Epic. That’s the only way to describe our recent weekend trip to Lake Strom Thurmond.

On a whim we decided to book a site at Modoc Campground, a Army Corp of Engineers campground in Modoc, South Carolina. I booked site 9 based solely on the picture I found online.

Look at that view!

I almost changed sites after booking because I was concerned we wouldn’t have water access due to rocks around the site. But when we arrived Friday evening ‘ole site 9 did not disappoint! The lake view was as promised and we had a steep, but manageable path down to a clean and private beach.

We were treated to an epic sunset over the lake as we set-up our site, and spent most of the day Saturday enjoying the lake. I even saw an eagle while enjoying the view from our site!

There were a few minor drawbacks to Modoc – mostly unlevel sites and a large sugar ant population – but nothing we couldn’t deal with for a spacious site with water access. And did I mention the view!? Oh, and for the bargain price of $22 a night!

Saturday afternoon we decided to scope out a few other campgrounds in the area. Hamilton Branch State Park is right up the street from Modoc, but we’d been there before, so we skipped it. Instead we headed further north to check out Hawe Creek COE, Baker Creek State Park and Hickory Knob Resort State Park.

Hawe Creek had large, secluded sites with nice views, but limited water access. Baker Creek seemed a bit outdated and the campground was confusing and hard to navigate. Hickory Knob was beautiful with a ton of amenities, including a restaurant, pool and golf course, but the campground seemed a bit neglected.

When we got back to Modoc, we made a small campfire and I made what might be the perfect smore. Since checkout wasn’t until two on Sunday, we were able to spend some more time swimming before packing up.

Overall, our first experience at a COE park was great! In fact, we’re planning to go back next month. We’ll probably venture over to the Georgia side of the lake to scope out a few more parks/campgrounds on that trip. So, stay tuned!

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Few notes:

1. Modoc is only open May through September. You can book at http://www.recreation.gov. A park map with site photos is available here.
2. They have 30 amp and 50 amp sites. All sites are electric and water only, no FHU.
3. There’s not much to do in the immediate area, but Augusta is only about 20 minutes away.
4. Check out The Ice Cream Parlor in McCormick. Yum!
5. The campground closes at 10 p.m., but the park attendants (super nice folks!) provided a gate code.
6. Don’t forget your sunscreen. A certain member of our family forgot to put on sunscreen and got fried to a crisp.
7. There’s a Dollar General right outside the park entrance in case you need to pick-up any essentials (like ant spray or aloe 😉 ).

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