Kendra L

Home Base: 
Boise, ID
Type of RV: 
35' Fifth Wheel Toy Hauler
4 Reviews
30 Photos
1 State Visited

Recent Reviews

Ponderosa State Park

5
May 2014

Beautiful and well maintained

We visited for opening weekend, Memorial weekend 2014. Even though all sites were full, we felt we had plenty of space between us and the neighbors. Reservations are a must for most weekend.

Electric hook up worked perfectly. Water was flowing, but we didn't connect it to the RV as we didn't need to. The picnic area was flat and marked off with timbers. It was a large square size with plenty of room for the picnic table, an additional folding table, at least 6 - 8 camp chairs and an additional charcoal grill. There was also room for the dog bed and a kid play area.

The RV pad was gravel at our site (110). Some are dirt. Be sure to check the website for info. Our site was fairly level. The low hanging branches were trimmed so we didn't have trouble backing in our 35' 5th wheel.

The public bath house was cleaned and stocked, but I would expect that on opening weekend.

There were activities in the activity center for both kids (making a bird nest from local materials) and adults (talks on endangered birds). The hiking trails were well marked and maintained. The view from the top lookout was amazing. Highly recommend to either hike or drive to the overlook.

Boat ramps were opened and accessible. Small sandy beach access for kids. Other small sandy beach access for pups.

Awesome family park. Many kids, dogs, seniors and families. Good for hiking, mountain biking, nature walks, fishing, boating and relaxing.

Date of Stay:
 May, 2014
Rate Paid:
 $25.00

Black Rock (Boise National Forest)

5
May 2014

Beautiful and quiet, but remote and challenging to get to

Our family enjoyed a weekend tent camping at this beautiful campground. The sites are spacious for tents. Each has a picnic table and fire ring, but the grate at our site was not adjustable so it was hard to grill burgers. We were able to create enough flame to boil water, but found that any grilling or cooking of eggs, etc was best done on the camp stove due to the distance of the grate from the flame.

The vault toilets were well stocked and clean. The water was clear and cold and tasted great. There is a trash service and bear proof trash cans.

The campground is nestled in a grove of trees adjacent to the North Fork of the Boise River at approx 4,000 feet elevation. The ponderosa pines keep you cool during the day.

There is a beautiful meadow (but on a steep incline) across the road. We did some great hiking and wildlife viewing from there. On the drive in, we passed many beaver dams and actually saw several beavers as well. Many were "working" and were fascinating to watch.

While we could see fish in the river, we were unsuccessful in catching any. The kids had fun wading in and getting wet in the cold river. We enjoyed waving to the many rafters and canoers who were going down the river.

I would not recommend this campground for any size of a RV other than a pop up or camper top. The road from Rt 21 is not paved, very steep and full of switch back turns. Our truck made it fine, but I'm not sure anything we were pulling would have made those sharp turns. I'm also not sure how well a small car with less horsepower would do. Some of the ruts in the road were quite large due to recent rain washing away portions of the road. However, if you can deal with a bumpy ride, it is well worth it. The ride itself is beautiful as you have alternating views of snow capped mountains, meadows and streams. Once you arrive at the campground you truly feel like you are in the middle of the forest.

We plan to return again to tent camp, even though we own an RV now. We highly recommend it!

Date of Stay:
 May, 2013
Rate Paid:
 $15.00

Mountain View Campground (Boise National Forest)

5
May 2014

Quiet, secluded, beautiful camping

Mountain View is along Rt 21 in Lowman on the South Fork of the Payette River. It has 14 sites, all of which have a picnic table and fire ring with an adjustable grill. The camp sites are all shaded with tall Ponderosa Pines and are very secluded. There are two outhouses which were clean and stocked. Trash service and hand pump water was available as well. Pets are allowed, on leash. As common in Boise National Forest, there are no RV hookups.

We were driving a 35' 5th-wheel and found it quite tricky to maneuver through the camp. There were only 2 sites that would work for us, and luckily 1 of those sites was open. We chose site number 14 and the only reason we could fit into it was because site 13 was empty so we had enough room to make the curve, pull straight into site 13 and then back all the way into site 14. The site was very level and at the end of the campground was very secluded. As we were camping off season, we could not make a reservation so were lucky that we found a spot to fit us. The other spot that would work is site 8. It had a travel trailer already parked in it. That site is right along the water and while not as secluded as site 14, is still beautiful.

We did try our hand at fishing, but the water was moving so quickly it made for quite the challenge. Without fly rods, we just kept casting and getting our lures caught in the bushes along the bank. A more experienced fisher person would have better luck for sure.

Our family enjoyed the quiet wilderness, star gazing, fishing and playing along side the river and also taking the short drive to Kirkham Hot Springs. (Check out the review for Kirkham Campground to get info on the Hot Springs. Highly recommend the 3 mile drive up Rt 21 to Kirkham.)

This campground is one we will frequent (with a reservation) many more times.

Date of Stay:
 May, 2014
Rate Paid:
 $15.00

Kirkham Campground (Boise National Forest)

4
May 2014

Hot Springs Awesome ... Camping not secluded

While on a recent camping trip to nearby Mountain View, we stopped in at Kirkham to go to the hot springs. From 21 st, you cross a one lane bridge over the Payette River to get to Kirkham. There is a day use fee of $5 (season begins this year on May 9th and is free during the off season). You must drive through the campground in order to get to the day use parking lot.

Kirkham is located off of Rt 21 in Lowman, Idaho and is one of many natural hot springs in the area. This is one of the biggest, though and there is no sulfur smell. After parking in the day use parking lot, there is a short, but steep climb down to the hot springs. I highly recommend wearing water shoes to both traverse the rocky climb down and also for traction on the hot springs itself. Many of the rocks are covered with algea (both green and orange in color) and can be quite slippery. Take care when climbing in and around the various pools and water falls. As the hot springs is adjacent to the South Fork of the Payette River, you can cool off in icy (but fast moving) water if you get too hot in the springs. And there are a variety of temperatures in the many hot springs pools to choose from. It was a very enjoyable afternoon which I highly recommend.

As for the campground, it is basically a parking lot. There are grassy areas, picnic tables and fire rings adjacent to the parking lot. The parking lot is in a horseshoe shape, and the tent areas are both in the outer and inner portion of the horseshoe. There are no trees and very little privacy. There is a vault toilet, but I didn't use it so I can't verify it's cleanliness.

This campground is best designed for tents or very small pop up trailers. There is no space for an RV. The sign says pets must be leashed but the area is quite dangerous for pets due to the steep incline down to the hot springs, the hot water itself and the closeness to both Rt 21 and the Payette River. I would caution against bringing only the very well trained dogs.

Date of Stay:
 May, 2014
Rate Paid:
 $15.00

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