When I started traveling in my camper, I made a reservation at a state park in Pennsylvania near some horse trails. I had volunteered to help a local horse club repair a part of their trail around the end of May. From there I planned to attend a Mother Earth Fair in Wisconsin the weekend after the Fourth of July. After making a reservation for this event in Wisconsin, I was left with a little over a month to wander westward. I decided I would find a campsite wherever it looked like there would be an opportunity to do some sight-seeing. Leaving Pennsylvania on a Monday, my first stop was in Conneaut, Ohio, where my grandparents had lived in an octagon house in the 1930s. I had no trouble finding a campground and stayed for an enjoyable week exploring the area and visiting the house.
Upon leaving Conneaut, I headed west on Route 6. Because of construction and detours, I found myself off track by that afternoon. Consulting my map, I found a state park not far off the route I was on and headed there. I figured I could at least stay a night and I had learned state parks have a percentage of sites you can reserve with the rest available on a “first come, first serve” basis. If you arrive after hours, you can pick any unreserved spot and put your money and registration form in a designated spot.
By the time I reached the park I had located, it was almost dark. It looked like it would rain any minute and tornado warnings were being broadcast over the local radio station. Finding a spot that was open that night but reserved for the weekend, I parked, unhooked my trailer, deposited my money and paperwork in the designated spot and climbed into my camper as the first raindrops fell.
The next morning I went to the office to see if I could stay the rest of the week there and leave Monday morning. Because the spot I was in was reserved for the weekend, I could only stay there until Thursday, but there was an open spot on the other side of the lake I could have. That being a simple thing to do, I reserved the other spot and moved my camper Friday morning. I had an enjoyable week swimming in the lake and hiking the trails while learning about a different environment than I had at home.
As the campground filled to capacity for the weekend, I suddenly realized the next week contained the Fourth of July. That meant I might have difficulty finding a campsite without a reservation. Taking out my map, I saw Indiana was my next state west so I looked for a state park along my intended route. When I called for a reservation, I was informed not a single spot was available. Asking where in Indiana was there an opening, I was told, “Well, we have two openings in Tippecanoe River State Park.”
Not even consulting my map to see where that was, I replied, “Now you only have one.”
Monday morning I packed up my camper and headed for Tippecanoe, Indiana, with my trusty map riding shotgun. I had no trouble finding the park and my campsite awaited me upon arrival. I had another enjoyable week hiking their beautiful trails, climbing to the top of their 90 foot fire tower (ever look down and see a bird flying below you?) and meeting new people.
After that, I still used a combination of reservations and “catch as catch can” for campsites, but if there was a holiday, I always made sure I had a reservation well in advance.
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