Cooney Reservoir State Park — Attraction in Columbus

We were here in early June. I post this so others will be aware of issues they may encounter and maybe management will make improvements. There are four camping locations each with different facilities and separated by miles of dirt road. The sign at the entrance doesn't say what's where. You can get a map at any of the sites but it is no help. It doesn't tell you, for example, that only one site has showers, or where the other electric site is, just that it is somewhere. The printed map misspells the name of one of the campgrounds in the headline. So you drive miles over dirt roads searching. After paying $28 we find the showers are actually only at another site. We go there in the AM and find that 3 minutes costs $2, but the water is scalding hot so there is no usable shower. There is one sink. It is full of dirt. The sign in the bathroom used by cleaning people to check off their cleaning shows that on Sunday it was last cleaned on Friday on a June weekend. So, of course it is filthy. Asked about it, the employee says "We're underfunded." Nice lake. Wonderful setting. But, this is...

My family really likes to camp here. It's close and easy to get to for a spur of the moment weekend trip. Camp sites are clean and well cared for. It can fill up fast, so plan to be there early on a Friday if you plan on getting a spot for the weekend. Winds can come out of nowhere, so be watchful to stow awnings or canopies. If you're out on the boat or out and about, don't leave anything that's susceptible to being damaged by the wind or blown away unsecured or out. Bring a good set of binoculars, lots of birds and wildlife.

We prefer the Red Lodge Arm Camping area. The above review is specific to that...

This is an out of the way reservoir (maintained dirt roads). There are a lot of fishing and water super sport options. There are a variety of camp sites. The camp sites are mostly in the full sun. Our camp host let us know that there are generally strong winds each night. Thankfully we didn't experience any while we were camped there. The vault toilets were very clean and the camp sites were very clean. There are showers located in the campground closest to the dam. You need quarters for the shower currently as the change machine is...