Lake Pontchartrain Technically an estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico—this huge 631-square-mile body of brackish water ranks as the country’s tenth largest lake. For RV campers it offers an escape into a serene southern wilderness situated less than an hour’s drive from the high-energy French Quarter of New Orleans. You can maximize your visit here with a stay at Fontainebleau State Park. This exceptional park offers 155 full-service sites on Pontchartrain’s scenic north shore, once the site of a thriving 19th-century sugar plantation. Adventure awaits everywhere at Fontainebleau. Hop on the Tammany Trace Trail—a paved 30-mile-long path perfect for hiking, cycling, or in-line skating— that cuts right through the center of the preserve and leads to surrounding lakeside communities. Anglers will likely be anxious to cast a line for speckled trout, redfish, catfish, and alligator gar. And it goes without saying that nature enthusiasts and photographers will be kept busy tracking down some of the 2,800 species of birds and wildlife known to be seen in the park during one season or another. The park is divided into two units—the New Campground with 110 paved and serviced sites and the Old Campground with 45 paved spaces, also featuring hookups. There’s a trade-off here: the New Campground has newer, more modern amenities, including a free laundry. Both, however, do offer air-
conditioned bathhouses and restrooms and there’s Wi-Fi coverage throughout the park.
The New Campground sites nestle beneath towering live oaks that offer shade and varying degrees of privacy—but they are a tighter fit, best suited to small and mid-sized rigs. The old layout offers more spacious sites, better for big-rigs and they are closer to the water, thus offering better proximity to aquatic activities.
Golf carts and kayaks are available for rent.
For reservations and park info go to fntbleau@crt. la.gov or call 985-624-4443.
Great Salt Lake A truly unusual experience awaits RV campers destined to visit the Western Hemisphere’s largest saltwater lake. The Great Salt Lake is a remnant of prehistoric Lake Bonneville that once covered most of present-day Utah. Its size fluctuates dramatically— from about 950 to 1,700 square miles—due to climatic conditions and evaporation, as well as water diversion from its three main tributaries, the Jordan, Weber, and Bear rivers. To give you a better idea of its size, the Great Salt Lake, at its current water levels, is roughly 75 miles long and 35 miles wide. It’s quite shallow, ranging in depth from just 14 to 34 feet.
Lake Pontchartrain
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COAST TO COAST MAGAZINE SUMMER 2026 | 28
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