Travel: Bull Shoals - White River State Park

Destination:	Bull Shoals - White River State Park
Destination Type:	Outdoors
Location:	Bull Shoals, AR
My rating:	A-
Website:	Arkansas State Parks

Whether camping, hiking, geocaching, swimming, kayaking or fishing, the many outdoor opportunities are my favorite thing about Arkansas. When I go camping, it is usually in one of Arkansas' 52 state parks, with the occasional Army Corp of Engineers or local park in the mix. I have my favorites -- based on what I want to do -- but I also like to try new ones; eventually I hope to visit all of them.

During my niece and nephews' spring break, I managed to take some vacation and go camping at Bull Shoals - White River State Park. I had never been and didn't know what to expect. I knew we would camp. I knew we would trout fish. I knew we would hike. We did all of that, plus some more.

Of all of the state parks I have been to, this was the hardest one to find. First, I missed the turn into the visitor center which wasn't well marked. I quickly dismissed it and decided it was probably a country club or lodge of some sort, not part of the park. I continued driving, and soon saw some more signs for the park, which I followed. It turns out, check-in for the camping wasn't even in the visitor center -- lucky for me -- it was in a small building closer to the camping area. It also happened to be right at another turn in the road that goes down to a restaurant called Gastons. Luckily there were a couple of no-hookup tent sites available. I hadn't made reservations and didn't know if there would be space available upon arriving. I had a backup plan to take a road trip if there hand't been but as it turns out there are a lot of camp sites at the park.

Our campsite was at the very end of the campground. After we set up camp, we quickly went down to test out the fishing. We had learned at Walmart that artificial baits, treble hooks and barbed hooks were banned on portions of the river. Before fishing, we talked with park staff to make sure the game and fish weren't going to ticket us for fishing in the wrong spot. Once we were sure of where we could fish, we walked down the shore and began to wade in the water. Just deep enough to cover my feet, I stopped. It wasn't long before I had pain shooting up my entire leg from the cold water. It was only March and they were trout waters after all. I ended up fishing from the bank for half an hour without any luck before going back to camp and cooking dinner.

I think the best part of where we were camping was all of the open space. Right behind our site was a large open field where my nephew and I were able to throw the Frisbee around. He also found some other kids and threw around a football while I was (failing at) building a campfire for the night. We also found the park had a playground and basketball court. Like most of the parks I camp at, there were bathrooms with flushing toilets and showers.

Being March, the cool/cold evenings were to be expected. What we didn't expect was the lack of hot water. I think the park only had three bathrooms for the park with more than 100 campsites. There just was not enough hot water to support that many people. At least the bathrooms themselves were warm. Much warmer than the tent.

I slept well enough, despite the sirens from the dam when they would open the gates. The next morning I woke up before sunrise and cooked breakfast so we could be at the water by daylight. Of course, we still didn't catch any fish. It is a good thing I had brought enough food for dinner every night, although I had wanted to eat some trout for dinner. After giving up on fishing, we hiked one of the trails the park had to offer. It was nice, but I have been on better trails. Still, it provided our first overlook of the river -- at least that I could stop and enjoy without risking a wreck.

I know there were more trails in the general area outside of the park, but I hadn't prepared to hike elsewhere so we settled on going to the trout doc and charging our phones. It was nice to relax, read a book and look out on the river. The trout dock was also a nice place to escape the rain. I must admit there was one staff member there I didn't like a whole lot, but most of the staff were very friendly. One of them came out and talked to us for a while. Since we had all heard it was probably going to rain most of that day, I decided to take a road trip. While I was preparing for the trip and looking for geocaches, I saw a dotted line going across the lake. When I zoomed it it said "Peel Ferry" so I investigated a little further and learned that it was indeed an operating ferry. I asked the staff on the trout dock (since they were state employees) if they knew anything about it. One of them told me it was the last operating ferry in Arkansas, was indeed free and gave me directions. So my nephew and I set off for a drive, hoping to escape the rain.

It turned out to be a really beautiful day- at least most of it, where we were. On the drive to the ferry we saw a bald eagle which appeared to have caught its prey (a snake). Once on the other side, I proceeded to my planned destination, which I didn't tell my nephew was Branson, MO. There we met up with one of my friends from college and spent the day. We ate at Olive Garden before heading back to camp. Then we drove back in the storms the entire way. Instead of being cooped up in a tent, we were driving with the storm. By the time we arrived back to the park, the rain was over. We were able to lead in some lost visitors who were camping that night -- poor signs striking again. 

On our last day we walked through the visitor center, waiting for the water levels to go down. They had opened several extra gates that morning which meant the water levels were high and the river was flowing fairly quickly. Once the levels went down we were able to go kayaking. That was fun but probably not the best idea. We ended up getting in shallow water and having to wade to get back to the campground.

At first, I gave the campground a "B" but decided I would give it an A- because of its proximity to other locations, the open spaces and the friendliness of staff. I expect the bathrooms would be kept cleaner in the summer and the water itself will feel better when the temperatures are higher. Although I won't put Bull Shoals - White River on my list of favorite places, it is definitely a pretty park and worth at least one visit.

Adventures at Longpool

Adventure is never far away in Arkansas, with so many places to get outside and enjoy nature. Adventure hasn't failed to find my family during our now annual trip to Longpool Recreation Area near Dover, Ark. I wrote last year about one of my most interesting Geocaching experiences (see Ghosts of Spanish Conquistadors). On our first night camping at Longpool, we attempted a night-cache located nearby. We didn't find the cache due to a crowd of people, but we did find ourselves semi-lost in the dark (if only because we were trying not to be seen).

This year my sister didn't come with us and we planned on attempting it again. After we set up camp we decided to go swimming while it was still daylight. Rather than swim much, we walked in the water upstream to some rapids. As we came closer to the rapids, we saw a trail (or a dry creek bed) and had a pretty good idea it would lead us inland to the waterfall. If it didn't we would just turn around and go back the way we came. Sure enough, it wasn't long before we came out and intersected with the main trail at the waterfall. It was our first "hike" barefoot through the woods and around the rocks. It was interesting to think about all the indigenous people who might have lived this way in the past.

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As the light began to fade, we decided we had better get back to the water before it got too dark. We hiked down from the waterfall and began to follow the creek bed until arriving at a tree and brush in the way. "I don't think this is the way we came," I told my niece and nephew. "I don't remember crawling through all of this."

My nephew said it was the wrong trail and he saw the trail further back. So we followed him down the alternate path as the light continued getting dimmer and dimmer. Eventually the trail closed in around us and we found walking barefoot through the weeds. It wasn't long before there was no trail at all and no clear way to the water. I don't want to go running through a lot of weeds and brush with the number of snakes I have seen this year; I have no desire to be bitten. We turn around and try to find our way back to where we started from, at least we could hike out using the main trail if we had to. By this time, it had become difficult to see; of course we had arrived by water rather than land. So we end up deeper into the woods. Panic is beginning to set in. "I really don't want to spend the night out here in the dark with no shelter and no good way to start a fire."

We continued walking, searching frantically for any sign of a trail to the water or back to the waterfall. By this point we were running through the woods, stepping on thorns with our bare feet.  My niece began complaining that she could not see me; I was less than ten feet in front of her. I squatted down and said a prayer. Before long we came to another deer trail and I told my niece and nephew to stay where they were and make noise. I would go ahead on the trail to see if it went anywhere and if not, would follow their voices back to prevent us from getting separated. It was a major relieve when I came to the edge of the creek and called my niece and nephew down.

It seemed that not only was camping at Longpool becoming an annual trip, but becoming lost in the woods on the first night was too.

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Back at camp, we decided we had enough adventure for one night. Rather than going geocaching we just prepared for bed. After placing our non-refrigerated items in the car we took our showers and went to bed. It wasn't ten minutes before the commotion started outside our tents. I think I slept a total of two hours Friday night with all of the raccoons rummaging through the metal garbage cans, meant to keep wildlife out. Of course, the most annoying part was listening to them in our campsite.

About two hours after going to bed, I rolled over and said to my nephew, "I don't think we are going to have breakfast in the morning." He asked me why not. "I think the coons are eating it all." We got up and went outside to see what damage had been done; sure enough we had been robbed. The animals (I won't say it was all racoons) had taken our ham, hot dogs, mayonnaise and bacon. Of course, it wasn't until Saturday evening I found they had also tried to eat my can of bug spray.

On Friday and Saturday evenings we enjoyed watching the wildlife (although were slightly annoyed with the noise they were making and the fact they robbed us). Animals we saw:

• Mouse
• Raccoon
• Skunk
• Cat
• Deer

Review: Coordinates for Murder

Title:	Coordinates for Murder
Author:	Darren Kirby
ISBN:	1470079100
Pages:	123
Copyright:	2012
My rating:	2/5 (below average)

Geocaching is one of my favorite hobbies, not only because it takes me to new places but because it often combines many of my other hobbies like camping and hiking. I don't get to do enough of any. As with most hobbies, I usually enjoy books and/or movies about the subject. I received a gift card for Barnes & Noble at Christmas this year and ended up searching for Geocaching, just to see if there were any fiction books around on the subject. Sure enough, I found two, one of those being Coordinates for Murder by Darren Kirby.

I didn't pay attention to the rating, reviews or even information about the book, other than the synopsis, when I made the purchase. (Now that I go back and look, there is none.) The book is the story of two friends who go camping in the wilderness of northern Wisconsin. While there they attempt to gain bragging rights of being the "First-to-finds" on a new multicache. But what they find is not what they were expecting.

The narration in the book switches primarily between the two main characters. That is tolerable but unfortunately it isn't quite as predictable as in some other series such as Ender's Game in which each chapter switches narrators. Usually when the narrator does switch in this book it goes back in time and tells the same events from another character's point of view. Most books I enjoy, the concept of narration is left behind as the images of the story block it out but in Coordinates for Murder the narration stayed most of the time.

Now, I can't say the book was all bad; it did have its suspenseful moments and I did actually read the entire thing, more than I can say for some. *The following sentence may contain spoilers. Highlight the text to view.* The end of the book was even a huge surprise and out of the ordinary.

I think one of the biggest problems for me was simply the age group the book was probably intended for. I probably would have enjoyed it more when I was in elementary school. Of course, I don't think some of the content is appropriate for children that age. But then again, in the past 15 years since I was that age, American culture has changed a lot. But for parents to decide, the book does contain some bad language and some mild (compared to a lot of movies) gore.

I personally give the book a 2/5 (below average) rating. I've read worse, but I have also read much better. Have you read the book? Do you agree? Let me know in the comments below.

Under the Stars

Usually I can't remember much detail about activities that happened more than 15 years ago, but one camping trip I took while I was in elementary stands out. I probably had not been in the Boy Scouts of America long (as in having finished Cub Scouts) when our troop went camping at Wooly Hollow State Park outside of Greenbrier. The fact I remember the campground and location is amazing, but it wasn't simply the beautiful park that made the trip so memorable.

What stood out is where we slept and the environment. Not long before we were all supposed to go to bed, the scout master put his sleeping bag in the bed of his truck. When we asked why, he told us he was going to sleep outside under the stars. Some of us asked if we could too. I was one of the first to move my gear out of the tent into a tent pad. It wasn't long before all of the tents were empty and everyone was laying outside under the stars. Before we fell asleep we could hear the soft strum of the guitar from a near-by campsite and the voices of a Hispanic family singing along. It was truly a memorable experience.

I have tried to relive that experience on multiple camping trips but out of the four to five attempts, none have been successful. In fact, most were cut short because of the weather or threat of rain. The last failed attempt was this weekend at Petit Jean State Park. My friend and I were bundled up around our campfire and decided we would go ahead and sleep next to the fire a while. The campground was dark with the exception of a few fires spread around the area. We both fell sleep, but the changes in lighting from our fire kept waking me up. I finally rolled over on my back and could see an animal in the next campsite over, close enough to see an outline by the glow of our fire. I quickly scrambled to my feet, not so quietly as I kicked the tarp I was on and woke my friend who questioned me confusedly.

After that he decided he wouldn't be sleeping outside -- not that the thin tent canvas would keep anything out that really wanted in. Eventually the fire died, leaving us with only a cold tent to return to and this funny story to tell. Well, funny for me; the raccoon may think otherwise.

Lessons Learned During a Winter Camping Trip

It has been a while since I last went camping and even longer since I last wrote a blog. So this weekend makes for two things I haven't done in a while.

I don't get the opportunity to go camping all that often, especially in the winter. This trip had some pretty interesting obstacles and discoveries as most trips do.

Late night + Wet wood = No fire
It was 9:30 Friday night before we arrived at Petit Jean State Park. By that time it was dark and cold outside. I chose a campsite close to the showers and bathroom where at least there would be some escaping the elements if worse came to worst. Luckily, because we weren't on a peninsula surrounded by water and a cold breeze blowing across it, I didn't suffer quite as much as one night at Lake Ouachita State Park.

Unfortunately, by the time we got camp set up it was already getting fairly late. We still had to gather small kindling to start a fire. Usually it is pretty easy but that night I wasn't quite prepared for the obstacle in front of me: wet kindling and wet firewood. I would need a lot more small stuff to get the bigger stuff to ignite. After a half hour I called it quits for the night and went to bed. Little did I know, it wasn't going to be a good night's sleep at all.

Cold night + Two people + Small tent + 0º sleeping bag ≠ Warmth / Sometimes, bigger is better

In the summer, a sleeping bag rated to 0 degrees is plenty warm, even with two people crowded in a small tent. I have a small, two man tent and a larger five man tent. Knowing it would be cold I thought the small tent would trap more body heat and help keep it warmer at night. What actually happened is I slept too close to the tent wall (keeping in mind I am 5'8" in a 6'x6' tent). Even in the summer I know to try and stay clear of the sides of the tent, but with bulkier gear it became more difficult. In the night I would roll over and find myself in the corner. That's not all I found either; each time I woke up I was reminded that cold outside air, warmer inside air, a nylon sleeping bag on a floor made out of tarp material and being too close to the sides of the tent meant I found my gear growing wetter and colder. I guess I was still in a better situation than my friend who only had a lightweight sleeping bag with him. He ended up sleeping in the car.

On the bright (and early) side, since we arrived after office hours we had to wake up early the next morning to go check in. I had to debate whether I was willing to stay a second night. In the end we decided to go ahead and pay for two nights. I set up a clothes line and hanged the blanket and bag up to dry while we went for a hike.

If the weather men can be wrong, they will be wrong / Geocaching community

Saturday morning seemed like it would be a nice day. Before going on the camping trip I checked the weather and it was supposed to be cloudy but precipitation free the entire weekend. Another plus was I had picked up hot chocolate at the store before going -- nothing like a hot drink after a cold night. By 10 a.m. we were on the trail down to Cedar Falls. 

Close to the waterfall we searched for a geocache. We looked for quite a while on both sides of the trail. The GPS was leading me in different directions every couple of seconds as the signal bounced of the canyon walls on both sides. At one point, I thought I had found the geocache when I spotted a man-made pile of rocks. I began lifting rocks but quickly noticed a cross sticking out of the top and stopped. I found an open spot and sure enough there was a small skeleton inside -- that wasn't the geocache.

Eventually we decided to head on over to the waterfall and try again later. Sitting near the waterfall, the sun was shining in to the canyon which was colder by the water. After relaxing in the sun for a while we returned to the search. Eventually I took one of the hints literal and decided to go look half-way to the grave. In the end the terrain and difficulty rating turned out to be the most useful hint. While looking in the correct area another group of geocachers arrived. This was the first time I have met another geocacher looking for the exact same geocache. Instant conversation starter.

The one we were looking for contained half of the coordinates for a third geocache we would be looking for. In order to find the other half of the coordinates we had to hike roughly another 1.5 miles in the other direction.We found it much easier and assembled the coordinates to the "mystery" cache. During all of this excitement it began to rain. My mind went to the my camera and GPS and then to my sleeping bag and blanket hanging outside back up at camp. "Looks like I may be sleeping in my car tonight," I told him. Fortunately it didn't last long and my stuff stayed dry/dried on the line. About 4 a.m. it sprinkled some more, just enough to get everything wet and ensure the weather forecasters were wrong yet again.

What goes up must come down. And sometimes what goes down must go back up.

I think I am in worse shape every trip I take to Petit Jean. And every time I hike to Cedar Falls and it comes time to hike back to the top I began asking myself why I came back down into the canyon; much like I tell myself every time I hike Pinnacle Mountain I will never do it again, but I always seem to go back.

After four miles of hiking in the canyon at Petit Jean we drove to Mount Magazine State Park, about an hour and a half away. It turns out all of the trails there were closed due to damage from the ice storm (not that I was up for more hiking). Driving up the mountain I could tell the weather had taken it's toll on the area. The bare trees lay broken on the ground and the ones still standing provided little to block the view of the surrounding valley. I was glad to be on the inside part of the road going up but knew I wouldn't be so lucky coming down. Eventually I was going to have to face the curvy, steep, high road down the mountain with no guard rails and nothing to block the view of how far down it was. (It may be time for me to reconsider how badly I want to do some things/travel some places...)

The speed limit on the road was 55 miles per hour but I think I went less than 20 most of the way down the mountain. From the area hang gliders launch, where we viewed the sunset, it took somewhere between 15 and 20 minutes to get down the mountain where I could finally breathe again.

Eating local is always a good option

The last three times I have been to Petit Jean we have eaten in the restaurant at Mather Lodge. It is becoming somewhat of a tradition and I haven't been disappointed so far. The last two times I have had beef which is raised just down the road at Winrock Farms. Good food from a local source. It is always nice to eat local food.

If I am going to go backpacking, I have a LOT of work to do
I've been saying for years now that I want to go on a backpacking trip. When I was in college, a friend and I said we would hike the Appalachian Trail after we graduated. That never happened. Now I want to hike in the Smokey Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains. That could be a while though -- it will involve a lot of work:

• I am way out of shape and need to not only loose weight but build a lot of endurance
• I have got to learn how to pack my backpack better and lighter
• I have got to learn how to overcome my fear of heights -- there is no telling what adventure awaits in some locations
• I have to find a way to keep all of my gear dry in the rain (or when it decides to sweat)
• I have to buy new gear
• I have a lot of emergency skills that are important to learn before embarking on the journey

Long Pool Recreation Area

Location:	Dover, Ark.
Campground:	Long Pool Recreation Area
Website:	USDA Forest Service

The majority of my camping trips are to Arkansas' State Parks but this weekend was a little different. It is the first trip I have actually planned more than a week in advance and it turned out well; my sister even came along. We all met at my office Friday afternoon after work and my niece, nephew, sister and I headed in to the Ozark-St. Francis National Forest Area.

Three of us had been camping at the Long Pool Recreation Area on Big Piney Creek two or three summers ago. I had promised my niece and nephew I would take them there this summer to go swimming. The park offers campsites with any combination of water and electric or no hook ups. We chose a tent site with no hook ups. There was only one left in the area we chose, but it turned out to be a nice site with a trail down to the water.

Most of it was as I remembered but I also learned a few new things as I researched geocaches in the area. I learned about two days before going that there were at least two waterfalls in the area. We hiked there Saturday morning and found they had both dried up already. The swimming was nice and I am sure we swam several miles Saturday afternoon and evening.

The park offered both primitive and non-primitive camp features. There were many trails connecting different sites around the campground and the water. It was easy to get around. Camping is first-come, first-serve; it is also paid through a pay-station rather than an attendant making it easier to arrive after 5 p.m.

I haven't seen it in the Spring, but read signs that many people like to float the river. It is prone to flash flooding and visitors should use caution when it is raining in the area. There is no cell service in the area which is nice, but if there is an emergency adds to a dangerous situation.

Without the interruption of technology and with the views of the mountains and sky it is a very nice area to relax for the weekend. I look forward to visiting again sometime, hopefully when there is more water.

GC - Ghosts of Spanish Conquistadors

Geocache name:	Ghosts of Spanish Conquistadors
Hidden by:	Old River Runner
Location:	Dover, Ark.
Link:	http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GCT5Y9

I planed a weekend camping trip to Long Pool Recreation Area for this past weekend. My niece, 11, nephew, 13 and my sister, 33, arrived about 7:30 p.m. Friday. After setting up camp we went for a swim until dark, roasted hot dogs on the fire and told some scary stories. Around 10:30 we left camp to attempt our first night cache.
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We began by parking at the overlook and looking out into the valley and up at the stars. I haven't seen that many stars in ages! The overlook was crowded with people, most of whom appeared to be high school students, drinking and playing music. We left the overlook and pulled in on a dirt road which didn't appear to have much traffic. We walked back east down the road and began the hunt.

After about five minutes of walking it became a more difficult to see between the reflective tacks and I had to  watch the GPS to make sure we were not walking in circles. It felt like we were but the GPS said we were still on the path. It wasn't long before I began hearing rustling in the leaves somewhere in the darkness around us. I told the kids to be quiet and listen. We clearly heard an owl somewhere, but the rustling seemed to stop. We heard it a little more as we continued through the woods looking for more reflective tape.

Having a GPS in my hand keeps me comfortable that we won't get lost, but I don't know where the spiders or snakes are. I don't know how close we came to finding the geocache, we found as many as three tacks on some trees but we never spotted four. We ended up somewhere close to a road and we could see break lights and hear voices. We had also been spotted as we could clearly tell by the voices. It didn't help that my sister had a red light and my niece had a blue light. The lights kept malfunctioning and flashing so it could have appeared as if they were police lights. As I said, they were drinking, and my sister was afraid they would be drunk and possibly violent. That lead to our giving up on the geocache and just trying to get out of the woods without being seen.

We had to walk without lights at times adding to the spookiness. We walked into several branches and thickets before stopping to listen and to watch. There were lights that would appear and disappear, making it difficult to tell how far we were from the road at times. I don't think I have seen that many lightening bugs in 10 years. We never got far from the road as we wandered through the woods, trying to stay out of sight. From the sounds of things we had scared those at the overlook off as well. We made it back to the car safely and it made for the most interesting "Did Not Find (DNF)" caching story I have experienced.

Petit Jean State Park

My first trip with a group other than my family was a ski trip to the mountains in Colorado when I was a freshman in high school. That was when I learned how important the people traveling together are one of the most important aspects of any trip. With a bad group its going to be miserable; with a good group even the worst locations can be fun. Life is just so much better with people. So is camping.

A month ago I went camping and blogged about Lake Frierson State Park. This past weekend, I camped with a friend at my favorite state park - Petit Jean. Located about an hour and a half from Little Rock, Petit Jean State Park offers many spectacular views. Of course, it is also one of the parks where I have to face one of my greatest fears -- heights. There are multiple overlooks on the mountain, looking out in almost any direction. Some are very safe, some are very dangerous.

Saturday morning my friend and I set off on the Boy Scout Trail, a 12-mile trail that is estimated to take eight hours. It crosses many of the other trails at the park and winds through various landscapes. At one point, we were sitting on rocks that dropped off into the canyon below. There were no rails or anything, just one step away from death -- well not for me. I chose to stay back. We only made it on six miles of the trail and completed those miles in nine hours. We were still exhausted.

Most of the hiking trails aren't that strenuous and most hikers are able to hike any of the trails with the exception of maybe the BSA trail. Visitors can also enjoy the Mather Lodge Restaurant which overlooks the canyon or fishing on the lake. Also, in addition to camping, the park has cabins. One downfall to the park is no swimming is allowed in the lake or creeks, only in a swimming pool at the lodge. Most of the campsites have running water and electricity. And a huge plus -- they aren't all on top of each other.

Petit Jean remains by far one of my favorite parks and locations in Arkansas.

Lake Frierson State Park

One of my favorite things in Arkansas is the state parks system. With multiple types of parks and a wide range of activities, they are sure to have something for everyone. For me, they offer hiking, geocaching, camping, fishing, swimming, and boating. This past weekend was the perfect weekend to enjoy the spring weather -- yes, SPRING! Not too hot, not too cold.

It was also graduation weekend for many university students accross the state and nation and as such I had just the state park to enjoy, one I had enjoyed on several occasions during my time as a student at Arkansas State University. Camping at Lake Frierson State Park would provide me the opportunity to see some of the last people I know at the university graduate, see some friends in the area and get to enjoy a weekend of camping.

As a student we would go to the lake and enjoy kayaking, playing on the playground (when there weren't children present, of course) and watching the sunset. It was a nice park, close enough to town to visit for a couple of hours. I had never visited the camping section.

Upon arriving to the camping area Friday night, I was surprised. The first thing I had to do was visit the restroom, which I expected to be like every other state park campground I had been in. What I found was a toilet in a room with a lock on it. There was no sink and no running water, but at least there was hand sanitizer. Wrong. It may have been labeled hand sanitizer but it was soap. Back at camp I used some bottled water to finish washing my hands before setting up camp.

Once I unloaded, set up the tent and staked it down I sat down at the picnic table to begin trying to make plans to meet some friends for dinner. Then someone came up behind me and told me to move that I was in their site. (He could have been a little nicer about it...) Rather than stand around and argue, I just pulled the stakes out of my tent and moved it; luckily I was camping alone and had a small tent so I didn't have to tear it down. Trying to figure out where to move it was another story. I knew my campsite number, but the sites were poorly laid out so it was hard to tell which site the numbers corresponded with.

That evening I decided to sleep outside; it isn't often I get the opportunity to camp under the stars, either because of the weather or the mosquito  I got a little cold so it was difficult to sleep, but what made it worse was the campsite's proximity to the boat ramp. Around 4:30 a.m. loud trucks began driving through the area along with boat trailers that didn't help the noise level anymore. I finally moved inside to avoid some of the lights shining in my eyes.

On the positive side, I think that the staff at the park are much friendlier than Lake Ouachiata State Park. The first night I was there one of the park rangers stopped and asked if I would be wanting any wood. I told him no and asked him about showers and he told me I could use the ones at Crowley's Ridge State Park if I was up for the drive. The next morning I finished the check-in at the office and inquired about what I would need to show if asked at the other park and they gave me some receipts.

According to the park staff they are trying to get running water and showers in the camping area, but haven't yet. No running water isn't a huge problem for me; I don't mind primitive camping, when I am expecting it. Of course, this was my fault. I am sure they offered the information if I had paid attention. 

Overall, this is a good park, but I do believe it is more for day-use.