Family Camping - Bob Sandlin State Park

This weekend  we took the kids and went camping. This time we were the only family there. The kids helped plan the meals and we were looking forward to a very relaxing weekend. I got a little worried when we got to Bob Sandlin and found this sign at the front gate.

The park office there is only open on Saturday and Sunday, so we got to drive right in and set up at any campsite. It was smokey and hazy by the front of the park and the day use area. I was very afraid that we were going to have issues with Patrick's asthma.

The smoke was centered around the front of the park and around the day use area. There was very little smoke in the camping loops. All of the sites by the water were already taken but the kids helped us pick out this shaded spot. There is not a lot of open space, but lots of tall trees.

After setting up camp Alison and I got out to grab more ice and drive through the park. I also wanted to drive by and see how bad the day use area was.

Friday night before the kids went to bed we found a copperhead in the road heading straight to our campsite. After seeing all of us with flashlights and a camera, it decided to turn around and head back into the trees. The kids were very cautious walking around after that.

Saturday morning we all slept late (for camping) and fixed breakfast tacos. We were not sure how bad the smoke would be so we all got out and drove out of the park to see what was around. Very close to the park entrance we saw a Vet Clinic that had exotic animals all around it.

For lunch we decided to pack up a picnic and head to the group area. If it was not smokey the kids were going to try to fish and they were itching to test out the swim area.

The swim area, fishing pier and park are very nice, but they are not close to the campsites at all. The kids can't get to them on their own by bike you have to haul everyone over there by car.

We had a nice time with just our family, it was a much slower paced camp out than we have had in a long time. We all had lots of time to read and just relax.