Steinaker State Park Campground

Vernal and the surrounding area have a lot to offer. This was a recon trip for us, and we will definitely return. We visited Red Fleet State Park, Flaming Gorge and the Vernal Brewery and recommend all of them. We also hiked to Moonshine Arch which was well worth it.

Site12 (no hookups) had great views and relative privacy. Other good no hookup sites would be 31, 30 and 11.

Access to the park was easy as was check in. The camp hosts were super nice and very accommodating during our three night’s stay. We proceeded backwards through the campground as instructed to pull through site 8, which is FHUs and 50 AMP. We had to maneuver our 39’ fifth wheel so the utilities side bedroom slide wouldn’t go into a tree. The utilities are placed in the middle of the pad so that was nice. However, water pressure was only about 25 to 30 psi so we filled our freshwater tank and used the pump. We got spotty service on Verizon between 1 and 2 bars. In the mornings we were able to get our Verizon MiFi to work well. We really liked being on the upper campground level with more space between the sites and the covered patio with the picnic table. Sites 1- 8 that lead to the upper level are FHUs. Beware that site 8 is a 1/4 moon turn with a large tree then two poles out the front of the site that people have complained about hitting. We could have backed out of the site but decided to go carefully forward and we missed the poles(obvious from scrapes that some people did not), but we did scrape the branches of the trees. Pull through site 7 is probably the easiest FHU to get into. The rest of the sites are a mix of different services, i.e. water and electric or no hookups at all. They also have a couple of yurts and a cabin. The main draw here seemed to be OHVs but there were also a few people with boats. Checkout Moonshine Arch. It took us twice to find the Moonshine Arch, which is just down the road from Steinaker SP. Google maps nor Waze will get you to the trailhead. It's best to ask for directions from the camp host manning the Steinaker SP gate entrance. The first time we were not prepared and missed the turn to the left after you get on the gravel road(there's no sign). When we got to the parking area, we had no idea which way to go and ended up wondering around. There was a couple with a brochure(which you can get at the park office) but it was basically worthless. Since it was hot and we had our dogs, we bailed but did have a nice hike. The second day we were better prepared and found a blogger who had posted instructions. Basically its a.8/less than a mile moderate hike as follows: 1) go through the green gate to an old, rough jeep trail and follow it around to the right to another green gate, 2) before that green gate follow the trail to the left until you come to an intersection where you'll go right and continue until you get to the flat rocks that go up a hill, 3) climb the flat rock hill staying towards the left until you see a BLM info sign, 4) at the sign follow the trail to the left(at this point you can follow the footprints in the sand) and keep going until you get to the arch, which has a sign that you are there, and of course the arch is hard to miss at this point. Some info says you can see the arch after you climb the flat rock hill. You can see trees around the arch once you know where it is but not the arch itself. Also, if you are into dinosaurs, this is your area starting with Vernal’s museum plus state and national sights as well.

Unfortunately, it has been very hot in Utah during July 2021. The days got over 99 degrees by 4:00 pm. We were very glad to have electrical hookups in both our sites so we could run air conditioning. Water is plumbed throughout the campground, but faucets are shared for many sites (meaning you cannot leave a hose hooked up). The trees are green but not much grass. When the wind picks up it is a bit dusty. Steinaker lake is low, but well managed. Good boat ramp, with close parking. All roads are asphalt.

We would return when the outside temperatures stay in the 80's. This park is 15 minutes away from Vernal Utah. This town has everything you need, plus a RV Parts dealer!

Thanks,
Doug

We were passing thru the area with a stop planned for Dinosaur National Monument, and we found this campground thru Campendium. Never having been here before, and arriving after dark, we were very pleased with the campground. I'm sure it's a tough reservation during summer, and as has been pointed out by a other reviewer, the sites are rather far from the water, but we liked this campground. We reside in another state and don't have a UT fishing license, but this park has a fish cleaning station, which is very handy.

We were on our way from SW CO to the Tetons & stayed here on the way. Nice sites with power hookups. The reservoir was still empty, otherwise the water would have been up to our site. Pull through sites made for an easy in & out. I suppose there is hiking, but with the lake closed recreation looked a little limited in the direct area, but the campground was nice and restrooms clean.

This was our first time visiting Dinosaur National Monument and finding a campground with water and electric took some research. Steinaker is perfect. It is about 45 minutes from the Quarry and close enough to the town of Vernal that buying supplies is not that big a deal.

The campground is simple but the scenery far from that. Our site is on top of a ridge and we can watch the sunrise by just opening the shades. The geology of this place is amazing and apparent from our perch here at the reservoir.

Our site had FULL hook-ups for the amazing price of $28. This alone makes the park worth a visit. Caution: no showers and a bit tired in the bathroom department but hey, we are living in a trailer so all considered, the views from the Airstream are pretty spectacular.

This state park is in a convenient location, only about 5 miles from town, and a half-hour drive from Dinosaur National Monument or Flaming Gorge. The campground is very small, and looks a bit old and tired compared to many other state park campgrounds we've stayed in. Our site was pretty large with plenty of privacy which was nice. There are 7 or so full hookup sites which is a nice surprise for a state park, and they're reasonably priced. Unfortunately most of them are on a steep hill so most of those sites are not level. Our 37' motorhome and tow car had no problem fitting in our pull-through site, but we had to drive our back tires up onto about 5 inches of stacked boards for leveling. The rest of the sites are electric-only or no hookups, and we did hear a few generators running from rigs in the no hookup sites. There's a vault toilet near site #8 which was pretty stinky. AT&T and Verizon were almost unusable until we put up our booster... then they were decent but definitely not fast. The state park was pretty quiet during the week but during the weekend it was packed with boaters, jet skiers, paddle boarders, and others having fun out on the lake. We found a nice secluded beach near the campground where our dog loved going in for a swim every day, but otherwise there's not much in the way of trails for longer hikes out of the campground. When exiting the campground we ran into some major low-hanging branches near site 28. We had high winds every day, so we could never use our awning for shade. Not sure if this was unusual or normal for the area. The gate to the state park closes at 10pm but we never had reason to be out that late. Overall this is a nice scenic campground, but site selection should be done carefully depending on your rig size, and you should have a cell booster if you want connectivity.

This state park is within 10 minutes of Vernal and about 30 minutes of Flaming Gorge. The campground sits right on the reservoir which was quite low when we visited. When full the water comes right up to the sites. It is somewhat easy to navigate the campground but I would recommend unhooking your towed vehicle to get to the site as there are some sharp turns, inclines and one area where we scraped the back end of the RV. The dump station is right as you pull into the campground area and can be accessed from either direction. It is on an incline which may affect how easy it is to completely dump your tanks.

The reservation system for this campground states that the max vehicle is 35 feet but that is not at all the case. We are in a 40 foot motorhome and had many sites to choose from. We stayed in both sites 16 and 18 and each easily fit our rig. Site 16 had very nice shade and 18 had some. Some sites are fully exposed but offer covered picnic areas. There are sites that offer full hookup, electric only or no hookups. Water is available throughout the campground and we were able to fill our tank from the spigot directly across from our site.

Cell service required using our booster. It would not work reliably without a booster.

There is only one trail in this campground so it is more of a place to stay while you explore the surrounding area. Vernal offers many services and they have a local brewery where we found some good food. Flaming Gorge to the north is amazing and must not be missed. We kayaked on the reservoir and it is one of the best kayaking experiences I've had.

PROS:
Central location
Nice sites with amenities
50 amp electric and some full hookups
Easy access to the reservoir from both sites and launch ramp

CONS:
Tight campground to navigate
No trails to hike
Weak cell service without booster
Online reservations are not accurate about vehicle length