Todd & Amber

There are a few RV parks in the area charging between $30-$50 per night. About 4 miles up the road from the turnoff to Bryce National Park, John’s Valley boon docking site was easy to find and access. It’s close to the National Park and is both quiet and private.

As you head east on John’s Valley Road, turn left just after the third(? - maybe second ?) cattle grate onto a dirt road. A few hundred feet in, the road opens up with room for 2-5 rigs, depending on size. There is a cattle pen and fence leading to grazing lands; camp on the roadside of the fence. Someone has also left a fire pit behind for use.

The views are spectacular to the west and lightly forested to the east. The main road is just viewable from the site, but not highly traveled. We heard and saw coyotes, so watch your children and small animals. Scorpions, rattle snakes and bears are also indigenous to the area - just be mindful.

No services available. Dirt fairly hard-packed, though we did sink a little on one side potentially due to previous heavy rains and snow during our visit.

T-Mobile cell service and internet was spotty (perhaps due to heavy cloud cover), but had H+ service when available. No problems with Verizon Jet Pack. There is an antenna nearby, so a booster would probably help significantly.

The easiest way to find Rose Hill RV Park is to head toward the Silver City Memory Lane Cemetery. The RV park shares a border with the cemetery. They’ve employed good use of trees, bushes, and decorative western-style wood walls to provide decent privacy between sites, which are gravel based and fairly flat.

The staff was very friendly, and though we’ve read reviews on other sites that said this place is not good for children, we disagree. Yes, there is a lot of old farm equipment that isn’t intended for playing, but we didn’t have any trouble keeping our toddler away from these items.

There are a few miles of walking trails at the south edge of the park that we explored a little. The laundry room was clean, well-maintained and heated. Had some problems with one dryer being full of quarters, thus not available for use, and the next day another dryer’s drum stopped spinning in the middle of our cycle. There are only four washers and four dryers. Cost was $1.25 to wash and $1.00 for 40 mins of drying.

The “dog run” is really just two poles with a wire strung in-between, not an enclosed space for them to run off the leash.

It’s a good location next to the historic cemetery where Billy the Kid’s mother is buried, walking distance from the bowling alley, and only a few miles from downtown Silver City. If we were passing through this area in the future, we would stay here again.

It is easy to miss the turn for Indian Bread Rocks from the I-10 Business Route (we did.. twice). Turn at the sign indicating the direction for Ft. Bowie. Keep your eyes peeled for the turn onto the dirt road named Happy Camp Canyon (it is marked with a street sign). The dirt road to the Indian Bread Rocks recreation area is decent. Watch out for meandering cows. Though there are maybe 3 or 4 sites along the road up to about a mile in, longer rigs will want to stay in one of the 2-4 spaces near the entrance (which is marked with a sign, picnic area and vault toilet). The number of spaces vary depending on the size of the vehicle and how close you’d like to be to your neighbor. Lots of cow pies and desert stickers at the spots near the entrance. Hiking trails and cow trails lead to good rock scrambling, native mortar holes, petroglyphs and some springs. Beautiful star gazing in this area.

Nearest dump station, water fill and propane is west on the 10 in Wilcox. The Magic Circle RV Park’s set-up was much preferred over that of the TA Travel Center. Reasonable fee at both, less of a hassle at the RV park. No potable water at the Travel Center.

We’ve stayed at this campground twice: once in fall 2014 and again in spring 2015. The first time we visited we were on our way to Arches and Canyonlands National Parks and it was Halloween. The trees were gold and red and yellow and we mostly had the entire campground to ourselves. This spring, we found that the campground wasn’t quite as charming as in the fall and every site was reserved, but many did not have anyone arriving for another day or two so we could stay overnight. [NOTE: in late October 2014 one shower house was open as was the dump station; however, you may want to check to make sure they are in operation if you are passing through during the winter.)

Both times we were able to drive around and choose our site, then return to the kiosk and pay. Full hook-ups are unavailable; however, all but a handful of sites have electricity. Don’t be fooled by the $20 per night charge as there are literally only a few sites lacking electricity; be prepared to pay $28 per night. [NOTE: If you are an Active Advantage member, prices are discounted.]

Restrooms are provided and showers are free with hot, high pressure water. Each shower is private and has a small bench and two hooks. In the main campground, there were two bathhouses and there might be a third in the group campground. A decent dump station is also available. Potable water is difficult to locate as nearly all the spicket are lacking threads. If either of the two camp host sites are unoccupied, you can find a threaded spicket there, or in the group campground located diagonally across from the dump station.

Sites vary in length, but they are all average in width with good spacing between you and your neighbor. Pull throughs, back-ins and half-moon slabs are yours for the choosing. Picnic tables and a fire pit are provided at every site. Some have extensive tree cover, and others none at all, with the majority being somewhere in-between. With a 31ft trailer and 23ft truck, we barely fit in some of the back-in spots and wouldn’t fit at all in many of the others.

This is a popular overnight stop off of I-70 regardless of the direction you’re heading. The State Park is well maintained and can be accessed from two exits on the I-70. The campground sits on a frisbee and golf course and is bordered by the river, which is also a popular launching spot for rafters. An RV park can be seen across the greens, but we liked the campground better, which other than our screaming toddler, was very quiet.

Just outside the campground is an Ace Hardware that also sells propane and there are a few gas stations to choose from in town. (If you like “Oh Henry” candy bars, stop at the Chevron on the west side of town just before getting back on the I-70.)

Cell service: we're on T-Mobile and had okay cell service and Edge internet. The Verizon Jet Pack was a rockstar with 4G LTE.

We traveled here August 30-31, 2014.

This is a nicely maintained RV park that is primarily gravel and grass. It is 300ft about sea level, and there are no clear ocean views unless you drive a little ways down the street. Though our daughter found some nice kids to play with, this park isn't really suited to entertaining young children. Patrick's Point State Park is just down the street (which is a much better spot if you can snag a reservation) with beach access and walking trails. There is a trail that is walkable from Sound of the Sea to the beach; however, it's extremely steep and we didn't not think it safe to try with a backpack carrier on. Finding the front office was tricky too, and there was no one there when we arrived in the middle of the day.

Laundry Prices: $1.00/wash, $1.50/ 30mins of drying

They accept Good Sam and AAA as discounts. We don't recall exactly how much we paid, but it was in the $40-$45 per night range with the discount.

WiFi is horrendous. Don't recall our cell service.

BEWARE: the road driving in from the freeway is windy and full of deep potholes.

As far as shopping in the area is concerned: avoid the Wal-Mart in this area at all costs and drive a little farther to the Target. If you need a hardware store, Ace is the only one in town. A quaint country grocery store is just down the street with a phenomenal selection of local beers, meats, cheeses, and four Its-It ice cream sandwich flavors; though the prices were high.

Bottomless Lakes State Park - Roswell, NM

If you are planning a trip to the Roswell area, skip the RV parks and Wal-Mart in town. Head east about 13 miles to Bottomless Lakes State Park. Comprised of multiple sink holes that are below the water table, this beautiful area offers hiking, fishing, biking, and swimming. There is a visitor’s center that does not have adequate parking for an RV, but two miles down the road is a campground at Lea Lake.

The campground has a handful of full hook-up sites for $18 per night, but must be reserved in advanced. Primitive camping for $10 is listed on the bulletin board; however, we did not see where these sites were located. The remaining sites are $14 per night and include electricity and water, plus a nicely covered picnic bench area. The sites are very spacious and an easy walk to the swimming beach.

Free showers and bathrooms are offered, though they are the misting type, so much of the shower feels cold even though the water is warm and the building is heated. You have to push a button for more water every 15 seconds, and the only bench is outside the shower stall. Todd recommends using the handicap stall for the best hot water, though the woman’s handicap stall had a broken water nozzle during our stay.

On the other side of the lake is a day-use area with picnic benches and a well-maintained playground that is shaded. There is also a trailhead for a mile-long jaunt to some of the other sink holes in the area.

A dump station is available and trash cans are strategically placed throughout the campground. Though simple, we greatly enjoyed our stay here and wished we had spent more time exploring the area.

Don't recall our cell phone service situation. Their WiFi was actually pretty decent, but I wouldn't plan to stream NetFlix.

I had a 6-month work assignment near Seattle. We expected to stay in various parks, RV resorts and boondock during our time in Washington; however, the job and Washington's summer-season did not allow for that. Instead, we ended up staying at *most* of the State Parks and RV "Resorts" in the area. We have to say, this was our overall favorite. In short, the State Parks lack hook-ups (only a problem in the heat of the summer or middle of the wet, cold winter) and have a stay limitation. The RV "resorts" are pretty much parking lots where you are literally on top of your neighbor.

VASA is a park, campground, and highly desired community picnic location. Site fees vary based on time of year and full hook-up or partial hook-up spots. With no traffic, you can make it to downtown Seattle in 20 minutes. Even during rush-hour commutes, the longest it took was just over an hour, but a regular rush-hour commute is about 45 minutes. Vasa is 25-30 minutes from Snoqualmie Falls, and an hour and a half from Tacoma and Leavenworth. The Issaquah Zoo and Sammamish State Park are only 5 minutes away, along with a natural grocery store and other amenities. Marymoor Park (with a HUGE off-leash dog park, complete with open space, woods and river access) is about 20 minute north.

The Great
- You have lake access all day long, even after the park closes to the public.
- Lots and lots of green.
- Laundry on-site.
- Dump station on site.
- Park across the street also owned by the property, and is a nice place to take the dogs and kids to run.
- The managers, Susie and Walt, really care about the park and the safety of everyone there.
- Full access to the playground for kids all the time.
- Volleyball court and horseshoes also available.
- Had T-Mobile and AT&T Cell Service as well as Verizon Jet Pack service, but don't recall the strength.

The Good
- Hook-up sites are on gravel and mostly flat.
- The partial hook-up spots are in the grass/dirt and some are more level than others. Though we really liked these spots, some people would prefer pavement or gravel.
- Monthly rates are sometimes offered through the off-season months, but fill up quickly and are only available on a limited basis.

The Eh
- There are only 6 highly coveted full hook-up spots.
- The other (15?) or so spots only have 15/20amp (not enough to run the AC) and water.
- Dogs only allowed in the designated campground area for the safety of public guests.
- In the summer, there can be 1000-2000 people onsite for picnics, parties, and lake swimming. (Though you cannot participate in these activities, we enjoyed the hustle and bustle, though it IS loud and not for everyone.)
- Weddings are held in the building across the street and you can sometimes hear the noise.
- The street is the main through-fare for people commuting to and from Microsoft each day.
- Park is open to the public 9am-8pm everyday.
- Beware the steep hill coming down toward the campground off the highway - sharp turns and abrupt stops.

We lived here for about 4.5 months and despite the drawbacks, really, really loved it here. It's a great location if you're passing through, want to visit the Seattle area and environs, have kids, and want to experience lakefront living. As mentioned previously, there are a few other good options in the area depending on what you're looking for [Saltwater State Park (just beware the airport noise) and Lake Pleasant RV Resort in Bothell (only 55+ for weekly/monthly rates and no units more than 10 years old... nightly rates much higher but have fewer restrictions, including any age RV, dog flexibility and children... but is a much farther drive from Seattle proper).

We would absolutely stay here again.

I don't recall what we paid (but we thought it was a screaming deal for OC) or our site number, but it was right on Harbor and backed up to the hotel on the northern border of the RV park. The park is easy to find during the day, but is easy to miss the sign and the driveway at night. The entry and exits seems backwards, but worked based on how the park is laid out. Monthly tenants are in the back and the daily/weekly visitors in the front. The staff were friendly and the grounds were clean. Lots of dogs living in the monthly residents area, so some barking but lots of people out walking and being social in the evenings.

We stayed over the 4th of July specifically to visit Disneyland and watch the fireworks. Our child didn't make it to 9pm in the park, but it was no problem because the RV park has front row seats to the show; almost better than the park itself because the fireworks are shot off from the northern backlot of the park. Even over the holiday, we were able to get a parking pass for a friend who came to visit.

The downsides are that the park is cramped and not in a stellar area of Anaheim, but with so few choices in Orange County to begin with, this is a great (and seemingly safe) choice if you want to visit Disneyland. We walked (in the rain with a child in the stroller) and it was fine. If you don't want to walk, you can purchase an ART Bus pass that drops you off right at the entrance of Dland and picks you up just outside the RV park.

The other drawback is noise. Harbor is a very busy street and so is Katella. There's traffic around the clock, not to mention the 5 freeway next door. And if you don't like fireworks, don't stay here during the weekends and seasons that Disneyland puts on their show.

We never knew of this dump station before now and boy do we wish we did! It's conveniently located off the I-15 and 91 freeways right at the interchange. There are two places to dump and one RV can sit in wait if there is a line. Though the area is monitored by video 24/7, there were no attendants present: just roll in, do your business and leave.

NO POTABLE WATER; however, there is an emergency eye wash and shower, which we've never seen at another sanitation location. Will definitely come here again!

There are officially four campsites at Whitewater Draw. Parking is on a gravel surface and a metal pipe barrier loosely encloses a picnic table within the greater open space. A tent easily fits within this barrier, and a 35ft Class A, plus tow vehicle, can comfortably park within the designated site. Maximum stay is three nights. Many campers leave early in the morning, and although it fills up in the afternoon, many people are amenable to sharing a site for the night. No services available at Whitewater Draw. It was not overly busy while we were there in early March 2015.

We stayed three nights with inclement weather, and on the third night, thousands of cranes returned to the lake just before 5:00 p.m. They were not as active in the mornings, but that may have been due to the stormy weather.

Dogs are permitted and we greatly enjoyed taking a family walk each day. There are some other trails in the area that lead toward the nearby ranches. Some folks on horseback passed through on one of the days. There are coyotes in the area, so just be cautious at night.

The nearest dump station is at Double Adobe Campground and Shotgun Sports.
$4 for water fill and $8 to dump
5057 W Double Adobe Rd, Mc Neal, AZ 85617
http://www.doubleadobe.com/
Phone: (520) 364-4000

Avoid Bagby road, which was very washboard. Lee Road was much smoother.

AT&T 4G coverage may have been available, but our device is not capable.