May, 2022
Click on photos to enlarge them.
The photo above may make some of you cringe because of how close together those camping rigs and mobile homes and manufactured homes are to each other. Rest assured, this place is quiet!! The photo above is the view from my campsite back up into temporary and permanent sites behind me. The people who live here are so courteous and quiet.
When I go camping, I almost always stay in state park campgrounds or small private campgrounds, nothing fancy, just comfortable. But for this trip, a friend of mine was with me and she would be staying in a cabin, hopefully nearby. The local state park here doesn’t have cabins that have bathrooms in them … so that’s a bit awkward at night (and even in the day too, since the restrooms you need to walk to are public).
We checked online for other options and quickly settled on both of us staying in Mardon Resort … me in the campsite you’ve already seen (and in the photos below) … and my friend in a really nice “cabin” … really nice! As nice as that cabin was, I was surprised how inexpensive it was. Of course, we were here early in the season and prices were lower, but still, I almost wanted to move into a cabin! 🙂
So this blog post is about the Mardon Resort. And my campsite. And exterior photos of the cabin. And a few other shots around the resort too. When I go back to this area, if I’m by myself, I’ll probably stay in Potholes State Park because it’s less expensive and has more room between campsites. But I loved it here at Mardon in the off-season with no one else nearby. And the cabins were super nice and priced right.
I walked up the road just a bit away from my campsite to take the photo above. In the summer, the campsites on the grass would be filled with tent campers, and their children. Hmmm. 🙂
Then I turned around and, with my back to my campsite, I took the photo below of the cabins. My friend was staying in the middle cabin of those three cabins. Not so rustic, eh?
I walked past the cabins and took the photo above looking back at them. Each has two bedrooms, a full bathroom, lots of storage space, an L-shaped kitchen area that has everything you could want (except your own food), a living area with a TV with cable hookup and DVD player, wifi, a couch and comfy chairs, a small dining table with chairs that overlooks the lake, a large covered deck outside the front door (with white fencing around it and with a gas BBQ), and then a second huge outdoor uncovered deck with table and chairs. It was pretty posh.
I didn’t take photos of the interior of the cabin, but I did take this one photo above from the deck of the cabin looking towards my campsite. The RED arrow points to my big white truck.
My friend couldn’t see my trailer (Towhee the Trailer), but she sure could see my truck and see whether I was off gallivanting by myself. Didn’t. Nope. I was too worn out (as was she) after all of our traipsing around and exploring together each day.
Below are photos of the view out over Potholes Reservoir from the cabin deck.
In the photo above, the Potholes State Park is off to the left, in the near distance, on that peninsula on the left with the large dark evergreen trees.
My friend and I walked along the campground road for a bit, came around a corner and found these folks (below). Two Cinnamon Teal ducks. We Thought they were “Ruddy ducks” until we got back to our home bases and looked them up online. Cinnamon Teals!
And then we jumped into the big white truck and drove through the entire campground mostly just to see what was here. My camping friend took the following videos using her cell phone from the passenger side of the truck … with her window open … of our drive through the campground. Even this doesn’t show all of it. There’s a restaurant and a marina and a putt-putt golf course and more camp spots yet. It’s large, and it’s very well maintained!
Click on the lower right hand square thing to enlarge the videos, or go to Youtube and watch these videos there.
Then there’s a short video here … https://www.youtube.com/shorts/mYsvkMdsHF0. Same place that we saw the Cinnamon Teal earlier, but today they weren’t around.
Then one more video … always click on the lower right hand square corner thing to enlarge the video.
I drove steadily, and obeyed the speed limit inspite of my friend telling me to “go a little faster”. 🙂 I have to say that I’ve never seen such a steady hand of anyone taking cell phone video as my friend did here. That was great videography!
I’m not going to show you all the photos that I took around the Mardon Resort … you get the idea. But I’ll share this one last set of photos. In May each year (which is when we were here), the water of the Reservoir is high, so there is no beach here, as mentioned before. Campsites are few in number, and tent sites are even fewer, because most of them are under water this time of year. In a couple of months, the water will recede and the beach campsites will appear. What surprised me is how high the water was and how it affects this resort/campground.
In the photos below … the water completely covers some of the RV/trailer campsites.
The photo below is of campsite #32. Not only would I surely not back my trailer into the lake … but they won’t let you. In fact, not only is the electricity to those campsites turned off, the wiring is disconnected, just in case. Later in the year, when the water recedes, there will be a whole lot of folks here, in these campsites, on the beach in tents, all manner of people and families having a blast.
But me? I liked the off-season peace and quiet. 🙂
Later in the evening, I took the video below of the inside of my trailer and how it looks and feels and sounds here.
And then later yet in the evening, this lovely sunset appeared.
Here’s to a peaceful night. 🙂 See you tomorrow morning.
Me first, me first! I’m the first to comment. 🙂
I love this. There is so much water. Fascinating how the campsites are under water until later in summer. Nice sunset!
Congrats on being first, Nebraska. 🙂 Thanks for your comments.
Second comment here! 🙂 The submerged campsites were amazing. Glad they actually fully disconnected the wiring and didn’t just turn it off. Loved the videos, please thank your friend! Lovely sunset.
I was glad they disconnected the wiring too, might have been safe to simply throw the switch, but disconnecting is much safer. My friend has been thanked. 🙂
Reading this blog post with my first cup of tea this morning. I have tried coffee. But it isn’t my cup of tea. 🙂 I enjoy your blogs so much. They are so different to caravan blogs here in the UK. The geology of North America is stunning! Looking forward to the lava records. Thank you so much.
Ha! that was pretty cute saying that coffee isn’t your cup of tea. 🙂 I enjoy producing this blog because people like you enjoy reading it, so it’s a win for everyone. Thank you Henry.
I looked on the map. Potholes is closer to where I am in Idaho than to where you are in Olympia, WA. There is no reason for me to put off going there with my trailer. I’ve been nervous about. Thanks for breaking that ice!
Go! Hitch up and go, Susan. Well, you might want to wait until it’s a bit warmer, and the migrating birds are there. But I highly recommend a visit to the Potholes country. Mardon Resort is very nice … and Potholes State Park is very close by and it too is very nice. Go! 🙂
That video drive through the campground was great. Mardon Resort should put them on their website! Loved the “cabin”, pretty darned nice! The underwater campsites made me laugh, really interesting how that works. Gorgeous sunset. Great photos. Thanks. 🙂
Maybe Mardon Resort would BUY the videos from my friend. Hmm, probably not. But wouldn’t that be cool? I hadn’t thought of that. You are welcome. 🙂
Cinnamon Teal, yes. Ruddy duck, no. LOL! Really appreciate your work on this blog.
Thanks, Kinny. 🙂 Goofy us, huh.
I’ve explored here lots in the past, haven’t been here for years, but you make me realize I need to go back. Ok, will grab a friend of mine and head over. Mardon Resort cabin here we come! Great video from that friend of yours. Let’s see if I can do better … I bet NOT! 🙂
Paul, if you get some good photos or videos, post them online somewhere and then let me know … I can add a link here (on the right side of this webpage) to your photos so people here can see them. That would be super.
Great info and videos. If you don’t want to be around lots of people, it looks like those campsites off to the end would be quiet and relatively private. The cabins down there are smaller and more rustic but they would be right on the water!!! We looked at the Mardon Resort website and even those small cabins have bathrooms and heat, etc. Sounds like a perfect place for us to take our RV from Canada and have friends come along as well and rent one of those smaller cabins. Sure appreciate your sharing all of this!
We liked the video of the inside of your trailer too. Bugs. Yes. But you obviously have screens. And so many birds and their calls. And the sunset. So lovely. We’ll be right down there soon!!
Janey
Yes, those campsites at the far end of the campground are attractive, right on the lake, but with no beach tenting even at low water so not so many kids running around, or noisy music, etc. The downside of those sites is that the main road runs right along there with no sound barrier (you can see a pickup truck driving by in one of the videos). Now, at night, there probably isn’t hardly any traffic, maybe none. And yes, the cabins at that end were smaller, so they surely must be less expensive than the larger ones. I think that’s a great plan you have!
And yes, I have screens on those windows! 🙂 It sure was a pretty sunset and it’s a lovely place to stay. Thanks, both of you.
Very well maintained resort! But spending time here in the summer when the lake is low and it’s filled with screaming kids, not so attractive. 🙂 But off season, this place looks super. Liked the video from inside your trailer, lots of windows. And the video tour of the campground was super.
Thanks Greg. I’m with you, no screaming kids. One of the main reasons I bought an Escape 21 was that the dinette is at the back of the trailer, so when I back into a spot, and I’m sitting inside at the table at the back of the trailer, with its big windows, then I have a perfect view of the lake, mountains, river, ocean, etc.
Underwater campsites!! pretty “cool”, ha! Glad they disconnected the wiring while those sites were underwater. Loved that sunset. Thanks for the very professional tour of the campground. We are “permanently moored” down here in Arizona these days, but this made both of us think about pulling up anchor (or unhooking the power cord) and heading north. Thanks for making us dream again.
Your comment reminds me of the Beatles song “We All Live in a Yellow Submarine”. Underwater campsites indeed. 🙂
Come north. Let me know when/where you’ll be. If I can help in any way, just say the word. For sure keep dreaming. My best to you both.