Graham Cave State Park, Missouri (on Hwy 70; outside St. Louis)

http://mostateparks.com/campgrounds/graham-cave-state-park

Here's my first review on all the many camp grounds and sites we have used over the past few years.

After 6 hours of driving, we pulled through the beautiful state camp grounds of Graham Cave State Park.  A glance at the rolling hills and rocky outcroppings, made it easy to imagine the earliest nomadic men and women roaming these hills some 10,000 years ago!  Today, however, all seems almost deserted.  We pass rows of empty campsites, until we find the “camp host.”  Turns out he is our camping site neighbor, and this nice man lets us use his electricity to pump up our air mattresses.  Site 34 doesn’t look like much, but it is near the bathrooms and next to the “playground” (a swing set). 

Without a thermometer, our imaginations tell us we have arrived in the center of a lava churning volcano.  You might say it was hot.  We leave off the rain fly, laughing at the likelihood of rain in the middle of this drought.  We all sprawl out in the tent and fall asleep marveling at the starred sky. 

I should add, the bathrooms and shower house were clean and wonderful.  My kids excitedly tracked down several lizards and a tiny toad, an added bonus.  However the best moment was our parting trek to the Graham Cave.  .3 miles up the trail, it was worth the stop before heading back on the road.  I was reminded why we love to stay at state parks, as we considered the huge cave and the people who walked those grounds so many, many years ago.  We will definitely keep this place in mind for future cross country treks.