Since we can't be at a campsite ...

It's supposed to snow tonight.

New Products - Dried Potatoes

When we go camping, we don't always carry fresh potatoes, and even if we do, I don't always like to go to the trouble of peeling and shredding and slicing and such. I used to buy Betty Crocker's Hash Browns, and they disappeared from the shelves for a while. Then yesterday, I saw them at the store, but BC has changed the packaging and now has a ine of "Seasoned Skillets." They still have the hash browns, but they now also have Crispy Potato Slices in two different flavors - Lightly Seasoned and Roasted Garlic & Herbs. I'll be giving these a try in a couple of weeks when we go to Overton Beach for Christmas.

Review: Lake Perris State Recreation Area

Fall, winter, and spring are the best times, in my opinion, to come to this park. The weather is cooler, and the crowds are down. We chose to come here for our "shakedown" in our new trailer, and were among only 8 trailers/motor homes in the entire place.

I've created my review template and will give it a try here. Let me know if there's something I've left out that most people would want to know.

Address: 17801 Lake Perris Drive, Perris, CA 92571
Phone: (campground) 951-940-5603
Website http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=651
To make a reservation: ReserveAmerica.com, or link from website, or call 1-800-444-7275
Rates: Hookups: $34 (3/1 – 11/30) and $29 (12/1 – 2/28); Non-hookups: $25 (3/1 – 11/20) and $20 (12/1 – 2/28). Senior discount $2/night (62+)
Note: Park entrance fee is waived if you're camping.


General Information:
# Sites: 353
# Sites with hookups: 265, 7 of which are wheelchair accessible
Note: these are water/electric with a drain for gray water
Dump station: 3; next to campground entrance/exit
Size of sites: approximately 30 feet in length, but that’s to the curb – so longer rigs just back in and hang over the concrete. We saw several long motorhomes there. The sites are wide, so your TV or toad park alongside your RV.
Office hours: Summer (April-October) – 6 am – 10 pm, Winter (November-March) – 6 am – 8 pm
Interstate access: If you’re on the 215, exit Ramona Expressway and go east about 1 mile to sign pointing left to park entrance. If you’re on the 60, exit Moreno Beach Drive and go south about 3 miles to the park entrance. The Ramona entrance closes at 8 pm; the Moreno Beach entrance is open 24 hours.
On site staff? Friendly, helpful? : The rangers work the two main entrances and the campground entrance during the hours stated above. The ranger who checked us in at the campground assigned us to a site, but then told us we could really camp anywhere we wanted, and even recommended 4 sites that she considered to be excellent sites. The volunteer who was raising the flag Saturday morning was friendly and helpful when I asked him where the Target and WalMart were. Rangers make the rounds each morning checking to make sure you're registered, but they leave you alone.

Noise info:No major highways or trains, but on Saturday nights during spring, summer, and fall you hear the bzzzt-bzzzt-bzzzts from the Perris Speedway near the Ramona entrance. We heard some teenage boys horsing around Friday night, but at 10 they went inside and all was peaceful. Then the coyotes were the only things we heard. Saturday night, we were plagued by high winds, so that’s all we heard.

Amenities
Restrooms: typical state park restrooms – clean, but no heat
Showers: available, but remember, these restrooms aren’t heated!
Pool: no, but in the summer you can swim in the lake – one of the swimming beaches is within walking distance of the campground
WiFi: no
Cell phone reception (I have Cingular): sporadic – sometimes good, sometimes nonexistent
Laundry: no
Store: no
Notes: If you come via the Moreno Beach exit, you pass a WalMart. For military retirees, March Air Reserve Base is about 3 miles away, with a large commissary and BX.

Notes for future reservations: the sites are grouped together in threese, fours and fives – always get an “end” site so no one is on one side. In addition, try to get a site that has sites directly across the street from it so you can have room for backing and hitching. Otherwise, you’ll hit a curb.

This was the site directly across the street from ours. The bathrooms are on the left.












This photo shows you the width of the sites - wide enough for RV and TV or toad to park side by side.

Trailer Pics - Our 2007 Thor Wave

Now that I finally took the camera to the trailer, I decided to take some photos of it. Above, it's parked at site #233 at Lake Perris State Recreation Area, where we took it this past weekend for the "shakedown" - the first trip.







Here's the dinette and tv, taken from the slide-out couch.
















To me, a good kichen is a very important feature in a trailer. This is our rear kitchen, which I think is a wonderful kitchen to cook in!






















Another shot of the kitchen; from another angle.