We just got back from Shawnee National Forest, what a beautiful place to ride.  Unfortunately our stay at Bear Branch was the worst place I have ever stayed.  We rented three cabins, all three were filthy.  Our cabin is advertised as sleeping four, it was 8 X 12 which was a stool and shower, kitchen sink only, no bathroom sink, table, futon bed and another room with a roll-away queen bed, it was cramped with just my husband and myself.  Dead flies were in the window sills and light fixtures for a very long time, the flies in the light fixtures were so bad it was dimming the light, mouse droppings in the kitchen drawers, windows that hadn't been cleaned in years, floor coverings that were worn right down to the wooden floor, mold around the base of the bathroom stool, the mattresses on the beds and futons were just plain gross.  All three of our cabins were old used trailers that construction companies had used for their workers at job sites. 

It wasn't only the cabins that were a disaster but the grounds as well. There were weeds everywhere, the yard was mowed, but definitely no weed eating or pulling of weeds around the restaurant or cabins.  The manure pile was 5 or 6 semi loads deep, some was pushed down the hill and the rest dumped right out the barn door.  It had been there for a very, very long time.  The barn needed ventilation, it was dark, dirty and hot, the stalls were very small and cramped.  The outside corral consisted of electric wire that was not even electrified, with fence posts that were almost laying on the ground from the previous horses pushing against it to eat the weeds on the other side.  The two acre pond for swimming and fishing was green with moss, I thought it was a run-off from the hill.  The restaurant smelled like dead mice and stale smoke, it was dark and dingy.  Needless to say, we did not eat there. 

Horses acquired pink eye the first night we were there, as soon as their contagious period was over we left, losing out on about $400.00, and moved to Little Lusk Lodge, by the way, they were wonderful!!! 

Not only were we unhappy with our stay, there was campers there staying in their own horse trailers from Louisiana, Georgia, Tennessee and Iowa (all separate travellers), who were also extremely unhappy with the facilities and stated that they would never be back. 

When I voiced my concerns with the owner, he blamed all of these problems on his customers, that they don't respect his property and it is all their fault.  More or less, too bad and I don't have a problem.  He collected our money when we arrived and we never saw him again, until he pulled in to collect money from someone else.  He never went around and visited with the campers or made himself available. 

I do not expect the Ritz, but if I am paying a good price to stay indoors, I certainly want a clean facility without the presence of rodents, bugs and mold.  It would have been more sanitary to sleep in a tent outside. 

I hope this will be useful for others who wish to ride the Shawnee National Forest, and they will not have to experience a vacation like we did.  

On a good note, the riding was absolutely breathtaking and if you need lodging while you stay there, please do not be deceived by the false advertising and pictures on the Bear Branch website, I think they were taken many, many years ago, instead give Lonnie and Peggy a call at Little Lusk Lodge, there you will have a very clean room and hospitality to boot.

You should have seen it over Memorial Day Weekend! It was a free-for-all with trailers parked every which way. We had heard they have a fish fry on Friday nights. We checked it out and were told what was left on the buffet was all they would provide!! It was old and dirty. We left and went to a little cafe on the highway - name slips my mind, but the fish was excellent. We stayed at Hayes Canyon in our trailer. Not too bad of a campground - stalls could be made safer, but overall an ok place compared to Bear Branch.

My husband and I discussed during our visit how there really isn't a top notch campground around Shawnee like other national forest places. Top Notch to us means safe stalls, clean facilities, wash racks, clean sewer hook-ups (Hayes had Duct tape holding some of the pipe fittings on the permanent camper sites!!-yikes!) and easily accessible utilities to the sites. When paying for a campground this is what we expect. When primitive camping, we don't expect the niceities.

We had taken a drive over to High Knob and this place was run-down too. Once again, stalls or lack there of were in poor condition.

We had stayed at Circle B in 2005 and found it accomodating with sturdy outdoor pens. Next time you plan a trip, check out this website: http://www.horsetraildirectory.com/

I offered to buy Bear Branch from the owner, told him he could have a goldmine,of course I was being ridiculous because there is nothing wrong with his place.  I told my husband if we bought it the first thing we would do is get a big Caterpillar up there and start having fun bulldozing everything down and starting anew.  My husband is EXTREMELY fussy, and can fix and build anything.  You are right, there really isn't anything around there that I would classify as nice, but I will say that Little Lusk was at least clean, and the owners were great.  Really too bad because Shawnee Forest is a beautiful place to ride!!

Thanks for the website information, I will surely do that.

I'm glad we could spare you and the others out there.  This is my first time posting on here, and even becoming a member, I don't get involved in the gossip, but this really needs to be known so people know what they are getting themselves into.

Hubby and I stayed at BB about 7-8 years ago.  We stayed in one of the little cabins.  It was basically a tool shed with a bed in it.  Before I would even unload my things, I had to go up to the office and borrow a broom to sweep all the dead bugs off the floor.  You literally could not take a step without crunching half a dozen under your feet.  ICK!  I vowed never to return.

We have been back to the Shawnee NF though.  It is some beautiful riding.  We are really fond of One Horse Gap campground.  It is small and not fancy but it is CLEAN and the hosts are wonderful.  No barn, just panel pens but they are set up in the shade.  The food is good and the kitchen and bathrooms are very tidy.

New Hope Hill and the one horse gap ride was wonderful, clean, and everyone was SUPER accommodating.  I am so glad I didn't go to bear branch, thanks for the warning, I won't waste time trying it out! 

Amanda

We stay at Hayes also-- Ben & Patty have a nice place.

It's a shame about Bear Branch.  Before we had our LQ and Hayes 1  rental cabin was rented- we stayed over there.  If he would just clean it up a bit-- and maybe be around more - things would be better.  Not everyone has a LQ and with his cabins-- he could have a corner on the market.  Some friends of ours tried and tried to buy something from the tack shop - but it was never open.

The newest cabin- The Wrangler still is pretty nice from what I hear.