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[JimRRides]

Campground Visit last weekend

I spent some time in La Crosse this past weekend and have a quick visit to Pettibone Resort and Goose Island.

The bad news is they are currently flooded. Not horribly so but enough that I couldn't even drive out to Goose Island and about 1/3 to 1/2 of the sites at Pettibone were inundated. That's life on the Mississippi. They certainly should be dry and usable by STAR.

I got a look at Pettibone and it is not an overly large commercial campground. The facilities seen well maintained and there is a huge paved lift next to their banquet center if you need space to load or unload trailers and RVs. Although it is on the opposite side of the river from the STAR hotel it is actually very easy and quick to get to. The bridge has a pedestrian walkway and if you were so inclined it only took me about 20 m8ns to walk from the riverfront by the hotel to Pettibone and about half of that is down the riverwalk.

When I pulled in off of Hwy 35 toward Goose Island I was stopped by several people hauling what looked like fishing shacks and boats out of the area. Water was over the access road, so I didn't get back in to see the grounds however my impression from speaking with the people on the road was that the clientele can vary but it often includes fishers and hunters and folks wanting to get just outside of town so they can party however they want. They may have been exaggerating but still....

I'm not camping this trip but if I were I'd choose Pettibone Resort.

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[HawkGTRider]

Campground Visit last weekend
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I'm not camping this trip but if I were I'd choose Pettibone Resort.

It's probably a little further away than Pettibone Resort, but I have a reservation at Great River Bluffs State Park (looks to be ~1/2 hour away on the Minnesota side of the river). My guess is that being up on a bluff will eliminate the flooding issue for that location.

The commercial campgrounds are ok, but I have to admit I kind of like the more laid back atmosphere of a state park or National Forest Service campground. Generally fewer amenities but potentially lots less people. I've seen too many commercial campgrounds that were not much more than an open field other than the bounce pavilion built to keep the hordes of small children amused.

I went down to Helen, GA a couple of weekends back for the North Georgia Classic. I took my camping kit and set up at a National Forest Service campground about 5 miles north of Helen. There was another NFS campground right next to the paved road coming in from the north, but my location was a bit closer and 2.5 miles up a gravel road. I suspect either location would have been fine. The one next to the paved road might have given me faster access to Helen (I poke along on gravel) but a little more traffic noise. I was far enough out of Helen that there was little to no light pollution, with only 13 sites it was quiet, and the starry nights were stunning.