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Proud
Lake Recreation Area was on my list of parks to visit primarily
because it was closest to my virtual assistant clients, but it turned
out to be a nice stay for more than just that reason. The lush greenery
was so welcome, especially coming from Texas where severe drought
conditions had turned pretty much everything the same shade of dusty
brown, and the massive pine trees felt like Christmas presents!
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This is the road down the first row of sites. Here you see the
campground host in Site 1 on the left and the big motorhome
is on Site 2 on the right. My site was toward the end of this
row. |
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Campground
Map shows the layout of the loop with the sites
and facilities.
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This
is me in Site 19, the next-to-last site on this side of the
road before it starts curving around . You can see sites 23
and 24 along the edge of the tree-lined back. I had a beautiful
view of a deliciously green hillside to the front of me and
a fragrant pine tree on the side that gifted me with its scent
as I was working at my desk with the windows open.
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On
the other end of the campground, here are Sites 108 on the right
and 55 (one of the paved sites) on the left. This shows how
the middle row of sites back up to one another. |
| Honestly,
at first I was a bit taken aback by this layout - I had never
seen anything like it before. The first night there was a tent
camper to the side/rear of me and I remember thinking they wouldn't
like this layout if I had to run my generator, but of course
since there are electric hookups, that wasn't an issue and I
didn't notice any real problems with this layout once I got
used to it.
Little
did I know I'd be thinking about using my generator soon enough,
but the electrical problems I had would have even prevented
generator use. See
blog about that exciting experience...
The
sites on either side of the road on the edges back up to woodlands,
but most of them seem generally smaller, some pretty steeply
sloped, and more suited to small RVs and tents.
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As
I was walking around the loop at the other end, I met Dan
& Diane in site 83, who have been camping here since their
kids (now grown) were little.
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What
they liked when the kids were young and camping with them
was that the campground was small enough for them to feel
safe letting the kids roam around. Now that they're "empty
nesters," they like it being close to home so they can
come out for quiet alone times, especially during off-peak
periods. They said they're tempted to try other state parks,
but are just so familiar with this one and like it so much,
they always end up back here.
It's
hard to see in this picture, but that's Proud Lake across
the road through the trees.
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You
can walk from the campground to get to the lake, where canoes
are available to rent.
Fishing
is also popular for all types of game fish and in April, it's
stocked with trout.
The
lake connects to the Huron River, and you could even paddle
all the way to Lake Erie if you wanted to.
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I
had the chance to visit with Andrew, the Park Supervisor,
and he told me what he was surprised at when he first visited
this park was that no way you think you're only 25 miles from
downtown Detroit. With 4,000 acres to explore, the big attraction
of the Huron River, and trails galore, that was a nice surprise
and a great bonus for locals and visitors alike.
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Most
sites are grassy, but a few have concrete pads, like this
Site 11.
Andrew
said this side of the park is preferred by groups because
the sites are a little larger and the terrain is not as sloping
as on the other side.
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General
Campground and Reservations Information:
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When I first arrived,
I was assigned site #42, which appeared to be level enough, but
when I tried, I couldn't quite get there. Since I'd just had some
refrigerator issues, I knew leveling was important for it to work
right, so I wasn't going to chance it. I then noticed they had me
down as a 25' motorhome, so when I went back to the office, Kelsey
and Christina were great about finding me another site that worked
for my 36'.
There
is an additional $8.00 charge to make a reservation, and I found
the DNR
Reservations page to be very user friendly. There are complete
descriptions of every site, including dimensions, maximum size of
vehicle, sunny/shade, etc. If you click on "View Availability
on Maps" button after entering your reservation requests, you'll
be able to see the layout of the campground with available sites
marked.
Reviews
from other RVers: RVParkReviews.com
I noticed
the last review in July 2010 mentioned the bathrooms needing upgrading,
and even though I always use my own RV facilities for showering,
etc., I did check them out and I had no problem with their cleanliness
at all. Andrew said they are slated for upgrade in 2012, and explained
the hot water system. It's an "on demand" system, so instead
of having a large tank with water kept heated, you need to run it
a bit to get it hot, but after that it would stay that way throughout
to provide a nice hot shower.
Any
comments? See blog
post for more pics and you can do that, also!
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50 amp service: is available on 20 of the sites. That information
is included in the reservation system, or you can call the park
office.
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While
MI state parks are very popular and sometimes hard to get reservations
during peak season, some parks do keep a limited amount of sites
withheld from the reservations system for "walk-in"
guests. This park is 100% reservable, but it won't hurt to stop
by and take your chances if you're passing by and would like
a nice MI state park experience.. |
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GPS
coordinates of registration station:
42.56020° N
83.52380° W
Elevation: 971 feet |
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Directions
problems: Streets
& Trips gives the location of the campground as 3500 Wixom
Road. Since I had previously learned my lesson about administration
office vs. campground, I got the location of the campground
from Andrew. He said to use 2700 Glengary Road on the GPS. That
worked, but here's a link
to a page with map that shows the Streets &
Trips location of the campground, the address on Glengary, and
how both Streets & Trips and Garmin maps can lead you astray. |
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