We stayed at Lake Dardanelle State Park in Russellville, Arkansas. (Campground Reviews listing.)
A delightful lake and campground. The nuclear power station across the lake was totally fine.
Dates:
- Check in: 2023-10-22
- Check out: 2023-10-29
- 7 night
Weather:
- Cloudy, rain on last few days
- High temps ranging between 74-82°F, lows around 59-66°F
- Negligible wind
Noise:
- No road noise
- Distant train noise (across lake), minimal horns
- A little neighbor noise
Site:
- #1, back in, asphalt
- Needed to disconnect toad, parked in front
- A little unlevel side-to-side; used hydraulic jacks
- Asphalt driveway about 60 feet long by about 12 feet wide
- No site on passenger side; grass and big trees, about 30 feet wide
- Grass and big trees on driver site, about 40 feet wide
- Concrete patio, about 20 x 12 feet, with picnic table and charcoal grill
- Fire pit
- Two tent pads
- Clean site
Utilities:
- 50 amp power, super-conveniently located
- 65 PSI water, super-conveniently located
- Unthreaded sewer connection, somewhat conveniently located (2 10-foot pipes needed)
Internet (in usage priority order):
- T-Mobile: 55 Mbps down, 17-37 Mbps up, 68 ms ping
- Verizon: 25 Mbps down, 18-24 Mbps up, 98 ms ping
- AT&T: 105 Mbps down, 15 Mbps up, 70 ms ping
- Starlink: not used
- Campground Wi-Fi: none
Amenities:
- Trash and recycling bins nearby
- Lake
Our review on Campground Reviews:
Delightful state park by a lake
We had a back-in site on Loop A, with a nice view of trees and the lake…and the nuclear reactor cooling tower. This is fine. We were also there during the monthly testing of the emergency evacuation siren. This was also fine. Other than that, it was pretty peaceful. The site was a bit unlevel side-to-side, but not too bad. Walking by the lake and taking the trails through the forest was pleasant. We would absolutely stay here again and try to get sites 10, 12, 14, or 16 that back onto the lake. We camped at Lake Dardanelle State Park in a Motorhome.
Campground map:
An interactive map (you may need to scroll it, as the campground might be off the top of the map; look for Campsite Road opposite Ramp Loop):
Our site:
We used our pop-up tent, as there were some bugs (though not as bad as some places):
There was a tent pad connected to the site by a short path (a little hard to see under the leaves):
The power and water utilities were super-convenient; the power was right next to the power on our coach, and the water was right next to the wet bay. The sewer needed two 10 foot hoses, which is fine:
The site post, with a rotating Reserved/Available sign, and a yellow note we added to let the camp host know we’d checked in:
The leveling control panel when we first arrived, showing a side-to-side slope:
Other sites:
This pull-through site at the end of the road, #16, would probably be the best site, with unobstructed water views:
This (#14) would also be an excellent choice:
A Tiffin Allego Bus in site #12:
Another nice site (#10):
Garbage and recycling bins near our site:
The lake:
Nuclear One across the lake; it actually has two power plants — the first uses the lake water for cooling, and the second uses this cooling tower:
Evacuation sign:
Lots of squirrels roaming the grounds:
Swampy area:
A blue heron, swallowing a fish:
Bathrooms under construction:
The nearby marina:
Meadowbrook trail:
Sunset:
A very nice state park. We’d be happy to stay here again, hopefully in one of the sites at the end of the road (see the pictures above).
