Our Travels, where they have taken us

 For our last camping trip of the season we did a mid-week trip to Two Harbors, Burlington Bay Campground.  One of our favorite places to go unwind. Surprisingly the campground was full which we hadn’t experienced in the past doing a Tuesday through Friday trip but it is peak leaf viewing season.

If you come to Two Harbors you need to stop in at the Two Harbors Information Building, right on Hwy 61 adjacent to the Burlington Bay Campground. We do so everytime we stay here. The woman there is a delight to talk to. She is very knowledgeable and her goal is to make sure you have a good time while visiting the area. On our last trip here she told us about an event at Split Rock Lighthouse that was open to the public but not advertised.  Geared more as a time for the locals to experience the lighthouse without the tourists that would flock to the event if it was advertised.  A beautiful experience with live music and good food.  

This trip she was excited to give us some routes to view the leaves.that are off the beaten path when we told her we didn’t mind dirt roads.  Hwy 61 on the North Shore, in all its glory is not the best way to view the leaves.  We saw some spectacular views of color and Pat got some great pictures as the woods transition to the season of the sticks. 

We truly enjoy the area and highly recommend that you do some camping here.  Plan ahead as the sites fill months out, or call for any cancellations for short notice stays.  The nice thing about Burlington Bay Campground is that even when its full, you don’t feel crowded.   

Our friends Joe and Kathy, whom we do a great deal of camping are members of a motorcycle group through their church.  The do weekly rides and usually one or two longer multiday trips. They have always invited us to participate and we have done several of the long trips with them.  A great group of people.  This years trip was to Lanesboro, MN  Eagle Cliff Campground.  

The campground is very well maintained and was close to full on the weekend.  They have nice size sites, and hotel rooms for travelers that don't camp which can make it nice for a group.  We have camped here before and will again.  

We had good weather and a good time was had by all.  Nothing better than doing something you like to do with people of the same mindset.  The area has much to offer, canoeing and tubing on the Root River and miles of bicycle trails.  Lanesboro has unique shops, restaraunts, ice cream shop, and brewery to name a few.  They have community theater so that is always an option if you are looking for things to do.  

This year the group did an Amish Tour. It was about three hours and they all were talking about it for some time afterwards.  Eagle Cliff Campground. 

We spent a three day weekend at the Stoney Creek Campground and Resort in Osseo, WI.  it was a very nice campground, Very large but the way it is laid out you don't really feel that it is as big as it really is.  The facillity is family oriented with many daily events for all ages.  There is a pool and a large swimming pond with floats anchored floats for  users to climb on.  There is mini golf, laser tag, Corn Cob boards, concessions, volleball court, skate park and playground.  If your kids get bored here, there is something wrong with them.  

There is a fee for golf and laser tag but can buy an inclusive wristband that allows you to do anyting you want for your stay.  At $18 it pays for itself wiht a couple rounds of mini golf and one session of laser tag.  

The cost of the campsites are on the high side but you feel you are getting your moneys worth due to the size and cleanliness of the campground.  There are cabins for rent for those that don't like to camp.  They also rent golf carts for up to $100 per day.  A luxury not really needed since nothing is to far of a walk.  You get the feel that they take thier resort seriously from the minute you arrive.  Pleasant people working the gate and the customized map to your site, you realize they want you to have a good time.   

We had a group of 5 families in our group..  Reservations have already been made for next year. Give it a try, I think you'd like it.   Stoney Creek Campground.   

We spent the 4th of July weekend at the Lake Neshonoc Campground with friends.  The weather wasn’t the best with lots of rain but we made the best of it.  The property is nice and the sites are good size per unit. We have a 39 foot 5th wheel and had a hard time getting into our site. The site was deep enough for the rig but the road width is very narrow.  With campers and vehicles in the sites across from ours it was very difficult to get backed into the site without having someone move their truck.   There were plenty of other sites on the property with much easier access to  them. The staff needs to do a better job of determining your site based on the size of your rig. We started off the weekend with some frustration getting in.

During the reservation process you don’t have the ability to pick a specific spot, you are assigned as your check in date approaches.  I am not a fan of that process, especially when I have some  familiarity  with a campground. We usually have preferred sites we know we want and others we don’t want. We look for ease of access and proximity to friends or amenities. If we come back here we will definitely be booking over the phone to avoid the issue we had getting into the site.

The campground is clean and well maintained.  They have two pools but one was out of commission.  According to some seasonal folks we talked to, they are not going to repair the pool so there will be just the one.  We did use the pool and it is very nice. Heated, large deck area with a covered pavilion. The pool was very crowded. There are over 250 sites and it is definitely a family campground so understandable that the pool was heavily used. Having two pools would be the smart move for the campground, but I am not paying the bills so I will leave it at that. As I mentioned, it was a holiday weekend and the campground was near capacity. 

The campground is close to town, within biking distance so you can pick up your last minute needs very easily. There is access to bike trails a short distance from the campground.  If you don’t mind riding on the shoulder of a highway for about a mile you can get to the trails from the campground.  

The campground was very quiet which was surprising with the number of sites they have. There are a lot of golf carts here. The road our site was on is on the main path to the pool for over half of the campground so the traffic during the day was noticeable and sometimes annoying.  Rates are a little high in my book with most sites over one hundred dollars per night.  

The Rice family, not sure if they are the owners or seasonal renters, sponsored an impressive fireworks show for the 4th. It lasted almost an hour and they had the big stuff, not the type that you get at the seasonal pop up fireworks stands, so that was a very nice surprise. 

We came with friends and had a good time, and may come back again with some family. They have cabins available which is a nice feature as not all of our kids have an RV and prefer the cabin style of living.  Lake Neshonoc Campground

We  made another trip to the Burlington Bay Campground in Two Harbors, MN.  It is one of, if not our favorite campgrounds.  You just can’t beat the view overlooking Lake Superior and less than three hours from home.  At 47 degrees it’s cool here but the sun is making an appearance so it will definitely warm things up as the day passes.  

We like the serenity here.  The town, while having tourist type venues, still feels like a rural small town.  Being retired we have the luxury of coming here during the week so we miss all of the weekend hustle and bustle. Most of the kids in the state are still in school so families aren’t able to do their week long trips yet. 

We had a bit of a set back to our plans.  My E-bike battery died earlier this month on our Galveston trip.  Our dealership gave me a new battery to use while he was going to work with the factory on getting ours replaced. We went out on our first trip and it lasted a mile or so and was dead.  Put it on the recharger and it was done recharging in 15 minutes.  Not a good sign.  Tried it again and it went about 2 miles.  Thankfully we brought our hiking shoes and made the best of it.  I love our E-bikes but battery issues can really be an issue as they are not commonly stocked anywhere and they are too expensive to keep one laying around as a backup. 

The local folks are always friendly. We met a woman on our last trip here on the street heading into one of the local restaurants for dinner. We ended up speaking with her for 20 minutes.  

Our plans are to relax a bit, take in the scenery and do some hiking. If you are looking for a nice campground, in a good location and like to do outdoor activities give Burlington Bay a try.  You won’t be disappointed.   

 This was a stop on the way home.  The weather had really soured during the overnight hours and the predictions were for more of the same so we decided to put in some longer hours and get home.  We stayed at the Love's in Cameron using one of their RV sites.  We stayed here last year. I was disappointed that the site fees were 10 dollars higher this year.  Fifty bucks for the night.  That is high as far as I am concerned.  Access is easy, quality hookups, good Wifi, but it is noisey with traffic all night.  I am a fan of the convenience these sites offer  when traveling through an area but at this price, I will be rethinking where we stop. 

Our first night on the way back home we stopped in Denton, TX.  It was in interesting day for sure.  Traveling, towing a 5th wheel through Houston and then Dallas proved to be challenging.  Both cities have major construction going on so the the signage left a little to be desired and even though it was a Saturday it was backed up as if it was a workday.  I am glad we didn't have to do that on a weekday.  We stopped at the KOA here in Denton, as we have found on this trip the campground is very well maintained and sites are perfect for what we needed and that is a nice place to stop for the day to relax, get a good nights sleep and hit it again tomorrow.  If traveling through the area and you need a place to stay, it is a good stop.  The adjoing property is a large RV dealership so if you need any parts or work done, this would be a good stop. 

  KOA Denton, TX 

We made it to our destination in Galveston, TX. Other than continued high winds we are enjoying our time here.  We are staying at the Galveston Holiday Island KOA. The place is very well maintained and runs very efficiently.   The sites are spaced well so you are not right on top of each other. clean pool areas and they have activities almost every day.  Their Wifi isn't very good but they do have a pay level of service if you need anything more than basic email.  The park isn't busy at all and it was painfully slow to check emails so we ended up using our hotspot.  Access to the beach is pretty easy, less than a quarter of a mile from the entrance to the park.  The one thing that we found as a drawback is the distance from Galeston and the basics.  It is 20 miles to a grocery store or Walmart.  There is a Dollar General about 12 miles away but for shopping and entertainment options it is a hike to get there.  If you are the type that just likes to hang around the campground during your stay and take advantage of the amenities offered this place is perfect for that.  They do have a small store for routine items, but to see the sights or do some shopping be prepared to do some driving.   

Galveston has a lot to offer.  The historic district is a wonderful area to walk or bicycle through to see the old charm of architecture of previous times.  The Johnson Space Center offers tours as well as the Railroad museum. There are harbor tours and the USS Texas will be opening for tours in 2025. The shopping offers a bit of everything for anyone's tastes and there is a wide variety of restaurants and dining options. Our favorites were The Star Drug Store in the historic district and their lunch counter.  Good food, a nostalgic place and really fair prices. We also found The Galveston Bagel Company  and had lunch there.  A local favorite based on how busy they were and their bagel sandwiches were excellent.