thefotoman

This is the first campground I've been to in years where the site was raked for our arrival. That tells you all you need to know about the commitment to maintenance here, and that same level of detail is seen in the public restrooms as well. This is a good location from which to explore Portland and Portland Head Light. There are some great little lobster shacks nearby - Ken's and Bayleys. Good wifi offsets a weak cell signal. They rent canoes and kayaks here.

As others have described, this is a small, picturesque park with quality gravel sites, most of which are right on the water. There is no cell service at the campground, at least not with AT&T. However, if you drive about a mile and a half up to an observation point there is good signal and an overlook of the lake with benches and a trail.

Despite the fact that they give you written materials in arrival, this is the first cg I’ve ever been to that had a gate that was seemingly locked after hours where there were no instructions. They claim they tell you when you check in, but the office is only open between 10 AM and 4 PM. We got there at 4:20 PM

This led to our leaving to meet friends and arriving back after closure to a seemingly locked gate. I had to bother the camp host after 10 ( fortunately his lights were in and he was up). He explained that although the gate looks locked, you can jiggle it and open it.

Next day I urged the vista employee who was running the shop to include this in her written materials, and she said it was a good idea, but whether she does it or not remains to be seen.

Just know that although the gate looks locked when you come back after hours, you can play with it and open the gate.

Putting that aside, this is one of the most beautiful campsites we’ve ever had and I’d be delighted to come back here again. Restaurants in Elizabethton are not very good, but Johnson City is not far away.

The best thing that one can say about this place is the location. It is next to a perfectly acceptable restaurant called the Circle D, although our favorite place to eat in Escalante was Escalante outfitters, which was a curious combination of a high end outdoor store and superb pizza.

The Wi-Fi here was terrible. The sites are very close together and not level. The laundry room was expensive, and is apparently used by outsiders, although they have very large commercial units.

Keys are required for the restrooms/showers, and they weren’t given to us at check-in.

This is relatively small and compact park. One consequence of that is that there isn’t room to park the tow vehicle at the site. You have to find an empty spot around the perimeter of the park, which in our case was 20 feet from our camper, but the parking spot was not associated with the campsite, so we might have had to park anywhere.

This is a conveniently located commercial campground perfect for exploring the many things to do in the Frankfurt and Lexington areas.

We had a spot on the bank of a river which is always delightful. The restrooms are extraordinary for a private or public campground. There is a pool and playground, if you’re into that. Laundry facilities are here.

The only thing that is preventing me from giving Elkhorn five stars is how crowded this place is. Although our particular site was fine, I’m giving four stars because of the overall crowded conditions. If there was a separate category for density I would give it two stars. I would estimate 12-15 feet between the sides of campers, with no separating features than a picnic table.

My advice is to try to get a perimeter spot, particularly on the water and on the curve.

The Wi-Fi is poor, but that’s typical and the bleeding edge for improvement in almost all campgrounds that offer it.

I needed a site with electric on the route I’m traveling for one night where I could stay connected and have water, sewer and electric to try to re-calibrate my airstream tank monitoring system.

This place fit the bill, even if the recalibration failed. Throw in the fact that there is a rails to trails trail immediately adjacent to the campground that you can walk to from your campsite.

There are a fair number of trees.

The couple that runs it is very friendly and accommodating. The sites are dirt. Weak WiFi but three bars with att.

I don’t think it’s anyone’s idea of a gorgeous campground, but it fit my needs perfectly and may fit yours.

I write this review both to reinforce that the observations of prior reviewers as to this campground are all still valid, but moreover to emphasize the proximity of this urban Campground to several extremely attractive natural and cultural attractions in the area. The Wakodahatchee Wetlands wildlife preserve (22 min), which boast a wide array of bird life during winter, the Morikami Japanese gardens and Norton Art Gallery are all close. Add the Kravis Performing arts center and numerous other cultural and nature sites, all of which - along with stores of every line, are easily accessible from this very clean, but not particularly attractive, densely laid out Campground. There are very few trees and no picnic tables. Management is still friendly. The place is still clean. Also consider John prince park, which was booked. Train went by two times a night. No horns.

Let's start with the good: we wanted to park our rig at a campground close to an Amtrack station and spend the weekend in NYC with our daughter. To that end we located this campground, which was only a 30 minute/$35 cab ride from the train station in Hudson (Colleen - highly recommended! 518-470-2085). The 2-hour ride to Penn Station was beautiful. Bonnie at the desk was very friendly and offered unprompted to give us a nice discount if we moved to a site with no water just for the period while we were gone. It is one of the few campgrounds in the area that is open all year, and there is a nice farm stand nearby, as well as a restaurant with lots of local beer we didn't get to try.

And now the bad: In 72 days on the road this was the worst-maintained facility we have encountered, by far. We left a bag of garbage in an already-overflowing waste receptacle on the Friday morning we left and it, along with everything else in the trash basket, were still there on Monday! The bathroom floors in two different bathrooms were filthy, and the toilet seat in one was broken. The general demeanor of the place is reflective of folks who are living there full time, with big propane tanks and lots of peripheral stuff scattered around their sites.

If we do this again I'll be looking for another alternative, but if I can't find one I'll swallow hard and stay here again, just because I'm not really staying there.

I agree with the prior reviewer’s comments, which are still accurate in June 2019. Well shaded woodsy spot. Very clean public camp bathroom. Wish we could have stayed longer but perfect for visiting family in Johnson City.

No wifi is a negative.

Just what I want in a stopover location: a large, wide, long, level, gravel, pull- through site with w/s/e for about $40, just off the main route. Very clean. Helpful staff.

As others have noted, this campground is very near Santa Fe, with a 20 minute drive to the central plaza. Art installations are located throughout the grounds, a first for me and a very nice touch. The clubhouse and shared facilities are very, very nice and the people are very friendly and caring. No cable TV, a surprise at this price. Got one night free for a long stay and Good Sam and still seem to be at a higher nightly fare than others.

Of hopefully short-term significance is that they are having a problem with bicycle thefts at night. The people next to us had a bike cut out of the chains they had responsibly applied, and there is a sign warning of the problem in the clubhouse, so apparently these thieves are emboldened enough to treat this place like a supermarket and shop here irregularly.

In light thereof I would not camp here if I had bicycles until management told me the problem had been solved. My wife feels she can't walk around safely at night. Hence the four stars.