Reviews written by vdub

This is a very nice place to stay. Downside -- laundry is not available at the Randolph area for the foreseeable future. Apparently, the county has closed them down for some environmental issue. However, laundry is available at the Ft. Sam area across the road. It costs $5 to get into the Ft. Sam area unless you have disability access card. Laundry at Ft. Sam is very nice. The weekly rate of $100 is no longer available -- still, at $15/day, it's a bargain. Very quite, very peaceful. We had 21 deer visit our campsite tonight looking for free hand-outs which we were more than happy to give them. We are in site 8 -- not a good site because, for some reason, the sewer dump is on the opposite side of the water and electric. Go figure..... We made do and not a huge imposition. Even at that, we will be back again. Word is that Randolph will take over the Ft. Sam RV area within a year.

Nice place with nice people! I'd come back again. I gave the place a slightly lower mark on location and amenities for two reasons. First, the famcamp is way at the bottom of the peninsula. It takes maybe 10 or 15 minutes to get to the main gate or the bx/commissary -- not a huge deal, but sometimes annoying. Second, Verizon service was not so good. Maybe it was bad weather or just bad kharma, but the Verizon service for voice was very weak and would frequently cut out. Same with Verizon broadband. Although the broadband seemed more stable, it was slow and would also unexpectedly quit. Neither signal was particularly strong. As far as reservations go, we had no problem at all. We called for reservations exactly two weeks before we were going to be there and got a space with no difficulty. However, this was for a short, less-than-2-week stay. If you are just passing through, it seems ok. If you want to camp here for the winter, things are not so easy. Note the lat/long for the Tanker Way Gate in the directions. Unless you like driving at night or unless you arrive on a Sunday, you will most likely come in thru the Tanker Gate. We came thru Tampa via the toll road (618), since we were coming from the south. The tolls from stem to stearn added up to about $9. Given the condition of the road and lack of traffic, it was a bargain. We will most likely leave on I-275 as we are heading north.

The back-in are not as horrid as some have suggested. Yes, they are a little narrow, especially if you have slides on both sides, but there is a LOT of maneuvering room. The back-ins are all on asphalt, which is a nice change from having gravel. Even the overflow lot is paved. The pull-thrus are all easy to get into and have a lot of room between campers. The wifi was up and running when we visited, but they made some mistakes on design. I believe all back-ins will have a good wifi signal (untested, tho), but the signal pretty much disappears about 3/4 of the way up the pull-thru line, that is, sites 1-10 should be good, 11-14 pretty weak, beyond that you can most likely forget it (all this is just a guess, tho). If you have a permanently mounted sat ant, you might want to consider a back-in since the orientation of the pull-thrus and the location of pine trees will likely interfer with the signal. Check you site before setting up. Otherwise, we liked it here. Very nice place and the base is neat, tidy, clean, and with a lot of nice people. If visiting around 26Feb08, you may have trouble finding a spot, since they are having an Atlas 5 launch on/around that date. The launch is supposed to be late at night, but the exact date/time will not be released until later.

Did not stay, but drove by to check it out. Manager is very nice. The camp is co-located with RV storage -- only $35/month if you have the need for short-term storage. I seriously doubt the 30 day limit (then out 7) is being enforced, since it appeared some of the same RV's were parked in the same slot as in the picture that was taken nearly a year ago. Suspect many of these folks are homesteading here. The place was not neat and tidy like we in the military have grown accustomed to. If Port Hueneme or Point Mugu are available, then I would go there and pay the extra few bucks. A lot could be done (with no money) to make this place much nicer than it is. One of which would be to enforce the "out 7" rule which somewhat forces everyone to pickup their stuff at least once a month. One word of caution... call to make sure you have a spot before entering, since when you turn left off Victoria, you are trapped and will have to backup to turn around. If the camp sites are full, then finding a place to back around could provide a very unpleasant experience.

The rating depends on what you are looking for. If you want a PX, commissary, etc, then it is a 2. On the other hand, if you want quiet camping with electric and water, then it's a strong 5. We did not camp here, but were at Ft Tuthill, so came to check it out. Unfortunately, the camp host was gone, so information was limited to what we could see. Fire rings were at every camp site and some fire rings had stacks of wood next to them, so we assume fires are permited when conditions warrant. The roads and rv pads are well-graveled, but watch for a couple of semi-close tree limbs on the way in (no big problem, just be careful if entering at night). I would disagree with the other reviewer who said it would be either dusty or muddy. All sites are easy back-in's. Half the sites are in an open area with no trees (good for sat reception) and the other half are among the trees, so you have a choice. The shower and bathroom facility is brand new and easy access from all sites. We did not check for laundry facilities, but the bath house is certainly large enough to accomodate one. The base offers virtually nothing at the present and is 10 miles from Flagstaff, but the gate guard said the Army had plans to build the camp back up to it's previous condition complete with PX and housing. However, there is a Pilot truck plaza on the north side of exit 185, so simple, quickie-mart things are readily available. Not sure if the truck plaza has wifi. It's mid-Oct as of this writing and with the camp at 7,400' it's getting chilly at night, so I doubt we will stay here this year, but it will be on our list for the future. It's a gem in the rough.

Excellent campground with a very nice host (JoAnne)! DO NOT use the Patriot Gate unless you are very sure you can fit through (most rigs can't). Follow directions to the Commercial Gate -- it is well signed. Exit 66, as shown on some computer maps, no longer exits. Lots and lots of stuff to do in the local area -- Jewel Cave NP, Wind Cave NP, Mt Rushmore, Badlands NP, SD Air Museum, and a whole host of commercial activities. Rapid City is a nice small city that's easy to get around. EAFB is also easy to get around. Shopette is just across the street from the FamCamp and has diesel. Nice, smaller BX and commissary is just a short distance from the FamCamp. Wifi was turned on just a few days ago (4May07). Cost is now $20, but very much worth it when you consider the alternatives outside the gate.

McConnell FamCamp is a dissappointment and definitly not up to AF standards, but help is on the way. Budgeted for FY09 is a million dollar upgrade that will increase the size of the park from 10 spaces to 29 and include full-service hookups to all sites. The upgrade was pushed back one year due to resources required for Iraq. The upgrade will include an on-site community center with showers, laundry, bath, and, eventually, game area and wifi. Wichita offers a lot in the way of entertainment and is a nice little city. Unfortunately, with the current situation, (the lack of sewer connections, no bath, and no laundry) it would be difficult to recommend this FamCamp for anything but a one or two night stop over. The base itself is very nice with a good BX and commissary.

Can not add more than what Peggy did (except for the addition of a few pictures). I can't believe they have packed so many sites into such a small area, but you don't feel like being packed in. A very nice famcamp! Most sites are reasonably easy to get into, but a few have some trees strategic placed to keep your attention up. It would be perfect if they had broadband. Although we have not been to all AF famcamps, this is the first one we have been too that does not have some sort of high-speed internet. Wifi is available 24/7 at the library -- you can park in the parking lot near the back of the library and get a good signal. The library is next to the base theater. OKC has many things to do and see.

Agree with all previous comments. We arrived from the west off US 281, so was about a 15 mile drive to get here. When we saw the place we hesitated and almost turned around to go back to Lampasas to stay at a commercial site. This place is rather grim, but has great potential. My understanding is that they do plan to make changes and add new pull-thru sites, then start taking out half of the existing sites to make room for large rigs. Would be great if they did. No wifi! The Army must have an issue with wifi as it has not been available at any Army campground we have been at. When arriving at the Clark Rd. gate, you need to stay to the right and go thru the x-ray machine. Your whole rig has to be x-rayed. Pets and people have to exit while the x-ray is completed -- big hassle.

Free wifi, free laundry, nice location, large sites -- what more could you ask for? We really liked it. Ft Sam and Lackland are definitly the campgrounds to stay at when in San Antonio. We left thru the Growden Gate which is the way they want you to leave. Not sure if this where they you want to come in at or not. We entered thru the East Lackland gate directly onto Luke St and didn't get yelled at. Very nice campground, reasonalby close to BX and commissary.

Nice location with large, well cared for sites. As mentioned earlier, there is train traffic, but I never heard it at night. Also, the roads leading to camp are a little rough, but not nearly as bad as Ft Huachuca. The primary route to the camp is subject to closure due to flooding. If it is flooding, then the alternate route (temporary gate on Holbrook Street) is very rough. If there have been thunder storms in the area prior to your arrival, then you should call the camp office to find out what the status of the road is and directions for the alternate. As with other Army posts that I have been on, this one has no wifi and very limited access to broadband of any kind (the reason for a 3 in the amenities category. The library (open Wed thru Sun) does have computers that you can use, but you can't take your laptop in the computer room. Overall, very nice and we will certainly be back.

Did not stay here, but drove thru to check it out. The directions into Brooks are accurate, but that doesn't minimize the difficulty in finding the FamCamp. We just went by to see the place and take a few pictures. I'm glad I didn't have my RV in tow. Challenger Road and Perimeter Road did not show up on any maps we had. It appears that Brooks used to be a very nice place, but has now gone way south. The road leading out to the FamCamp is rough and narrow. The camp host told us that Brooks is no longer owned by the AF, but rather is owned by the city and portions leased back to the AF. Maybe that is why the signs leading to Brooks now say Brooks City Base. And, it would also explain the lack of security. We did not have to show any ID's to get on base and there were no barricades at the gates. The security fence around the base had many holes in it. There is no BX or Commissary, but there is a gas station and shoppette. I probably wouldn't stay here unless really desperate. I have to wonder how long this FamCamp will be around -- I suspect it's days are numbered.

Wind is pretty constant and the area is very humid. You are not on the gulf, but on the bay, so don't expect long walks on a sandy beach. Padre Island National Seashore is just 11 miles away and is real nice -- you can walk (or drive) on the beach for 60 miles. Expect to have to wash the sea salt off your rig if you stay more than a few days. I couldn't pick up wifi at the campground, but was able to go to the Navy Lodge (3 blocks away) and get wifi 24/7.

Very nice, long, wide sites separated by privacy fences. Nice campground. There are bathrooms (just 75' north of site 10), but no showers. This site is well laid out and is easy to get into and out of. BX is within walking distance -- about a block. The sound of freedom from 0700 to 1800 weekdays, but silent on weekends.

Nice Rec area with a nice staff. The camp was full the entire time we were there and off-and-on had people in overflow. Has boat rentals, but requires a valid safety course to rent. The safety course can be taken on-line. The pull-thru spots are really "pull off the road" type slots and not your normal pull-thru rows. Laundry facility is nice and inexpensive. Bath house is adequate, but old and in need of a complete revamp. Nice large picnic pavilion and picnic area, but is likely packed during summer weekends. The base is 10 miles away. BX and commissary are small, but very adequate.