Campground and RV Park News, June 26, 2021

The latest news about camping and developments in North American campgrounds and RV parks from Janet Groene.

This news site covers timely news for RV travelers. Follow up on these tips to plan your trip according to your own dates, the type and size of your rig and your budget and interests. Be alert for sudden changes due to COVID or weather or wildfires. Many events are still tentative. COVID restrictions are still in place and vary according to the state or individual campground. Masks or a vaccination certification may be required.

Note that many campgrounds and RV resorts have special events planned for 4th of July and Labor Day weekends. They may be heavily booked, require a two- or three-night minimum stay and cancel their usual discounts during these periods.

DISCLAIMER:  No endorsement of any campground or product is implied by this reporter nor this website.

DATELINE: June 26, 2021

ALABAMA PARK HAS MUSIC TREAT

Audra Mclaughlin and John Eason entertain with a three-hour country soul and gospel  concert on August 6 at Coalfire Music Park and Campground in Reform. Enjoy homespun hospitality at a wooded, primitive campground with a gathering hall, bar and grill, small art and sewing room, outdoor games and its own pet pig. Bring your self-contained RV. On site are restrooms and showers. (251) 269-0178

ARIZONA’S GRAND CANYON ECHOES WITH CONCERTS

This year’s Grand Canyon Music Festival is scheduled for September 3 through 18, featuring grand performances of music ranging from Native American to chamber music. With the Grand Canyon as a backdrop, it’s a feast for the eyes as well as the ears. Any national park visit requires early and careful planning. Reservations are essential in the park or in nearby communities such as Williams. Trailer Village RV Campground in the park has full hook-ups.  Call (877) 444-6777 or go to Recreation.gov. For concert tickets call (928) 638-9215 or email info@grandcanyonmusicfest.org

CONNECTICUT CAMPGROUND HAS COWABUNGA! WEEKEND

It’s a cowboy weekend on August 21 at Witch Meadow Lake Family Campground in Salem. Music will be provided by Uncle John’s Clan, while kids and their parents do cowboy crafts, pose for photos in their sheriff vests, hunt for eggs in the chicken coop and play bingo. This family-friendly park parties all week with pool and sports events, crafts, game nights for grownups, big screen movies on Fridays, ceramics every Saturday, character lunches and more. A complete resort, the campground has a heated swimming pool, deli-style food service, a camp store, tennis courts, an adult lounge with free Wi-Fi, laundry, a lake to paddle or fish, and much more. Unplugged, on-site storage is free. (860) 859-1542

GEORGIA STATE PARK SERVES STORIES AND S’MORES

Be at Don Carter State Park, Gainesville, on July 31 for a campfire, s’mores and storytelling by a park naturalist. The Peach State’s newest state park is located on Lake Lanier. The park offers a swimming beach with bath house, trails through a hardwood forest for hikers and bikers, boat ramps, a gift shop and 44 RV sites. The event is $1 in addition to camping or parking fees. Call the park at (678) 450-7726 and make camping reservations at (800) 864-7275.

INDIANA STATE PARK REMEMBERS ITS HERITAGE

July 31 – August 1 are Heritage Days at Spring Mill State Park, Mitchell. See a quilt show and interpreter-guides in period dress. The park has four interpretive centers with programs and guides, so plan ahead because something is almost always happening here. Tour a pioneer village from the 1800s where a water flow that never froze allowed settlers to have gristmills, a wool mill, sawmill and a distillery. The park has 230 campsites, nine with full hook-ups and 175 with electric. More info here.

MISSOURI PEN INVITES PRISON BREAK

It’s time for the annual prison break at the historic Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City. Join the fun on August 28, when a three-mile course has to be completed before you’re an ex-con. You’ll get wet, muddy, tired and hornswoggled by the many obstacles that test your athletic skills. There’s a separate event for kids. Advance registration is required here. RV camping is at the nearby Binder Park RV Campground, or phone (573) 634-6482

NEBRASKA STATE PARK KNOWN FOR EDUCATION

Ponca State Park, Ponca, has a solid schedule of education programs in many fields from hunting and fishing to boating and birding. Be there on August 21 for Natural History and Habitat Days. Many activities, tours and speakers will focus on natural history, geology, wildflowers, pollinators, and the flora and fauna that make this area unique. Programs begin at 8.m. until 2 p.m. Located on the Missouri River bluffs northwest of Sioux City, the park is the eastern gate to the 59-mile section of the Missouri National Recreational River. The park has three campgrounds offering sites from full hook-ups to electric only. At some, water is available from spigots, not hookups. Some campgrounds are first-come. Call (402) 755-2284 or go here.

NEW YORK MUSIC FESTIVAL HAS LAKESIDE CAMPING

The Luminescence Music & Arts Festival, scheduled for August 6-9 in Afton, offers four campgrounds, some with electric hookups. Enjoy views of Echo Lake from many of the campsites. This initial festival is a feast of sound and light featuring bass and house music on three stages. Afton is a small town on the Susquehanna River northeast of Binghamton. Camping and festival tickets are bought separately.

OHIO CAMPGROUND CELEBRATES EVERYONE’S BIRTHDAY

Countryside Campground in Mogadore (west of Akron) has parties almost every weekend all summer. They want to make sure everyone gets a birthday party on August 14, no matter when your birthday actually occurs. The party starts at 11 a.m. with a Poker Walk ($1) for adults. After lunch there is a demonstration of the campground’s gem mine. Play Holy Board (like cornhole), show off your coloring craft, walk the Buckeye Trail, play pool in the rec center and play mini-golf free. Everyone meets for cake and ice cream at 6 p.m. The campground has back-in and pull-through campsites with 30-amp power by the night, week or month based on two people per site. Full hook-ups are also available. (330) 628-1212.

WASHINGTON CAMPGROUND FEATURES BASS OASIS

August 19-23 are the dates for the uber-amped Bass Oasis concert and camping experience at Sage Creek Campgrounds, Quincy. Attendees must be 21 and over. The Northwest’s best DJ’s and local artists play on two stages with 30,000 watts on the main stage. Another stage is in the campground, which has some full hook-up sites on a first-come basis. Purchase a four-day camping pass to enjoy a campsite, showers, the Cannabis Corner, splash pad and food trucks. Shuttle buses travel the grounds day and night to the Gorge Amphitheater, where performances go into the wee hours. Go here for info.

Stay Tuned
• Foxwoods Resort Casino, Mashantucket, Connecticut, said to be the largest casino complex in North America, is reportedly adding a campground with full hook-ups. Camping is available now but it’s in a parking lot with no hookups. An opening date for the campground has not been announced. The casino complex is also home to restaurants, shows and one of the largest Native American museums in the country,

• The campground at Sesquicentennial State Park, Columbia, South Carolina, was closed last December for renovations and is expected to be fully open by August 1. Call  1-866-345-PARK.

Read more of Janet Groene’s Campground and RV Park News here.

Janet Groene is the author of more than 25 books including Living Aboard Your RV, 4th Edition, available at Amazon.com. Her new Farley Halladay book, “May Misfire, a Yacht Yenta Mystery,” is available at Amazon.com and on all e-book platforms including Kindle, Nook, Google Play. See Janet Groene’s weekly Solo Woman posts at SoloWomanRV.

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