We thoroughly enjoyed the first of what will be three journeys down Natchez Trace Parkway. The Trace is closed to commercial traffic, has no businesses or advertizing or stop signs on it, and has a leisurely 50 mph speed limit. We enjoyed the beautiful, easy drive and are looking forward to continuing it in the days to come.
The centerpiece of the park is a pretty lake. There are rental cabins, pavilions, and a nice playground. The park features not one, but two disc golf courses. The courses are not for the casual player as they take one up and own steep hills and through the woods with out much more than a footpath for a fairway. We’ve seen several groups playing and having a great time. It’s an interesting way to take a hike through the forest and a surprisingly challenging sport as well. Using my Wilson Sleek cell booster I’ve been able to get on the Internet with a medium to weak 3G signal strength. After moving the dish around a bit I was able to lock on to a very good satellite TV signal.
I have one rather serious concern about this state park. Every night around midnight the campground voltage has risen to the point that our camper’s electric Surgeguard has cut power to the camper. It reports voltages as high as 134 volts. The Surgeguard is programmed to protect the camper’s electronics from things like too high and too low of voltages. We had a neighbor who was getting the same readings. I talked to the park employees about it and they said it would be looked into but, apparently, they were in no hurry because after 5 nights the spikes continue to happen. After the first night we unplugged the electric before going to bed because we didn’t want the Surgeguard cycling the electricity off and on through the night. After doing that a few nights we left it on. About midnight the problem became evident again and the camper had to be unplugged for the rest of the night. Of course, the camper can handle being off grid. Still, I can’t help but wonder what damage is being done to other campers in the park.
So, I like this place. It’s pretty and the campsites are very nice. At the same time, the electricity problem concerns me. I’d come back, believing this issue will be resolved. Till then, I don’t think I’d recommend the park to people without some kind of high voltage protection. Pretty park or not, it’s probably not worth damaging one’s air conditioner, etc.
This place clearly needs upgrading: primarily road work, more full hook up sites, 50 amp electric (there’s none), and fresh gravel on the sites. One surprising plus is good WiFi. I think it’s the best WiFi we’ve ever had in a Thousand Trails facility. Over the weekend it got sluggish due to, I imagine, heavy use but the rest of the time it’s been pretty good. My Verizon phone signal has been rather poor, but using my Wilson Sleek signal booster it is usable. We’ve seen lots of folks sitting in the Town Hall parking lot at the top of the hill using their phones.