maplewood state park

[smilee_54]

Hey guys just wondering if anyone has been to maple wood state park. My wife and the kids and I are thinking of going there. Just seeing if its kid friendly for a 4 and 6 year old thanks

[ParkRangerRube]

Maplewood is a very nice park. It really depends on what types of activities you and your family are into. I have only camped there once (earlier this summer with my wife) so I may not be able to clue you in on all the features of the park, but I'll go from our impressions of our stay. With kids, I'm guessing swimming would be a priority. Maplewood has a pretty nice beach and swimming area located on South Lida. As far as I know the beach is not staffed by lifeguards, so I'm not sure if that would be a concern. As for other opportunities, there are nearly 25 miles of hiking trails within the park. If you are willing to hike the 1/2 mile trail to the top of Hallaway Hill, you get a great view of South and North Lida. The trailhead is located near the swimming/picnic area (the picnic setup is also very nice, and a new picnic shelter was just opened up last year). There are also a lot of opportunites for fishing in and around the park. My wife and I fished on South Lida and came across some very nice largemouth bass, a few crappies, and a handful of northerns.

As for the campground itself, there are a few different options. The Grass Lake Main Loop would probably be the most convenient, especially with kids, as this is where the shower facility is located. We stayed in the Lake Lida campground, and had no complaints. We also took a look at the Grass Lake Hollow Loop; very nice and secluded sites - probably where we will try to stay for our next visit. I'm not sure about the other campground loops in the park, but from what we saw, I'm guessing the rest are very nice as well.

I hope this helped a little bit. Like I said, we have only stayed there once so I may have missed a lot of other things the park has to offer. The best thing to do would be to just give the park office a call and I'm sure they would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

--- And not to point you in another direction but Buffalo River is also a pretty nice park, especially for those with children. The main feature is a man made swimming pond. The pond is filled with water drawn from the Buffalo River and treated (filtered and chlorinated), a sand bottom, and a very nice surrounding beach. It is staffed by lifeguards from 9am to 9pm. Buffalo River is also a geocaching demo park, which provides a good opportunity to begin exploring the nearly 13 miles of hiking trails within the park. The campround has 44 sites (35 electric, 9 non-electric), and if you plan on staying during a summer weekend it is best to make a reservation ahead of time since sites often fill up fast. Anyway,...that's my two-cents.

[JeffB]

good fishing, good swim beach, and some nice hiking trails.

[krats]

I was over there yesterday for fishing, it was my first time in the park. Very nice, clean, and I bet it is beautiful when the colors are changing in the fall.

I plan on taking the family there in the fall, even if it is only for the day.