Day 8 - College Corner to Wapakoneta

The day started as overcast. The sun broke through around 11am and gave us a great day for 174 miles of exploring. We visited Kiser Lake and Indian Lake campgrounds.

We've tried to travel country roads whenever possible. It gives us the opportunity to enjoy the sights. The flowering trees (redbud, dogwood, etc.) and wildflowers have been special treats.

We're camped at Wapakoneta KOA. We need to fill propane and water tanks. This is a convenient place to do both. The location also assures we'll have phone and internet service.

Wapakoneta KOA

Site 8

A volunteer camp host let us know that Indian Lake State Campground is the 2nd busiest in the state.  

We head for Lake St. Marys, Lake Loramie and Van Buren campgrounds tomorrow.

Kiser Lake

Region: Northwest

Campground: Kiser Lake State Campground

Address: 4889 North State Route 235, Conover, OH 45317

GPS Coordinates: N 40° 11' 10.38", W 83° 57' 48.70"

Access:

Take OH-235 to entrance.
Entrance & access roads are paved & in good condition.

Electric camp sites

Swimming Beach

Rating: _ Exceptional  X Nice  _ Not so nice

Site Services: (number of sites)

Electric     108  no electric

             0    20 amp

             0    20/30 amp

             10   20/30/50 amp

Water        0           

Full Service 0

Site Amenities:

Parking Pad     electric sites are paved, pull-thrus

Fire Ring       yes

Picnic Table    yes

On Grounds:

Potable Water   ?

Dump            yes

Flush Toilets   no   

Latrines        yes

Showers         no

Other Amenities:

Amphitheater    yes       Laundry         no
Archery Range   no        Miniature Golf  no
Basketball      yes       Mt. Bike Trail  no
Bike Path       no        Nature Center   yes
Boat Ramp       yes       Playground      yes
Boat Rental     yes       Shelter House   yes
Bridal Trails   yes       Shooting Range  no
Camp Store      no        Swimming
Disc Golf       no             Beach      yes
Golf Course     no             Pool       no
Hiking Trails   yes       Volleyball      yes
Horseshoes      yes       Wi-Fi           no

Favorite sites:
55,58-61

Pros:

_

Cons:

No water at sites.
Site access roads are narrow.  
It's difficult to enter/exit sites without cutting onto grass.

Area Attractions:

Kiser Lake Wetlands Nature Preserve
Simon Kenton Historic Corridor
Cedar Bog
Ohio Caverns
Air Force Museum in Dayton

Comments:
Small, but attractive.

Indian Lake

Region: Northwest

Campground: Indian Lake State Campground

Address: 12774 State Route 235 N, Lakeview, OH 43331

GPS Coordinates: N 40° 29' 46.71", W 83° 52' 37.86"

Access:

From OH-235.
Entrance & access roads are paved and in very good condition.

Entrance

Camp Sites

Waterfront Camp Sites

Rating: _ Exceptional  X Nice  _ Not so nice

Site Services: (number of sites)

Electric     0    no electric

             0    20 amp

             0    20/30 amp

             443  20/30/50 amp

Water        0          

Full Service 13

Site Amenities:

Parking Pad     paved

Fire Ring       yes

Picnic Table    yes

On Grounds:

Potable Water   yes

Dump            yes

Flush Toilets   yes   

Latrines        no

Showers         yes

Other Amenities:

Amphitheater    yes       Laundry         yes
Archery Range   no        Miniature Golf  yes
Basketball      yes       Mt. Bike Trail  ____
Bike Path       yes       Nature Center   yes
Boat Ramp       yes       Playground      yes
Boat Rental     yes       Shelter House   no
Bridal Trails   no        Shooting Range  no
Camp Store      yes       Swimming
Disc Golf       no             Beach      yes
Golf Course     no             Pool       no
Hiking Trails   yes       Volleyball      yes
Horseshoes      yes       Wi-Fi           no

Favorite sites:
D43-D55 are full service, D48 is the favorite.
D30,D35,D36,D37

Pros:

Lots of large, well-tended grassy areas.
Parking pads are long and level.

Cons:

Lots of standing water during rainy season.

Area Attractions:

Zane Caverns
Ohio Caverns
Mad River Mountain
Piatt Castles, Mac-A-Cheek, Mac-O-Chee
Lake Loramie State Park
Grand Lake St. Marys State Park
Gross Woods State Nature Preserve

Comments:
This is the 2nd busiest state campground.

Day 7 - Hilliard to College Corner

Today was full of surprises.

We awoke to rain and waited until it stopped at 10am before starting to load up. We got packed and on the road by 11:30.  The sun broke through by noon and stayed with us most of the day.

The Route …

Our 171 mile route took us by Springfield, Yellow Springs, Dayton and Oxford.  We visited Buck Creek, John Bryan and Hueston Woods state campgrounds.  We ended the day camped in site A13 at Hueston Woods.

Buck Creek …

This campground was a surprise and a delight. We hadn’t heard of it before.  It turned out to be one of the nicest we’ve seen.  The grounds are beautifully maintained.   The sites are large and level.

Young’s Dairy …

We stopped for a late lunch at Young’s Dairy near Yellow Springs.  This event wasn't a surprise, but it was a delight. 

Carol had "Cow Pie" ice cream.  It had double the amount of chocolate they put in their regular chocolate ice cream and all kinds of yummy-munchy things in it.  Dick had plain-o, plain-o coffee ice cream.

They include lots of fun with their ice cream.

Hueston Woods …

This campground was a surprise, but not a delight.  We had heard of it before and knew it offered lots of amenities.  It didn’t meet our expectations.  Access road surfaces are starting to deteriorate.  Most of the sites with electric service are short and far from level … the worst we’ve seen.  We couldn’t have leveled our trailer on many. 

Loops A & B are the best choice for large RVs.  This area has pull-through sites that are fairly level.

Site A-13

The Evening …

Storm clouds moved in from the southwest in the late afternoon and rain squalls started around 6:30pm.  It looks like we’ll have rain on and off through the night.

Our final surprise was that we had no Verizon cell phone coverage in the campground.  So, we’re kind’a roughing it with no phone calls, no internet, no email and no blog posts.

Buck Creek

Region: Southwest

Campground: Buck Creek State Campground

Address: 1901 Buck Creek lane, Springfield, OH 45502

GPS Coordinates: N 39° 58' 7.56", W 83° 43' 53.81"

Access:
Take Exit 62 on I-70.
Go west on US-40, turn right on North Bird Road.
North Bird Road becomes Buck Creek Lane and ends at the park.
Entrance and access roads are paved and in excellent condition.

Entrance

Wide access roads

Nice sites

Rating: X Exceptional  _ Nice  _ Not so nice

Site Services: (number of sites)

Electric     22   no electric

             0    20 amp

             89   20/30 amp

             0    20/30/50 amp

Water        0           

Full Service 0

Site Amenities:

Parking Pad     paved, level and fairly long

Fire Ring       yes

Picnic Table    yes

On Grounds:

Potable Water   yes

Dump            yes

Flush Toilets   yes   

Latrines        no

Showers         yes

Other Amenities:

Amphitheater    yes       Laundry         yes
Archery Range   no        Miniature Golf  no
Basketball      yes       Mt. Bike Trail  no
Bike Path       yes       Nature Center   yes
Boat Ramp       yes       Playground      yes
Boat Rental     no        Shelter House   yes
Bridal Trails   yes       Shooting Range  no
Camp Store      yes       Swimming
Disc Golf       yes            Beach      yes
Golf Course     no             Pool       no
Hiking Trails   yes       Volleyball      yes
Horseshoes      yes       Wi-Fi           no

Favorite sites:
10,11,12,13,18

Pros:

Wide, paved internal roads.
Nice spacing between sites.
They also offer bike rentals, tetherball and shuffleboard.

Cons:

No water at sites.

Area Attractions:

Kiser Lake State Park
John Bryan State Park
Madison Lake State Park
Cedar Bog State Nature Preserve
Siegenthaler Esker and Kiser Lake Wetlands

Comments:
We really liked this campground.

John Bryan

Region: Southwest

Campground: John Bryan State Campground

Address: 3790 State Route 370, Yellow Springs, OH 45387

GPS Coordinates: N 39° 47' 26.16", W 83° 51' 18.75"

Access:

Take OH-370, south off OH-343.
Access and internal roads are paved and in good condition.

Entrance

Shelter House

Electric sites 6 & 7

Rating: _ Exceptional  X Nice  _ Not so nice

Site Services: (number of sites)

Electric     90   no electric

             0    20 amp

             0    20/30 amp

             10   20/30/50 amp

Water        0           

Full Service 0

Site Amenities:

Parking Pad     electric sites are paved & level
                non-electric sites are gravel & grass

Fire Ring       yes

Picnic Table    yes

On Grounds:

Potable Water   yes

Dump            yes

Flush Toilets   no   

Latrines        yes

Showers         no

Other Amenities:

Amphitheater    yes       Laundry         no
Archery Range   no        Miniature Golf  no
Basketball      yes       Mt. Bike Trail  yes
Bike Path       no        Nature Center   yes
Boat Ramp       yes       Playground      yes
Boat Rental     no        Shelter House   yes
Bridal Trails   no        Shooting Range  no
Camp Store      no        Swimming
Disc Golf       no             Beach      no
Golf Course     no             Pool       no
Hiking Trails   yes       Volleyball      yes
Horseshoes      no        Wi-Fi           no

Favorite sites:
6,7

Pros:

Peaceful.

Cons:

No water at sites.
Non-electric sites aren't appropriate for RVs.

Area Attractions:

Blue Jacket Outdoor Drama
Clifton Mill
Wright Patterson Air Force Museum
Galloway Cabin
Glen Helen Nature Preserve
Buck Creek State Park
Caesar Creek State Park
Little Miami State Park
Spring Valley Wildlife Area
Clifton Gorge State Nature Preserve

Comments:
Very pretty.
The area attractions are unique.

Hueston Woods

Region: Southwest

Campground: Hueston Woods State Campground

Address: 6301 Park Office Road, College Corner, OH 45003

GPS Coordinates: N 39° 34' 23.32", W 84° 44' 36.19"

Access:
Use OH-732 or OH-177.
Entrance and access roads are paved. 

Entrance

Area D & E camp sites

Lots of sloped sites

Rating: _ Exceptional  _ Nice  X Not so nice

Site Services: (number of sites)

Electric     236  no electric

             0    20 amp

             252  20/30 amp

             0    20/30/50 amp

Water        0          

Full Service 0

Site Amenities:

Parking Pad     paved - many aren't level

Fire Ring       yes

Picnic Table    yes

On Grounds:

Potable Water   yes

Dump            yes

Flush Toilets   yes  

Latrines        yes

Showers         yes

Other Amenities:

Amphitheater    no        Laundry         yes
Archery Range   yes       Miniature Golf  yes
Basketball      yes       Mt. Bike Trail  yes
Bike Path       no        Nature Center   yes
Boat Ramp       yes       Playground      yes
Boat Rental     yes       Shelter House   yes
Bridal Trails   yes       Shooting Range  no
Camp Store      yes       Swimming
Disc Golf       yes            Beach      yes
Golf Course     yes            Pool       no
Hiking Trails   yes       Volleyball      yes
Horseshoes      yes       Wi-Fi           yes (at store)

Favorite sites:
Area A & B are best for RVs.

Pros:

Offers lots of amenities.

Cons:

No water at sites.
Site parking pads.
Entrance & access roads are beginning to deteriorate.

Area Attractions:

McGuffey House & Museum
Sharon Woods Gorge

Comments:
This campground is showing its age.
Many of the site parking pads are short and not level.
Site selection for RVs is risky unless you've seen it.

Hilliard (day 4)

Assuming we have an accurate forecast, today's weather conditioned us for the next few days. It rained steadily through noon and remained gloomy the rest of the day.

We spent the day doing home stuff and preparing for Annabelle's birthday party.

Grandma is ready

The cake is, too.

The family clan arrived at 6pm for a spaghetti dinner complete with cake, candles, ice cream and gifts.  Annabelle was "higher than a kite".  At the age of 9 she really likes getting older. Hmm, the grandparents wonder when that outlook changes?

We head out to the western part of the state tomorrow.

Hilliard (day 3)

This is day 7 of our trip and we didn't do anything "trip-like". The trailer is waiting patiently in our Hilliard storage lot and we're at home doing family things.

Today was a beautiful, sunny day.

We attended church in the morning.

We went to a Columbus Children's Choir concert in the afternoon. Donna is in the Santa Maria Choir and Annabelle is in the Isabella Choir. Both choirs performed in front of a packed house at the Upper Arlington High School auditorium. The concert included six choirs. Of course Donna and Annabelle were the main attractions ... for us.

We celebrate Annabelle's birthday tomorrow and will get back on the road Tuesday.

Day 6 - Hilliard (day 2)

The day began with overcast and light rain. The clouds gave way to sunshine by mid day.

We headed out at 10am to view three nearby campgrounds ... Alum Creek, Delaware and Mt. Gilead. They were very different, but provided very good options for an outing with our trailer.

We got home about 4pm.

About the campground reports ...
Our concept of campground reporting has changed since the idea was conceived. We originally planned to report just what we saw. Somewhere along the way we decided it would be fun to also interpret what we saw. Opinions (pros, cons and comments) and a Campground Scorecard crept into the reporting. We should have offered a disclaimer earlier. It's presented below.

We've heard there are two types of RVers ... "campers" and "travelers". We've come to realize that we prefer to be "travelers" and that our opinions reflect the preference. Our priorities revolve around getting from Point A to Point B.  They include arriving safely and comfortably at Point B. The destination campground obviously plays a big part in our enjoyment of the journey.

Our Airstream trailer is pretty small (just 23' long). There are very few places we haven't been able to take it in the past six years.  That being said, we don't want to abuse it or ourselves.

We prefer not to:
    - Drive on narrow, rough roads
    - Boondock more than 3 days

We prefer a campground that is:
    - Relatively near our travel route
    - Clean and safe

We prefer to have a site with:
    - Clearance to park safely
    - A level parking space
    - 30 amp electrical service (this is our most important utility)
    - Water (this is our 2nd most important utility)
    - Some privacy (space between sites)
    - Access to flush toilets and showers

As "travelers",  we are usually too busy or tired at the end of the day to make use of most other campground amenities.

These preferences shape our opinion of the campgrounds we visit. 

Alum Creek

Region: Central

Campground: Alum Creek State Campground

Address: 3615 South Old State Road, Delaware, OH 43015

GPS Coordinates: N 40° 14' 38.02", W 82° 57' 24.86"

Entrance

Site G29

Swimming beach

Access:

Access and internal roads are paved and in good condition.

Rating: _ Exceptional  X Nice  _ Not so nice

Site Services: (number of sites)

Electric     0    no electric

             0    20 amp

             0    20/30 amp

             286  20/30/50 amp

Water        0        

Full Service 3

Site Amenities:

Parking Pad     paved - long & level

Fire Ring       yes

Picnic Table    yes

On Grounds:

Potable Water   yes

Dump            yes

Flush Toilets   yes

Latrines        yes

Showers         yes

Other Amenities:

Amphitheater    yes       Laundry         no
Archery Range   no        Miniature Golf  no (planned)
Basketball      yes       Mt. Bike Trail  no
Bike Path       yes       Nature Center   yes
Boat Ramp       yes       Playground      yes
Boat Rental     yes       Shelter House   no
Bridal Trails   yes       Shooting Range  no
Camp Store      yes       Swimming
Disc Golf       yes            Beach      yes
Golf Course     no             Pool       no
Hiking Trails   yes       Volleyball      yes
Horseshoes      yes       Wi-Fi           yes (at store)

Favorite sites:
E4,E6,E8,G27,G29,G30,G33

Pros:
Nice sites - wooded, well separated.
Picnic tables are in better shape than in most campgrounds.

Cons:
No water at site.
Dumpsters right next to sites.

Area Attractions:
Delaware State Park
Olentangy Caverns
Highland Banks Metro Park
Little Brown Jug harness race
Columbus Zoo
Ohio Historical Society & Village

Comments:
Campground is nicely isolated from traffic noise.

Delaware

Region: Central

Campground: Delaware State Campground

Address: 5202 US Route 23 North, Delaware, OH 43015

GPS Coordinates: N 40° 23' 11.40", W 83° 3' 28.85"

Park entrance at US-23

Park entrance road

It's about 2 miles to the
campground office.

Campground entrance road

Campground office & store

One of many camping loops

Site 156

Marina

Access:
Off US-23 just north of Delaware.
Access and internal roads are paved and in good condition.

Rating: X Exceptional  _ Nice  _ Not so nice

Site Services: (number of sites)

Electric     0    no electric

             0    20 amp

             0    20/30 amp

             211  20/30/50 amp

Water        0           

Full Service 0

Site Amenities:

Parking Pad     paved - long & level

Fire Ring       yes

Picnic Table    yes

On Grounds:

Potable Water   yes

Dump            yes

Flush Toilets   yes   

Latrines        no

Showers         yes

Other Amenities:

Amphitheater    yes       Laundry         yes
Archery Range   no        Miniature Golf  no
Basketball      yes       Mt. Bike Trail  no
Bike Path       no        Nature Center   yes
Boat Ramp       yes       Playground      yes
Boat Rental     yes       Shelter House   yes
Bridal Trails   no        Shooting Range  no
Camp Store      yes       Swimming
Disc Golf       yes            Beach      yes
Golf Course     no             Pool       no
Hiking Trails   yes       Volleyball      yes
Horseshoes      yes       Wi-Fi           no

Favorite sites:
101-103, 118, 119, 147, 156

Pros:
Site spacing is excellent.

Cons:
No water at site.

Area Attractions:
Delaware Wildlife Area
Alum Creek State Park
Seymour Woods State Nature Preserve
Olentangy Caverns
Little Brown Jug harness race
Columbus Zoo
Highbanks Metro Park
Ohio Historical Society & Village

Comments:
More open than Alum Creek.
Campground is very large. 2 miles from entrance to campground.