KELSO-LONGVIEW ELKS LODGE, KELSO, WA

Our Opinion: Neutral.  Private; you must be an Elk to stay here.

Date of Stay: August 9 and 10, 2011.

Weather During Stay: Overcast mornings, partly cloudy afternoons.  Moderate temperatures.

Sites:  13 pull-through sites on level dirt/gravel (one site might be occupied by a host?) in two rows. All sites have 30 amp E, water, and cable TV.  Get a key for your electric box from the Elks office when you register. 

No trees; all sites have open exposure.  Sites are large enough for big rigs, but very narrow - just enough room for slides and steps. Tow and towed vehicles fit sideways behind or in front of sites. 

The lodge has a large, paved parking lot that is convenient for unhooking a towed vehicle before entering the fenced RV campground, which requires careful maneuvering if the campground is full.  Watch for potholes in and entering the campground.

Rate: $15/night for W/E and cable TV, includes use of the dump station (located in the campground; a little tricky to access).  Stay limit 7 days May through August; 14 days September through April.  7 days out before re-entry.

Phone/radio/TV: Reasonable Verizon phones and aircard signal.  No obstructions to block TV satellite dish.  20 +/- stations on cable TV.  Lodge has WiFi in the lounge; the motel next door has open WiFi accessible from the campsites.  NPR from Seattle on 104.7 FM.

Elevation/Landscape/Terrain:  This is a small, flat parking area at sea level.  Sites face southeast, into a row of trees and beyond to a motel and the back of a Safeway grocery store. 

Lighting/Noise: Reasonably dark and quiet at night; typical urban noises, including background noise from nearby I-5.

Favorite Sites: No difference between sites.

Hiking/Walking: Walk to Safeway, Three Rivers Mall (Target) and chain restaurants.  For a longer (and pleasant) walk, drive east on Allen Street, under I-5.  Pass Brookhollow Mobile Home Park, and park in a small lot on the right at the end of a levee immediately past the entrance to Brookhollow RV Park.  Walk along the gravel trail on the grassy levee to Tam-O-Shanter Park.  Excellent hiking at Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.

Comments: Though this parking is nothing special (and quite tight when full), services are good, the price is right, and the location is handy when traveling the I-5 corridor or for visiting Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.  This was our third or fourth stop here, and the first time we have seen the campsites full - the Elks Annual Golf Tournament (held on their own beautiful golf course a few miles away) began on Thursday.  The nearby Safeway store has a gas station that is big-rig accessible.