Council Bluff Recreation Area

Our favorite type of tent-camping area - very secluded sites, almost no mowed grass (almost all woods), no electricity (keeps crowds down a bit), but still clean running water. Solid site fixtures (large/heavy-duty picnic tables, fire rings, covered "counter/bar", groomed tent pads). Very nearby hiking trails, mostly around a lake; small man-made beach for cooling off in summer, with nice little play ground, about 10 min drive from the campground.

Lot's of early morning noise from cycling event. Would have liked to known that was happening. The beach was closed but the weather was near 80 degrees. Would not have chosen this site had we known the beach would be closed. Any improvement over pit toilets would be a huge plus!

My party and I book early to ensure that we get a particular campsite. Our trip is tradition and we have stayed at the same site every time. When we arrived, another party was already camped at our site. The campsite attendant didn't bother to go out and out up reservation signs to make sure others didn't camp there. We had to find a different open campsite to stay on and downgraded from a double campsite to a single as we didn't want the party currently there to have to break down camp and move. After all it wasn't their fault. All in all we were very disappointed and part of our trip was eaten up trying to get answers about why our campsite was taken and where we could go.

The lake is beautiful, the campgrounds are big and private. Is my favorite camping grounds.

The sites are well spread out and private. When we arrived, the site was ready and clean. The bathrooms (pit toilets) were reasonably clean, although they did run out of toilet paper by Saturday night, and did not get restocked for a day or so. Be sure to have a stock with you, because this is a pretty remote location. The campsite had a nice covered equipment shelf, tables and a fire ring. There is a fresh water spigot, but no electricity, flush toilets or showers in the campground, so be aware of that before going. Those things ARE available over at the beach house during limited hours (showers are for a fee), but during our stay, they were in poor repair. The beach is pretty nice, and was a great way to cool off on a hot weekend. We did not have any trouble with mosquitoes, raccoons, or any other wildlife during our stay.

Great place to camp.