In mid-February, we visited Lake Fort Smith State Park in Mountainburg Arkansas.

This is an old park that was completely rebuilt after the expansion and merger of Lake Fort Smith and Lake Sheppard Springs (Fort Smith’s primary municipal water supply) left the old park submerged. The new park opened in 2008 and utilized architecture designed to mirror the appearance of the old WPA structures of the original state park.

We are tent campers so we booked a Class B site with electric and water adjacent. Because a couple of the people on this trip have mobility issues, we specifically requested an accessible campsite. The site was level with concrete sidewalks and cooking areas that allow campers who rely on wheelchairs or scooters to easily access the tent pad, picnic table, fire pit, and grill. My favorite feature at this site was the raised fire pit.  The basic structure is the same but it is normally placed directly on the ground whereas this fire pit was elevated to make it easier to use for people with limited mobility. We were under a burn ban for the entire time we were camping on this trip so the raised platform turned out to be a great place to do Dutch Oven cooking with charcoal briquettes.

Facilities:

I observed that all facilities as well as waste receptacles and recycling bins were monitored on a regular basis throughout our stay. Toilet and shower facilities were clean, modern, and fully accessible.

While a few other campsites were relatively flat like ours, some were terraced with multiple levels. These are really neat but the number of steps scattered through the campsite would make the site a barrier for just about any type of mobility problem. If you’re making a reservation, you might want to contact them directly to inquire about specific campsites.

Cool Thing:

Pretty much anywhere you go, you’ll see something new and different that is really useful, attractive, or otherwise remarkable. On this trip, it was the accessible drinking fountain. Not only was it very user friendly for humans, it was also great for our four legged friends. The doggie drinking fountain was a new one on me but I hope we see a lot more of them.

Drawbacks:

Site 22 is fully accessible campsite and also the closest site to the bath house in the Class B camping area. However, close is a relative term and it was still a good walk from our campsite. This photo (below left) was taken from our campsite. The bath house is barely visible. For people with impaired mobility, this could quickly become tiring. The distance was compounded by the incline leading to the entrance (shown in the photo below right).

Overall Impression:

We were pleased with the campsite despite it’s uphill climb. The area was peaceful and quiet. I would definitely camp there again. Because it’s less than an hour from home for us, it’s a great back up option when we just really want to get outdoors.