American Ridge Lodge is one of the most private campsites I've ever stayed in; it was so peaceful, and we felt like we had the whole forest all to ourselves. There is SO. MUCH. ROOM. for however you want to camp, whether close to the lodge or a little off with some separation from your group. Great views all around, and if you're lucky enough to get a clear night, the stars are breathtaking. * I recommend packing some flushable toilet seat covers for a little separation when using the wood seats in the outhouse. * For those using navigation, from our group, all that used Google Maps, the app led them right to the site with no problems. For those who used Apple Maps or Waze, the app dropped them too early in the route, and they all had to wander the local campgrounds/trails trying to find us.

The bees really ruined the experience for us. It was my fam with 2 kids my brother and his RV, and my friends fam with 3 kiddos. There was a burn ban so we cooked outside on our camper stove and as soon as I started cooking on the stove I was swarmed by some aggressive hornets or wasps maybe? We couldn’t sit outside or eat so we went inside the dark lodge and hung lanterns to see our food. The lanterns were soon attacked by different flying bugs as well. This place was really cool otherwise. So much room for friends and family to spread out and camp and there were little trails all around the lodge. We slept inside the lodge on cots, and my daughters slept outside. We heard Coyotes the first night. The outhouses could use air fresheners, and the wood on the toilet seats needs to be sealed because otherwise sitting on moist or damp wooden toilet seats is unsanitary and all the bugs know it there too. My brother saved the day when we could cook in his RV, and there is a resident chipmunk that loves to visit inside the lodge. Bumping Lake is down the road, and we found Thunder Eggs at Quartz Creek, all in all worth it, and we’ll come again if bees are taken care of.

Abysmal and that is an understatement. 12 hours of driving and $200 in gas to find a gate, with a lock, and a code that did not work. Multiple people in my group tried for hours - reread the code 50 times....NOPE. Ended up walking the road to figure out if hauling all our gear by foot - and the 3 to 4 round trips it would take - would be worthwhile....NOPE. Even if the lock combo was correct, and the gate was opened, the deadfalls across the road would have prevented a vehicle getting up there anyway. I was refunded in full which is an insult. Gas money, time, cost of alternate arrangements at the last minute for our group???? Not a single peep let alone an apology from the Forest Manager. YOU SHOULD BE FIRED FOR INCOMPETENCE.