Area parks see increased camping

By SCOTT NILES Courier staff writer

May 15, 2007 11:21 pm

— DRAKESVILLE — Area recreation officials expect the Memorial Day Weekend to draw a boatload of people to local lakes and campgrounds.
The weekend holiday is considered the unofficial kickoff to summer and the camping season. Several area campground administrators said their pre-reserved sites are completely full already and they look to draw even more people during that weekend.
“We always have a crowd on Memorial Day,” said Chad Horn, park ranger at Lake Wapello State Park.
But with above-normal temperatures, some area lakes and campgrounds have already seen an increase in activity.
“Some people come out on the first warm weekend, but it really starts picking up once the kids are out of school and people start taking their vacations,” said Merle Miller, manager at Lake Keomah in Mahaska County.
He said there has been three or four dozen campers each weekend since the first of May.
“That is about normal for right now,” he said. “We might have slightly more than usual because of the extreme nice weather we’ve been having, but it’s close to where we are typically at.”
But other campgrounds have seen a noticeable increase in the camping population.
“We’re definitely off to a better start this year compared to previous years,” Horn said. “We started getting people in around the first week in April.”
Several campers were at Lake Wapello earlier this week taking advantage of the sunshine and warm temperatures. Some came in groups from farther away and others were locals that used the campground as a way to get away from the hustle of their daily routine.
Ottumwan Kelly Brown and her son, Keegan Davidson-Brown, spent several days out at the lake. She said it is a tradition that she does with her kids each summer and they love it.
“We try to go camping as often as possible,” she said.
Unlike the traditional campers who wait to start the season after Memorial Day, Brown said her family always gets an early jump on the camping activities.
“We usually start camping in March,” she said. “We like it when it is a little bit cooler ... and we usually come during the week because it is not as crowded.”
Another couple had just arrived at the campground Monday afternoon and was setting up. They planned on staying at least a week and taking advantage of the recreational opportunities.
“We’re pretty avid campers. Normally we go camping every weekend or every other weekend,” said Ernie Carr, who trekked to Lake Wapello with his wife, Pam, from Onslow, Iowa.
Justin Pedretti, park manager at Lacey-Keosauqua State Park in Van Buren County, said he would have anticipated a higher percentage of early season campers if it had not been for some of their renovation projects.
Part of the park campsite was recently shut down for five months for a sewer and water upgrade and several other general improvements to the park.
“We have still had a handful of campers each weekend,” Pedretti said.
And now that construction is complete and Memorial Day is approaching, he believes they will be steady for the rest of the summer.
“We’re never usually completely full, but we get a good crowd on the weekends and during the holidays,” he said.
Dave Long, executive director of the Keokuk County Conservation Board, said they have seen similar patterns at Lake Belva Deer.
Though the park is open year round, he said water and electricity hookups at the campsites were just turned back on during the second week of April.
“We have been about three quarters full on the weekends, with around 30-40 sites occupied each weekend,” he said. “Come Memorial Day, they will all be full.”
Most of the pre-reserved sites are full, he said, as well as the five new cabin facilities.
Scott Niles can be reached at (641) 683-5360 or via e-mail at sjniles@mchsi.com.

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