Geode State Park, Iowa
LeeAnn’s photo from Geode
I read a review about Iowa’s Geode State Park being a hidden gem. I didn’t realize how hidden, until we tried finding it the other day. Check a previous blog post for that adventure. Mediocre pun aside, it really is a nice, out of the way park. At least I assume it is, what does a Florida Man know about out of the way in Iowa?
When we arrived Saturday, nearly all the sites in our loop were occupied, at least three by the same group. Most of the reservable sites were taken, and many of the first come sites with electricity were too. I thought we had a full hook up site, so we didn’t fill up with water at the park entrance. Oops. We only had electricity. (I later remembered the conversation LeeAnn and I had where we chose a better view over more convenient hook ups, a decision we both stand by.) There was a water faucet about 70 feet away from our site, but we only have a 50-foot hose. I went to fill up our 5-gallon jugs to transfer water, but luckily a neighbor offered to let us use his freshwater hose, so we could fill directly from the faucet.
After getting settled in, I went looking around for a campground host to buy firewood from. Its too early in the year for the host, so there’s a sign on the firewood cage to call a “Friend of Geode” that lives nearby the park. One of them will come and sell firewood. We didn’t want to bother anyone, so we decided against getting firewood that night. After all, it had been a challenging trip, and it was cold, damp, and windy outside, so we were okay with going in for the night. That’s when we saw a pickup with a bunch of firewood drive by. I had a hunch that was a Friend of Geode, so I called one of the numbers. I was right, so I met John at the cage and bought $20 worth of firewood. Thanks, John.
We made a fire, but after a bit we (LeeAnn) decided it was just too windy and cold, so we went inside for the night. By about 8 am or so, most everyone in the park was prepping to leave. By about 10 am, there were only three campers in the entire campground, including ours. Apparently, this time of year, this is weekend get-together park. But it’s a really nice, but small park with a nice lake, river, and moderate to easy hiking trails. We enjoyed our stay and recommend a visit if you’re in the area.