Sparks Marina Lake Park Campground. The RV Park we are staying at in Reno (actually Sparks) may be the nicest RV Park we have ever been to. This is the Sparks Marina RV Park; right across the street from a Sparks Marina Lake Park where the water floods out of the ground at over 2 million gallons a day. The city has to pump the water out of the lake, into the Truckee River constantly to keep the water from flooding the surrounding area.
They Hit Oil
The lake wasn’t always this pretty; in fact, the history of the lake is quite ugly. First, the lake was a gravel pit. When the pit was one hundred feet deep, in 1987 they hit oil. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the location for an oil strike and but rather it was oil leaking from a fuel tank farm located one mile west. Thus the gravel pit was part of a Toxic Superfund Clean-up.
The clean-up was finished and the site was declared safe and oil-free in 1996. Then in 1997 the Truckee River flooded and filled the hundred-foot deep pit with water. The city always knew about the spring at the gravel pit, but now the problem was how to keep the water inside the banks of the lake and from carving a new creek leading back to the Truckee River, thus the pumps were installed. Thankfully the lake was turned into Sparks Marina Lake Park.
RV Parks
The amenities at the Oasis Las Vegas RV Park in Las Vegas were better; the swimming pool at the Oasis was super. The swimming pool here, however, is closed, due to the virus shutdowns. Even looking over the fence, it doesn’t match the Oasis.
The place we actually park the RV is the nicest parking spot (in a commercial RV Park) we have stayed in. The grass outside of every spot is artificial grass. RV park owners, take note, the artificial grass is way better than gravel especially deep gravel.
RV parks, however, are not our first choice in camping spots. In this case, we made a stop in Reno to work on RV improvements. While here, we finished installing our RV water softener and filter system. The filter system is bigger than almost all houses that have water any water conditioning. Here is the link to the new RV water conditioning system.
My Favorite Place – (so far)
In the last three years, we have been to dozens of places and my favorite was at the edge of Hebgen Lake in West Yellowstone. Here is the link to that campsite. Hebgen At Hebgen, we didn’t have any services, no water, no sewer, and no electricity. We did have a beautiful view and our kayaks were in front of the RV on the edge of an (almost) private beach. The location was super with an easy drive to Yellowstone National Park.
Given the current electricity issues, we couldn’t stay at Hebgen Lake right now. I will spend most of the next month fixing the electricity issues. Stand by for updates on our new super-charged electrical system.
Belle Fourche is also very high on my list, again the kayaks were just outside the front of the RV with a view of the water. Belle Fourche
Tami’s Favorite
Tami has lots of favorites; Fort Robinson in northwest Nebraska is at or near the top of her list. Here is the link to that campsite. Fort Robinson, This was a Cavalry Fort that was turned into a state park. It was super.
I mention these places, not just as a review, but as a contrast to RV Parks. Even though this is one of the nicest RV Parks we have ever been to – in my mind I would rather be at the edge of the lake.
You are Cancelled
That was my email from Oregon this morning. All my reservations at every Oregon State Park for both May and June disappeared. It took some phone time and searching but I was able to connect the dots and now we have places to stay in Oregon. I hope the same thing doesn’t happen in Washington. I have reservations and spots picked out all the way until the middle of July — but that too may change. Still, all is well and by the middle of July, I hope to have more options. I’ll keep you all posted.
(Note: The links to different sites are only provided to help our friends. We do not get paid when you select these links or make purchases.)
Be safe on your travels.
It was great to visit last week.
Your lucky there is not a Luxury Tax on RV’s.
If there was you would be at the top.
You have a great new rig and now you are tricking it out even more.
Looking forward to seeing you again at the end of summer when you head south.
It’s such a bummer to have these campground reservations canceled, but I’d rather they cancel them on me than me have to do it. At least we don’t get hit with all the cancellation fees then. Cold comfort, I know… but still.
The whole thing stinks. I’m glad you guys found a good spot to hang out. I agree 100% that the RV parks are always disappointing compared to being out in nature, but at least if you had to find one, you found a good one.
Stay well.