Just outside of Centerville, South Dakota is an adorable county park that is free to camp at. With a notable exception. A lot of the free camping webpages state that Gunderson Park is open year-round, but there is a sign at the front gate that says camping is only allowed from Memorial Day to Labor Day. We showed up at the beginning of October with a plan to only stay two nights. On the second day, a very friendly police officer said that they don’t like to let people stay outside of the season. When we explained our goal of leaving the next day they let us stay. It pays to be polite! We do understand what they mean though; it was really cold those two nights, and we were very happy to use our propane furnace.
The park itself is very nice, bordered on three sides by a tributary of the Missouri River. It has lots of wide open areas and a small boat ramp. The river was a collection of disconnected ponds when we were there. Additionally, There were 2 fire rings for tent campers as well as a stone hearth for small groups. There was no designated RV area. You can park just about anywhere, and there was lots of open sky for solar.
The park was a short 10-minute walk on paved sidewalks to the city of Centerville, where we found a Little Free Library. The kids delighted in trading some of the books we brought with us for new ones. Sadly, the bakery in town was closed, so we weren’t able to get a pastry while we were there.
If you’re passing through South Dakota in the summer, why don’t you give it a try!
