So since DW finally got approval for some time off, we wanted to do something with the kids this summer that they enjoy doing.... CAMPING ! ( and everything associated with this family pleasure)
We wanted to stay somewhere close ( under a 2 hour drive ) that offered swimming, fishing, trails, and family fun.
Blue Springs State Park is in Clio, AL... it is about 1h-40m from home.
it has 2 large, natural fresh water springs to swim in, a fishing pond/stream down the trail, and is a 5 minute walk from the campground I am told.
Primitive, W/E, and W/E/S are the site choices. with only a few dollars difference between each.
We will be on site 29
it seems most of the decent camping is about that distance from us no matter which direction, or what state we decide to go too. so we picked this one as a starter.
Other first state park choices were Florala @ Lake Jackson or
Lake Point @ Lake Eufaula
Pricing them out, it seems that these STATE PARKS are the same cost as Private ones (in AL anyway)
also this will be the true shake down trip for the 2000 Aero Cub as well.
This trip will be Sunday - Friday (July 22-27)
Sounds like a nice place! The pics of the springs on the site sure do look nice, too!
Enjoy your trip. I don't blame you for trying to stay under two hours. We try to stay in that range ... last weekend we were two and a half hours away and that extra seat time wasn't doing anything good for my back. Of course, Pennsylvania's roads don't help ... we traveled about 60 miles of concrete road where they cut out expansion joints, poured a patch 18-20 inches wide so you now have two expansion joints >:( Just the thing to start the truck and trailer porpoising down the road.
John
I've been reading about other states (and Pennsylvania) where the state park system is gradually adding more amenities. It's a nice trend to see, as long as the rates don't go too high.
Pennsylvania DCNR just announced recently that one of the campgrounds at Promised Land SP was just reopened after renovation and they added full hookups -- water, sewer, electric -- at some of the sites. That really blew me away when I read it. The only hookups available at the other state parks is electric at some sites, and some parks have no electric at any site.
We were at Black Moshannon SP last weekend and every shower house had coin-op laundry facilities. That is available at only one other PA park that I know of.
John
http://www.alapark.com/lakepointresort/
this is ONE of 4 stAte park resorts...lol
what a lazy and relaxed trip this was for us...
First off, Blue Springs State Park has to be the CLEANEST state run park I have ever been to!
we arrived Sunday afternoon about 10 minutes early for check in time. The park host told us to go right in, and after we set up to come back and settle up with her. She was a very pleasant woman, and even said we could change sites ( after seeing the camper) and to just let them know which site we were on.
So we drove past the "Springs" parking lot, and around a few bends to the campground entrance.
Followed the hand drawn map to find our site, but also checking out other sites that we may like even better.
Since this was a weekday trip ( and not a holiday week), the CG was not very busy, and barely had 5 campers in it total ( 4 of which are HOST SITES for a volunteer club)
We round the bend to find out our site is occupied, but they were just finishing up packing. it gave us a chance to get out and chat with them about the site.
The 2 drawbacks were the site had NO SHADE at all, and the table and fire ring were at the bottom of a 10 foot slope in a flat area.
Normally,I think I would have liked having an entirely separate area from the camper, but since I am on crutches, this was not ideal for us.
Most of the sites on the 29-40 section were Parallel to the road, which gave it a feel of a convoy of campers. ( they are full hook up w/e/s) but also allowed for easy in and out access for larger campers.
We continued to drive around, as the CG is extremely easy to navigate. the roads are narrow, but the turning areas are ample and spacious.
If I were in a PuP or small TT/A-frame, most of these sites would be perfect. all of them have W/E but only 5 have sewer. the pads are small, all the tables are concrete, and the fire rings are perfect for fires and grilling ( flip over grate)
we finally turned on to the 1st LOOP, and drove around the entire thing. all of the sites are spacious, some are grassy and some are au-natural.
we finally settled on site 1.
it is not designed as a pull through, but easily accommodated this function.
the first 4 sites on this loop can EACH easily fit 2-3 campers on them.
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_0723121822.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1707.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1706.jpg[/img]
Setup was fairly easy, just a bit strenuous since I am essentially useless for most of the tasks right now. site was fairly level, and I needed only 1 2x6 under one wheel to make it perfectly level.
also learned that all four of my stabilizer FEET are missing. ( DOH !)
sleeping arrangements were made, and DW and the boys set up their spaces. (I love how much cabinet space we have!)
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1770.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1750.jpg[/img]
It started to downpour, so we quickly converted the bed back to dining by simply sliding the mattress up onto the bunk!
(the sheet and sleeping bag are zipped together, and stays on the air mattress)
there is NO internet in the campground. you have to drive to the rangers gate house, and can gain access to the public wifi spot from your car (password protected)
Also, not sure on other carriers, but all of our verizon, trac fone, and straight talk phones had NO NETWORK or service either.
As soon as the rain stopped ( 3 hours later!), it was time to start dinner.
I was amazed at the limited amount of bugs and pests there were here.
( especially after a HUMID rain storm.) The campground hosts drove by after the rain to check on us, and were very nice too. when we asked they had mentioned that the park gets treated and sprayed several times a year for bug control.
Dinner was quick and easy, thanks to my roadtrip grill !
seasoned pork steaks and fresh from the garden salad? why yes, thank you !
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_0723121852.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1717.jpg[/img]
Since we would camp here for 6 days, we saw no hurry to run around the park.
Instead we stayed in the camper and began tweaking our interior setup, and check to make sure everything was working.
The A/C worked almost flawlessly the entire week, but only when set on AC HIGH and COLDEST at the control knobs. it cooled the entire camper down to about 68 degrees after 2 hours.
At night, we had it turned down to medium cool, and med AC, but it would freeze up the unit within 15 minutes ( ICE was literally inside the unit).
so we just opened a roof vent, left it on AC HIGH/COLDEST and it created a nice balance of about 73 inside.
average daytime temps were 94-98 with a heat index of 106+... which brings us to the next great thing about this trip....
THE NATURAL SPRINGS !
The Natural Springs...
I did not gather much information about the springs history beyond what the state park website had offered.
The Pools are fed from an underwater cave ( the shelf is visible and you can swim/dive down to it). 3600 gallons per minute I believe it is...
The water is a consistent 67-68 degrees. and believe me when I tell you... you either will love it, or you will hate it ! hahaha
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1729.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1730.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1744.jpg[/img]
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1734.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1740.jpg[/img]
They feed into a larger river, which meets at the bend, about 100 yards down from the 2nd pool.
The neatest natural water based feature I have seen to date is this RIVER BEND!
where the two meet is unique...the water from the river is about 80-85 degrees, the water from the springs 68. you can literally have one foot in each part where they join together, and the temperatures are completely different!
if the springs are too cold for your liking. you can walk 100 yards from the pools, and swim in the warm river bend (there are stumps, rocks, and it ranges from shallow to 10 feet deep)
There is a stocked fishing pond here as well. and you can use the paddle boats (made for 4 ppl) to float around on and fish from.
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_0725121905.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_0725121905a.jpg[/img]
There springs are a Day use area 7 days a week. there is plenty of shaded picnic tables, park style hibachi grills, and grassy sitting areas through out the entire springs area.
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_59bfddff.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1721.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1728.jpg[/img]
What was really cool about this park, was that as CAMPERS, we were allowed to use the springs after the park closed at 7, but only until dark.
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_0725121952a.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_0725121951.jpg[/img]
There are several bath houses and restrooms around the park and campground.
they are very very out dated, but clean !
the entire week consisted of the same things to do...
kids rode their bikes around, we went swimming, we grilled, played games, swam some more, etc etc etc
and of course what is the point of a good story without the happy ending?
DW bought super marshmallow to try out as smores... lets just say I will be sticking to normal size ones...lol
( she will kill me for this photo)
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1767.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1765.jpg[/img] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v461/01YZF6/Blue%20Springs%20State%20Park/th_HPIM1762.jpg[/img]
we truly did enjoy it...
there are some things I left out though...
there is only one gas station in 20 miles. it is 6 miles west of the state park.
20 miles W/SW is Ozark and hwy 231. it has everything you could need for supplies. walmart, dealerships, gas stations, fast food, save-a-lot grocery, etc. no RV places though if you need repairs/parts. you would have to drive an hour into Dothan for that.
do not buy the firewood from the CG ! it is $5 a bundle, and has about 8 small pieces of hardwood. no logs, no softwood/kindling type stuff.
bring your own, they did not have any postings or warnings about it.
If you need ice, there is a little restaurant across the street named Haglers. food is good, but they always looked closed down. I assure you they are not...lol
Ice was $2 or 3 to fill the cooler. ( @15 lbs)
15 miles EAST is Abbeville, and hwy 431. one horse town. if you take 231 south, drive 4 miles, there is a BP gas station, a Subway, and a hardee's.
we would love to come back here for a weekend type trip. ( 2-3 days) but have our sites set on White Oak or Hardridge CG's at lake Eufala next I think. (30 minutes NE from Abbevile)
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