (#10-17 or so), with pull-throughs on right (#21 onwards), several of which can accommodate larger rigs. All sites have good separation, lovely “sitting areas” with picnic table and fire-pit, while some even have direct stream-access (e.g. #26/27). No hookups.
2.  Facilities = 2/5
   Very basic facilities here. There are several sets of pit toilets, kept nicely clean and several water spigots. Access to the stream and many (many) miles of hiking directly from camp. No showers or dump station.
3. Location = 5/5
   Another lovely location. You are deep in the woods here, shielded from the wind and right next to miles of wonderful hiking. Short drive to popular Red River as well as to visit other sights (e.g. Wild Rivers BLM).
4. Pet Friendliness = 5/5
   Great pet playground. The stream provides wonderful refreshment, plus there are literally days worth of hiking in Carson National Forest on the trails directly from camp.

Overall Rating = 4
BONUS ALERT = Camp deep in the woods next to the calming song of a running stream!

Summary: There are 5 forest campgrounds on the Northern End of the Enchanted Circle between Red River and Questa, but Columbine Canyon is by far the most accessible, quietest and nicest in our opinion. Set beautifully in the forest right alongside a running stream, the campground has both fully open sites as well as more private forested sites. All are paved with good access, nice separation and a selection large and flat enough for bigger rigs. There are lovely “sitting areas” and even a few sites with direct stream access (we thought our site #26 by far the nicest of the lot). The surrounding area has plenty to do and see including Red River, Wild Rivers BLM and literally days worth of hiking (there is access to at least 40 miles or so directly from the campground). This is a typical primitive forest campground with no hookups and no dump station but it feels wonderfully peaceful and secluded. It also has full protection from those famous New Mexico winds, a rarity in the area. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and would most certainly come again.

 Extra Info:  Verizon extended network with a few bars, so you’ll get a slow 1X connection, but no more. Sites cost $15/night (no hookups). All 27 sites are first-come-first-serve. Several on-site water spigots, but NO dump station.

Extra, Extra Info: More Remote? If you’re looking for something more remote El Aguaje Campground at Wild Rivers BLM has plenty of room for big rigs and allows camping right on the upper rim of the gorgeous Rio Grande Canyon for $7/night (no hookups). Very few people seem to go there.

Extra, Extra, Extra Info: Boondocking? There is aparently a lovely boondocking spot nearer to Taos off Forest Service road 9 at Cebola Mesa. Official RV size limit is 32′, but we weren’t able to make it over there to check if they take bigger. If anyone goes, let me know!

View from front of campground down right-side of loop. Pull-through #27 on left. You can just (barely) see our RV peeking out in pull-through #26 behind it.

Another view down campground loop from the upper side. Site #22 in front, with an RV in site #23 behind it.

Typical back-in site (#12 shown)

View down campground loop showing one of vault toilets and site #14 behind it

View from top of loop. You can just see site #17 hidden on left.

View of "circle" at front of campground with sites #1-8

View of one of large, spacious and flat back-in sites in lower circle. Site #3 shown.

View of our very spacious and private "sitting area" by site #26. Although you can't see it in the pic, the stream runs directly on the left.

NF Campground Review – Lake Powhatan, Pisgah Forest (Asheville, NC)

Another wonderful National Forest campground only ~6 miles from Asheville, NC in the Smoky Mountains
Link to campground here: Lake Powhatan, Pisgah National Forest
Link to map here: Lake Powhatan, Bent Creek Recreation Area

1. Site Quality = 4.5/5
   Very nice forest sites here. They are all hard gravel back-ins with picnic table and fire-pit. There’s an assortment of sizes as well as some tent-only sites, but all are nicely level and beautifully shaded with very good separation between campers. Some sites are wider than others. There’s a selection of either water/sewer or electric (50 AMP) hook-ups.
2.  Facilities = 4/5
   Good selection of facilities. There’s flush toilets, showers, dump station and potable water. In addition there’s a swimming area, fishing pier and picnic sites all around the lake. Only slight ding is the showers have a push-timer (although it gives a decent time), plus they’re not quite as hot as we’d hoped.
3. Location = 5/5
   Another fabulous location. You’re only ~6 miles from downtown Asheville and yet you’re in the middle of a gorgeous and serene forest setting surrounded by miles of fabulous hiking and biking trails. You’re also right next to the Blue Ridge Parkway and within a 40-min drive of Smoky Mountain National Park.
4. Pet Friendliness = 5/5
   Awesome place for doggie. Lots of space to hang out, hike and even bike with your favorite furry friend. Lots of cold-mountain creeks and streams for pooch water-lovers too.

Overall Rating = 4.6
BONUS ALERT = Gorgeous deep-forest mountain campground right next to Asheville, NC

Summary: Once again it seems we’ve hit the jackpot. This is a gorgeous, deep-forest campground with lovely flat and shaded sites just ~6 miles from downtown Asheville, NC and right next to the Blue Ridge Parkway. The sites offer a selection of either water/sewer or electric hook-up and there’s always a set of first-come-first-serve for those non-reservation folks like ourselves. The whole area is part of Pisgah National Forest and is a hiking and biking paradise with miles of different trails right on your doorstep interspersed beautifully with forest, the lake, streams and creeks. To top it all off Asheville and the surrounding area is super dog-friendly allowing dogs on all trails and in restaurants with outdoor spaces. So, you can have an expresso downtown in the morning, go for a bike-ride with pooch in the afternoon and relax by your campfire in serene forest in the evening. Another keeper-campsite for us, for sure!

 Extra Info:  No connectivity here, but we were able to get a slooow (just barely usable) internet w/ Verizon using our external amplifier and antenna. Selection of reservation and first-come-first-serve sites. Sewer/water or 50 AMP hook-ups. Sites are $23/night for sewer/water, $25/night for electric. Central dump and potable water. Fishing pier and swimming beach on Lake Powhatan.

Our site (#35) in Bent Creek Loop

Typical campsite view

View down Big John Loop

View down Bent Creek Loop showing one of smaller pull-through sites (#26)

Picnic table and fire-pit/grill

One of the many, gorgeous hiking trails

Bent Creek stream

SP Park Rating – Cumberland Mountain State Park (Crossville, TN)

A lovely, relaxed location on our way to the Smokey’s.

Link to campground here: Cumberland Mountain State Park
Link to map here: Cumberland Mountain State Park

  

1. Site Quality = 4.5/5
   We were very happy with the sites here. The main loops (2, 3 & 5) have large, flat, concrete pads with 30 AMP+water, a nice sitting area with picnic table, fire-pit and grill. The other loops (1 & 4) have more shaded, slightly smaller sites but still very nice. Loop 1 has some full hook-up, loop 4 is more primitive (15 AMP or no hookup). The coolest little touch…each site has its own (very own) little garbage bin which is emptied daily. Quite the fancy get-up!
2. Facilities = 4/5
   Very decent facilities. There’s hot showers and flush toilets, and they’re spotlessly clean (at least in our loop #5). The surrounding park has picnic areas, boating, fishing, dump station and even an on-site local restaurant where they serve a dish of the day (locally caught catfish is on Friday’s). Only ding…no laundry on-site.
3. Location = 4.5/5
   Excellent location here. You’re just a few miles from Crossville which is a very decent sized-town, yet you’re right in the middle of Cumberland Mountain and the forest. There’s lots of hiking trails right in the park, as well as boating and fishing on Byrd Lake.
4. Pet Friendliness = 5/5
   Another great park for doggie as with all state parks. Lots of space to hike, play and go in the water.

Overall Rating = 4.5
BONUS ALERT = Wooded & relaxed campground in the midst of Cumberland Plateau 

Summary: This was a lovely little campground which we stumbled across on our way to the Smokeys. We initially only planned 2 days, but enjoyed the area and the people so much that we stayed a week. Sites are large, flat and nicely separated with water/electricity and the cute touch of individual garbage bins. The surrounding park is lovely with miles of hiking, a pretty lake and an old rock bridge. While we were in town a band of bluegrass players were camping in loop 3 so we had free music every night (how awesome is that!). Plus, Crossville had an Apple Festival and a Classic Car Rally. Our campground hosts (Skip and Opal) were the most inviting people we’d ever met and definitely made the experience all that much better. We’d come back in a heartbeat! 

 Extra Info:  Both AT&T phones and Verizon wireless worked. All sites first-come-first-serve. Selection of full hook-up, electricity/water and primitive. Sites are $20/night for 30AMP electric/water. Central dump and potable water. 

Typical site view. See the little bin in the front?

View of sitting area

View down loop #5 (where we stayed)

View down loop #3

Lovely Byrd Lake

The old stone bridge & dam

SP Campground Rating – Waubonsie State Park (Sidney, IA)

This turned out to be a nice 2-night stop-over for us on our way to Missouri

Link to campground here: Waubonsie State Park, IA

  

1. Site Quality = 4.5/5
   The sites here are nice. Very long, flat hard-gravel back-ins with picnic table, grill/fire-pit and nicely trimmed grass. Half of the sites are available with electric and there’s a nice spattering of shade trees. Good separation between campers as well.
2. Facilities = 4/5
   Very decent facilities here. There’s vault/flush toilets, showers and on-site water and dump station. Around the park there’s also lots of picnic sites and rest areas.
3. Location = 3/5
   This park is in a great natural location to explore the Loess Hills, but is a bit “out there” otherwise with mostly farmland around the hills. There’s 2,000 acres of natural habitat, hiking trails, a large lake for fishing and great views from the top of some of the hills. Nearest small town is Sidney, 6 miles north.
4. Pet Friendliness = 5/5
   Great, pet friendly park. Lots of space for pooch to roam and hike.

Overall Rating = 4.1
BONUS ALERT = Walk in the footsteps of Lewis & Clark and the Loess Hills  

Summary: This turned out to be a great little stop-over for us on our way to Missouri. We’d heard from others that Iowa has lovely State Parks and this one confirmed it. It’s a beautiful setting, right smack in the Loess Hills and on the Lewis and Clark Historical Trail. It has a with a nice selection (7 miles) of hiking trails, some equestrian trails and even a fishing lake. The sites themselves were spacious and comfortable and had the bonus of electric hook-ups. However there’s not much else out here. So, a great little stop for exploring a corner of the Loess Hills, but probably not a long-term visit.  

 Extra Info: AT&T cellphones and Verizon wireless card worked (just barely!) here. Selection of reservable and electric sites. Central dump and potable water.  Electric sites cost $16/night in summer, $11/night in off-season. 

Our site (#40) at Waubonsie

View along main park road

Typical site view

View of tent sites at far end of park

Fire-pit/grill and picnic bench at each site

SP Campground Rating – Stockade Lake North (Custer, SD)

Amazingly enough we have internet access out here in the boonies (thank you Verizon) so I’m able to complete the campground review of State Park we were in for the last part of our stay at Custer, SD. 

Link to campground here: Stockade Lake North, Custer State Park

1. Site Quality = 4.5/5
   Overall the sites here are very nice. The majority are large, level dirt sites with electrical hook-up, fire-pit, bench and ample space between campers (there’s a few non-electric and paved pull-ins too). You can easily get the biggest rigs in here. This is a forest area and most sites have good shade.
2. Facilities = 4/5
   Good selection of facilities here. There’s vault toilets, flush toilets and free showers. There’s also potable water and a playground and large grassy area on-site. The only reason I gave it a ding was there was a heavy, musty odor in the women’s bathrooms while we were there which was not altogether pleasant. Also, there’s no dump station. But, overall the facilities were good for a State Park location.
3. Location = 4/5
   This campground is right at the beginning of Custer State Park so you have direct access to the Park, and you can walk to Stockade Lake from your site. It’s also only ~6 miles from the town of Custer. The only reason it doesn’t get a 5 is that there’s no hiking trails straight from the campground (although you can bush-whack the surrounding forest).
4. Pet Friendliness = 5/5
   They’re very pet friendly here and lots of space for pooch to hang out and walk in the forest.

Overall Rating = 4.4
BONUS ALERT = Custer wildlife at your doorstep

Summary: This is the first Custer State Park campground as you enter the park and is one of their larger ones set beautifully in a forested area near Stockade Lake. Overall it’s a great area. Large, level sites with electrical hook-up available, good shade and privacy between campers. There’s also a ton of activities on-site including a playground (on a large grassy area), movies about Custer SP at night and free canoeing on the lake once a week. On the negative side there’s no hiking trails right from the park, but you are within walking distance of the Lake and driving distance of everything in Custer SP. The other negative is that because it’s so popular, it’s almost always completely booked out. We talked to people who’d booked 8 months ahead for their site and we got one of the very last pull-in sites (non-electric) when we booked a month and a half ago. Overall a great campground, but beware to book way ahead if you’re coming in summer.

 Extra Info: Verizon wireless worked flawlessly. AT&T phones were OK. Sites cost $18/night for non-electric, $22/night for electric. Potable water on-site, but no dump station (you can dump for $4 at Sinclair gas station in Custer) . You do want to reserve ahead of time.

View of our non-electric pull-in site (#8)

Typical back-in site...large, dirt and level

Fire-pit and bench. Most sites have a nice forest view.

Looking up the road into the campground

Playground and grassy area in the middle of the campground

Movie viewing area