Elk City State Park

Good
Nov 30th, 2023

Feb 12th, 2023

Dec 17th, 2022

On the surface, the park is very nice, but we probably won't come back. We never saw a park ranger the whole weekend. People just kind of did what ever they wanted. The egotistical jerk camped behind us played his music loud, all day, every day, not shutting down until after 11:30pm! Like I said, no park ranger here to enforce quiet hours. In addition to paying for the camp site, you have to pay for a "vehicle entry permit", which was not disclosed online when we made our reservation. One would expect a camping reservation to include permission to enter the park!
Jul 23rd, 2022

I went for a one night stay at the cabin. As a person who has stayed at several KS Atae Parks cabins this one was the least welcoming. At the state parks you are typically greeted by no one when renting a cabin. Generally the communication with the camp host is by the stack of papers on the table when you enter. This camp host must have experienced some type of trauma or drama performing her job duties. Literally printed out laws relating to the use of the park! Though I reserved online and understood the damage policy, this camp host had their own separate one to review and sign. Throughout the cabin there were several notes relating to cleaning. Kinda let me know she did not consider it a function of her job. 8 took pictures when I left just in case I didn't clean the floor to her satisfaction! The park itself is a lovely little park. Really close to Independence, it would be great for those local and traveling through. The water level was definitely low, but I saw plenty of people fishing from the bank and on boats. Lots of picnic tables scattered about. I took a hike on two different trails, I did have time to get to them all. The trails were maintained and well marked. The cabin did not have a lake view, but it was bigger than most cabins in state parks and could easily accommodate a good size group of people. I would recommend the park and cabin. Just be careful of the overzealous camp host!
May 19th, 2023