While this campground is nestled in the PA hills, about half of the sites are level or can be leveled. From what we saw, about 50% of the sites are too steep for us to even think about leveling. Water is at faucets scattered throughout the campground. There are 4 loops; we stayed in Loop D, which is the one with the most open areas. The rest are heavily forested. Not all campsites have electricity.
The campground opens the 2nd Friday in April and closes November 1. There is a huge mountain bike/hiking area across the lake. There is 19 miles of additional hiking trails, disc golf, a swimming pool and 'sprayground' (swimming in the lake is prohibited), and boat rental (pontoon boats, motorboats, canoes, kayaks and paddleboats) during the boat season (Memorial Day to Labor Day).
While this park is huge, only 30 sites (Loop A) have 30 amp electricity. The remaining 248 are nestled among large trees, which may make getting into some of them a bit dicey for a long RV. That said, the sites are generally pretty level (important to us) and quite large. The sites are more likely to be level than any other parks we have been in in this mountainous area. We were there in October, so the roads and the site pads were covered with leaves; obviously, the non-electric sites aren't used very often that time of the year. We were in Loop F, which has 30 sites and there were 4 other sites taken. All the Loop A sites had been scarfed up long before we arrived at 5 PM.
There are 9 camping loops, including 5 pet friendly loops. Each campsite consists of a stone dust pad (we thought of it as our threshold) and a gravel driveway. Roads are blacktop. There is a picnic table and fire ring at each site. There is a resort lodge and casino, golf course and lots of trails. While there isn't a pool, there is a beach and swimming in the lake.
Typical resort KOA with lots to do for families. Paved roads, gravel sites, no privacy, store, laundry, showers etc. off the beaten track so no road noise. Nice people.
This is the first KOA that we have stayed in that wasn't within earshot of a highway. It is really quiet, along the Brandywine River, in easy reach of Winterthur, Longwood Gardens, Brandywine River Museum and other attractions. While o
In hill country, the sites are all pretty level. Paved roads but gravel/grass sites. Lots of things at the campground -- pool, mini-golf, game room, bikes etc. Very nice shower and bathrooms.
If you are coming here on a weekend, be sure to call ahead. It is mainly a very tidy long-term park. Campsites are located in a manufactured home community right in town. Everything, including the campsites, is paved and well lighted. Each site provides water, electricity, sewer and a picnic table. No open fires allowed. Outdoor cooking must be on a grill.
Only cash and personal checks are accepted. Very good wifi. Coin laundromat on site.
Good Sam park.
We came on Sunday without calling ahead and they were kind enough to come and set us up in a site.
You can't see I70 but you sure can hear it!! We won't be staying here again. If the highway noise doesn't bother you, the park is very nice. Paved and gravel roads; gravel sites. Typical KOA things to do -- sad mini golf course, closed pool, locked recreation hall. There is a beautiful, new washroom with 3 shower in the center -- that is 3 for men and 3 for women in a camp that has more than 300 campsites and more than 20 cabins, most without bathrooms! You also get slow internet. But lots of trees. We paid $39 for a site with only electric.
We have been to this park a couple of times. The park has wonderful dunes. It is a short hike from the campground to the dunes, if you have parked in the right place. The campground has LOTS of trees and flat sites. Sites are grass/dirt, which means you have a few more options about how to park. Each site has a fire ring and table and a marking on the road to indicate the edge of the site. There is water at the dump station and electricity at the site.
As with all the MI parks we have been to, the bath house is clean and modern with separate shower rooms. We'll go back.
We chose a site on the lower campground, which has a view of the lake. The upper campground is surrounded by trees and sits on a rise above the lake. Campsite are ample grass/dirt sites. I noticed that the upper cg sites are more grassy, probably because they aren't used as much. The bathrooms are super clean and modern, with separate shower rooms. I think MI has replaced most of the bath houses in their campgrounds, because we find these modern, tiled, beautiful bath houses in every MI cg we go to.
The cg has trees, but no privacy between sites. It is pretty wide open. There are long sites in the center, shorter sites on the sides. The park has LOTS of trails, including mountain bike trails and walking trails. MI state campgrounds require a day pass (currently $9 for out-of-state), but we had purchased an annual pass ($31 for out-of-state), so the daily rate reflects the cost without the pass.
We came back here after 2 years and found the park even more special after having been in lots of parks since. The beach was clean, the paved sites make it easy to set up, each site has lots of green around it, and having Lake Erie right at your doorstep is very special. We biked into Monroe and stopped at the River Raisin Battlefield, a National Park Service site, the Labor Museum, and the Monroe History Museum (who knew that Custer came from Monroe, MI?). If you don't like to bike, there is a lovely walk around the wetlands, an area that was full of egrets when we were there.
It is about 40 miles south of Detroit's center, so we took advantage of the Detroit museums, too. While it is easy to access from the interstate, you don't hear traffic. Great park!
While this isn't in what would be considered a Chicago suburb, you can access the Metra train into downtown Chicago from Fox Lake, just a few miles south of the park. The park office even has a train schedule!
There are 5 campgrounds: Honeysuckle Hollow and Fox Den are electrified ($25 a night) and Prairie View and Turner Lake South are not ($12 a night). Honeysuckle is the oldest and largest and sites are very open; lots of trees. Fox Den has considerably fewer sites, but the sites are larger. The area was probably once prairie because the trees there are pretty small, so there isn't much shade. Prairie View is my favorite; the sites are very ample and very private (most are surrounded by trees and shrubs on 3 sides). It shares a new restroom with Fox Den and Turner Lake South. Each campground has a few sites that are walk-in (Fox Den has 1); the rest are reservable on Reserve America. Mud Lake East is all walk-in, no electric, and has never been open any time we have been there.
The campground is located on small Turner Lake, but the whole chain of lakes is nearby. The boat launch in the park will get you into the chain of lakes. There is a long, multi-tentacled bike trail and a horse trail. Kayaks, pedal boats and canoes are available for rental at the concession stand. Altogether a very nice park.
