CAMPGROUND AWARDS: Campground Awards
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01-UGCG-USA.Awards.pag 3/19/02 2:50 PM Page 63 CAMPGROUND AWARDS: CAMPGROUND Campground Awards ALABAMA Best RV Camping Corinth Recreation Area, Double Springs Best Mountain Settings Clear Creek Recreation Area, Jasper De Soto State Park, Fort Payne Buck’s Pocket State Park, Grove Oak DeSoto State Park, Fort Payne Joe Wheeler State Park,Rogersville De Soto State Park, Fort Payne Joe Wheeler State Park,Rogersville Pickensville Recreation Area,Aliceville Lake, Monte Sano State Park, Huntsville Sherling Lake, Greenville Pickensville Oak Mountain State Park, Birmingham/Pelham Sherling Lake, Greenville Best Tent Camping Wind Creek State Park,Alexander City Best Waterfront Settings Buck’s Pocket State Park, Grove Oak Joe Wheeler State Park,Rogersville Clear Creek Recreation Area, Jasper Cleanest Campgrounds Lake Guntersville State Park, Guntersville Alaska De Soto State Park, Fort Payne Clear Creek Recreation Area, Jasper Lake Lurleen State Park, Coker Joe Wheeler State Park,Rogersville Sherling Lake, Greenville Lakepoint Resort State Park, Eufaula Little Mountain Marina Resort, Most Beautiful Campgrounds Best Campground Facilities Guntersville/Langston Buck’s Pocket State Park, Grove Oak Gulf State Park, Gulf Shores Old Lock 16 Park, Holt Lake, Peterson Clear Creek Recreation Area, Jasper Joe Wheeler State Park,Rogersville Pickensville Recreation Area,Aliceville Lake, De Soto State Park, Fort Payne Lake Guntersville State Park, Guntersville Pickensville Joe Wheeler State Park,Rogersville Lakepoint Resort State Park, Eufaula Prairie Creek Campground,Woodruff Lake, Sherling Lake, Greenville Little Mountain Marina Resort, Benton Guntersville/Langston Wind Creek State Park,Alexander City Most Private Campsites Noccalula Falls Park and Campground, Gadsden Clear Creek Recreation Area, Jasper Oak Mountain State Park, Birmingham/Pelham Most Romantic Campgrounds Clear Crek Recreation Area, Jasper Most Spacious Campsites Best Rural, Farm, or Ranch Settings De Soto State Park, Fort Payne Clear Creek Recreation Area, Jasper Noccalula Falls Park and Campground, Gadsden Joe Wheeler State Park,Rogersville De Soto State Park, Fort Payne Best Urban and Suburban Settings Sherling Lake, Greenville Quietest Campgrounds Doc’s RV Park, Gulf Shores Best Family-Oriented Campgrounds Buck’s Pocket State Park, Grove Oak Gulf Breeze Resort, Gulf Shores De Soto Caverns, Childersburg Clear Creek Recreation Area, Jasper KOA Birmingham South, Birmingham/Pelham Escatawpa Hollow Campground,Wilmer Sherling Lake, Greenville McCalla/Tannehill KOA Kampground, McCalla Gulf State Park, Gulf Shores Perdido Bay KOA, Lillian Most Secure Campgrounds Noccalula Falls Park and Campground, Gadsden Clear Creek Recreation Area, Jasper ALASKA Best RV Camping Denali View North Campground,Wasilla Granite Creek Campground,Anchorage Anchorage RV Park,Anchorage Granite Creek Campground,Anchorage Denali Grizzly Bear Cabins & Campground, Mountain View RV Park, Palmer Most Spacious Campsites Denali Park Oceanview RV Park, Homer Granite Creek Campground,Anchorage Riverside Camper Park, Houston Scenic View RV Park, Ninilchik Williwaw Campground,Anchorage Seaview RV Park, Hope Best Tent Camping Waterfront Park, Seward Quietest Campgrounds Granite Creek Campground,Anchorage Granite Creek Campground,Anchorage Williwaw Campground,Anchorage Williwaw Campground,Anchorage Most Private Campsites Cleanest Campgrounds Most Beautiful Campgrounds Centennial Park Municipal Campground, Anchorage RV Park,Anchorage Bayside RV Park,Valdez Soldotna Denali Grizzly Bear Cabins & Campground,Denali Park 63 01-UGCG-USA.Awards.pag 3/19/02 2:50 PM Page 100 02-UGCG-USA profiles01.pag 3/19/02 2:51 PM Page 101 Alabama Called the “Cradle of the Confederacy,” Alabama is steeped in Civil War history. Fascinating tours include Montgomery, the first capitol of the Confederacy. It was during the Battle of Mobile Bay that Admiral Farragut exclaimed “Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!” At the USS Alabama Battleships Memorial Park in Mobile, visitors can explore the park’s namesake as well as over 20 other World War II–ships, aircraft, and weapons. The Civil Rights movement thrust Alabama into the national media spotlight in the 1950s and 1960s. Defining events included the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott and the historic Selma to Montgomery March. Gain a deeper understanding of the movement at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Across the street is the Sixteenth St. Baptist Church, site of the 1963 bombing that killed four little girls. Natives call Alabama “The Beautiful,” and we agree. Its northeast corner lies at the southernmost terminus of the Appalachian Mountain range. Quaint mountain towns such as Mentone offer rich fall foliage and excellent craft and antique shopping. Little River Canyon in Fort Payne is one of the deepest gorges east of the Mississippi. Four national forests and numerous lakes through- out the state provide enthusiasts with plenty of hunting and fishing. Alabama’s Gulf Coast region is home to moss-covered oak trees and white sand beaches. Orange Beach is known for top-notch saltwater fishing. The Alabama Coastal Birding Trail dots Mobile Bay with spots for viewing both wading and shore birds. Golf is the feather in Alabama’s outdoor cap. Anchoring Alabama’s golf offerings are the eight facilities of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. The trail lures golfers from all over the world with its championship courses and country club amenities. Other public, state park, and resort courses are open to visitors. NASCAR racing fans are familiar with the Talladega Superspeedway, home of the Diehard 500 in April and the Winston 500 in October. Combination tickets for year-round track tours and admission to the International Motorsports Hall of Fame are available. Other Alabama destinations include: The U.S. Space and Rocket Center, VisionLand theme park, Mother Angelica’s Eternal Word Television Network, the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, Birmingham Museum of Art, Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark, De Soto Caverns, Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Mercedes-Benz Visitor’s Center, Hank Williams Sr. Boyhood Home and Museum, The Dauphin Island Sea Lab, and numerous historic homes and plantations. Campground Profiles are allowed to swim and dock boats right at the at Wind Creek State Park are small compared to ALEXANDER CITY sites. Fishermen will find catfish, crappie and other Alabama state parks. While some sites are Wind Creek State Park bluegill as well as largemouth, salt water striped, extremely shady, the open sites tend to have better 4325 AL Hwy. 128,Alexander City 35010.T: white and hybrid bass. Wind Creek State Park is views of the lake. The back-in, paved parking (256) 329-0845; F: (256) 234-4870; not the top choice for peace and quiet as it is full of spaces are in various states of repair and disrepair www.dcnr.state.al.us/parks; children and boats. The park should be assiduously and may be peppered with pine straw, gravel or [email protected]. avoided on holiday weekends. Security is outstand- grass. However, the bathhouses here are in excellent ing at this gated and extremely remote park. The condition—large and clean with no frills. a #### b #### campground at Wind Creek State Park is laid out BASICS in 5 main sections including a primitive overflow #### ## Operated By: Alabama State Parks. Open: All Beauty: Site Privacy: area. The large, flat, grid-like section B is nicely ### ### year. Site Assignment: First come, first served; Spaciousness: Quiet: shaded by a stand of loblolly and longleaf pine. Sec- ##### #### Alabama State Park reservations system. Regis- Security: Cleanliness: tion C includes sites on an open peninsula with Insect Control: ### Facilities: #### tration: Main entrance, open 24 hours in-season; unobscured views of Lake Martin. Sites C190, night registration available in winter. Fee: $16 for On the shores of 40,000-acre Lake Martin in east C191 and C192 are the prettiest in spite of their RV camping, $14 for tent camping, $3 additional for central Alabama, Wind Creek State Park is an complete lack of privacy. Other attractive lakefront sewer or waterfront sites, fee includes 4 people, excellent choice for families. Children will enjoy sites are found in Section D. Section E contains a $2 for each additional person, limit 8 people per the large playground and variety of natural and few sites with lake views and a modicum of privacy site. Parking: Limit 2 cars per site, overflow park- recreational programs. Campers with lakefront sites (try E32, E33, E34, E36, E38, or E30). All the sites ing available. 101 02-UGCG-USA profiles01.pag 3/19/02 2:51 PM Page 102 102 ALABAMA Alpine FACILITIES for RVs because sites are generally larger and more a #### b #### Number of Multipurpose Sites: 642. level. Even-numbered sites 58–80 have lake-views Hookups: Water, electric (30, 50 amps), 235 sites but little shade. As you move away from the lake in Beauty: #### Site Privacy: #### w/ sewer. Each Site: Picnic table, grill. Dump Section B, sites become shadier. Each of the mid- Spaciousness: #### Quiet: #### Station:Yes. Laundry:Yes. Pay Phone:Yes. Rest sized sites in section B has gravel parking and a Security: #### Cleanliness: #### Rooms and Showers:Yes. Fuel: No. Propane: cement patio. Section C is unattractive. The vari- Insect Control: ### Facilities: ### No. Internal Roads: Paved. RV Service: 8 mi. ety of tree species in the campground includes Prairie Creek is typical of the top quality camp- northeast in Alexander City. Market: 8 mi. north- some dogwood. Of the 145 campsites, only a few grounds managed by the Army Corps of Engi- east in Alexander City. Restaurant: 8 mi. north- are pull-throughs. With its remote location in neers. Sites are extremely spacious and most have east in Alexander City. General Store: Camp Alpine, Alabama and gated entrance, this camp- uncluttered views of the Alabama River. Spanish store. Vending:Yes. Swimming Pool: No. Play- ground has very good security. moss-laden oak trees provide shade and privacy. ground:Yes. Other: Marina, boat launches, 210-ft. BASICS Two of the three camping areas, Beaver Point and fishing pier, picnic pavilions. Activities: Hiking Operated By: Keith Bell.