We stayed at Punderson State Park Campground in Newbury, Ohio. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A nice state park.

Dates:

• Check in: 2025-05-27
• Check out: 2025-06-01
• 5 nights

Weather:

• Mostly cloudy, some rain
• High temps 57-67°F, lows 41-54°F
• Some wind, gusts to 22 MPH

Noise:

• Some road noise
• No train horn noise
• Little neighbor noise
• Construction noise; building new facilities right next to our site

Site:

• #26, back-in, concrete
• Needed to disconnect toad, parked beside coach
• Unlevel site; high in front; used hydraulic leveling
• Concrete driveway about 40 feet long by 10 feet wide
• About 75 feet to neighbor on driver side
• No neighbor on passenger side
• Trees between sites
• Picnic table
• Fire pit
• Tall trees
• Clean site
• Elevation 1,140 feet, front facing NE

Utilities:

• 50 amp power, conveniently located
• 65 PSI water, very conveniently located
• Unthreaded sewer connection (just a hole, without any room for the sewer pipe elbow), very conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

• RoamLink: 18-25 Mbps down, 3 Mbps up, 80 ms ping (the RoamLink service picks the best network, so I’m not sure which one it used, other than not AT&T)
• AT&T: 60-75 Mbps down, 0.5-1.5 Mbps up, 45 ms ping (I have AT&T on my iPhone)
• Starlink: not used
• Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

• Garbage dumpsters

Our review on Campground Reviews:

Lovely park, working on expansion

Beautiful park with something for everyone. They’re currently working on expanding and improving the campsites, and we were located right next to the construction site, which wasn’t ideal during the day, but it was relatively quiet at night. Our back-in site was not very level, even if it was a new concrete pad. I don’t think the state of Ohio knows how to hire contractors who know how to use a level, because we had the same problem at West Branch State Park with a very sloped site. Otherwise, it was a nice site with good hookups and a lakefront setting. We camped at Punderson State Park in a Motorhome.

Tip for Other Campers: Mangia! Mangia! Italian restaurant was excellent and very popular with the locals. It’s a good sign when it’s hard to get a parking spot.

Campground map:

An interactive map:

Our site:

Utilities:

Sewer hole:

Construction near our site:

Bathrooms:

Other sites:

Tent site up a hill:

Cabin:

Pool by manor house:

Historic manor house:

A nice enough state park, other than the nearby construction, and not entirely level.

We stayed at Shipshewana Campground – South Park in Shipshewana, Indiana. (Campground Reviews listing.)

An overnight stop.

Dates:

• Check in: 2025-05-26
• Check out: 2025-05-27
• 1 night

Weather:

• Partly cloudy
• High temp 71°F, low 52°F
• A little wind, gusts to 19 MPH

Noise:

• Some road noise
• No train horn noise
• Little neighbor noise

Site:

• #105, pull-through, gravel
• Didn’t need to disconnect toad, and didn’t, since only one night
• Seemed like a level site; used air leveling, since only one night
• Gravel driveway about 75 feet long by 10 feet wide
• 15 feet to neighbors on both sides
• Picnic table
• Fire pit
• Small tree
• Clean site
• Elevation 910 feet, front facing North

Utilities:

• 50 amp power, very conveniently located
• DIdn’t use water or sewer, since only one night

Internet (in usage priority order):

• RoamLink: 43-52 Mbps down, 20 Mbps up, 118 ms ping (the RoamLink service picks the best network, so I’m not sure which one it used, other than not AT&T)
• AT&T: 17-38 Mbps down, 0.4 Mbps up, 100 ms ping (I have AT&T on my iPhone)
• Starlink: not used
• Campground Wi-Fi: not used

Amenities:

• Garbage dumpsters

Our review on Campground Reviews:

Fairly basic campground

We stayed here for one night on our way through Indiana. Easy in/out access, and the interior roads were easy to navigate. The sites were a bit narrow, but sufficient for a short stop. Our pull-through site was just long enough for our 40′ motorhome and tow vehicle without having to disconnect. We camped at Shipshewana Campground – South Park in a Motorhome.

Campground map:

An interactive map:

Our site:

Other sites:

Indoor pavilion and bathrooms:

Office:

Just an overnight stop, but seemed a decent enough campground, though the sites were a little tight.

We stayed at Traverse City KOA Holiday in Buckley, Michigan. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A fairly standard KOA, undergoing a major expansion.

Dates:

• Check in: 2025-05-18
• Check out: 2025-05-26
• 8 nights

Weather:

• Cloudy with a little rain
• High temps 47-62°F, lows 38-46°F
• Some wind, gusts to 26 MPH

Noise:

• Some road noise
• No train horn noise
• Little neighbor noise
• For part of the week, noise from earthworks on new campsites
• Plus compost smells from the topsoil when the wind came from that direction

Site:

• #140, pull-through, gravel
• Didn’t need to disconnect toad, parked in front of coach
• Mostly level site; a little high on driver side and front; used hydraulic leveling
• Gravel driveway about 100 feet long by 10 feet wide
• 25 feet to neighbor on passenger side
• No neighbor on driver side; about 15 feed to road
• Just grass between sites
• Patio table and chairs on concrete patio
• Fire pit
• Young trees
• Clean site
• Elevation 1030 feet, front facing NW

Utilities:

• 50 amp power, somewhat conveniently located
• 55 PSI water, somewhat conveniently located
• Good sewer connection, very conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

• Starlink: 218-260 Mbps down, 15-20 Mbps up, 40 ms ping
• T-Mobile: 500-560 Mbps down, 13-16 Mbps up, 30 ms ping
• Campground Wi-Fi: 30 Mbps down, 3-6 Mbps up, 10 ms ping
• AT&T: 33-77 Mbps down, 0.5-1.5 Mbps up, 65 ms ping
• Verizon: 25 Mbps down, 25 Mbps up, 35 ms ping

Amenities:

• Garbage pickup from site
• Pool
• Pizza, firewood, ice delivery to site
• Package delivery to office

Our review on Campground Reviews:

Decent KOA undergoing expansion

While we were in the park, they were in the process of doing earthmoving and site preparation for an additional 60 or so 50A full-hookup sites, some of which will be seasonal. As a result, we had to deal with construction noise and smell for a few days, which detracted from the experience. But the campground is nice, with some extra amenities and touches that made it stand out a bit from a typical KOA (pizza, wood, and ice delivery to your site, for instance). We had a deluxe patio site, which was about 100 feet long, so plenty long enough for our motorhome and tow vehicle (with room for another if we’d needed it). The patio had a table and chairs, as well as another seating area, even though it was too cold and rainy during our stay to want to sit outside much. We camped at Traverse City KOA Holiday in a Motorhome.

Tip for Other Campers: Venture into Traverse City: Rare Bird Brewery offers excellent food and beverages (the Schmackintosh cider is a favorite). The Omelette Shoppe offered delicious breakfast and brunch options.

Campground map:

An interactive map:

Our site:

A nice patio, that we didn’t use as the temperature was unseasonably cold during our stay:

Earthworks for new sites in front of our site:

Other sites:

Cabins:

Playground:

Jump pads:

Dog park:

Shade garden (which I added as a PokéStop for you Pokémon Go players out there!):

The construction noise and smells were a little annoying, but other than those, this was a nice enough campground; we’d be happy to stay here again in the future.

We stayed at Thousand Trails St Clair in St Clair, Michigan. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A nice Thousand Trails campground.

Dates:

• Check in: 2025-05-11
• Check out: 2025-05-18
• 7 nights

Weather:

• Mix of sunny and rainy
• High temps 67-81°F, lows 44-61°F
• Some wind, gusts to 27 MPH

Noise:

• Some freeway noise
• No train horn noise
• A bunch of neighbor noise (kids)

Site:

• #C21, pull-through, gravel
• Buddy site, with neighbor passenger side facing us on both sides (ugh)
• Didn’t need to disconnect toad, parked behind coach
• Fairly level site; high on passenger side; used hydraulic leveling
• Gravel driveway about 70 feet long by 8 feet wide
• 35 feet to neighbors on both sides
• Just grass between sites
• Picnic table
• Fire pit
• Some tall trees
• Somewhat clean site
• Elevation 620 feet, front facing due west

Utilities:

• 50 amp power, conveniently located
• 50 PSI very hard water, conveniently located
• Unthreaded sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

• Starlink: 130-300 Mbps down, 7-30 Mbps up, 30-40 ms ping
• T-Mobile: 380-430 Mbps down, 7 Mbps up, 75-210 ms ping, unreliable
• AT&T: 128-142 Mbps down, 2 Mbps up, 65 ms ping
• Verizon: 5 Mbps down, 0.5-7 Mbps up, 60 ms ping (our SIM has 5 Mbps max)
• Campground Wi-Fi: not used

Amenities:

• Garbage dumpsters
• Pool
• Package delivery to office, at no charge (uncommon for Thousand Trails nowadays)

Our review on Campground Reviews:

A Nice Thousand Trails Campground

This place was typical of an older Thousand Trails campground, but the communal areas looked new and well-maintained. Like all other TT properties, they have switched to assigned sites, which I prefer. A word of warning, however, because the map they have online when you click the link in your confirmation email is highly outdated. Our original assignment was B2, which, on the old map, was a 15A site, which would not suffice, and we had some angst about what we’d do if that were the case. Thankfully, the map on the website itself was an updated version and showed it as a 50A & water site. When we checked in, however, the lovely lady at the front desk informed us that we would be in C-18, which was a full-hookup site. I wasn’t too happy about it since all the pull-throughs are buddy sites (I’d rather not have a sewer connection than have a buddy site). However, she very sweetly moved us to C-21, which was still a buddy site but had larger grassy areas between the sites, so we weren’t cheek-by-jowl with our neighbors, so it all worked out.

One of the best things about this campground is that it is one of the few Thousand Trails campgrounds that 1) still accepts packages for guests, and 2) doesn’t charge for them. It’s also one of the rare TT campgrounds that provides the actual gate code in the pre-arrival email. This is because you need to let yourself in when you arrive and then check in at the welcome center. I’ve been conditioned by past experiences at TT campgrounds to be skeptical of those emails, so it came as a surprise when I needed the gate code upon arrival. We camped at Thousand Trails St Clair in a Motorhome.

Campground map; it says C18, but the check-in person told us C21 was better:

An interactive map:

Our site:

It was a buddy site, which we normally hate, but this wasn’t too bad, since there was a fair bit of space between the sites. Plus it was too cold to want to sit outside, so didn’t bother us too much:

Utilities:

Dusty truck (we did take it through a car wash after this, though it was dirty again a few days later from rain):

We added the Michigan sticker to states map, filling a hole:

Just the little NE states left:

Our original site assignment was here, next to that annual site; it would have been fine, but no sewer:

Other sites:

Office:

Playground:

Community campfire:

Little library and game:

Mini golf:

We’d be happy to stay here again.

We stayed at Thousand Trails Lake & Shore in Ocean View, New Jersey. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A fairly typical Thousand Trails campground, mostly full of park models and annual sites, with a small section for transients.

Dates:

• Check in: 2025-04-13
• Check out: 2025-04-20
• 7 nights

Weather:

• Partly sunny
• High temps 53-71°F, lows 40-56°F
• Some wind, gusts to 28 MPH

Noise:

• No road noise
• No train horn noise
• Some neighbor noise
• Industrial noise from a mine next to the campground during working hours (and sometimes overnight)

Site:

• #E16, back-in, sand
• Needed to disconnect toad, parked beside coach
• Unlevel site; high on rear and passenger side; used hydraulic leveling
• Sand site about 50 feet long by 45 feet wide
• Picnic table
• Fire pit
• Tall trees
• Somewhat clean site
• Elevation 20 feet, front facing NW

Utilities:

• 50 amp power, somewhat conveniently located at back of site
• 60 PSI water, somewhat conveniently located at back of site
• Good sewer connection, very conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

• T-Mobile: 430-630 Mbps down, 45 Mbps up, 19 ms ping
• AT&T: 220-280 Mbps down, 17 Mbps up, 58 ms ping
• Verizon: 5 Mbps down, 5 Mbps up, 25 ms ping (our SIM has 5 Mbps max)
• Starlink: not used
• Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

• Garbage dumpsters near entrance
• Pool
• Beach
• Water park

Our review on Campground Reviews:

Nice park close to Jersey Shore activities

Most of this park is occupied by annual sites/park models, with a small area for “transient” visitors like us. We arrived not long after they’d opened for the season, and there was a bit of a hassle as they adjusted to the new way of assigning sites. The gate that’s supposed to be used by RVs checking in was out of commission, so we had to go through the car gate, which doesn’t have a keypad high enough to reach from the RV. The girl at the front desk said she’d keep an eye out and let us in, but she’d obviously forgotten or gone somewhere else in the 5 minutes it took us to unhook the tow vehicle, so we were stuck. I saw at least one other camper have the same problem a couple of days later, as well.

Once we got to our site, it was long enough for our motorhome and wide enough to park beside it. The site was a little unlevel, but better than some others. Nice little lake and beach on the property, and during the hot months, I imagine the pool and splash pad areas are super busy. Trash disposal is very far from the camping area, so slightly inconvenient if you don’t have a golf cart or take it in your car when you go out. There was also some low hum of nearby industrial noise, but it wasn’t too loud inside the RV. We camped at Thousand Trails Lake & Shore in a Motorhome.

Campground map:

An interactive map:

Our site:

Our first new state of the year, we were able to add the New Jersey sticker to our map:

Lake and sunset:

Seasonally closed water park:

Other sites:

Nothing too exciting about it, but we wouldn’t mind staying here again.

We stayed at Cherry Hill Park in College Park, Maryland. (Campground Reviews listing.)

Our second stay here. We had originally planned to stay longer, but changed our plans to save money by staying for free at Thousand Trails parks instead. But we ended up here for one night anyway, to break up an otherwise too long travel day.

This is a very nice resort, convenient to the DC area, though this time was just a convenient stop on our journey north.

Dates:

• Check in: 2025-04-12
• Check out: 2025-04-13
• 1 night

Weather:

• Cloudy
• High temp 51°F, low 53°F
• Little wind, gusts to 22 MPH

Noise:

• Some freeway noise
• No train horn noise
• Negligible neighbor noise

Site:

• #616, pull-through, gravel
• Didn’t need to disconnect toad, and didn’t, since only one night
• Mostly level site; used air leveling, since only one night
• Gravel driveway about 70 feet long by 12 feet wide
• About 14 feet to neighbor on driver side (which was empty)
• About 40 feet to a road on passenger side
• Picnic table and patio table & chairs on a brick patio
• Fire pit
• Charcoal grill
• A small tree
• Clean site

Utilities:

• 50 amp power, fairly conveniently located
• Didn’t use the water or sewer, since only one night

Internet (in usage priority order):

• AT&T: 765 Mbps down, 36-50 Mbps up, 19-35 ms ping
• Campground Wi-Fi: didn’t use, but last time was 20 Mpbs down, 20 Mbps up, 8 ms ping
• Verizon: 5 Mbps down, 5 Mbps up, 38 ms ping
• T-Mobile: negligible service
• Starlink: not used

Amenities:

• Garbage bins
• Pools
• Onsite cafe and food delivery to site
• Package delivery to office
• Bus to DC mall
• Tour buses

Part of our review on Campground Reviews from our previous stay (omitting comments about the specific site):

Location, location, location!

If you want to visit the DC area with your motorhome, trailer, fifth-wheel, tent, or what-have-you, this is THE place to do it. It’s convenient to the Beltway and close to a Metro stop for all your sightseeing needs. They also offer tours from the campground, which is just the cherry on top. The campground is top-notch and well-kept, with all the amenities you could want (including food delivery right to your site), which is a plus on a travel day. […] We camped at Cherry Hill Park – Washington, D.C. In a Motorhome.

A handy campground map for getting to our site (though this was the wrong one for our specific site):

And on the other site, a map of campground features:

An interactive map:

Our site:

See our previous stay for more photos.

We’d be happy to stay here again.