Defeated Creek Campground

This is the most immaculate campground we've stayed in so far. It is landscaped to perfection with freshly cut grass through the entirety of the campground. The lakeview spots are definitely the best spots with gorgeous views. We were right next to the bathroom which proved to be convenient.

The bathrooms were the cleanest I've been to so far. Smelled nice and not a single bug in sight. I think the wood they used was cedar to build the roof, because it had a nice woodsy smell in there. The showers were hot with good water pressure and a curtained alcove to change.

We loved walking through the campground and we saw so many deer while we were here! Walk down to the rec area right outside the campgrounds around dusk and you'll see at least twenty deer. We used the tennis courts a couple times. They were old but they did the job!

The only thing as you will see in every other review is the signal. Zero cell signal, our hotspot was useless. If you manage to get a campsite with an opening in the trees your starlink will work though! Ours worked pretty well, so we were able to work during the week.

We booked a site last minute to escape a heat wave, and ended up with Site 71. When we checked in, the volunteer on staff said it was one of his favorites. And wow, what a great site with lots of privacy and a panoramic lake view! It was even a FHU site.

This is a lovely and well maintained park, with many amazing waterfront sites. Some are a bit close together, but all positioned to give a great view. The interior sites are large, but many without a water view.

The little swim beach was a pleasant way to break the heat, and there's an extensive network of hiking/biking trails that we didn't have time to check out.

However, this campground could also be called 'Defeated Internet'. True to past reviews, we could not get AT&T or Verizon to be usable here (and we have all the tools - latest modems, MIMO and booster) - there's just a whiff of a signal. T-Mobile was usable. We did break out the Starlink, but the trees caused 6-20 second drop outs every couple of minutes - usable for a lot of stuff, even streaming. But wouldn't rely on it for anything critical. Bonded with T-Mobile is what got us through.

Though close to towns and the city of Carthage, this COE site is really out of the way and truly a gem. We were very near the lake and loved the view. Sites were relatively close but private. The bathhouse was not very near, was old but kept clean. We paddled our kayaks right from our site each day. There is a fairly rugged hiking trail nearby as well. Overall good for families and kids and one of the best maintained campgrounds we have seen. We will be back

There's a reason why this beautiful Army Corp of Engineers campground is supposedly number one in the COE system. Every campsite is spectacular. The lake is gorgeous, with two beaches and a marina. Our little 20ft Airstream was dwarfed by the big rigs, and compared to other COE campgrounds, this one felt more like an rv park. But everything is tidy and meticulously kept. Did not check the bathhouse, but I can predict it's probably nice. Super friendly staff. Quiet. Would live there if I could😀

Beautiful campground! Everything was clean and well kept. Even though we were not directly on the water, we still had a beautiful view. Mr. Kenneth was soooo nice and helpful. He even let me borrow a tool when we had trouble with our camper. There are deer everywhere. Nice playgrounds, church service on Sundays, right on the water. Will bring kayaks next time. We will be going back for sure!

First time ever visiting here, it lived up to all the positive reviews. We had a lakefront site, beautiful views. Campground was full yet quiet. Maybe two straight days of rain had something to do with it. Sites are spaced apart very well. Interior sites don't really have much of a lake view, but they are large. We enjoyed our stay despite the weather.

This site gets high marks from me...it was lakefront and spaced out a decent bit from the other sites and it offered a little bit of shade. It's had full hook ups as well and was fairly level (we had to use our levelers). Just about as good as they get. The campground was super clean, friendly neighbors and quiet at night. We were also pretty lucky and had a decent cell signal with our hotspot and booster on ATT&T and Verizon and were able to stream shows. I'm hoping we can sneak back again in the fall, but it definitely on my list to come back to.

This is our go-to COE park. The single downside is poor cell coverage, ranging from poor at best to none from some sites. Beautiful and quiet. Deer guaranteed. Very friendly hosts, clean and modern bath facilities. Martin’s Grocery directly outside the park entrance has all necessities and an excellent home cooked breakfast or lunch. Reservations highly recommended.

Super nice campground with walking paths and a challenging trail! The bathroom and shower house were spotless. My site (004) is a pull through with a large grassy area and no shade. This wasn't a problem for me because it's still early spring, but just be warned. I would definitely camp here again, but would try and book site#21...super private and a great view of the lake.

This was a last minute find for us & totally fabulous. The deer and the squirrels are plentiful & are great to watch. These sites are amazing it must be wonderful to be a camp host here. I’m sure it’s quite busy in the summer as it’s close to the end of October & it’s still very very busy especially on a Sunday night. Definitely will be back here.