Warm Spot on a Cold Weekend
Headed up to Trothwood Forest for a winter camping trip this past weekend (Feb. 21-23) and hiking at nearby Zaleski State Forest with a buddy. We booked the Whispering Pines site.
Site was clean, well-maintained, and the log benches and firepit with attached cooking spit and grate were a nice convenience with the snow covered ground.
Jim the host was great, responded very fast, and was very helpful especially since I got turned around when I first arrived and went the wrong way!! I messaged him and he had someone come out to help show me the site and the right path almost immediately (Tip: if you park at the flagpole, head straight in with the house on your right and you'll see the marked site signs). The sites are well-marked with signs on the path and the pines were beautiful. The path to get to the sites was wide and maintained.
Whispering Pines was perfect for a hammock with the tree spacing and we luckily had two clear nights and a beautiful view of the stars above the pines with no light pollution. It got down to 8 degrees the first night and stayed around 15 the second night but the site was well-sheltered from the wind and we only felt a slight breeze which made it better with the cold temps! The site had cellular service the whole time too.
We would definitely book again and recommend it. Also, if you're in the area, shout out to Mama Renie's in nearby McArthur which serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner and great pizza when you've been hiking all day!