Lisa-Anne W.
Yelp
PARENTS: Don't stay here! There is an infestation of wasps/yellowackets that are super aggressive. We fled after our kids were stung just standing still. We couldn't cook, we couldn't eat. There were not thousands but HUNDREDS of thousands of these "bees." The sound of them was so loud in the morning it was scary. It was like being in a Hitchcock movie! As we were arriving, the campers across the way hurriedly gave us their wood and advised us to get out. They used the word "flee." Most of the campground was empty, as people came, stayed maybe one night (the bees go to bed about 8:30) and then fled. The rangers are really angry because everyone is asking for refunds. Screened in shelters were no use. Two families of us ended up having to get hotel rooms to finish out our planned vacation. This campground has quite a scam going! They let people drive in and find an empty spot without reservations (because so many spots were paid for and then abandoned!) knowing that the new people will likely flee, too. We watched one man hose down his entire site with some toxic insecticide and he still ended up being chased out. The three sites across from us were abandoned twice while we were there. All over the campground, kids were screaming at all hours from the bees.
This was the worst experience we've ever had. (And we've camped many places, and always had a great time!)
Also cons:
Some new bathrooms, most are still very bad and not maintained, run out of paper, etc. They just put yellow caution tape over them. The door fell off the hinges at the old bathroom near us, and they never bothered to fix it.
Showers are pricey, and the first two-three minutes you waste because the water takes that long to warm up. Then it gets very inconsistent...freeze, scald, freeze, scald. The accessible shower was nice, but with the way the water was, a person in a wheel chair could be seriously burned!
Edited to add: Showers are turned OFF on Tuesday/Thursdays, and it's a very dirty/dusty campground. They don't mention that on the website, so plan accordingly!
Rangers have SERIOUS attitude. Never seen the like and we stay in California State campgrounds very often. Never had any unpleasant interaction before.
Some sites listed for 8 people will not hold even a small tent. Some sites right next to it could hold 4 or 5 10x16 tents, also listed for 8 people. It's a total crapshoot. We drove around and realized that this campground is so very badly laid out and not well described that it's ridiculous. Also, they are NOT using the numbering system that you might read about on their website. You actually get the numbers you reserved on the Reserve America site. The Ranger said, "Oh, we're not even going to use that website next year, they keep doing things we are not authorizing." (Which website, the CA State Gov one or Reserver America? I think he was just making stuff up.)
This is a beautiful place and should have been an ideal vacation. But we had to pack up all our food and go into S.L.T. to a park (Bijou is nice, if you find yourself needing a place to go!) just to be able to make sandwiches. We never could cook our "proteins" on the campfire because the bees were SO aggressive.
This is a DANGEROUS place if you or someone in your party have an allergy. Do yourself a favor...stay somewhere else. Anywhere else.
PS... I have a degree in Recreation and Outdoor Education. I'm no wimp, and I know how a facility should be run and maintained. This is a lawsuit waiting to happen.