Lucas Park, Wilson Lake

This photo was taken in the morning, shortly before we left for Oklahoma.

There was nice shade on this site early in the day,

but it was going to disappear by noon.

When we’re not in a terrific hurry to get anywhere, we like nightly stops a bit off the beaten path. Since we’re usually only staying a night or two, it’s a great way to check out different campgrounds and locations.  The facilities we like, along with our favorite campsites, get added to our list of places we would enjoy visiting again. Not to mention staying longer the next time.

Wilson Lake isn’t too far north of I-70 in central Kansas. We got there by traveling on two-lane highways from Nebraska. While it may be true in other states too, we’ve noticed that reservoirs which are Kansas Army Corp of Engineers projects have both state parks and Corp campgrounds. Wilson Lake has both. (3 USACE, 2 state)

We haven’t stayed in any Kansas state parks yet, but especially while we’re traveling, the Corp campgrounds are emerging as our favorites. Generally, Corp properties have a day use fee or camping fees. Campers usually aren’t charged the day use fee. They also seem to be pretty consistent in keeping everything maintained. If you qualify for one of the various passes offered by the Federal Government, you might even get a discount. There are links to some PDF brochures at the end of this post, including one explaining the different Federal access passes. When looking for campsites, do a fee comparison between Corp campgrounds and nearby state parks to determine which is the best value for you.

Just so you know, during the week there might be a day or two when the hosts are off. This was our experience at Wilson Lake and was the first time we encountered it. The hosts were off on Tues. and Wed. At Lucas Park, where we stayed, they did provide envelopes for self-check in. There are three sections in Lucas Park, and since it was mostly empty on the Tues. we arrived, driving thru each section helped us decide on a site. Lucas wasn’t our original destination, but there wasn’t a self-check in option at the campground below the dam where we were planning to stay. If you’ve made a reservation before arrival, a host’s day off probably won’t matter to you. But for us, reservations don’t always make sense, because we need some flexibility while on the road. The USACE and Recreation.gov websites might not inform if campground hosts have certain days off. The only way we knew Lucas Park was USACE was by exploring it. (Corp campgrounds will have the castle logo on the entrance signs.) Moral of the story? Look at the map for an entire Corp project (usually reservoirs) when making your plans. It will show you all the campgrounds which utilize the project. Call the numbers provided for each and verify the hosts will be there when you arrive. If not, just make sure there is a contingency for people who want to use those sites when the hosts aren’t present.

Lucas Park is a nicely maintained campground with a modern section (hook-ups/bathroom facility), and we would stay there again. If our self-containment work had been completed, the undeveloped section interested us too. Now, here’s what you need to know before visiting.

The roads and campsites are gravel. You will travel a bit from the paved highway before you reach the campground. Just follow the signs. Wilson Lake is a reservoir on the prairie grasslands of the Great Plains. There aren’t a lot of trees in the campgrounds. The sites that do have shade go fast when the weather warms up. Naturally, sites on the lake shore are popular, too. While the campgrounds are mowed, don’t expect to find fancy, civilized grass. Native just makes more sense in a place where the grass isn’t watered by man. Those natives include cockle burs (or stickers, depending on where you’re from). Take a short-cut to the bathroom? Check your shoelaces. If you get them in your socks, you’ll feel them. For those who own a dog with a long silky coat, keep your grooming tools, including scissors handy. Check their coat immediately after a potty break. Any cockle bur not removed right away will work its way to the skin eventually, not to mention creating a big knot. Regardless of breed or coat type, all dogs can get cockle burs between the pads of their feet. It’s a good idea to check feet after each trip into the grass.

While native prairie plants might include cockle burs,

there could also be wildflowers if you’re visiting in the spring.

We stayed at Lucas Park during our trip home to Texas during the first week of June.

Despite summer heat and sun, you may not be able to open your awning. Like most of the Plains states, Kansas is windy. A few trees in Lucas Park means there isn’t much protection from the wind. In case you do use your awning, keep a close eye on it, especially if you don’t have an electric one with a wind sensor. No need to let the wind spoil your fun, though. Spend a little time studying your campsite, and you’ll have a decent idea where you want to position things like your grill and camp chairs. The wind is often the strongest from mid-morning to early evening, so you might find it more enjoyable to do your outdoor activities earlier or later. Use the hottest, windiest part of the day for napping. (That’s our preference, but then, we’re old people.) Secure long hair and keep some lip balm handy. It’s also a good idea to protect your skin and eyes from wind/sun burn.

Some people might find the conditions on the Plains not to their liking. Not to worry. The USACE has 450+ projects and campgrounds in many states. Between our trip last year, and the trip we took in May/June, we’ve stayed at 5 different Corp campgrounds in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. Since they’ve met our definition of “value” so far, it’s pretty safe to say we’ll keep seeking Corp campgrounds during our travels.

Want to do some comparisons between Kansas state parks and Corp facitilities? Besides camping, you’ll find the lake’s various rec. opportunities at both sites, too.

http://ksoutdoors.com/State-Parks/Locations/Wilson

http://www.nwk.usace.army.mil/Locations/District-Lakes/Wilson-Lake/

These PDF documents can be found through the above site. But we’ve made the links available here in case you prefer to go straight to them.

http://www.nwk.usace.army.mil/Portals/29/docs/lakesites/wilson/Wilson-Lakemap.pdf

http://www.nwk.usace.army.mil/Portals/29/docs/lakesites/wilson/73266-%20Lucas%20park.pdf

This is the 2016 fee discount chart. Planning to travel in 2017? Check in January for updates or changes.

http://corpslakes.usace.army.mil/visitors/pdfs/discount-chart.pdf

To make reservations at any Federal facility, go to recreation.gov. The following link is specifically for Lucas Park.

http://www.recreation.gov/camping/lucas-park/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=NRSO&parkId=73266

This site also gives info about the Corp campgrounds and making reservations through Reserve America.

http://www.rv-camping.org/coecampgrounds/

Clay County Campground

Sometimes a smaller campground can be one of the nicest places to stay, and  Clay County is one of our favorites. It’s just a little bit southwest of Vermillion, SD, but beyond that, we’re not sure we want to tell you how to find it.

Just kidding!  The following link will give you more info.

http://www.vermillioncvb.com/camping.php

For us, some of the appeal might be nostalgia. Karl grew up in Vermillion, and we met each other there. He remembers the campground and going fishing on the Missouri River, which is just down the road. (He remembers doing some other things on the river during the winter, too. It’s probably a miracle he survived to adulthood.) When he was a boy, the Clay County Recreation Area was a primitive place to camp.

Now you will find a modern, well-maintained campground, with flush toilets and plenty of hot water in the showers and sinks. There is currently one bathroom building right now, but they were beginning another bathroom facility on the north side of the campground while we were there in May. The majority of their campsites are RV friendly, with electrical hook-ups. Want to use your own “facilities”? When you enter the park, the potable water hydrant is on the right (curb) side of your rig. The dump station is on the opposite side of the entrance. Besides making it relatively easy to camp there, we also like this site because it sits in the middle of an old cottonwood grove (AKA very tall trees). It’s not that you won’t feel a breeze there, but the surrounding trees provide a significant amount of protection from the ever-present wind. They also give you a sense of being removed from civilization, even though the rec area is surrounded by farms and close to town.

Just so you know, cottonwoods are well dispersed in the US, especially in the Midwest. They’re messy in the spring, starting with sticky buds that will land on all your gear. Following those you will see green clusters which burst open a week or two later. The seeds are very similar to those of dandelions, only bigger. There are probably a few still wrapped up in our awning.

This is the kind of campground you come to just for the sheer joy of camping. Which in it’s purest form is about being outdoors, eating “fun” food, and hanging out by the fire with your favorite people.  If some of those favorite people are your kids, there is a playground. We’ve also seen other campers bring bicycles. The recreation area does have walking trails. Make sure to apply your mosquito and tick repellants before a hike.

No one has confirmed it, but we suspect putting fun lights on your awning

is a right of passage.

You can take a boat down to the river and/or do some fishing (with the proper license of course). It bears saying, however, that you shouldn’t let your children go to the river without supervision, despite what Karl did as a kid. The Missouri may look slow on the surface, but it has some very deep channels with fast currents. There are also sandbars and dead timber that tend to shift locations. The old girl is tricky, to say the least. Even people who thought they knew the river very well have found themselves in trouble if they didn’t stay vigilant.

In case you’re wondering, yes, there are some reasons you may enjoy going into town.  Many of the big events in Vermillion will be associated with the University of South Dakota (ex. D-Days). But you can find year-round attractions too, such as museums, galleries and institutions which might be of interest to visitors. Vermillion is the county seat with the accompanying court house and fair grounds. Need more marshmallows? There is a Hy-Vee grocery store on Cherry Street and a Wal-Mart on Princeton. They’re basically around the corner from each other (NW corner of town). I guess you could say Cherry is the main drag. Coming from the east on Hwy 50, if you continue into town you’re on Cherry. It will take you past gas stations, fast food restaurants, laundromats, the center of the USD campus, a liquor store, TruValue Hardware, the fair grounds, hotels, and Campbell’s Supply. For those who find their way onto Main Street, this will take you downtown. We highly recommend Café Brulé, a bakery and bistro. (Our daughter took Kristal there for Mother’s Day.) There are some other restaurants, two movie theaters, and  a bar or two (Duh! College town). Carey’s Bar has live music. Karl’s oldest brother plays there on Friday nights. Our daughter seems rather fond of the Char Bar.

The following websites are for Vermillion’s tourism  and USD. To learn about USD’s museums, etc. go to the left column and look under “Our Campus”.

http://www.vermillioncvb.com/

http://www.usd.edu/

History buffs and naturalists might appreciate a visit to Spirit Mound, which is north of town. When we were growing up, this site was owned by a few farms. It is now a state park and prairie restoration site. Last year, our daughter went there to observe the Perseid Meteor Showers. It’s also a nice place to watch a sunset.

http://www.spiritmound.com/index.htm

Part of the appeal of RV ownership is going on grand adventures. Nothing wrong with that. But there is a lot to be said for just slowing down, and soaking up some peaceful moments you might not always find in your everyday life. Even though our last 2 trips took us more than 1,000 miles from home, we pretty much camped all the way there and back. We have fond memories of this activity, which might be why, accumulatively, we have spent more than 3 weeks in Clay County Campground. Whether it’s near, or far away, get out there and go camping. Who knows? Maybe one day we’ll meet you somewhere in a campground.

Rock Island Park

The old train trestle is on the south side of the park.

It’s part of the walking/biking path.

In our “glamping” post, we mentioned being gone 5 weeks. You might say our daughter had an after-graduation bucket list of things she wanted to do while we were visiting. (And we had time to kill before helping her move anyway.)

If you would like to attend some festivals while on your RV travels, Orange City, IA has a Tulip Festival the third weekend in May. Our daughters were born in Orange City, then we moved to Texas when the girls were in elementary school. The older daughter got to participate in the festival once, but the younger one missed out. This year was the first time we were in the area during the festival, so it was on her list of activities.

Find out more at this link.

http://www.octulipfestival.com/

One of Orange City’s municipal parks does have RV spaces, but we didn’t want to stay there while the festival was underway. This is a town of less than 10,000 people who entertain more than 100,000 in 3 days. Instead, we left the Black Hills for Rock Rapids, IA. It’s approximately an hour north of Orange City, and we have family who lives there.

Rock Rapids has two municipal camp grounds. If you come into town from I-90 on Hwy 9/Hwy 75, you’ll pass one of them in the smaller park on the west side of town. Since we didn’t want to be next to the highway (Semi traffic), it was bypassed in favor of Rock Island Park, at the NE corner of town. Continue east into town. Hwy 9 becomes 1^st Ave. Rock Island Park’s address is North Boone Street. Look for Sunshine Foods grocery store on 1^st Ave. and the street just east of the parking lot. Turn left and drive north 2 blocks. North Boone becomes Park Street inside the park. The campsite registration envelopes are at this entrance. Get your envelope and follow the gravel road to the campsites. (There is another entrance into the park on 2^nd Ave, but you wouldn’t want to take an RV on this rout. This entrance is below a steep, cobblestone covered hill.) Here is the city’s webpage concerning camping.

http://www.rockrapids.com/index.php?pageid=737562746f7069635f69643a3539

If asked how we would rate the different places we’ve stayed so far, Rock Island Park would get an honorable mention. It’s a pretty park sitting next to the Rock River. Some of the campsites are close to the playground and a branch of the river that flows thru the middle of the park.

This is the entrance to the walking path bridge.

Once you've crossed the bridge, this is the view of the path above the river

Several varieties of plants along the path were blooming, including the lilacs.

We can’t grow them in Texas and were happy to be there while they were flowering.

This section under water was closed.

Though the water over the path wasn’t very deep, it was moving fast.

The old railroad depot has some interesting architectural features.

This caboose is part of the Lyon County Museum.

The following are things to do in and around the park. Starting at the old train depot above the park, you will find the paved walking/bike path. It utilizes the old train trestle that crosses the park and river. On the other side, the path follows the river to the north side of the park. It was Kristal’s favorite place to walk the dogs. (Leave the park from the 2^nd Ave. entrance. Go one block west to the post office and turn right on N. Storey St. Turn right on the sidewalk at the south side of the depot. There is also a section of the path that crosses the river in the park, just below the biggest dam, which takes you directly to the north side. The river was flowing over it while we were there, so it was closed.) History buffs may enjoy visiting the complex of buildings, including the old depot, which make up the Lyon County Museum. The community swimming pool is open during the summer months. There is also Smokin’ Hos Pig Time BBQ, located next to the park’s 2^nd Ave. entrance. We camped in the park for 1 ½ weeks, thru Memorial Day Weekend, and the BBQ joint didn’t appear to be open yet. Since it’s an outdoor operation, seems a safe guess to say they’re seasonal. The following link is for their Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/Smokin-Hos-Pig-Time-BBQ-384194645120366/

Northwest Iowa, including Rock Rapids, was hit by major flooding in 2014. The campsites in Rock Island Park were under water. As a result, there are new electrical hook-ups, including 50 amp.

The city website mentions water and sewer. We saw water hydrants near some of the campsites, which means you can fill your fresh water holding tank. As for sewer hook-ups or a dump station, we recommend calling the city before you plan to stay there. Since our trailer wasn’t fully functional, yet, that was a service we weren’t using. We’re not certain it’s still available after the post-flood restoration. To accommodate our BAV and 31’ trailer, the campsite next to the playground ended up being our best choice, because it was long enough, and one of the sites closest to the bathrooms in the park. (The pool complex sits on the hill above the park. Not as convenient for a disabled veteran. There were still plenty of thunderstorms, too. Our hail photo was taken in Rock Rapids. Best to be close to the potty when it’s raining.) While the bathrooms aren’t fancy, they do have flush toilets. The city employees check on them and tidy up almost every morning. For showers and dish washing, we went to the relatives’ house. Karl enjoyed the time he spent with his mom, but overall the park just wasn’t as convenient a place for us to stay. When our trailer is finished and completely self-contained, we’ll probably find it easier to camp there.

You should also be aware the park has plenty of activity. Weather permitting, the playground is popular with the daycare near the pool, and area families. The locals either like to take a slow cruise around the park or do some fishing on the river. It can be a little quieter on a weekday, but gets busier in the evenings and on weekends. The campsites filled up for Memorial Day weekend. We’re not sure how busy they are during the summer, but 4^th of July and Labor Day are probably in-demand dates too. One other thing that might affect your stay in Rock Rapids would be the speedway races held on Friday nights. They can get loud, and how late they run depends on the schedule. For those who might find the races interesting, the link follows.

http://www.rockrapidsspeedway.com/

An advantage municipal parks can offer is price. Rock Rapids was charging $15.00 a night while we were there. Not bad for a campsite with electricity. Sometimes RVers will boondock overnight in shopping center parking lots while on the road. If you’re comfortable staying overnight in a community, why not see if a municipal campground is available instead? Or perhaps you need an inexpensive near-cation. While we enjoy state parks and army corps campgrounds, visiting small towns can be an interesting change of pace, especially if you time your visit with an event peculiar to the community.

Newbie’s Guide to South Dakota

This photo was taken while we were at Mt. Rushmore.

If you take the Presidential Walk, while you’re on the higher elevations,

be sure to point your camera away from the memorial

and towards the surrounding scenery.

You may have noticed we have more than a passing familiarity with the 40^th State. Karl grew up there. Kristal’s parents moved to the southeast corner of the state in 1985, while she was in high school, then moved to the Black Hills in the late 1990s. Her mom died last year, but she still has some family members there. Even without family visits, we enjoy returning. The residents are usually friendly, and the wide-open spaces make you feel free. It’s a nice change of pace from living in a large urban area.

As you would imagine, the peak time for travel in an upper Great Plains state is late Spring to early Fall, basically May thru September. Most of the tourist attractions in the Black Hills are open during this time period, but we recommend visiting the websites for those which interest you and verify the pertinent information yourself. Some things open earlier and stay open later, while others may be available year round.

For those planning trips during peak season, you may need to start making reservations a year or more in advance for state parks and private RV parks/resorts. That pretty much applies to the entire state. Quite a few Midwesterners own RVs. Some of the state and local campgrounds might be fairly empty during the week, but will be completely reserved for weekends and holidays. (Don’t forget tourists traveling to/from the Hills. Campsites along the way might be filled all week.) The super-popular Black Hills state parks, like Custer, will pretty much be booked the entire season. Many of the private RV parks, such as Hart Ranch Camping Resort, cater to folks who come to stay for the summer. For the intrepid fall/winter traveler, state parks and RV resorts may be open year round. But some amenities, like water hookups might not be available. Those are often turned off, and drained, to keep pipes from freezing and bursting during extreme cold spells.

The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is probably one of the best known events in South Dakota. It occurs in early August. You don’t have to own a motorcycle to see the races, shows and concerts; visit the venders; or be entertained by the first-class people watching. More than a few RV owners enjoy attending. If you plan to go in the future, do your research on all the lodging/camping options and start making your plans. Many rally attendees come every year and either have long-standing reservations, or make the next year’s before they leave. We’ve never made a deliberate trip to attend Sturgis, but happened to be visiting family a few times while the rally was underway. Before going to the Black Hills during Sturgis keep this in mind. More than 3 million people visit the Hills every year. At least 1 million of them show up during the week of the rally, and they don’t stay confined to the Sturgis area, or the official rally events. Such a large number of visitors are big business not only for all the tourist attractions, but hotels, restaurants and retailers as well.

Traffic throughout the area will be heavy during the rally. I-90 and Hwy. 79 are the major, multi-lane highways in the area.  Most of the scenic roads in the Hills are two-lane. A large part of the rally’s attraction is enjoying those scenic roads from the seat of a motorcycle. If non-riders don’t picture themselves enjoying the spectacle of so many motorcycles in one place, and going with the flow, it’s definitely better not to visit during the rally.

(Here’s a secret for you. Want that bad-ass Sturgis T-shirt without the rally price? After it ends, and probably even during the last day or two, merchandise designed for specific years or anniversaries starts getting pretty nice discounts.  Leftover dated items are harder to sell the next year.)

To learn more about the Sturgis Rally, pay a visit to the official rally website below.

http://www.sturgismotorcyclerally.com/

Here are other rally related things to be aware of.

Even if you’re visiting another part of the state during Sturgis, keep in mind those attending don’t just magically appear there. Sturgis attendees come from all over, so there will be lots of motorcyclists traveling throughout South Dakota, and neighboring states, a week or two before, and after, the rally. Some of them might be in large groups or traveling alone. Motorcycles coming up behind you can be difficult enough to spot when you’re not towing something. But for RV travelers with limited visibility, the larger volume of motorcycles can complicate things further, especially on the hilly two-lane highways.

Another thing we’ve noticed during rally time is the weather. It could be bone dry most of the summer, then kick up some really big thunderstorms, including hail, while the rally is underway. Since there are approx. 1 million people riding about on motorcycles, it might have something to do with Murphy’s Law.

While on the subject of weather, the wind is pretty much constant in the Plains states, especially during daylight hours. This was mentioned in our last 3 posts. Do your best to be prepared for it, both with appropriate clothing and proper auxiliary equipment to maintain towing safety, such as keeping your RV in its own lane. (Our Pro-Pride is going to need some maintenance before our next big trip, so we’ll do a post on this topic later.) An acquaintance recently mentioned she was nearly blown off the road once, while riding her motorcycle in Wyoming. Such incidents are another reason to keep a sharp eye on everything around you, and both hands on the steering wheel.

South Dakota also has a split personality. East of the Missouri River you will find higher humidity and precipitation. West River is considerably drier. East River has more farms. West River has more ranches. The below-zero Canadian cold fronts can hit the east side of the state pretty hard, along with plenty of snow. The southwest corner of the state may have more reasonable temps and less snow in the winter. Of course, this information is mostly general. It can vary from year to year. South Dakota is also one of 14 states in 2 time zones, Central and Mountain.

This is South Dakota’s official tourism website. Check it out and start planning your adventure.

https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/

The state’s official slogan is something about great faces and spaces. I think it’s safe to say we agree. Even though we’ve lived in Texas more than 16 years now, South Dakota still feels a bit like home.

Mt. Rushmore

If you only do one thing while at the memorial,

take a walk on the Presidential Trail.

Our other NPS visit in South Dakota was to Mt. Rushmore, a National Memorial. Our recent college graduate joined us for the visit with Kristal’s uncle, who lives near Hermosa. We hadn’t visited the Memorial since 2000, when she was in the first grade. It was her request to spend a couple of hours there.

Our recent college graduate

She and Daddy are now alumni of the same university.

Mt. Rushmore is a day visit park. How much time you spend there, depends on what you want to see and any programs you might be interested in attending. Visiting the memorial itself is free. However, a private corporation is in charge of the parking. The parking isn’t free.

History buffs probably know why the four presidents depicted in the Memorial were selected for the honor. But for those not certain about the chap with the glasses, he is Theodore Roosevelt. When the memorial was first proposed, it really hadn’t been that many years since his presidency. While we’re on the subject of the NPS, including TR in the conversation is actually very appropriate. His terms in office occurred before the NPS was created. But he did more than any president before or after to set aside land, memorials and monuments which would eventually fall under the administration of the NPS. (Another interesting fact not mentioned in the following articles: As a boy, TR witnessed the funeral procession of President Lincoln when it passed thru NYC.)

Learn a little bit more about Mt. Rushmore and Theodore Roosevelt at the following links.

https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/explore-with-us/great-8/mount-rushmore

http://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/theodore-roosevelt

https://www.nps.gov/thrb/learn/historyculture/trandthenpsystem.htm

If you haven’t spent your entire day at Mt. Rushmore, or your money at the gift and ice cream shops, pay a visit to Keystone. It’s an old mining town on Hwy. 16 and just down the road from Mt. Rushmore. Depending on the direction you take to the memorial, there is a good chance you’ll drive thru it on your way. The majority of the town’s tourist shops are on the boardwalk in the center of town, including the obligatory Black Hills Gold jewelry stores, t-shirt/sweatshirt shops, old-timey photo studio, a Victorian themed restaurant, and rowdy saloon (especially during the Sturgis Bike Rally). The sugary treats are covered too. The salt water taffy and fudge shops are our favorites.

This year, Kristal finally agreed to a photo shoot with our daughter at Professor Samuel’s. There was a bit of disagreement about how they were going to dress up, floozies or cowgirls. Mom wasn’t feeling the floozy option. (She “believed” they were overdone.) But cowgirls got guns for props, something that appealed to both.

Rattlesnake Rae and Kactus Kris

We had hamburgers and onion rings at Grizzly Creek Restaurant, picked up our bag of salt water taffy, and visited Black Hills Glass Blowers for thank you gifts. (When neighbors and older daughters are watching the home front for more than a month, you owe them an extra special gift.) Neither Grizzly Creek, or the glass blowers’ shop are on the boardwalk, but they aren’t difficult to find. Info on the various businesses and attractions located in or near Keystone can be found on their Chamber of Commerce website. Look under the “Plan Your Visit” menu.

http://keystonechamber.com/

This is the first year we brought our Airstream to the Black Hills. We boon docked in the yard where Kristal’s uncle lives, which isn’t an option for everyone. For our next post, we’ll provide some info, including RV lodging, to consider before your visit to South Dakota in general and the Black Hills in particular.