Cedary Bay Campground

My wife and I had never been to Merritt Reservoir and truly were looking forward to the long trip from eastern-central Nebraska for some much needed R&R. All the areas to camp in are sand, sand burs & prickly pear. The part of the park we staying in (Beeds) was not kept up at all. Not once did we see a park manager or worker cleaning up fire-pits or even picking up any trash. People even left their site registration stub in all the site posts. I read some of the dates on them and concluded they had been hanging there for quite some time. Really? No one manages this loop and I really have my doubts they manage any of the others. Seemed the rangers or workers were no-shows, 24-7. I have attached pics for your viewing. You won't believe how dilapidated this SRA is. The fire-pits were full of trash from campers before us. We did notice a camper a few sites from us that left his garbage and trash in the fire-pit, upon his departure. How stupid and lack of respect for fellow campers is that? How gross is that?... and again... nobody came around to pick it up. Guess people don't look for the dumpsters and just don't care. We did take our pontoon along and did some fishing. Normally, the lake is supposed to be one of the best fishing spots in Nebraska, but the duration we were there, we didn't get one bite. Part of fishing, I guess. Spent our time fishing the entire lake. We were told, by a fellow fisherman, the fish had lockjaw (didn't want to open their mouths). That pretty much described our fishing excursion. Besides, the fish cleaning station near us had orange snow fence around because it was closed.... not working. In the 6 days we were there, not even one worker showed to work on or repair it during our stay. Very honestly... we will not be going back to Merritt Reservoir SRA..... no way! Truthfully... Nebraska Game & Parks should be totally ashamed of this park and the people they hire to take care of it. I really wonder if anyone even cares for the park? Merritt is so far out in the sand hills, the workers can literately hide from the Game and Parks Commission. A real Dump of a park. I can't say anything good about this one. So SAD for NGPC.

Boating, fishing, swimming... our own beach. Beautiful views!
The night sky is incredible- unlike anything I’d ever seen! Feels as if you can reach the Milky Way, as it casts a shadow on the ground.

$8 a night plus state park pass (~$40 for the year)

Quiet and dark for astronomy. Sites are hit and miss- some sandy, not too level. Bathrooms clean, but old. “Resort” store id very basic bait shop.

We stayed at Cedar Bay Campground Site R. It was along the shore of the lake. The bank below us was rocky with rip-rap The sites are unpaved except for some gravel. Access to sandy beaches was a few sites away. 30 and 50 amp sites available suitable for large RVs. Quiet mid-week. Loud on the weekends. Good fishing and boating. Valentine National Wildlife Refuge and Smith Falls State Park are both within an hours drive.
Management of the park not great. We had a reservation but the park didn't mark reserved sites. Someone was trying to take our spot when we arrived. Cleanup of trash in campsites wasn't happening. They did empty the dumpsters. Bathroom maintenance was spotty.
Only water in our campground was at the shower facility which was a far walk. There is a dump station with water near the entrance.
Official Dark Sky Site.