White Oak Creek COE Campground - Eufaula, Alabama (October 2020)

Our first camping trip during the COVID-19 pandemic camping was a success and lit the fire for more adventures in Rosie, our Airstream trailer. Once home, we started talking about going out camping again.

The parameters for another trip were similar to our previous outing. We wanted to stay in a park close to home and we wanted a campground with large sites. We were able to get reservations at the White Oak Creek Army Corps of Engineers Campground.

Sign at White Oak Creek COE Campground

This is a campground located south of Eufaula, Alabama, along the shore of Lake George. It is also a campground we stayed in twice before.

There are four camping loops in this park and I imagine all are full during the summer. We were there during the late Fall and only three loops were open. It seemed camping during the pandemic was a popular idea as there were only a few unoccupied sites in the entire park. 

Rosie in White Oak Creek COE Campground

It appeared to us that fishing was very popular among the campers there during the week. The park's complexion seemed to change over the weekend as the jet skiing and water skiing crowd arrived. That crowd pulled out on Sunday afternoon leaving the campground to the quiet fishing boats.

Suzy looking at the lake

We took our inflatable tandem kayak and enjoyed our excursions around the lake. On one of our trips, Becky did a FaceTime video session with our three year-old grandson. He was excited about going on a kayak trip with his grandparents and enjoyed the adventure as we paddled under the bridge at one end of the park.

Kayak ready for the lake

Enjoying the lake

Heading towards Rosie

On one of our kayak trips on the lake, we started noticing dozens and dozens of what appeared to be empty one liter soda bottles wrapped in orange foam bobbing on the water. As we paddled over toward one of these things to investigate, a fishing boat beelined toward us at high speed. The man on the boat started yelling at us about his catfish noodles. Well, that solved the mystery as to what those things were on the water. From that time on, we were carefully watched by the fisherman.

Catfish Noodles on the lake

Selfie on the lake

We also enjoyed riding our bicycles around this park. Once again, Becky took our grandson on a FaceTime bike ride around the park. Needless to say, he was excited to join his grandparents as he shared in a Rosie adventure using digital technology.

Riding bikes at White Oak COE Campground

As silly as it sounds, we noticed a familiar Airstream in the campground. Did you think all Airstream trailers looked alike? Maybe, but we recognized the Wally Byam Airstream Club Big Red Numbers on the trailer. We were on the WBAC Springtime in Kentucky several years ago with those friends and were schedule to be with them on the Gone to Texas this year. Of course, COVID cancelled all WBAC caravans.

Our friends in White Oak Campground

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• There were four loops in the campground. Most of the sites in this campground we’re on the water.
• Our site was paved with concrete and was level. It appeared to us that the sites in the other loops were also paved with concrete
• Our site had 20, 30 and 50 amp electrical service 
• Our site had a water connection
• Our site did not have a sewer connection 
• There were two dump stations in this park. Both were a distance from the camp sites and you ended up having to drive there to dump your sewage tote
• The trash dumpsters were at the dump stations. That meant it was too far to walk there with your trash
• There were multiple bathhouses in the campground. The volunteer at the gate suggested we use the bathroom in our trailer since the number of COVID-19 cases in Alabama were increasing during that time span
• The park did not provide WiFi service 
• AT&T provided decent 4G voice and data service over our campsite 
• We were able to watch only PBS using Rosie’s TV antenna. We were glad we brought our DVR with episodes of TV shows and movies we wanted to watch
• The campground was near Eufaula, Alabama. That meant there were restaurants and shopping nearby
• This was a pet friendly park 

We discovered a little too late that it was ant season at the campground. We immediately went into "full ant mode" by making sure our power and water lines didn't touch the ground and spraying ant pesticide around every point of Rosie touching the ground. We also had to spray Rosie's outer skin where we found ant trails. It had been years since we were camping in a location with ant problems and we ended up having to fight the critters both inside and outside our trailer.

As we were using the dump station before leaving the park, someone pulled a sewage tote up to the dump station next to the one we were using. We asked if he noticed the ant problem at his motorhome. He quickly snapped back that they had not seen any ants at their site. Becky and I chuckled as he left the dump station that he may not have seen any yet, but time will tell. It is almost too late once you start seeing them.

The ants are just a part of the camping experience and you have to be diligent in trying to keep them out. They did not lower our opinion of this great campground.

View of the bridge at night

Rosie at night

Selfie outside Rosie

Day use area at White Oak COE Campground

Sunrise at White Oak COE Campground

We didn't see an alligator

The geese were not happy to see us in our kayak

Heading back to Rosie

White Oak Creek COE Campground - Alabama

Sometimes you just need to spend a little time in the woods. We reached that point during the last week of November, a very hard month for our family. There were two deaths in our family that month.

First, my 94 year old mother passed away. While her death was expected, it is always hard to lose your mother. Very hard.

Second, we lost Annie, our little Yorkie dog. She was a member of our family for 16.5 years and she loved camping in Rosie, our 25 foot Airstream trailer. While recovering from these events, we decided that we needed to hitch-up Rosie and head to the woods.

White Oak Creek Park

We didn't want to travel too far from home, so we selected White Oak Creek Campground. This is an Army Corps of Engineers park located along the banks of Lake George a few miles south of Eufaula, Alabama. People with the National Parks Senior Pass may camp here for half price. That makes camping in a Corps of Engineers park a great value.

We camped at White Oak Creek COE park during the first week of December. There were only a few other campers in the park at that time and we were able to park Rosie in a great location on the lake. That was just what we needed.

Our site at White Oak Creek COE Campground

The view from Rosie's rear window

It was very peaceful watching the ducks and other water fowl around the lake and riding our bicycles through the park. This is a large park with multiple camping loops and it is very busy during the summer months. Only one loop is open during the winter months, but all of the loops have great sites on the water.

Getting the bikes ready for exploring the park

Evenings along the lake

The park itself was well maintained by the park volunteers. The restrooms were clean and heated, something we appreciated when we camped here during December. Many of the sites were spacious and offered great views of the water.

Here are some specifics about this park:

• A large number of the camp sites in this park are located on the lake with great views.
• Our site had only 30 amp electrical service and a water hook-up. We are not sure if any of the other loops offer 50 and/or 20 amp electrical service.
• The sites do not have sewer connections, but there are several dump stations in the park.
• There are bath houses in every loop. The bath house serving our loop was clean and heated, something you appreciate when winter camping.
• AT&T served the park with a decent 4G signal for both data and voice.
• There is no Wi-Fi service in this park. You will need to hotspot your smartphone.
• We remembered from the last time we visited this park that TV service from the Columbus, Georgia market was poor. That continued to be true this time. We pointed the antenna toward Dothan, Alabama, and were surprised that we were able to watch ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS. We also were able to see the ME-TV digital channel.
• If you need to buy something, shopping is available close to the park's entrance. There are also some good restaurants within 20 minutes of the park.

Our trip to White Oak Creek COE Campground turned out to be exactly what we needed to lift our spirits. We enjoyed our time in this park and know we will return again.

Sunset at White Oak Creek COE Campground

Enjoying the park

Rosie in the White Creek COE Campground

Sure, it was a "Major Prize"

Selfie in the park

Hitched and ready to leave

White Oak Creek Campground, near Eufaula, Ala.

White Oak Creek is an Army Corps of Engineers park located on Lake George just south of Eufaula, Ala. This is a park that is normally open only during spring, summer and a little during the fall season. It is scheduled to be closed during winter. We didn't know this little fact when we arrived for a visit.

White Oak Creek

We were surprised when we arrived because only one loop of this park was open. The park attendants had volunteered to stay for a while and keep the park operating after the scheduled seasonal closing passed a week or two earlier. Needless to say, we were very grateful that the park attendants volunteered to keep one loop of the park open.

Camping at White Oak Creek

There was an air of uncertainty while we were in the park. One of the conversation points among our fellow campers was speculating how long the volunteers were going to keep the park open.
Similar to many COE parks, the camping sites were spacious. We always appreciate having some space between Rosie, our Airstream trailer, and the next camper.

Lots of space at White Oak

Our spot was on the water and we enjoyed watching the ducks, geese and other birds playing along the shore. At times it sounded as if the ducks were all laughing at a joke told by one of their flock. We also saw schools of fish jump in the lake right after sunset.

Lots of ducks and other birds

The volunteers keeping the park open did a great job keeping it up. The park and restrooms were clean and well maintained. It was easy to see that they took pride in this park and wanted to share it with everyone.

White Oak Creek did reinforce our idea that most of the COE parks we have visited are great places to camp.

Camping at White Oak Creek

Some specifics about this park:

• This park is close to shopping. If you need to get some supplies, there is a store about five miles outside the main gate.
• I thought that we would see all of the TV stations from Columbus, GA. We ended up only seeing an occasional signal from a CBS station.
• AT&T provided good 4G service over the park.
• There wasn't a WiFi signal at this park.
• The park has power and water at the camp sites. There was a dump station in the park. (We think there was another dump station, but it was probably in the closed section of the park.)
• The power connections were interesting. The power box at our camp site offered only 30 amp service. There wasn't a 20 nor a 50 plug available.

The rumor mill among the campers kept speculating if the park would be open beyond the Monday after we were scheduled to leave the park. My first thought was that the volunteers keeping the park open were about to throw in the towel. It appears that our fellow campers were thinking about something we were not considering--the federal government's shutdown.

A rainbow after a fall shower

As hard as it is to believe, the federal government did shut down the following Monday and the park was scheduled to close along with every other federal park in America. White Oak Creek did not close because the city of Eufaula entered into an agreement with the Corps of Engineers to keep the park open. According to local news reports, White Oak was the only federal campground open during the shutdown.

Rosie on the road again

This qualifies as both good news and bad news. It is good that the local community decided to step up and keep this wonderful park open. The bad news is that all federal parks need to be open, not just one.

Watercolor painted by Becky at White Oak Creek

Before drifting intro a tirade about what is wrong in Washington, I'll conclude by saying White Oak Creek COE Campground is a solid campground and worth visiting.

Watercolor of hickory nuts by Becky

Cotton Hill Campground (near Fort Gaines, Georgia and Eufaula, Alabama)

Cotton Hill is an Army Corps of Engineers campground located on the Georgia side of Walter F. George Lake. This is a park that most GPS units cannot find and your intuition is that the bumpy roads leading to the park must be wrong. Who would volunteer to take their RV down these roads?
A colleague at work told us about the park, gave us general directions, then said to pay attention to the road signs. This proved to be valuable information as the signs, not the GPS, brought us to the park. While 30 satellites were arguing over where we were at that moment and our velocity, terrestrial road signs directed us into this park. (The information on Recreation.gov, the site you need to use to reserve a site at this park, includes GPS coordinates. We found several reviews online that said those coordinates were wrong. That made the advice from my co-worker more on target: cross the Alabama/Georgia line on Hwy 82 at Eufaula, turn right on Georgia State Road 39 then follow the road signs. )
Normally, we would have used the Google Maps app on our iPhones to verify the route to the campground. This failed because AT&T hasn't discovered Georgia State Road 39 yet and there is no service along this highway. Without reliable cell service, Google cannot figure where you are and load the proper roads. Once again, you need to follow the signs.

Road sign at the park's entrance

While checking in, we asked the park attendant what he thought about the site we reserved on the Web site. He bluntly replied that it wasn't his favorite because of the angle and it would be terrible for trailers with rear doors because there is a drop-off at the end of the pad. With less than a ringing recommendation, we took off looking for our site.
We quickly discovered that the attendant was correct. We could not have selected a more difficult site for Rosie, our 25 foot Airstream trailer.
A quick trip back to the Park Attendant's Station and we trading in our reserved site for one of the non-reservable ones.

Our new site at Cotton Hill

One of the first lessons we learned about this park, besides the fact that it is a challenge to find for the first time, is that some of the best sites are on the walk-in list. We asked the park attendant to recommend a site and he gave us three suggestions. We took the one he said was his favorite and it turned out to be great.
Most of the campsites in this park are large. That means there is some space between your site and your neighbor's.
There are three loops in this campground. They are Pine Island, Marina View and Old Mill Road. All of these loops feature lots of sites with views of the lake.
We ruled out the Marina View because many of those sites are pull-throughs. These are great for campers with their "best views" on the side. Since Rosie's best view is out the rear window, we would be staring at the truck and camper behind us.
There are some great sites in the Old Mill Road loop. There are also some steep declines to trailer pad. While I am sure our F-150 truck could handle the angles, I wasn't positive our nerves could deal with it. That left the Pine Island loop as our choice for Rosie.

The attendant warned us that AT&T's cell service in this park was awful. We found that we had strong 4G/3G service at the back window facing the lake. You lost the signal by the time you reached the road in front of the trailer.
The pocket of cell service was unique to the Pine Island loop. We tested our iPhones in the other two loops and never found any reliable coverage. Other campers said that Verizon had good coverage over the entire park. That is something we cannot confirm.
This is a great park for riding bicycles because the roads are flat and there are beautiful views.
We also found lots of wildlife in the park. We saw several deer about 100 yards from Rosie. One of our most interesting sightings was a pileated woodpecker. Having watched more than my fair share of Woody Woodpecker cartoons in my childhood, it was fun to see and hear this bird.
Another exciting sighting was golden eagles. We thought we saw one the first evening in the park. We drove down to the dam the second day and saw several there.
There were also several ospreys sitting on nests around the park and on posts sticking out of the lake. Most of these birds were very vocal as you approached their nests.
Multiple possums, armadillos and raccoons were seen in this park during our stay. I saw a raccoon jump from the dumpster as I took our trash out one night. When I threw our trash bag in the dumpster, I heard several "thumps" indicating that more raccoons were inside feasting on our trash.
Lake George is huge and you can see storms building across it. We saw a storm building on Friday and it rained all day on Saturday. Back in our tent camping days, an all-day rain was a deal-breaker. Instead of huddling in the tent and being careful to not touch the sides, we were able to enjoy watching the storm's effect on the lake and enjoy life inside Rosie.
The rains on Saturday were accompanied by some strong winds. People talk about the aerodynamic design of Airstream trailers helping them weather winds. While we heard the wind in the trees near Rosie and we saw the results looking out our windows, we didn't feel Rosie being buffeted by these winds.
Cotton Hill turned out to be a park that we enjoyed and one we will return to later.
Some specifics about the Cotton Hill COE Campground:

• There is only one bath house in each of the loops. That means you have a hike if you need to visit the bath house.
• The bath houses are not in the best of shape. While they are regularly cleaned, the don't qualify as "modern."
• This is a "pet friendly" park. (Make sure you pick-up after your pet!)
• AT&T 4G and 3G service was poor to non-existent in this park. Our iPhones worked only near the shore in the Pine Island loop.
• There is no wi-fi available anywhere in the park.
• We were able to watch TV stations from Columbus, Ga (CBS, ME-TV), Dothan, Ala. (ABC, CBS, CW, MY-TV) and Montgomery (FOX, Antenna and THIS).
• Camping sites in all three loops have full connections, including sewerage.
• Electrical hookups includes 50 and 30-amp service.
• Bring bottled water to this campground. We have a filter on the entire trailer plus Airstream provides a filter on the kitchen sink. After two filters, we found the camp's water to be hard to drink and we ended up going out and buying several gallons of water.
• Several people said that the Bagby State Park has a restaurant and that this is one of a couple places you can eat at near the park. We decided to go there for the Friday night seafood buffet. We checked the buffet before we decided if we were going stay and discovered the buffet was fried catfish, baked unidentified fish, popcorn shrimp, boxed mashed potatoes, soggy onion rings and something that had sausage and corn in it. We agreed that this buffet wasn't worth $15.95 and left.
• There isn't any real shopping near Cotton Hill Campground. Make sure you pack everything you need because you won't find it within 10 miles.

• It is worth taking a trip into Eufaula. There are several old homes there including the Shorter mansion. Eufaula is the best place near Cotton Hill for shopping and a meal out.

The bottom line is that this park is worth visiting.