Little Creel RV Park, Chama NM

Stay Date:  July 2007
Our Rating:  BAD – 6
We spent a week here and were somewhat disappointed with the quality of the "resort". The web site greatly misrepresents the park; while it shows riverfront sites with patios, there are only four in the park; and the patios are very worn. All of the other sites are close to each other with either dead grass or weeds that were not mowed during our visit. We paid for a "waterfront premium site" which apparently means that you're within 100 yards of walking to the river. No cable TV or WiFi, Verizon cell and Aircard were marginal.  Lots of trees, so bring your portable satellite dish. The park is very popular and was crowded during our visit; but was quiet at night, even during the Fourth of July. An adequate location if you're visiting the area and riding the Cumbres/Toltec Railroad; but don't expect solitude, this is a very popular vacation spot and if you visit during the summer you'll need reservations.  Pull thru sites are reasonable at $28.  Little Creel RV Park

Rose Valley RV Ranch, Silver City NM

Stay Date:  June 2007
Our Rating:  GOOD – 9
We spent a month here and thoroughly enjoyed our stay. As full timers, we spend a lot of time at RV parks, and this one is special. Large, long gravel pads and patio areas are surrounded by rustic fencing and provide privacy. 50A power is very strong (important since it gets hot here during the day) and the water quality is very good. Free WiFi worked well and the office was quick to reset it the one time it failed. Free cable TV, and a clear shot at the satellite.  Verizon cell and Aircard worked well. The park is located only about three miles from a quaint downtown and just a mile from a Wal-Mart Supercenter. The Laundromat is spotless as is the office. Really nice folks in the office; very helpful and friendly. No pool or playground, but that's the way we like it; in our entire month there was no noise, rowdiness, or children cutting through our site. A great place to stay and explore the cliff dwellings, ghost towns, and Gila Wilderness, for a nightly rate of $28.  Rose Valley RV Ranch

Rusty’s RV Ranch, Rodeo NM

Stay Date:  May 2007
Our Rating:  GOOD – 8
A positive exception to the cookie-cutter campground. Huge sites on the high desert with great views of the Chiricahuas. Very friendly staff, nice office and very clean laundry. Free and very strong WiFi. No Verizon cell service.  No cable TV, but lots of sky to find the satellite.  Two ponds with ducks and fish provide relief to the desert environment, but be aware this is windy country. A great place to base for visits to Cave Creek Canyon and some of the country's best birding. Make sure you're stocked up on groceries, because it's a looooong way to any town of size.  Not for everyone, but you ought to visit once for $24/night.  Rusty’s RV Ranch

Yuma KOFA Escapee RV Park, Yuma AZ

Stay Date:  April 2007
Our Rating:  REALLY UGLY – 3
We’re Escapees, and never expected to stay at a park with such a bunch of rude, unfriendly people.  On check-in, we waited while the office girl ignored us while eating her lunch.  This is one of the parks where you rent the site of an absent owner, and ours was a concrete back-in.  Hookups were good, Verizon cell and Aircard worked well.  The park has a rule that you can’t use your washer.  Cost is plus electric, which with the a/c running all of the time came to $22day.  I’d be embarrassed to say I was an Escapee if lived in this park, maybe it’s the area that makes people so rude.  Yuma is a huge snowbird location, but we avoid it; nothing but sand, rocks, and blowing dust.

Cochise Terrace RV Resort, Benson AZ

Stay Date:  February 2007
Our Rating:  GOOD – 8
Primarily a snowbird park (who’d want to be here in the summer?), this is a well organized, comfortable park.  If you’re going to stay in Benson, than this is the only place where you won’t hear the trains.  Paved roads, pea-gravel well-groomed back-in sites, not much shade.  Local ordinances require that your sewer hose NOT touch the ground.  Free cable, pay WiFi, easy shot to satellite.  Verizon cell and Aircard worked well.  Nice pool, exercise room, and clubhouse.  There’s also a “dance hall” and occasional entertainment.  Plenty of planned activities during the winter, and generally friendly folks, but as in all snowbird parks, cliques exist.  Quiet and dark at night, occasional coyotes (don’t let your pet run free), and a short drive to the Wal-Mart and dining.  No longer a bargain unless you have Passport America, and even then it’s $27/day.  Cochise Terrace RV Resort

Mission RV Park, El Paso TX

Stay Date:  January 2007
Our Rating:  BAD –5
There aren’t many choices in El Paso, otherwise we probably wouldn’t have stayed here.  At check in, the indifferent office lady ignored my request for a larger back-in site and put us into a gravel parking lot with power poles.  To add insult to injury, she put all the arrivals next to each other, leaving dozens of empty spaces in a row.  Located in an industrial area, no ambiance, no shade, no tables, lots of noise from the freeway.  Free cable TV and weak WiFi, good Verizon cell and Aircard service.  Save your $35 and stay in a Wal-Mart parking lots, or better yet, pass through El Paso and stay in Las Cruces.

Lost Alaskan RV Park, Alpine TX

Stay Date:  January 2007
Our Rating:  Good – 9
Alpine is a neat town with a number of RV parks, and the Lost Alaskan is the class of the lot.  Professional staff, nice office & store, and reasonable prices $30/night.  Level, gravel sites are adequate in size and have small shade trees and grass.  Free cable TV, but only a few channels, and free but intermittent and slow WiFi.  Good shot at satellite, and Verizon cell and Aircard worked OK.  Nice pool and facilities, and quiet and very dark at night.  In this area, all of the outdoor lighting is shielded in support of the McDonald Observatory (a must visit), and the stars are as bright as you’ll ever see.  Great view of the mountains, lots of quail, even a coyote howl at night.  Lost Alaskan RV Park