RV Park Review – Queen Mine RV Park, Bisbee, AZ

View of Queen Mine from back of the RV park

A super-small no-frills park in a GREAT location to visit the cool town of Bisbee in SE Arizona.

Link to park here: Queen Mine RV Park, Bisbee, AZ 
Link to map location here: Queen Mine RV Park, Bisbee, AZ

1. Site quality = 2.5/5
   This park is squeezed into a small circle/ledge above the massive copper mine and main street, and site quality is not exactly the draw. Only 25 sites in total and they are all very close together arranged in a large circle around the parking area. All sites are level back-in dirt with no separation, no specific “sitting area”, 30 Amp/water/sewer and cable TV hookups. A select few sites (2-3) have picnic tables and a few of the edge sites are best suited for smaller rigs. The biggest draw to the park are the views. On left-hand side of park sites have full views of downtown Bisbee, while back-facing sites have views of the massive Queen Mine pit. You may be close enough to touch your neighbor, but your view will be lovely.
2. Facilities = 4/5
   Very good facilities here. Nicely clean toilets and super-large (very spacious) showers with separate bench and pegs. Only slight ding is somewhat low water pressure, but otherwise the showers were hot and delightful.
3. Amenities = 3.5/5
   Considering the mini-size of this park they actually have a decent set of amenities. There’s a small, very modern laundry room (2 machines), a small book-swap and info area, shared “picnic table” area and narrow dog run. Also free on-site WiFi which works reasonably well (the closer you are to the office the better it works).
4. Location = 5/5
   Location is what this park is ALL about. Not only do you have very nice views of town (and the copper mine pit), but you are easy walking distance to everything in downtown Bisbee as well as crawling distance from the Queen Mine Tours (which also double as the Bisbee visitor center).
5. Pet friendliness = 4/5
   Again, for a super-small park this spot is very dog friendly. There’s not much space to hang out with pooch at your site, but there’s a narrow on-site dog-run and you’re walking distance to everything in town. Bisbee has an unofficial “dog park” just down Brewery Ave and there are miles of open hiking above town at the end of OK Street.

Overall rating = 3.8
BONUS ALERT: Park with a view of Queen Mine and walking distance to downtown Bisbee!

Summary: This place is all about location, location, location. It’s one of the smallest private parks we’ve ever seen -> only 25 sites in total squeezed into a small circle up a (very) steep hill at the south end of old Bisbee. Sites are basic dirt with not much in the way of separation or space and 30Amp/water/electric. It takes a bit of getting into especially with a big-rig, but once you’re squeezed in, you’ll have a great view of the surrounding area and you’ll be in the PERFECT spot to explore Bisbee. Also considering the teeny size the park has just about everything you need (laundry, showers, dog run, WiFi etc.) albeit on a small scale, plus the owners are super-friendly. Simply put, there’s no better place to stay if you want to spend time in Bisbee and once you’re here that’s exactly what you’ll want to spend your time doing. Walk down the hill to the mine tour, hike up the hill to the shrine, take the Bisbee 1000, stroll to a restaurant or crawl to a bar. It’s all right here and all easy to access. Park also has excellent monthly rates. This is not typically our kind of park, but given the views, good experience and great location we’d most definitely return.

Extra Info: Slightly finicky 3G Verizon signal, although it was stable with our external amp/antenna. On-site WiFi Internet works decently well (the closer you are to the office, the better). Sites cost $30/night for 30Amp/water/electric + cableTV. $450 (monthly rate).

Front view of our site and neighbors. We’re in site #21. Site to left of us is empty.

Side-view of our site. In this shot both sites next to us are empty. Bisbee town is in the back.

View from very back of RV park looking towards entrance. We’re on right with 2 empty sites next to us.

View from other end (entrance) of RV park. Site on left is best for smaller rigs.

View of one of the site picnic tables (this is site #20). Only 2-3 sites have these.

View of dog walk/run

View of main office, laundry, showers and picnic area

View of steep hill up to the park

Lovely views of Bisbee from the right-side of the park. This was taken behind our site.

“Aerial” view of the park from a hill in Bisbee. See the circle with the sites? Queen mine pit is in the back.

SP Campground Review – City of Rocks, NM

Paul gets engulfed in the Ciy of Rocks

A very cool campground smack in the middle of the surreal City of Rocks in SW New Mexico!

Link to campground here: City of Rocks, NM
Link to map location here: City of Rocks, NM

1. Site Quality = 4/5
   There’s a wide selection of sites here. The electric sites just outside the rocks near the visitors center are excellent. They are huge, decently flat gravel sites (6 pull-through and 4 back-in) with 30Amp/water, good separation, lovely landscaping, fire-pit, picnic table and shelters. Then, there’s the “rock” section around the very bumpy campground loop road. These are non hook-up plain dirt sites with picnic table/fire-pits and (very) varying size and levelness, but they’re situated beautifully right within the rocks. Most are probably better suited for smaller rigs or tents, but a few are flat and large enough to handle “beast size”. For 40-foot+ we thought the best choices were #2, #26-29 and #16-17, with #16 being huge, very private and our personal winner. In the electric section #E10 on the end was our favorite.
2.  Facilities = 3.5/5
   The facilities are decent. Large bathrooms and showers, kept nicely clean. Shower pressure is decent and temperature good, but you do have the timer-buttons and those spray-type shower-heads.
3. Location = 4.5/5
   You come here for the rocks and on that point this place gets top marks. You can camp, climb, play and run right in the rocks plus there’s several miles of hiking trails (both outside & within the rocks). You’re ~30-miles North of Deming and ~30-miles South of Silver City for day-trips (including the very fun Pinos Altos). Slight ding for no dump station.
4. Pet Friendliness = 5/5
   Great park for pooch. Doggie has plenty of space to hang out and is welcome to climb the rocks with you.

Overall Rating = 4.25
BONUS ALERT = Camp, play and climb right in the middle of the surreal City of Rocks!

Summary: This campground is ALL about the rocks and it’s 100% worth it for that alone. The City of Rocks is a surreal cluster of gorgeous rocks located in the middle of nowhere half-way between Deming and Silver City. There’s a small selection of 10 very nice, huge (enormous) electric sites with 30Amp/water just outside the rocks and then there’s 45 sites of varying size within the rocks themselves. The road around the loop is very bumpy and for bigger rigs the best sites seem around #2 (at front), #16, 17 (reservation) or #27-29.  For medium-sized rigs there’s alot more choice. There’s also several miles of hiking trails, a lovely overlook and hours of fun getting lost within the rocks. We had a blast hanging out here and would recommend everyone to experience this unique spot at least once in their lives.

 Extra Info:  Amazingly we had full 3G Verizon signal for both the smartphone and aircard. Sites cost $10/night for developed (non hook-up = 45 sites), $14/night for water/30Amp electric (10 sites). Camping fees can be covered with New Mexico Annual Camping Permit. 8 sites reservable, others are first-come-first-serve. On-site water spigot, but NO dump station.

Typical electric site (#E6 shown)

Our site #E10. We thought it the nicest in the electric section with no-one to the side or in front of us.

View down front of electric section (#E5 on right)

View of one of more uneven sites (#7) workable for medium-sized campers

One of larger, flatter sites (#29 shown) suitable for bigger rigs

Another of the flatter, larger sites (#28)

Another of the larger sites able to handle bigger rigs (#2 shown)

Another of the larger, flatter private sites (#17)

Our favorite site #16. A bit tough to judge from the pic, but the site is very large, decently flat and very private.

One of the nice site for med-sized rigs (#10)

Another of the nice sites for med-sized rigs (#45 shown)

A very large site, but far too sloped for a MH (#36)

One of sites probably better suited for tenters (#40)

View down campground loop

Walking the end of the campground loop towards the visitor center (also the main facilities)

SP Campground Review – Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center, White Springs, FL

The Craft Square at Stephen Foster SP

A fun and cultural stop in North Florida thanks to serendipity.

Link to campground here: Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center & State Park
Link to map here: Stephen Foster State Park

1. Site Quality = 4/5
   Very nice sites here. All are very flat, packed earth with picnic table/fire-pit and choice of 30Amp or 50Amp and Water. No sewer. Good selection of site sizes with nice, big pull-throughs (up to 100 feet size) as well as back-ins. Good separation between campers and pretty tree views. Partially shaded as well as more open sites available.
2.  Facilities = 5/5
   Excellent facilities. There are several shower-houses, all nicely new and well-kept. Showers are large, pressure and temperature is great, plus they have heat-lamps (oh yeah!). Huge selection of on-site attractions with Stephen Foster museum, Craft Square, 97-bell Carillon Tower, playground, picnic areas and nature/trails for both biking, hiking and canoeing/kayaking. On-site dump plus laundry.
3. Location = 4/5
   Great little location for exploring the area. The Park is just off Hwy 75 and 10 and is close to several other attractions including Big Shoals State Park and Falling Creek Falls Park . Nearby Lake City and Live Oak have shopping.
4. Pet Friendliness = 4.5/5
   Good place for pooch. A teeny bit of a ding because you can’t actually take doggie into any of the on-site attractions (museum, shops), but your best friend is allowed all over the grounds and trails. Poop bags provided.

Overall Rating = 4.4
BONUS ALERT = Discover crafts, music and Florida heritage on the Suwanee River!

Summary: We really enjoyed this unexpected stop. This particular park is only ~20 miles East from our previous campground, but is more developed and is also very nicely located along the Suwanee River. The 247-acre park is a culture center plus museum dedicated to Florida heritage and the memory of Stephen Foster. There’s enough to keep you busy for days here between exploring the fun exhibits, meeting artists at the Craft Square, walking the many miles of trails or participating in one of their many events. The Suwanee River and nearby Big Shoals and Creek Falls areas provide water activities too. All the facilities are new and perfectly kept (the showers even have heat-lamps!), plus RV sites are all nicely spaced flat, packed- earth with electric/water hook-ups. We’d definitely come back for one of the music events and to explore more of the area.

 Extra Info:  Verizon worked. Sites are reservable $20/night with 50Amp/water or 30Amp/water. On-site dump and laundry.

Typical Back-In site (site #7 shown)

Side-View of one of the huge 100-feet pull-throughs (site #4)

View of one of loop-side pull-throughs (site #15)

View down Campground Loop (Site #2, #4 front to back on right)

View down campground loop (Site #20 on left front)

View of facilities

Hiking on the trails

2010 Best RV Parks & Campgrounds of the Year

A perfect view and a perfect spot. Boondocking in Quartzite, AZ

December is a great month for looking back on the year. We’re all holed-up, hot chocolate in hand, snuggling with our honey’s (furry and non-furry alike) and chatting about all the places we’ve been. I’ve kept a fairly detailed list of every park we’ve stayed at, and decided it would be interesting to combine them all and see who came out on top.

Now, we have a definite slant towards open, green spaces and pet-friendly locations and it’s no surprise that those are exactly the spots that came out as our favorites. During the year we’ve also drifted away from Private Parks towards National Forest and State Parks mostly for their paw-friendly space and costs. In fact, of the 42 spots we stayed at in 2010, the top 5 are ALL National Forest. So, with that said, and just a small drumroll (for dramatic effect) let’s reveal the Nina, Paul, Polly, Taggart and Rand favorites of 2010:

1/ Top 3 National Forest Campgrounds

Our “sitting area” in Singletree, UT w/ view of the valley

These were all tied for top spot (as well as best overall in all 42 parks rated). They all scored 4.75/5 in our rating system.

• Hillman Ferry, Land Between the Lakes KY – lakes views, hiking, swimming and outdoor beauty. We had a blast here.
• Rock Creek, Erwin TN - Serene woods, creeks, water-falls and 50AMP hook-up deep in the Smoky Mountains for $15/night. So peaceful!
• Singletree, Dixie Forest UT – Mountains, nature and stunning views of Capitol Reef for only $10/night. We’d go back in a heartbeat.

2/ Top 3 State Parks

Snake Creek, SD. Paul and Polly take a dip 10 feet from our RV

These didn’t quite beat the NF sites in ratings, but came real close

• Snake Creek, Platte SD – daily dips in the Missouri w/ doggie!
• Alafia River State Park, FL - some of raddest mountain bike trails in FL.
• Cumberland Mountain State Park, TN – wooded and relaxed campground in the Cumberland Plateau, plus the nicest camp hosts we’ve ever met.

3/ Top 3 Private Parks

Waheap, Lake Powell AZ. A perfect location

It’s no surprise that our top 3 private parks were the ones who had most space and nature around them

• Santee Lakes, San Diego CA - one of the very first parks we ever stayed at and it still tops the ratings.
• Winding River RV Resort, CO – a huge (enormous), pooch-friendly spot right next to Rocky Mountain National Park and Arapaho Forest.
• Waheap RV Park, Lake Powell, AZ – maybe the prettiest view we’ve had from a site on the whole trip.

4/ Best Beach Park
Although we only really stayed at beach parks in the Eastern part of our trip one park topped the others are being the absolute best and that was Hunting Island State Park, SC. For beach, it can’t be beat.

5/ Best Value
National Forest was definitely our best value throughout the trip. Of the paid sites we stayed at Brick House in Sumter Forest. SC ($5/night) and Singletree in Dixie Forest, UT ($10/night) topped the list. Of course nothing can beat the boondocking we did in Quartzite, AZ.

6/ Best Views
No doubt the best views that we had (right from our campsite) were in Singletree, Dixie Forest UT, Waheap, Lake Powell UT and boondocking in Quartzite, AZ. Hard to beat the views in the West.

It’ll be interesting to see which way we go next year. Given our penchant for space,  we’re likely to continue with our preference for State Parks & National Forest and will probably add more boondocking sites to the list too.

SP Campground Rating – Koreshan State Park, Estero, FL

A quick stop-over & a bit of history for us on our way South in FL.
Link to campground here: Koreshan State Park, FL
Link to map here: Koreshan State Park, FL

1. Site Quality = 3.5/5
   The sites here are OK, but not exceptional. They’re flat, sandy/packed earth with 30AMP/water, fire-pit and picnic table. Sizes tend to vary a bit and some are too close together or too small for our liking, but they’re rated for rig-size and access from the main road is good. Our site (#6) was a fit, but there really wasn’t room for more, so no place to sit and hang out except for a sliver in the back of the RV.
2.  Facilities = 4/5
   Decent set of facilities. They’re a tad older, but shower-stalls have decent pressure & temperature and are kept clean. There’s a few laundry machines on-site, a dump-station, plus playground and picnic area around the campground. The nearby river has canoeing and fishing.
3. Location = 3.5/5
   Koreshan is a decent stop-over location going South. There’s interest with the on-site historical site, and you’re relatively close to Estero Bay and the associated beach towns, plus a medium drive to Fort Myers and Sanibel. You’re not on the beach, but it’s not too bad a spot considering.
4. Pet Friendliness = 4/5
   The park is open to pets, but some of the sites are a tad tight for “hanging out”. There is a small nature trail where you can walk doggie on the campground, but no larger hiking areas. There is a decent off-leash dog-beach in Bonita Springs ~ 13 miles away.

Overall Rating = 3.75
BONUS ALERT = Visit the historic Koreshan Unity Settlement!

Summary: The main interest at Koreshan is the historical Koreshan Settlement which is on-site and I do think it’s worth the stop to have a look. The Koreshanites believed the entire universe existed in a hollow sphere and built an elaborate colony in Estero led by their charismatic leader, Dr. Teed where they researched their beliefs and educated their followers. All the original buildings are preserved and it’s a fascinating little visit. Other than that the campground is nice but only so-so. Sites are a tad close for our liking and some are rather small, although access is decent everywhere. There are good facilities and a nice, little nature-trail. There’s also a river on-site which lends itself to fishing and canoeing. This place doesn’t really have enough of a draw for us to come back, but we enjoyed the stay and historic visit and would recommend it as a one-time stop-over for others.

 Extra Info:  Verizon aircard and AT&T both workes. Sites are reservable $26/night with 30AMP & water. On-site dump station. Laundry.

Our site (#6). A fit, but no space for much else.

Another view of the sites (#10 and #11)

View of one of the wider sites (#4)

View down main campground loop (our car on left)

One of the gorgeous bridges at the Koreshan Settlement