STARS: 4.75 out of 5

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ST VRAIN STATE PARK, LONGMONT, COLORADO (40 MINS FROM DENVER): GPS 40.1699° N, 104.9937° W

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I really like this park! It's one of my favorites, in fact. Really, the only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is that there is no where to get in the water. There are lots of great ponds for fishing, paddle boarding, or kayaking, but not for swimming. 

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So, what do I like about it? I love the space between spots. It's really open and spacious. I wouldn't necessarily say private, as there aren't a lot of trees between sites, but there is so much space it is really nice.

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Navigating the campground and parking in your spot is also very easy, even for a rig as big as ours (45 foot fifth wheel). The spots are all (? I think this is right) easy pull-throughs with nice concrete pads. Many of the sites have full hook ups.

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Each site also has a covered picnic table, nice firepit, and most have water views. Ours didn't have a water view, but it did have a mountain view on one side, and nice greenery on the other.

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When looking at the price of the sites, keep in mind you also have to pay a Colorado State Parks access fee of $9 per day or $80 per year. So it is a bit on the pricey side.

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There are nice gravel paths around each of the ponds, so you can hike for hours if you do several back-to-back.

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There weren't many bugs either! And we had just left Prewitt SWA where there were TONS of bugs. So, it is bug season, but not bad here.

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There's aren't many bathrooms, so if that's important to you, make sure you are near one. In the Kestrel loop there is one. The bathrooms they have though have flush toilets and running sink water.

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The campground host and the ranger were really nice too.

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Verizon and ATT were excellent. Lots of TV channels, although many were either shopping, Spanish, kids, or old TV channels.

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