Jackson Lake State Park — Attraction in Wiggins

Probably great for the locals, because it’s very rural. It is however a designated dark sky area, so GREAT for that purpose if the bugs leave you be.

Reserving, checking in and getting to the campsite was fairly easy. Signage one inside the campground was a little confusing.

Campsite: Was not well maintained, not level, needed some grass mowed around the site, fire pit was not cleaned out. Pros: electric and water available, Punic table with shade awning (though depending on the time of day not much shade), and fire pit. Road noise from RVs, diesel trucks and boat trailers was pretty much all day and evening hours. (Think day use of the lake but also RV’s going to dump waste)

Bathrooms: nice to have showers and flush toilets, however they are not cleaned well enough or frequently enough. It’s good enough, I used them but they could be better. Unfortunately they are having drainage/plumbing issues in their showers. Probably from the lake sand. I also saw people washing their dogs off in the showers. Suggest making a campground policy around that. (If people will follow them!)

Visitor center is nice and informative and gave me a break from the heat and bugs.

Depending on where your campsite is located the nature ambiance could be lacking.

Did I mention the BUGS!!! I couldn’t be outside for very long, which was super frustrating. No idea how they reduce this but it could help to remove the many nests under the...

Beautiful scenery, water kind of green but not smelly. We camped at Lakeside campground with a tent, shower/toilet facility very dirty but working. Have quarters if you plan to shower! No place to wash dishes if you have a tent. Make sure to bring your own small basin for it. Beautiful campsites near the water with lots of shade, avoid the upper once closer to the street they have full blown sun all day. Only small beaches and very crowded (Saturday in August). Also Southbeach is crawling with ants, no joke, it is intense. We brought a camping mat/tarp the second day and created a barrier with Deed spray around the edges and put the chairs and dogs on there. Much better but still a lot of ants. Southbeach has shade all day, the other two small beaches (one at the marina and one in the camping area) do not. Also I don't see the nomination for America's top 15 beaches. Lots of shoreline and barely room to accommodate the amount of people ( it is high season though) The beaches are littered with sticks and seem uncared for. I'm all about nature but some maintenance for paying a park fee is expected. Rangers come by once in a while and chat. Buy firewood before you get here, the Marina shop is out since weeks. Also the advertised groceries are Gatorade and beer, next Walmart 35 min. Stock up before you get here. Gas and liquor store about...

My husband and I stayed in the Lakeside Campground in a tent only site for two nights. It was hot and there were a TON of bugs but we expected this as we were camping by a lake. Just a short walk from our campsite was a small swim beach. It was busy, and few people were practicing social distancing guidelines, but we quickly realized that we could access the lake right from our campsite - this allowed us to fish and enjoy the water without being too close to other campers/lake goers.The campsites have a little shade but not a ton. I would recommend bringing something for shade if you are visiting the lake in the summer months.

We really enjoyed our camping trip at Jackson Lake State Park. I was skeptical of the campground because I read a lot of not great reviews but the campground was clean, fun and very enjoyable. Just remember that you will be outside, near a lake, so expect birds, fish and bugs. Come prepared with earplugs if you are a light sleeper (lots of bird chattering in the morning) and bug spray!

Quick Tip - it got surprisingly cold in our tent at night! Glad we had our cold weather sleeping bags with us! Also, although there are not bears in the area, other critters will try and get into your food and trash. We learned this the hard way when we woke up to raccoons in our campsite in the middle...