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Category: Places We’ve Been

Places we have been.

Hot Springs, SD

Hot Springs, SD

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Hot Springs

Hot Springs, South Dakota, has a rich history dating back to the Native American tribes who considered the area sacred for its thermal springs. The Lakota Sioux, Cheyenne, and other tribes believed in the healing properties of the warm waters. In the late 19th century, the town developed as a resort destination, attracting visitors seeking the therapeutic benefits of the natural hot springs. The establishment of the Evans Plunge, one of the oldest indoor swimming facilities in the U.S., in 1890 further boosted Hot Springs’ popularity. During World War II, the town served as a training center for the military. Today, Hot Springs remains a charming small town known for its historic architecture, natural beauty, and the Mammoth Site, a renowned paleontological site showcasing the remains of prehistoric mammoths.

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Bryan, TX

Bryan, TX

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Nice park with asphalt roads and paved sites
Like many parks, the overall layout forced us to park back on the pad and the porch didn’t align with our steps. These sites would work better for class A RVs.

Park Review – Hidden Creek RV Resort

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ 1/2
Location: Bryan, TX
Type: Commercial Park
Check-in/Check-out times: 1:00/11:00
Site Quality / Amenities: Sites are full hookup with 30/50A electrical service. Each site has a picnic table but nothing else.
Access: Just east of US-190 / TX-6 in Bryan, TX.
Staff: Friendly and efficient check-in process with lot’s of follow up prior to arrival.
Cellular/WiFi: The park had WiFi but we didn’t use it. Verizon service was good.
Restaurants: We ate at Casa Rodriguez Mexican Restaurant. We had eaten here a couple of years back and liked it but unfortunately it was not as good this time. We likely won’t try it again when we are back in the area.
Nearby parks: We did not look closely at any other parks during our stay but Hardy’s RV Resort and Aggieland RV Park right off US-190 / TX-6 might also bee good places to look at.
What we liked: This was a nice paved park with a good walking trail through the woods at the back of the park. Convenient to restaurants and stores in Bryan/College Station.
What we didn’t like: Could be somewhat difficult to get out of the park if traffic was heavy. Sites could be laid out a bit better.
Verdict: We would stay here again for a one or two night stop when travelling through the area.

Brownwood, TX

Brownwood, TX

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Site 23 – Basic no frills site but adjacent to the city park. Pecan Bayou river is just in front of the site.

Park Review – Riverside RV Park

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Location: Brownwood, TX
Type: I believe this is part of the City Park and possibly managed by a third party.
Check-in/Check-out times: 1:00/11:00
Site Quality / Amenities: Sites are full hookup with 30/50A service and no other amenities. There are separate bathrooms for men and women in the RV park.
Access: Easy access from US-84. Turn left onto Riverside Park Dr. and the RV sites are about 1/2 mile up on the right. Do not go into Riverside Park as some directions suggest.
Staff: There is no onsite staff. The park will text you on the day of arrival to confirm your reservation and site number. We did meet the person who texted us as he showed up when we were getting set up and he was nice and helpful with activities going on in town that night.
Cellular/WiFi: We had good Verizon service with speeds fast enough to stream. We did not set up our Starlink due to just an overnight stop but we likely would have had problems with it anyway due to limited north view because of trees.
Restaurants: We ate at the Cotton Patch Cafe which is just outside the park and it was decent but not necessarily unforgettable.
Nearby parks: We did not look at any other parks during our stay but Harlowe’s RV Park on the east end of town looks like it might be OK for a one night stay as well.
What we liked: The Pecan Bayou River flows right in front of the RV park, just 50 yards from the sites. There is a deck with chairs to sit out and enjoy the river. In addition the City of Brownwood also has a large city park adjacent to the RV park so there’s lots of room for a walk or to just get out and enjoy the outdoors. There are numerous opportunities nearby for food and stores like Walmart.
What we didn’t like: Many of the sites had issues like low tree limbs or other issues getting out of the sites.
Verdict: One of these sites should work for us 14, 15, 16, 18, 20, 21, 22, or 23. We were on site 23 this time. Do not pick a site below 14 with a big rig unless you can back out and then get turned around to exit because of a big dip in the road to get out of the sites. Any other site not listed above has trees that would likely be too low or might interfere with getting out of the site. This is a great park for a one night stopover or maybe even a few days.

Wheatland, WY

Wheatland, WY

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Park Review – El Rancho Village RV Park and Cabins

Site 24

Rating: ⭐⭐ 1/2
Location: Wheatland, WY
Type: Commercial Park
Check-in/Check-out times: 12:00/11:00
Site Quality / Amenities: Sites are full hookup with 30/50A service an no other amenities. There are mens and womens bathrooms/showers and a laundry. There are also 6 small cabins available for rent.
Access: Easy access from Interstate 25 at the Fish Creek Rd. exit. The park is alongside the interstate on the west side.
Staff: Friendly and efficient. We had pre-booked and pre-paid so check in took all of about minute.
Cellular/WiFi: The park had WiFi but we didn’t use it. We were at the north end of the park and the WiFi was likely at the office near the south end so the signal was weak. We had 3-4 bars ob Verizon and the speeds were OK at about 25 Mbps down and 8 Mbps up.
Restaurants: We did not eat out during out stay.
Nearby parks: We did not look at any other parks during our stay and there aren’t a lot of options in this area.
What we liked: Easy access to the park and it was exactly half way to our next major stop. Nice view of the mountains to the west.
What we didn’t like: A small amount of noise was detectable from the Interstate. Not much of anything to do in the immediate area but this makes a good overnight stay.
Verdict: We would stay here again for a one night stop when travelling through the area.

Rapid City, SD

Rapid City, SD

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Park Review – Rapid City / Black Hills KOA Holiday

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐1/2
Location:  Rapid City, SD
Type: Commercial Park
Check-in/Check-out times: 1:00/11:00
Site Quality / Amenities: Depends on the site you book. We were in an executive site that had asphalt roads and sites along with a concrete patio. Executive sites have nice patio furniture and a fire ring.
Access: Easily accessible from Interstate 90 and Bypass 16 on the east side of Rapid City.
Staff: The staff was friendly although they needed more folks for the check-in rush.
Cellular/WiFi: Verizon was very fast – I had 5Guw most of the time and download speeds were typically about 366 Mbps with upload speeds of about 21.6 Mbps.
Restaurants: Jambonz Deux – Serves contemporary Louisiana cuisine that is actually pretty good for the area. On the Border – Mexican chain serving about as close to Tex-Mex as we could hope in South Dakota.
Nearby parks: We didn’t have time to explore any other RV parks in the area.
What we liked: The executive sites in the park are very nice, superb for a KOA but they are pricey. There are lots of places to shop in Rapid City including two Walmarts and a Sam’s Club.
What we didn’t like: Much of the KOA was very similar to others, a bit too packed in and not particularly great. Rapid City had much more to offer as far as stores and restaurants than Spearfish but it is more crowded, felt a bit less safe and was not as intimate. It’s still a relatively small town but we prefer the Spearfish vibe a bit more.
Verdict: We could see staying here again for maybe a week but if we wanted to be in the area for longer we’d prefer Spearfish.