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SandyAcres's Reviews

Shawnee National Forest - High Knob Camp, near Equality, IL

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I camped at High Knob for the first time this past Memorial Day weekend.. WE HAD A BALL!!! We started by checking in and a rundown of what the camp had to offer; hot showers, flush toilet bathrooms, a coin operated laundry mat (very cool), a food wagon that served hot meals for breakfast and dinner and was also told if we wished to have "sack lunches" for the trail that the cook would make those also! I was very impressed by the hospitality to not only me and my husband, but to my children as well! JoJo and staff offered our kids free popcicles suckers and other various treats, and not just when we checked in but every time we ventured up to the camp store! (did I mention that our kids were FREE!?) After paying our money we were offered firewood stall bedding ice and maps. We opted for a map and some ice.. when we bought our map we were offered a few different types of maps, some free some that were a very reasonable price in plastic and were also told that in the morning if we wanted that jojo would personally make our group hand drawn maps to anywhere we would like to ride!! (again very cool) After we were done in the store we were guided to our stalls (SUPER NICE) that were marked with our names. I will say it was nice to be at a camp that there were not great big rules signs posted everywhere... we were just asked to go slow through camp to keep dust down and children safe and that when we got back from our rides if our horses needed the sweat rinsed off to fill a bucket and bathe them that way (something about water consumption.. very understandable) we werre also told that a horse wash is in the works. After getting an ride through camp and showed where we would be parking my family and I got settled in. As we drove through camp in later days we noticed a small blowup pool and slip and slide for the kids set up by some of the campers... my children were worried that it was just for the kids in those campsites but soon found that they were welcomed with open arms! As we stood there and watched we witnessed many adults go down the slip and slide too and prizes being given to the children for their participation in the contest... again the thought of children and their enjoyment while being in camp was very refreshing! The trials were a tad rocky in some spots, but nothing we couldn't handle! There was too much to see in just one weekend. The scenery was BEAUTIFUL! Absolutely breath taking! Overall our camping experience was a GREAT one! You know it was a good one when the kids are crying and begging to stay longer!! :) We went to the office before we left to see if there was anything we needed to do before we left, we were told a hug would be just fine! (she reminded me of my own mother and we assured her we WOULD be back) We also asked if there was personally anything we could do for jojo as she showed us such a wonderful time, she asked that if we had a good time to leave a nice comment on the website and I was more than happy to oblige and it seemed like the least I could do! THANK YOU JOJO AND STAFF!!! WE WILL BE BACK IN THE SPRING!!! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!!
Reviewed by SandyAcres on 9/4/2013 6:56:43 AM Experience: Intermediate Ride Date: 8/30/2013 Hometown: Northern, IL