mlmath79

Hard not to rate a free dump and potable water spot a “5”, but this place was insane. There were so many people trying to dump and get water it was chaotic. There were at least 5 RVs in line to dump which clogged the area when you first pull in. They have a RV fuel lane which was nice, but again, very busy and congested. Thankfully, the potable water is over a bit next to the building on the other side of the RV fuel pumps. We only needed potable water so after getting gas we had to drive all the way back around to get to the spigot since the area was congested and there was no way to backup. The spigot for the water is on the side of the building and is a good distance to the parking lot. We needed our secondary hose to reach the spigot. They have no hose at all, so you will need your own. There is a dumpster right next to the spigot that we used to dump our trash. We didn’t see a sign that said we couldn’t, so we took advantage. It is convenient, and we are thankful they have the service, but the crowd was almost too much. Wish there were other options nearby to help spread out the load.

This park is now called Eagles RV Campground. We stayed here for a quick overnight in late October 2018 while traveling south. Good, little park for an overnight. Very quiet and the owner was nice on check-in. With a Good Sam discount, it was only $27 for full hook-up which we were happy about. I’m not sure there is enough to do in the area to warrant a long-term stay, but it was great for the night. Easy access to the park from I-95. Decent cell signal as well. We didn’t have to level and could have stayed hooked-up if we wanted. We would stay here again if ever back in the area.

This was a nice stopover. We stayed two nights in mid-April 2018. We paid $20/night with the National Park pass. If you have the senior pass it is $10/night. No issues finding the campground and the road in was paved. There were only a few spots that would fit our rig (30’), but we didn’t have any trouble getting one. Most of the spots were a bit smaller, but there were still several to fit bigger rigs than ours. It is a self-pay system, but the rangers (or camp hosts) keep up with the campers. We did not go to the dump, but it is not at the campsite. It is at the ranger station. They did have potable water at the campsite and was in the closet next to the bathrooms. It did have a spigot so you could fill with a hose. The area is beautiful. Depending on your spot, you will have a nice view of the canyon and the Colorado River. I think we were in spot 43 and we had a great view. Internet access for AT&T was decent. One issue was we had serious trouble leveling for some reason. The spot was gravel and every time we tried to pull back on the levels, they would slip right out. We even had no-slip pads under them. We ended up switching to our block levels and they worked fine. We did notice some of the other spots were not very level either. The weather did not cooperate too much while we were there, so we ended up not being able to explore as much as we would have liked. Overall, it was a decent stay and we would camp here again despite the cost.

Stayed here for Labor Day weekend 2018. We had other plans for Labor Day that fell through last minute, so we were scrambling to find a spot. When I called they had no spots, but about an hour later the lady called me back and said someone had just cancelled so we could have that spot. Great customer service!!! We were working on another place, but it didn’t work out so called her the next day and booked. We went with a water site with water and electricity. It was a nice spot and we were able to get in easily. Check-in process was easy, and staff was friendly. They do have a dump station on site which is always helpful. The weather was horrible, and it rained the entire weekend. Our campsite became a lake. I’m almost glad that it rained because there were so many people and we were right by the water, so I can see where it would get annoying with people. Overall it was a decent place to stay and we would likely stay again. I would probably not do a water spot unless we were going to launch our kayak. Seemed a little overpriced, but if you had a boat it would be a great place.

The roads and campsites are a bit narrow since this was built long ago before big rigs, but we didn’t have any trouble navigating with our 30’ travel trailer. The campsites are relatively level and have beautiful trees and scenery. There’s a good bit of distance between you and your neighbor which is always nice. The campsites have electricity and water and there is a dump station on-site. We only stayed a few days in January 2019 to visit some friends in the Gainesville area, but would love to come back to explore the area more. Easy access to the park and to Gainesville. We had good internet service for AT&T and Verizon. From the park, you can see the Santa Fe River flow below the ground to the Santa Fe sink. Overall, it was a very nice state park and we will definitely stay again.

We stayed here 10 nights in late September 2018. The campsite is divided in two sections. One is for reservations only with no walk-ins allowed and the other is walk-ins welcome, but you can also reserve. Reservations for the area with walk-ins welcome must be reserved seven days in advance; while the other sites can be reserved the day prior to arrival. They charge a $12 reservation fee which is ridiculous in my opinion. If you need to make a change to a reservation, make sure you call instead of going on-line so you can avoid a second reservation charge. We were not sure how busy the campground would be so reserved a site. For the time of year, a reservation was not necessary, but I can see where it would be busy during the summer. It filled up a bit more on the weekend too. All the campsites are water and electric and have a fire ring. There is a dump station on-site as well. The campground is about 30 mins to Milwaukee. Easy access to the city without all the noise. Even when the campground filled up on the weekend, it was very quiet and peaceful. We walked the park with our dogs several times and it was very quiet and nice. The sites are spacious and could fit any size rig. The sites were fairly level as well. We were able to get 2-3 bars 4G LTE on our AT&T hotspot while Verizon was 5 bars 4G LTE. They have showers, bathrooms and a playground. There is no check-in process when you have a reservation. You find your spot and setup. Overall it was a nice place to stay and the cost was reasonable. We would stay here again.

We stayed here for a week in March 2019. We were on #230 on the Mountain View Loop which is water/electric only. Keep in mind, all the sites on the even numbered side in that loop had hookups on the opposite side. Your options are either cross your hoses below your RV or have your door face the road. I think this is the only loop like that. Because there was no separator, you did feel like you were out in the road a bit while camping. The full-hookup sites had an area between the RV and the road to prevent this issue. I wouldn’t stay on that side of the loop again. The leveling was crazy too on that site (and sites nearby). Our tongue jack was out about as far as she can go, but we managed. The park itself is nice and quiet. We didn’t spend a ton of time exploring because we mainly used it as a stopping ground to explore Fredericksburg and the surrounding state parks. It’s about 45 mins to Fredericksburg and the RV parks there are much more expensive. The check-in office is on the opposite side of the street as Mountain View Loop and Deer Field Loop. You go over there to check-in and then come back. Not a big deal though. We did not have good cell phone service, but with the booster it was usable for the hotspot. The sites were a good distance apart from each other and you didn’t feel like you were on top of your neighbor. They also have a dump station. Overall, we would stay here again, but I would choose a spot on the other side of Mountain View Loop or pick a full hook-up site.

We stayed here for two weeks in the end of March, beginning of April 2019 in spot #18. It is $14 per night unless you have a senior or Access (disability) National Park pass, then it is $7 per night. There is an entry fee to the park as well, but we have the annual park pass. Absolutely worth either price. You are right by the beach! No hookups, but they have fresh water and a dump before entering the campground. It is nice because there are two dumps and two fresh water stations. We planned to stay a night or two and then camp on the beach for free, but after seeing the crowds at the beach and the tide, we decided to stay here the whole time instead. I’m glad we did. The weather didn’t cooperate most days, but we had several days of gorgeous sun. It was constantly breezy which kept the bugs away but made it a bit too chilly for hanging out on the beach all day. The campground filled up most days but was quiet and relaxing. Everyone adhered to the quiet hours and was considerate. We have a solar setup and any site would be perfect for it. No trees to block the sun. Despite the cloudy days, we had no trouble with no generator backup. There is no cell reception at all with AT&T. None. However, we have a WeBoost cell booster and we were able to get enough for me to work remotely. There were a few times it crapped out, but for the most part it worked well, especially considering there was none without it. We arrived around 1pm and didn’t have any trouble finding a spot on the beach side. IMO, the beach side on the right (as you come in) is better. The spots are angled and when you open your door, you can see the beach and ocean easily. Here is the process for getting a spot. If you have arrived after check-out at noon, find an empty spot and claim it. There are occupied signs at campground host site (to the left of the registration area) or put out chairs or something to show it is occupied. You have one hour after claiming the site to pay. Since you have a spot claimed, you can go fill your tanks if necessary or just park your rig. Within an hour, go back and pay at the self-registration area. You will see the self-registration area immediately to the left when you arrive at the campground. It is cash or check, and they have an area you can write your credit card information if you want to do that. If you arrive before noon, you can pick an empty spot with no occupied sign or evidence it is occupied and follow the same process. You can also review the board to see if anyone in a spot is set to leave that day. The board is to the right of the self-registration area. It has slots for each camping site. The papers in the slots are filled out by campers as part of the registration process and it shows when they are leaving. I believe the camp host removes the papers in the morning for people who are leaving that day. If there is no paper in the slot, the site (in theory) is available once the person currently occupying it leaves. If you see a spot like that, I would recommend talking to the current occupants and confirming they are leaving that day. If they are leaving, I would recommend registering and paying for the site immediately. That will prevent other people from claiming it since your paper will show evidence the spot is taken. Then you can setup as soon as the other person leaves. The stay limit is 14 days. There are several access points to the beach, and you can be there in about 100 feet depending on site location. There are picnic tables at the campground and at the beach. There are showers, restrooms, and spigots for sand removal. Dogs are allowed at the campground and on the beach. As always, they must be leased and picked up after. Corpus Christi is about 45 minutes away so I would recommend bringing anything you may need with you, but in a pinch, you can go there for shopping. There are gas stations and a few stores on the island, but nothing close to the campground. The constant breeze helped when the temperatures increased in the late afternoon. It was a perfect time to be there temperature-wise with no hook-ups. There was some rain and it was humid some of the days, but overall, we loved our stay and will definitely be back.

This campground is in the Everglades National Park but is managed by a third-party. That was good for us because we were able to stay here during the government shutdown. We stayed for 8 nights at the beginning of January 2019.

First, the website shows that sites are first-come, first-serve except for a limited number of sites that can be reserved. I called and was told reservations were not accepted so we took our chances on getting a spot. When we arrived, the agent stated that there were only 3 spots available for the 3 nights we were going to originally stay (we weren’t sure about connectivity). Needless to say, that was incorrect, there were tons of spots available for the timeframe we were there. Anyway, we also found out that they do take reservations somewhere on-line, but I couldn’t find the website for it. We stayed three nights in spot #5. It was a good spot, but our solar was struggling because it was in shade most of the afternoon. We decided to stay a few extra days to explore more. Connectivity was not an issue – Verizon has 3-4 bars without booster. AT&T has no service though. With our booster, we were able to get about 1-2 bars of AT&T and thankfully one of our phones as Wi-Fi call capability, so we were able to make and receive calls. Keep that in mind if you are AT&T only. The campground Flamingo about 40 miles from this campground does have AT&T connectivity, but we didn’t explore the campground to see how it compared.

When we decided to stay longer, we were told we had to move because someone reserved spot #5. That was fine because we wanted to move spots for better solar anyway. The agent said she couldn’t look up which spots were available for the timeframe we wanted, but we could drive around and find a few spots we wanted and then she could look it up. That seemed weird, but we did that. We found that spot #66 had great access to solar in the mid-late afternoon so chose it. Thankfully that spot was available. There was some confusion about whether we could reserve it or not. Each person we spoke to said something different, but after many tries, it ended up working out and we were able to stay longer.

We stayed another 5 nights at our new spot #66. Solar was much better there, and we had a nice view of the lake. Both spots we were on were level and it seemed most in the park were level. The road coming in is paved so no issues with accessibility. Since the campground is in the park, you do have to pay the entrance fee, but we have the national park pass. Of course, because of the shutdown there was no one at the gate anyway.

We didn’t inspect the bathrooms or shower houses, but the park was clean and well-maintained. They have a camp host on-site and we did not see any issues that were seen in other parks because of the shutdown. For some reason, the dumpsters were not emptied until our last day there so some people had put their trash next to the dumpsters, but it was otherwise clean. Very quiet and peaceful as well.

The campground has a lot of slash pine trees which give some shade, but still allows some solar. There were not a ton of good spots for solar IMO (at least in the winter), but anything by the lake would be good. There are no hookups at this site, but they do have potable water and a dump station near the entrance to the campground.

Tons of things to do near this campground. There are trails and of course exploring the Everglades. Homestead/Florida City is about a 20 min drive and you can get groceries, gas and whatever you need there. Robert is Here is a nice fruit stand in Florida City you may want to check out. Worth a trip to the Flamingo visitor center to see crocodiles and manatees. I would also recommend the Royal Palm visitor center and the anhinga trail.

Overall, despite the confusion and frustration over the reservations, it was a nice place and we would stay again. It is closed in the summer months which makes sense, it would be way too hot, and mosquito infested for the summer. Mosquitos were tolerable when we were there, but you need bug spray.

Sites are a bit close together and oddly shaped. However, the views are awesome! Definitely worth it to get a water view site. Wished it had sewer hookups but they do have a dump station on-site. We would come back if in the area again.