State Parks Review Ep. 4

This week we are bringing you two new state parks as part of our ongoing series for reviewing and ranking Min-da-win-ia state parks and their campgrounds!  
The parks we are discussing today are Wildcat Mountain State Park in Ontario, WI and Pilot Knob State Park in Park Rapids, MN. 

Wildcat Mountain State Park:
https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/parks/wildcat

WI State Parks Reservations:

https://wisconsin.goingtocamp.com/

Pilot Knob State Park:
https://www.iowadnr.gov/places-go/state-parks/all-parks/pilot-knob-state-park

IA State Parks Reservations:

https://iowastateparks.reserveamerica.com/camping/pilot-knob-state-park/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=IA&parkId=610140

We'd love to have you join us in our Facebook group or follow us on Instagram and if you tag us on your camping related posts, we may be able to feature you on our page!
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1271381924618449/
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/campmindawinia/

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Welcome to Camp Mindowinia, where we're reviving the vintage camping vibe in the Midwest. There is so much to see and do in the Midwest, and we want to share it with everyone. So on this show, we'll be talking about all things camping as we explore the states of our name. Glad to have you back at camp, everyone. I'm Liv and I'm here today with my longtime camping buddy and sister Ab. Hi everybody! And today we are back for yet another State Parks Review episode. This is an ongoing series that we have now been continuing through two seasons. We started last season and then this is our second one for this season. And with the prevalence of state parks in the Mindwinia states, we foresee this series stretching on for years. Yes. In case this is your first state parks review episode you've heard, on the show we just review two different parks. Ab takes one and I take the other. And we just go over all of the nitty-gritty details, things you might need to know before booking a stay there, what to look out for when you arrive, and just kind of some tips on how to best enjoy the park, as well as just highlighting it so that you're aware of some of the fantastic state parks in the Minduinia, so that you could try camping there yourself. And of course, we go over the fees. This week we will be branching out from our past state parks reviews episodes, where we have only covered state parks in Minnesota. And today we're going to be diving into state parks in well, one one from each, a state park in Iowa, and one from Wisconsin. I will be talking about Wildcat Mountain State Park, which is in Ontario, Wisconsin. So that's kind of the south-central area, or if you're familiar with the term, it's in the driftless area. And today I will be talking about Pilot Knob State Park, which is located in Forest City, Iowa, which is kind of the northwestern corner of Iowa. All right. Forest City, Iowa, that's kind of like a camping area, isn't it? Well, I think it's a combo of like camping, because there's like a Winnebago factory there, a small one. Yep. But then there's also a ton of golfing there, which is super random. Okay. So it's like camping manufacturing and golfing. One of the golf courses we drove by even said that it had been in the best of Iowa golf cars top five list for like two or three years running. Wow. I know. So if you're a golfer, this is a good place to stay and then go golfing, right? Yeah. And even if you're just heading out to the Winnebago, what was it, the Winnebago factory, did you say? Yeah, I think it's just for camper vans or something. Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_01 2:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:58

So we uh our first RV that our parents had when we were kids, um, which actually was the first trip we ever took was when Ab was, I think, like two weeks old or something. So, um, and it was in a 1976 Winnebago chieftain, I want to say. Yep. And um, so it was obviously vintage at the time that our parents bought it and they uh completely renovated it. They it it was so cute when they were done, and everything will have to go into talking about camper renovations maybe in a future episode or something. Uh-huh. But I do remember we stopped at that Winnebago facility in Iowa one time on some vacation. It wasn't probably that first vacation, because I I don't think I would remember that, but we were driving past and stopped in there to get some part for the camper. And I mean, I I just feel like all of those things, like going to that Winnebago store, they all got me to where I am now. They just fueled the RVing passion. Yeah. And the first thing that I learned to love was camping. I know. Because I'm not tiny baby. Yeah. To love camping when you start at two weeks old. I mean, right? Yeah. Like you were camping before you even remembered. Exactly. So diving in on our state park reviews, I will get us started if that's okay. Yeah. Absolutely. Okay. Wildcat Mountain State Park. So the park is not huge, but not tiny. It's just over 3,600 acres. That's considerably larger than the one I'm going to talk about today. So pretty decent size. Yeah. So when I was researching the details on it, it said it was a 20-acre park. Like, what? Like, first of all, it seemed way bigger than that. And then no, that was when it was initially turned into a state park in the, you know, long ago. As mentioned, it is in the driftless area, which is a very bluff-filled area along rivers, kind of in sort of the area where like Wisconsin and Iowa are near each other in kind of the southeast corner of Minnesota. Oh, yeah. Yeah. So this is in this park is in the Kickapoo River Valley. When you're driving into the park, you're on Highway 33, I think it is. And it's one of those kinds where you're just driving along the road and it says you've now entered Wildcat Mountain State Park. So it's not like you stop and have to turn in or anything like that.

SPEAKER_01 5:36

Nice.

SPEAKER_00 5:36

And the this part of the drive was so, so beautiful. Like all of a sudden you're in there and there's like gorgeous, tall red and white pines. Oh, nice. Which, yeah, they're kind of unusual this far south because they're more of a northern Wisconsin, you know, habitat. Yeah. But because of the bluffs, they have a slightly cooler climate, I guess. And so they can support these pines and hemlock trees that you would normally see further north. That is cool. Yeah, and I have no idea why it's cooler, probably maybe just elevation, I guess. That makes sense. Yeah. Yeah. And I have to say, when we were there a couple of weeks ago, it was not cold. It was actually quite hot. Unseasonable. Spring weather, that's suo all over the place. Yes. And unfortunately, we did have to leave early because a tornado was gonna be coming through, supposedly. I don't know if it did or not, but yeah. So that that probably accounted for the unseasonably warm weather. So just a tiny bit of history about the park and area. Back in the 1850s, when the area was first settled, it was apparently so wild that they literally had to like chop trees down in order to make roads big enough for wagons and things to pass through because it was so heavily wooded and so kind of deep wilderness. And because of that, they had huge populations of black bear, wildcats, or bobcats. Um they even had black timber wolves in the area. Oh my gosh. Yeah, it was like total deep north woods, but pretty far south, actually, in Wisconsin. And the area was known for being the largest producer of ginseng in America up until the early 20th century. Crazy. So yeah, from from their website, it said um it was not uncommon to see people carrying around buckets of ginseng as spending cash. Wow. I know it used to be like considered super valuable, but it still is, I feel like, but not as, you know, prolific in these things. Now it's more cultivated. And I think back then it was more just kind of wild harvested. Yeah. And then they sold it to somewhere, I think maybe in like Illinois or something, where they processed it and sold it for medicinal and culinary uses. Oh, yes. If you are into reading old books that deal with things like that, um, The Harvester by Gene Stratton Porter talks about how the guy makes kind of his fortune off of cultivating wild ginseng and then selling it. Yeah. And those books were written probably around this this early part of the 20th century. You know, right around turn of the century. Yeah. One more detail about the park area in general is that this area is a major bird migration route. Cool. Yeah. So especially in the spring and fall, our favorite camping seasons here at Camp Venduinia. Um, if you are camping in this area, you have a really high chance of seeing tons of migrating birds. That's awesome. Yeah, and they were like, they were unusual. They weren't just like obviously geese, which I love geese, but you know, there's swans, of course, which anytime you're on a migratory route, you you see swans and um blue herons. Oh pretty cool ones. Yeah. And the area is also very popular with like a popular destination spot for bald eagles and red-tailed hawks, as well as like turkey vultures. So you can see those in the park um more year-round. Yes. As for recreation in the park, this is mostly a hiking park. Okay. And though they don't have like miles and miles and miles of trails, they do have some pretty cool trails. So they start a lot of them up kind of by the campground, and then they go to the river. Oh. And then also there are some really interesting scenic overlooks. Really, from so many places in this park, there are just these stunning panoramic views of the Kickapoo River Valley and kind of the surrounding area. And it's just really beautiful bluffs and valleys and everything for like miles and miles driving toward and away from the park. Cool. So, yeah, super scenic all around. One interesting trail that they have in the park is the Taylor Hollow Overlook, which has some really cool kind of, I guess you'd call them geological formations that you know you can kind of climb around on and they look cool. They're great photo ops. And again, with a backdrop of just these huge views, it's definitely someplace that you would want to stay at if you love hiking, bird watching, or plant finding. Because actually, in the area, because it's so wooded and the trees are very old, and it has kind of a unique mini climate that's very humid. Oh. So I'm told. So it's a habitat, a natural habitat for lots of rare plant species. I did not find them when I was there, but probably mostly because I didn't know what I was looking for. And shoulder season. And shoulder season, yes. In April. Not not all that much is growing. So yeah, one of which is the walking fern, which I thought was really interesting. So the leaves of the walking fern grow out just like a fern would, and then they point downward, and then when they reach the ground, they sprout roots. What? Yeah, and so that's how the plant effectively effectively walks across the terrain by, you know, putting out leaves, they grow roots, those ones put out leaves, they grow roots. That is so cool. I thought so too. Anyway, and I did not see those, but apparently they're pretty easy to see. You can also kayak and canoe on the river, and I'm told that is the best way to see the rare plants. Okay. But you probably didn't bring your boat this early in the season. No, no. We did not. We were worried it was gonna be cold and then it was hot and stormy. All right. For camping in the park, some things you need to know before you go. You do have to have a vehicle pass, as for all Wisconsin state parks. And this only bears mentioning because it doesn't apply in all the Mendowinia states, as you'll hear. The vehicle passes in Wisconsin are as followed. So for a day pass, they range from $3 to $16.

SPEAKER_01 12:34

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 12:34

$3 is for Wisconsin natives. So you have to have Wisconsin license plates for um individuals who are 65 years old or older.

SPEAKER_01 12:44

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 12:44

And then it's $16 for anyone, any age out of state. Okay. And then for a 12-month pass, and it's a 12-month as opposed to a year, they used to be a year in Wisconsin, but they changed it to 12 months. January 1st, like year. So if you bought it halfway through to pay the full amount. Um, I think it might have been prorated, but I really can't remember. The last it was in 2022 was the last time I bought a year pass there, and so details are foggy.

unknown 13:12

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 13:13

Um now if you're buying a year pass or a 12-month pass, it's $28 for Wisconsin plates, $13 for Wisconsin plates 65 years old or older, uh-huh, and $50 for out-of-state plates. It's kind of expensive for non-Wisconsin residents, then. Yeah, I suppose. Wait until you hear about the booking fees. Oh no. We'll get into that in just a minute. There are some trails because there's also a horse camp. There are some trails that are horseback trails, and you do need a pass for those. All of the details for how much that costs and everything are on the DNR website page for this state park.

SPEAKER_01 13:57

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 13:58

All right. Now getting into the sites, they have 29 standard sites, which can accommodate um RVs and tents. Okay. They do have them broken down a little bit into which ones can accommodate larger RVs and some are for smaller RVs, and I have more to say on that in a minute as well. Um, of these, nine have electricity, and 20 are basically just a primitive campsite. I mean, they're not they're primitive in that they don't have any utilities there. Right. They are like you would, you know, just back your rig in there and it's not anything too rustic. Uh there are also 20 cart-in campsites. And so they're almost 50-50 here with cart-in campsites and drive-in campsites. Yeah. The thing I wanted to mention about larger RVs is that I would advise extreme caution in taking large RVs into the park. And this is why. So as you're driving up to the park entrance, it's first of all, they have just this really old, like antique looking sign that says park office, you know, this way to the left from where we are coming from. And then there's like this little weird road that just turns off of the highway that looks like it has not been maintained in like a decade. Oh. Yes. And it is skinny. It's like almost a one-lane road. And this is the one that goes to the park office. Yes. Oh. So at first I thought, oh, this is maybe like a historical marker. No, this is actually how you get into the campground. And it is crazy steep. So, like right past this, there's a sign that says 8% grade. I would say the 8% grade, I drove past it thinking that this wasn't the campground. The 8% grade was only like half as steep as the entrance to the park. Oh my. Yeah, it had to be at least a 16% grade. And then not only do you have to go up at this crazy high angle, there is like a hairpin turn. Is it well marked or anything? Or not really? Oh not at all. I mean, you can kind of as soon as you get onto the road, you can see it. You're like, oh, I see it's gonna turn there, but like you don't realize how sharp of a turn it is until you get into the turn. And I was we were tent camping, so I was just in my vehicle and I was like a little bit nervous driving. You do have an SUV though. Yes, I put it in four-wheel drive. I'm not even joking. It was so crazy steep. And then um, the day that we left, there was actually a wedding happening in the park, and we got to the bottom, and there were like cars stopped down there because they were like nervous to get up this hill.

SPEAKER_01 16:44

Oh wow.

SPEAKER_00 16:44

We were able to tell them it's not as bad as it looks. I can't imagine towing a trailer in there, especially not anything large. Yeah. Like you can't even know how you would fit. Yeah. So anyway, yeah, ex exercise caution entering the park. Yes. I suppose. And you know, if you go on like um Google Maps or something ahead of time, do satellite view, really zoom in and get kind of a visual of how tight the curve is to enter the park, you know, you can kind of estimate if that's gonna be any kind of issue for your rig. I feel like that's probably why they have so many carton sites, because then just about anyone can probably make it in in like a regular vehicle or your camp van or whatever, but then add in a big trailer and I don't know. Yeah. I I would 100% go to this park again, but I will not be taking my camper. You'll just be tenting it out. Yeah. Campsite fees. Oh your favorite part. Yes. So the standard campsites are 36 or standard electric campsites are $36 a night. Okay. And like I said, there's only nine of those. And then the non-electric and the carton sites are both $18 a night. Okay. Now, here is the part that makes it sort of expensive. If you're a non-resident, you have to add $15 a night to every single campsite, even like the cardinal campsites. Wait a minute, but the $36 one goes up by $15 too? Yeah. So it's a night? So I was like, oh, this is gonna be like a really super affordable way to get in a little weekend camping trip at $18 a night. But no, because I'm not a Wisconsin resident, it ended up being $33 a night for just the Cardin campsite. Which is kind of expensive for cardin because you don't have anything, you know. I think even in like Minnesota, I think our cardin campsites are $23, $24 right around their low 20s. Right. So, you know, it was like, yeah, this this is like a real campsite price. Plus the higher fee to get into the state park. Right. Yeah. Yep. So there are definite advantages to camping in the Wisconsin state parks if you are a Wisconsin resident. Definitely. They have one bathroom facility with showers and has flush toilets. Otherwise, there are pit toilets throughout the park. When I was there, they were not open. However, they did look rather old from the outside, like we're thinking maybe 1980s-ish, 1970s, possibly older. They did not look like they were in any kind of pristine condition, but with it being the beginning of the season, maintenance probably wasn't really working on them yet. Right. So a little hard to say. Um, they do have a dump station, which is right outside the bathroom facilities, and it looked very typical. So I think that brings me to the ratings. Yes. All right, for the scenic quality andor activities in the park, I want to give it a 4.5.

SPEAKER_01 19:57

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 19:58

And my reason for that being the stunning views from literally almost anywhere you stand in the park. Uh-huh. The the views overlooking the valley were just really impressive. And it's kind of like a laid-back, slow moving camping experience. Yes. You know, that's not like any high energy or high activity location, but it just was really beautiful from almost every angle. And so I think that merits the 4.5.

SPEAKER_01 20:27

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_00 20:27

Um, as for the sites, so the sites that were back end sites were very much like a nice grassy lawn that you park on, you know. Oh, that's nice. You know, not nothing offensive, but nothing, you know, spectacular either. Right. So I would give those probably a three. And I would probably give the backpacking of sites maybe like a 3.75. So they were definitely more wooded. They were pretty well spaced away from each other. The next uh spot over from where we were staying, we could not see their campsite. So you know, that's nice. Yeah, that is really nice. Yeah, tons of trees. And then so I would definitely give those, I would say a 3.75. Some of them were not so wooded, I would say. So a few of probably maybe half of them would probably be full sun even in the summertime. Okay. For the facilities, which include the shower building and the dump station, I would give a three. They were old and a little bit run down, but that could improve as the season gets in full swing, as it is probably now. So overall, I think I would give the park a rating of four. This is a really great park for when you don't want to go too far from home if you're relatively close. Um, and just kind of have a relaxing little getaway in a pretty spot. You know, it's perfect for that. I would not necessarily consider this a destination park. Yes. Makes sense. Yeah. So at four stars, I would go again. Absolutely. Well, with that, we can start talking about Pilot Knob State Park in Iowa. I'm gonna start off with some information about the park. This one is quite a bit smaller than yours, Liv. This one has just over 500 acres of space. And the cool thing is in that space they have a couple of really cool, unique things. The first one is they have a four-acre bog called Dead Man's Lake, and it is the only one of its kind in Iowa. Wow. And because it's a bog, it has a high acidity level and then its own kind of like microclimate around it with certain bugs and water life that you can only find at these bogs. Interesting. Yeah. So if you want to do a little, you know, science trip type thing or you know, do something educational with the kids, this would be a great spot to stop at. Yeah. So with it being a bog, is this naturally occurring or is it like the result of some other activity? No, just naturally occurring. Yeah. Cool. The only problem with it is it is down a hike that is several miles long. So if you go in shoulder season like me and there's inclement weather, you might not make it to the bog. Okay. But that leads us to the next cool thing they have, which is a stone lookout tower on top of this really big hill. Okay. So it was built by the CCC. I love CCC architecture. Oh my gosh, I do too. And this park has it in a couple of different places. Okay. But back to the tower, it's really hilarious. They were gonna build it 40 feet tall, uh-huh, and the CCC was moving slower than they thought, and winter was quickly approaching. So they gave up and stopped at 30 feet tall. Oh. Isn't that funny? That is a little bit funny. Yeah. Like they were like, we're gonna do this, and they were like, eh, never mind. 30 feet is tall enough. It is cool because they have redone the inside and it has like metal stairs and stuff versus the old stone ones, which I guess were falling down. Okay. And when you do get to the top, you have an incredible view. I'm guessing on a clear day, we did not have a clear day. But on a clear day, you could probably see 10 plus miles. Wow. It's amazing. No, so sorry, just a quick question. Is this like a fire lookout tower or is it just a like tourist observation tower? I think it's just a tourist observation tower because outside of the actual park, there isn't a ton of woods or anything. Yeah, okay. Yeah, it's fields, golf capital. Yes, you have great views of golfing and cornfields. Okay now. Typical bagos. Yeah, no winnebagos. Yeah. So we're seeing. Yes, definitely. And I will say this hike is uneven and not the best path, but it's not very far. I want to say it was like a third or half a mile from the parking area to the tower. Oh, yeah. So definitely like small child friendly. A gal was actually bringing up a big stroller when we were going down. And even though it was rough terrain, if you have a stroller that can take rough terrain, you're doing great. Like she was doing totally fine. And another cool thing they had up there was they had picnic tables, like two of them in front of it. So if you wanted to hike up, yeah, with like a snack or something or your lunch, you could totally settle in and enjoy your picnic underneath this cute little overhang. So you'd be kind of protected from the weather. So, of course, this lookout tower is on top of a hill. And this is very, I don't know, kind of surprising, I think, for Iowa, but it's a very hilly state park, which is really nice. And it's heavily wooded with these beautiful, huge old hardwood trees. So no matter where you're driving, even in the shoulder seasons, it's just pretty. It's just very scenic and very like old-growth woods and underbrushed and a decent amount of animals. We saw plenty of squirrels and lots of birds as we were driving through. In addition to that, they also have, I'm not exactly sure how long, but they have equestrian trails. Okay. Now, their website is a little confusing because on one part of the website it says one number, and on the other part it says a number that's different. So somewhere between five and eight miles of equestrian trails, in addition to, yes, snowmobiling trails in the winter and other options like that. But they also have a lake for fishing, which is 15 acres, so a decent sized lake. And it has like a little area where you can go out on a dock and dock fish with like a cute little bench, so you could sit and just watch the lake if you wanted. Yeah. And in that lake, they have bass, catfish, and bluegills. So you have some options for fishing there. And then if you're going there with a group, they have two really neat old CCC built picnic shelters. And they're the really cool ones with like the big stone fireplace. That's so cool. And you can just like the guests can use them. Yep, you can use them unless they have been rented out for an event. Because you know they're reservable. Oh, right. Because they're they're really big. Like under each one, there was probably like 15 picnic tables. Oh, cool. So they were really decent size. Yeah. Yeah. And but you don't have to reserve them to use them. No, no, no. If you're just at the park lock and then one empty. Yes. Or if you're with a group of friends and you want to have a picnic at one, you know. Right. Totally fine. But if they're reserved, obviously then you can't. Right. But they are an option. But then that leads us to other structures on the trail, and that would be the pit toilets. And we all know that I cannot stand those things. But these ones are exceptionally bad. Oh, really? Yes. Like one of them we walked up to that was by one of these cute little picnic shelters. And I was like, oh, it looks cute and vintage too. With trepidation in my voice. And it was a little bit of a little bit of a little bit. Is it like a stone pit toilet? No. Like, you know, little stone building. That would be cute. No, it's like old and wood and gross. And we get like I open the door and look in, and Mitchell went to look in the men's side. And I walk out and I'm like, I'm not using that. He's like, No. I mean, I would use it, but but I would see where you wouldn't want to. And I was like, oh my goodness, we've come all this way. The bathhouse is closed. What are we going to do? Yeah. But thankfully on the other end of the park, which they have a second entrance at, there is some newer ones that are like stone and nicer and cleaner. Because the first ones were not clean. They were not nice. And I was not going to use them. They also, I'm not completely sure, had like any sort of lock on the little stall doors. Because these were the weirdest pit toilets ever. They had walked in and there was two stalls in it of pit toilet. Huh. Crazy. I know. I'm not sure. I mean, I feel like if maybe I've seen that before in Arizona. Right. But not here. So it was very odd. And again, I don't think they locked. Okay. So yeah. Yeah, that's not comfortable. So go to the other end where they do lock and they're nicer and newer and you know cleaner. So that, of course, is going to affect the facilities rating on this place.

SPEAKER_01 29:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:40

So moving on, there is also an open-air amphitheater that was also built by the CCC. Unfortunately, because it was shoulder season, it was being worked on and we couldn't go down there. Okay. But it was like down a hill. So we had to kind of like peek down and we're like, oh, that looks really cool.

SPEAKER_01 30:01

Oh.

SPEAKER_00 30:02

Very cool. I wonder, do you know if the park does any like events there or anything like that? I don't know. The park is a little bit more on the older and slightly more run-down side of things. So I'm not really sure. Yeah. And maybe not like super developed. It sounds kind of like. Yeah, and it's kind of in the middle of nowhere. There's nothing really big around it. So not a lot of draw, maybe. I don't know. Right. With that, I think it's time that we move on to the actual campground. So they have a total of 60 sites. 27 of those are electric, 12 are non-electric, and there is one youth camp group area. So a little bit about the sites. I would say that they're very close together. They are partially shaded and some have full shade. About a third of them, maybe have really nice lake views, but the rest of them, you're basically just looking at the back of your neighbor's camper or their tent, and you're very, very close together. They also didn't look super level. Um, some of them were kind of at weird angles. So I was kind of like, eh. Yeah. Maybe not the best option depending on your rig. I mean, it's a lovely park to visit for a very short period of time, but I think over time you'd kind of be like, eh, my neighbors can see me and I can see them. And you know, not necessarily the best option. Yeah. So that is the sights. They're okay. They're good if nothing else is available. Yes. And if you really want to be there for the hiking or something, like I get it, it's beautiful. And if you really want to be there for the bog, also again, you know, it would be a better option than anything else because there isn't anything else in the area. Right. So you're staying there for other features of the park, not necessarily the sites. Exactly. However, if we get into the pricing of the sites, they are very reasonable, which I think kind of reflects the fact that they're not amazing. Okay. So online, a non-electric site is $14 a night. And then there is a $4.50 reservation fee. But it's not per night, it's for your whole reservation. Yes. And then electric sites are $22 a night online as well. But if you book in person at the site, it's only $18 a night at the little kiosk in the park. Well, that's nice. Yeah. And I don't know how busy it would be because we were there in April. So when we were there, there were two people other than us and the camp post. So maybe it's more busy the rest of the year, and you know, booking last minute when you get there wouldn't work. But I kind of feel like there'd probably be availability because 60 sites is a decent amount, you know? Yeah, it is. Yeah. They do have a dump station right when you get inside the campground. So that looked really big and easy to access. In addition to that, they have a children's like playground area, which was pretty decent size, so you can keep the little people busy. And then they have something that I thought was kind of fun and I haven't seen in a while. They had horseshoe pits. Oh wow. Okay. Like they were well maintained and everything. Yes. Yeah, absolutely. I think they had maybe one or two sets only, but they looked nice and we didn't have time to do horseshoes because we were doing seven million other things while we were there, but they did look like they would be fun to do. And they're in close enough proximity to the playground that like you could watch your kids at the playground while playing horseshoes. Yeah. See why I asked is because I feel like you still see horseshoe pits places, but they're like overgrown with grass and you know, the all the gravel around the the rings or whatever has fallen out. You know, yes. So they're kind of not like very much used, and so they're kind of in a little bit of a disrepair state. So these ones definitely looked like they were still usable. Right. Then the last thing in the campground would be the shower building, which we didn't, of course, get to see the inside of because shoulder season wasn't open yet. But the building looked like it was probably 1980s, so probably not too bad. The outside was very well maintained. Like it looked very clean. It was super surprising considering how bad some of the pit toilets were. Right. So I was like, oh, this actually looks pretty decent. Okay. And for that, they had four individual shower stalls that were just showers, you know, with locking doors and whatnot. And then on the other side of the building, they had separate men's and women's restrooms, which we couldn't see the inside of, but they looked fairly large. So each one was, you know, presumably multiple stalls and sinks. One more thing about the fees is that this is one of Iowa's state parks that does not have an entrance fee. So you don't have to pay to enter, just to camp. Yeah, that is so nice. However, one more random thing about it is there's a park office that appears to be like part of a garage. And when we went, it did not appear to be open. So again, shoulder season, and there was a camp host. So if you had a problem, I'm sure you could have gone and talked to them about it.

SPEAKER_01 35:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 35:20

We just didn't have any issues, so we didn't need to.

SPEAKER_01 35:23

Right.

SPEAKER_00 35:24

Um, but if you're gonna look for the office, I'm not sure what the hours are for that. Because it seemed like it would be online or be open based on what we saw online. Uh-huh. And then like I said, didn't really look like it was open. Okay. So I don't know. Just, you know, go in knowing that it might not be open or available. Right. The last thing about this park and campground is that the park is a pack in, pack out your trash situation. So there are not any trash receptacles in the state park proper. Oh, that's a bummer. Yes, it is kind of hard, especially if you're doing some sort of event or a picnic or something. Right. But the campground, it's set online, does have trash, but during the shoulder season when we were there, they did not have a trash bin. So I'm guessing it maybe comes in in May. Yeah. And then it's just one in the campground. That makes sense. Yeah. So to rate this campground and state park, I would say the scenic quality andor activities come in at a solid four.

unknown 36:30

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 36:30

The lookout tower was awesome. The huge old growth trees were amazingly beautiful. The lake was really pretty. I sat by it and read read on my Kindle for like an hour and a half. Oh, nice. It was just so scenic and pretty and peaceful. And I don't know. It was just beautiful. It was like nothing too amazingly crazy spectacular, but what they did have was just very like calming and beautiful. Yeah. I love it how a lot of these kind of smaller parks like that one and Wildcat Mountain, they're kind of like just these really pretty little oasis areas where you can just kind of escape for a little getaway. And it's prettier than your neighborhood, but you know, it's not too far away and it's not, you know, anything that takes too much planning or or forethought. Yes, exactly. Then the next category is sights. I would say that, you know, them being relatively shaded is really nice. The fact that some of them have electric is really nice, but they really don't have much for privacy. And I mean, you're thinking, they're shaded. How do they not have privacy? Well, it's because they have some really nice huge trees around them. So that's giving you the shade, but it's not very private. It's not like evergreens, you know, throughout or something. Right. So for that, I think I will give it a 2.75.

SPEAKER_01 37:54

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 37:55

I'm almost tempted to give it a 2.5 because it was kind of disappointing with how small they were, how close together they were, and some of the kitty wampus angles, some of the like parking pads were at. I was like, that's just not great. So that unfortunately was not fantastic. Then the facilities, I would say overall probably a three because the outside of the shower building looked amazing. There was, you know, two pit toilets that were really nice, but the rest of the pit toilets were kind of old and not the most well kept. So with that being said, I think my overall rating has got to be a 3.25. Okay. So if you're in the area and you just want a quiet, peaceful weekend or couple day trip, I feel like this would be a really good option because it is nice. It's a little bit more out there. Or if you're looking for somewhere to stay while golfing to make it, you know, more budget friendly to go. Yeah. On a golf trip, this would be a great spot for that too, because it's a good place to crash at night and you're within, you know, 20 minutes of two golf courses.

unknown 39:01

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 39:02

So 3.25 is gonna be my rating for this one. All right. Well, there you have it. Our first branch off into different states of the Minduinia. Yeah. With two solid parks to start with. And I think that we can recommend both of them under the right circumstances. Yes. So hopefully you are inspired to get out there and try Wildcat Mountain State Park or Pilot Knob State Park this season. And that is our show for this week. Thanks for listening to the Camp Mindowinia Podcast. If you want to connect with us, head over to our Facebook group, Camp Mindewinia, or follow us on Instagram at Camp Mindowinia. Take us on Instagram in your camping posts for the chance to be featured on our page. And if you're enjoying the show, please follow us on your favorite podcasting platform, and we'd love it if you leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or a comment on Spotify. Join us next Monday for another episode. Bye, guys!