Cottonwood (NE)

This is one of our favorite places to go RVing. Love the Cottonwood Unit and love the surrounding area. Plenty to do from fishing, boating, and just camping. Camping pads are very well kept and mowed frequently. Shower houses are maintained around the clock. Have been coming here since we were kids (now, in our 60's). Beautiful Cottonwood trees, but slowly dying and being cut down. The only negative thing about Cottonwood (two camping areas)... they are now 100% reservable. No more first-come, first-serve. Don't know why the reservation is going in this direction but is disappointing, to say the least.

It is a great place for my needs of a peaceful overnight spot. Just beautiful.

It is a great place for my needs of a peaceful overnight spot. Just beautiful.

We have stayed at Cottonwood several times over the years as it is roughly one full day’s drive from our home when we are heading to do some exploring in the Midwest. This was our first visit to Cottonwood during the prime summer camping months, and as expected, the campground was significantly more crowded than on previous visits we have made during fall months.

Our campsite (#60) was a prime lakefront site with 50 amp electric service, picnic table, fire ring and some moderate shade. The campsite also offered a level blacktop pad on which to park our 25’ RV. There are no water or sewer hookups at any of the individual campsites, but there are water spigots spaced throughout the campground and you could use those to fill your freshwater tanks if needed. There is also a dump station about 1 mi from the campground that offers additional potable water filling stations.

There are modern restrooms with flush toilets that were both clean and well stocked during our stay. There are also shower facilities that appeared to be clean and there was no added charge to use them.

The campground is operated by the US Army Corps of Engineers, and just to the north of the campground is Gavins Point National Fish Hatchery which is operated by the US Fish and Wildlife Agency. The Hatchery is open to the public for tours and is very educational. We found it to be an easy bike ride from the campground.

Cellular coverage was reliable on both AT&T and Verizon, with Verizon performing slightly better on speed tests. Service from both providers was adequate for me to conduct some virtual meetings with videoconferencing and more than adequate for taking care of emails.

I would definitely recommend making advance reservations if you wish to camp here during the summer months. You can make reservations through recreation.gov, or their most excellent mobile app, up to 6-months prior to your planned arrival.

We have stayed at Cottonwood several times over the years as it is roughly one full day’s drive from our home when we are heading to do some exploring in the Midwest. This was our first visit to Cottonwood during the prime summer camping months, and as expected, the campground was significantly more crowded than on previous visits we have made during fall months.

Our campsite (#60) was a prime lakefront site with 50 amp electric service, picnic table, fire ring and some moderate shade. The campsite also offered a level blacktop pad on which to park our 25’ RV. There are no water or sewer hookups at any of the individual campsites, but there are water spigots spaced throughout the campground and you could use those to fill your freshwater tanks if needed. There is also a dump station about 1 mi from the campground that offers additional potable water filling stations.

There are modern restrooms with flush toilets that were both clean and well stocked during our stay. There are also shower facilities that appeared to be clean and there was no added charge to use them.

The campground is operated by the US Army Corps of Engineers, and just to the north of the campground is Gavins Point National Fish Hatchery which is operated by the US Fish and Wildlife Agency. The Hatchery is open to the public for tours and is very educational. We found it to be an easy bike ride from the campground.

Cellular coverage was reliable on both AT&T and Verizon, with Verizon performing slightly better on speed tests. Service from both providers was adequate for me to conduct some virtual meetings with videoconferencing and more than adequate for taking care of emails.

I would definitely recommend making advance reservations if you wish to camp here during the summer months. You can make reservations through recreation.gov, or their most excellent mobile app, up to 6-months prior to your planned arrival.