The snake river and the 1,000 Springs are beautiful. Having the opportunity to camp alongside the winding Snake, while watching the sun rise and set over the springs and hear their thundering in the quiet of the night was an amazing opportunity. We brought tubes, life vests, and ropes to tie the tubes to the dock, and we let the kids float in the river. They loved bouncing around on the waves as speed boats passed by. The sites are pretty shady which was a relief from the blazing, hot sun.
FYI: cell service anywhere in the canyon is sketchy at best. The campground provides WiFi—but it doesn’t carry strength very far past the main building.
I’m not sure that I expected more from the “resort” before I arrived, but I did find the overall care and management of the property to be disappointing, although the staff was friendly.
For starters, the sites were cramped and campers really have to hope for good neighbors. The only water pump was a hike for most tents. When we arrived, we found our fire bowl filled with trash and ash. We had to remove the garbage and did our best to prevent to ash from choking our charcoal.
One couple was given one site for their first night and then asked to move, without advance warning at check in, per convenience of management. It’s a lot of work to set alone camp, let alone having to do it again.
It felt campers were nickled and dimed at pricey rates for ice, wood, etc., and even the fee to swim in the pool. There are signs everywhere reminded the visitor that this or that is extra.
The facility feels like it was built in 1960 and not maintained since. The camp bathroom/shower was filthy, and the though if using it made us fell dirtier than clean. I’m pretty adaptable, I live my showers, but skipping the shower seems like a good option.
The geothermal swimming pool was nice. It was really warm—like a mild hot tub or super warm bath. There are hot mineral baths that we didn’t try because they cost even more than it cost us to swim in the pool.
I would like the campground a lot more if they reinvested at least a portion of all those fees into their facility to maintain the premises.
While totally not the fault of management, the campground can be subject to really high winds. During our stay a full night and day of high winds caused many tents to completely collapse. Be advised so you can be prepared.
Would I go back? Maybe.
