Colonel Allensworth State Park

We stayed at Millerton Lake for two nights, the first time we stayed at a park for more than one night. We were getting closer to the kind of place we had been dreaming of while planning this adventure: someplace in the forest, quiet, with full hookups! We still had not made a campfire, although most parks had a fire ring at each campsite, and some even sold firewood for your fire. And we had not really spent time talking to other campers, meeting new people. It’s so easy to set up the trailer, plug in, move the slide out, and hide out inside.
We set out due south on the state roads, trying to avoid the speeding turbulence of the truckers. We finally found this park in the middle of nowhere. It's several miles west of the interstate, and yet the train line that runs through this major farming area is just 100 yards from the park. The original town was founded by a former slave who became a chaplain in the Union Army and was discharged as a colonel. He took several other former slaves and went to California to make a new start away from the war. The town had several general stores, a school, a large church, and a doctor.
The park is still in the process of restoration, there are several buildings completed with historical markers explaining their origin. We were there in the off season, so the museum was not open, and I think during season the town is populated with people portraying the original residents.
There were covered picnic areas with barbeque rings; one large group area with four or five tables. All the people there were Hispanics, except a guy living in his van. The large party left the park in a mess, pinata paper left wherever it fell.
No hookups except for the park host, although it looked like there had not been one last season. Clean bathrooms, large outside sink for washing dishes. Hot showers for 50 cents.
About the guy in the van, he was sitting in the sun in a lounge chair when we arrived, and we called him “sunburned guy”. I found out from him that the 50 cent showers lasted long enough to take a leisurely shower, so we showered together and had plenty. We started a fire with discarded wood we found in the construction area, and I walked over and invited sunburned guy to join us. His name was Danny, and he was a pipe fitter working construction in the area. He said living in the van beat paying for motel rooms, although he was limited to fourteen total days in the California park system. The cost for this campsite was eight dollars, a great price. The night got pretty cold, we were apprehensive to use the onboard furnace, and had no electrical hookup to use the little space heater, so we just bundled up for the night.
The park had several buildings under construction, and we found a bunch of wood to use for a campfire. No termites means the wood is dry and chemical-free, so we climbed into a dumpster and helped ourselves to the scrap pieces.