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You know how when you play Monopoly and you first get the properties all you have is a campground? Houses aren't something you have when you start? Well, that's where we are with our castle. We have excellent wilderness camping conditions. We would like to maintain the semi-wilderness aspect of the property for now: we have no facilities for camper trailers, mobile homes, or truck campers. At this time we feel we really need to limit our visitors to those willing to tent camp.  The people in the picture are coming into Thornwood on currently the only access "road". This summer the parking will be on the circle at the end of the public road that abuts the west end of the property. We will arrange to help move campers' belongings into Thornwood and settle them in, if needed. We will provide firewood, composting toilets, water, and some brand of mosquito repellent. If we're having a bad fire-hazard season, we will require campers to come equipped with camp stoves and fire extinguishers.
The site will not be quiet and serene much of the time as construction turns out to be a very noisy operation! There are train, float plane, air taxi, and bus services to Wasilla, our nearest town, where there are also several kinds of vehicle rental services, and very good emergency medical services (in case you're interested). We are within 10 miles of Llama Buddies Expeditions, the Palmer Hay Flats Recreation Area, Glacier Mtn. Adventures (horse-back trips), Wasilla Lake, and Lake Lucille; within 50 miles of Hatcher Pass mines and trails, Big Lake and Nancy Lake recreation areas (and Tippecanoe Canoe and Kayak Rentals), and the Matanuska Glacier. Our camping season is generally from the middle of May until the middle of September, unless you don't mind being pretty darned chilly. The snow is actually mostly gone by the end of April, but the ground will probably still be frozen: makes staking tents interesting. Our warmest summer weather will be about 75F (about 20C), usually in June. In the fall, we generally don't get snow until the last part of September, sometimes not before Halloween in October. But, that doesn't mean the fall weather will be warm! May and June are generally the driest/sunniest months of the summer; July and August tend to be very damp/cloudy but have fewer mosquitos (not that they disappear, mind you!). Early June is when the salmon runs start; the last week in August is the Alaska State Fair in Palmer (about 20 miles from us) where you can see giant cabbages, among all the other wonders of Alaska's agriculture.
Nitty-Gritty: We provide: firewood, composting toilets, water, and mosquito repellent. You provide: everything else for camping in a wilderness area: tents, sleeping bags, food, eating equipment, cooking equipment, first aid kit, small fire extinguisher, rain protection, your own brand of mosquito repellent, tough pants (jeans are fine) for walking through wild roses, etc. We have telephone and electricity to the buildings at the entrance to Thornwood, and first aid kits. Reservations are on a first-come/first-serve basis.
Prices: $10/person/night. We welcome groups, but please reserve space early! We're trying to keep the total population of campers small at any one time to minimize the impact on the land and wildlife. Make your reservation by emailing: castlethornwood@yahoo.com or by calling: 907-376-1606 (there is a message machine; we are on Alaska time-- 1 hour behind California: please call between 9am and 9pm our time) or by writing to: Castle Thornwood Please make out your check or money order to: Castle Thornwood. Hope to see you soon! |
