PandA_Imagine

We stayed 3 nights the latter part of December and really enjoyed it. The hosts were great and friendly. Lots of folks there for 3+ months. There were a few families with kids. The kids had a lot of things to do at the RV park. Park has good amenities - cable TV, wifi (actually worked), daily garbage pickup, and full hookups, of course. Sold propane on the property. They offer a GoodSam 10% discount.
There is some highway noise from the Beach Express, but it's not horrible.
We will definitely be back!

We enjoy Arkabutla South Abutment, it's close to our home in Memphis and it is always clean. The sites are fairly level and there are full hookups now.

THE LAKE IS PRACTICALLY DRAINED currently due to repairs being done to the dam and gates. The Recreation.gov website says that the lake level is at winter pool level but it is well below that. There is no water within 200 yards (or more) of the normal shoreline at the campground. Just be aware.

With the lake levels so low, you probably won't have any problem getting a camp site. So, if you don't plan on doing any boating or fishing, this might be a good time to go, but we prefer campgrounds that are a little more populated and having the scenic beauty of a lake.

We will not be back until they get the dam issues figured out.

We were making our way to Montgomery, AL to visit family and I contacted one RV park on US 231 on the morning of Tuesday, Dec. 26 and the gentleman who answered the phone informed me they were closed. Not sure why, it was neither a Sunday or a holiday, but nonetheless, we needed a place for that evening in the Montgomery area, so I reached out to Jackson Lake Island. The gentleman who answered the phone was very cordial, and asked me a few questions (what type hookups, size camper, etc.). He said they had 3 sites available - two on the island and one on the ridge overlooking the island. He instructed me to call him when we arrived at the gatehouse.
We arrived and contacted the man. He asked that we fill out an envelope with our information (name, tag number, etc.) and he would meet us and take us to see the available sites. He arrived and we followed him through the gate. He showed us the site on the ridge - it was full hookups but was pretty close to campers on either side. My wife wanted to look at the sites on the island. He took us to the Island to the full hookup site that was available. The third site was on the island, but it had no sewer hookup plus another camper had come in earlier that day and taken it. We choose the site on the island, which is the site where the movie Big Fish was filled and it still had some of the buildings there from the movie set. Also, there are about 50 goats that roam free on the island also. We have two dogs, but we always keep them on a leash, so that was not going to be a problem.
We really enjoyed our stay. There is one issue that campers need to be aware regarding the sewer hookup. As I was hooking up our black/gray tank hose, I noticed that there was toilet paper remnants around the sewer connection. I wasn't sure what had happened with the previous camper, until we were dumping as we prepared to depart 3 days later. It appears the septic system that you hook to was either a septic tank that was nearly full and field lines that were plugged or maybe because it had been raining earlier in the week, the field lines was saturated - nevertheless, when dumping, the sewer line would fill and then slowly go down. In fact, I was unable to dump our gray tanks due to the sewer line not draining. When unhooking our lines from the sewer connection, sewer water backed up onto the ground for a moment. This is unsanitary and hopefully the owner will address.
Otherwise, we had a wonderful stay. The location was convenient for us to visit with family in east Montgomery and the site was very peaceful. The old movie set was neat, as well, and there were a few visitors who came during the day to walk around the movie set and take pictures of the goats.
We might stay again - I will probably talk to the owner about the sewer issue to make sure it has been addressed before we come back.
All in all, it was a very neat experience and we would recommend - just be aware of the potential sewer issue.

Campground was nice and clean. Other than the sound of the Interstate, it was quiet. You can't hear the interstate traffic inside your camper with the AC running.
Staff was very helpful and friendly over the phone. There are easy check-in arrangements if you arrive after the office closes.
Full hook ups and the WIFI is pretty good with a strong signal - at least at our site.

We really enjoyed our time at this park. Of the COE parks where we have stayed along the I-55 corridor in MS, this one is the best - well kept, well maintained and a large number of sites have a view of the lake. The camp hosts were excellent in keeping the sites clear of leaves and pine straw, reservation cards were kept up-to-date at each site and the full hookups were great.

We stayed at Chickasaw State Park - this was our second time at this park. About half of the sites are full hookups, the rest of the sites have water, elec. but no sewer.
The arrival at the campground is straightforward. No need to check-in anywhere. Your site marker has your reservation clipped to it. Presumably, if your name isn't on the site marker, you wouldn't park there.
The camp hosts are friendly and can answer any questions you might have. The hosts at this particular park rotate every few months. The road around the campground is paved and in good condition, as are the sites. All are paved and fairly level.
It is a fairly quiet campground but you do hear road noise on highway 100 if the vehicles are very loud. There isn't a whole lot of traffic on Hwy 100, so the noise isn't bad.
The lake is about a mile from the RV campground. It is small, but there are a few points of access. There are paddle boat and paddle board rentals, and horseback riding is available.
There is little TV reception and cell reception is poor, especially for AT&T service. Verizon service seems to be better.
We would go back to this campground. It is clean and sites are reasonably spaced.

We really enjoyed our stay at Crater of Diamonds State Park. Check-in was easy, you must check-in before you go to your campsite.
it appears the entire camping area has been redone. All the sites were new, level and had full hook-ups. There are also tent pads available. One area of the campground was closed due to the bathhouse being under construction.
It was very peaceful and we really enjoyed it. There are hiking trails and, of course, you can hunt for diamonds. The small downtown area of nearby Murfreesboro was quaint and had some good restaurants.

Easily made our reservation online. We stop here frequently as a "stopover" location as we travel south from Memphis toward central Alabama or the gulf coast of Alabama. The sites are practically level and we can level our camper without unhooking from our truck. The hosts are very friendly and during the winter months, it is easy to get a full hookup site.
We stayed here twice between Christmas and New Year's, as we traveled to and from Montgomery, AL.
There are a number of full-hookup sites as well as partial (water and elec.).
There are nice concrete walking trails through the woods that our dogs love to walk on. They get so excited over all the smells and sounds of nature.
Definitely recommend this COE site.

We stopped at this COE campground on our way back to Memphis from the Alabama coast and spent the night. We had originally reserved a pull-through site (#66) but there was a camper in that site that had issues and could not move so they moved us to another site (#13). This was a back-in site, but it was pretty level and worked out just fine. The ranger on duty when we arrived even paid the $2 fee for changing sites due to it not being our problem.

The sites are spaced well and are fairly level. There are concrete hiking trails close by that weave around the edge of the Tenn-Tom backwater. We really enjoyed walking around those trails. There is a lot of wildlife around (geese, cranes, deer, squirrels, raccoons, opossums, etc.).

The rangers were all very friendly and easy to work with if there was an issue. The roads are in good shape and all the sites are fairly easy to put a camper in.

We were there in late December so insects were not an issue but I can imagine in the spring, summer and early fall, they could be challenging.

NOTE: If you are using GPS, be aware that some systems might try to take you through West Point, MS and on Barton Ferry Rd. Be aware, Barton Ferry Rd does NOT cross the river so you cannot access the COE site from that road on the west side of the river. You must cross over the river on Hwy 50 from West Point and access Dewayne Hayes from there.

We would stay here again.

Easily made our reservation online. We stop here frequently as a "stopover" location as we travel south from Memphis toward central Alabama or the gulf coast of Alabama. The sites are practically level and we can level our camper without unhooking from our truck. The hosts are very friendly and during the winter months, it is easy to get a full hookup site.
We stayed here twice between Christmas and New Year's, as we traveled to and from Montgomery, AL.
There are a number of full-hookup sites as well as partial (water and elec.).
There are nice concrete walking trails through the woods that our dogs love to walk on. They get so excited over all the smells and sounds of nature.
Definitely recommend this COE site.