On-Ur-Wa Campground, Onawa Iowa
Date of Visit: Friday, May 26, 2017
This was a one night stay on our way to Wyoming for our summer vacation. We had hoped to avoid staying at the casino parking lot in Council Bluffs, Iowa when we found On-Ur-Wa RV Park. Located at the intersection of Interstate 29 and Iowa 175, at a cost of $35 a night ($38 for 50 amp) with a Good Sam’s Discount, we quickly selected this park as our first pit-stop. Our sites had water, electricity and sewer connections as well as excellent wifi. Our sites were gravel with a grass side yard and level, or really close to being level.
The owners of the RV park are the on-sight managers. They shared with us how they went full time in their Class A and then became a little less active than they planned so they purchased an RV park. They run the park from spring to fall and then head to warmer weather during the winter. The common areas of the park are very well maintained: the office/store (they even sell local Iowa wine), the bathrooms/shower houses are very clean. Oh and they have pets; lovable cuddly cats all around. I told one of the kitty’s I would leave by door open so he could come crawl into bed with me. Without missing a beat the owner told me in fact if I did that, the cat would indeed visit.
Check in was quick and simple. We were escorted to our sites under large beautiful shade trees. The RV park is just a few blocks off I-29 making it easy to access and maneuver. The road the campground is on turns to gravel but after the entrance to the park. We found the gravel road to be less traveled than the other roads, which made it good for getting a daily walk in.
We walked to dinner during our stay. Dairy Queen was a block away (Subway and McDonald’s were another block away but across a busy highway). After dinner, after our walk, we simply sat around and enjoyed the cool weather. The kids had a great time playing in the open space at the back of the campground. There was a wooden swing back there and the four of them sat in it just happy to be finished with school and finally on summer vacation. When The Short Chick came to for the night she asked if we could spend the next night there as well because she was not ready to say good bye.
If there is a .downside to this park, the impact of traffic would be it. I think the campground has done what it can to minimize the noise of traffic; tall trees and a large wooden fence, but it is there. When we were out walking the gravel road, that paralleled I-29, the noise was immense but once we entered the campground that noise did not penetrate into the campground. The noise that does penetrate into the campground does not come from the interstate but rather Highway 179 as people come/go from the town of Onawa. The speed limit must change further east on 179 but in front of the campground, you can hear those cars passing by. I think one other factor helped contribute to the vehicle traffic having an impact; the weather. Normally we would have the furnace on or the air conditioner running which would have drowned out the noise. But as it happened, we were there on a perfectly cool night, so we slept with the windows open. And unfortunately, I am a light sleeper.
In case you have more time to spend in Onawa, I should let you know that the area does seem to have enough activity to support a longer stay. The town of Onawa, Iowa claims to have the widest main street in the USA, is also the gateway to the Loess Hills. A full-sized replica of a keel-boat can be seen at nearby Blue Lake and a few miles north is the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in Sioux City. If you are willing to drive south an hour, you can visit the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska.
The best thing about this campground for us, is literally it was right on our way! So if you find yourself traveling north and are looking for a comfortable, friendly stop, give Un-Ur-Wa RV Park a shout out.
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