Camp Connell General Store

Great place to stop for a few items in a pinch. The people that work there are all friendly and enjoyed my time there.

It’s a convenient local store with the basics, and some cold beer on tap. Live music in the summer out back was fun for the whole family.

No wonder the store is for sale. Went to the store on 9÷14÷15 @ 1:00 pm to make a purchase. I never heard thank you or kiss my ass. The clerk was more interested going back and start BSing with the locals at the counter. Walk in customers are your Bread & Butter.

Live music beer espresso great people great environment in the middle if next to nowhere
On the way to lake alpine
Awesome!

They do not welcome off-​road enthusiasts here. They refused to make sandwiches for people in our group. Their prices are typical mountain store high, especially the gas at almost 50 cents premium over gas in Arnold.

Camp Connell General Store is definitely your small town store. It offers a combination of gift store, grocery store, restaurant and gas station services. The gift area is in the front on the left with cute woodsy, mountain items (probably for the tourists like me who buys something every time I come in!). They have all of your basic grocery items like milk, cheese, cooking items, beer and wine. The restaurant area is on the right side serving food and drinks (where many of the locals seemed to come in for a little celebration), with a few tables and wi-​fi (per the sign). The store is not big and the prices are not cheap, but hey what do you expect for a side of the road store trying to make it in a small town. Bonus for those without cell reception or landlines at the cabin — A PAY PHONE! (When’s the last time you saw one of those?!)
Bottom Line — Check it out and offer your patronage to the locals. =)

Great people, First class service

With the Dorrington Inn, the Lube Room Saloon, and the Dorrington General Store all out of business, it’s good to know that there’s a solid station just a mile down the road willing to fill the gap.
They might not have a place to stay, but this post office/​store/​gas station/​restaurant/​music venue is a great stop for both locals and travelers alike. The lady running the whole shebang deserves some kudos too!

I will never forget the lovely people who work here.
So the story is that we were on our way home from our 3 week trip in the Southwest. Then on the last day, my husband convinced our other friends that we should do one more off-​road trail. So we ended up doing the Alpine Lake to Spicer Reservoir trail, which 5 years ago would have only taken 1.5 hours, but took us 6 hours to get out. My friends, this trail has gotten so much worse, since the Jeeps love to come on this. It was also a bad idea because our friend had to get winched out at the end because of major boulders in the way.
Long story short, we had to get air for our tires and came here because it was the closest place on the GPS. When we got there, there was no air, but we stayed because they had beer inside and an outdoor patio with live music. Since we came so late (9PM), they told us they ran out of all the chicken they made that night. At this point, it was too late to leave to get dinner at another place and we were so tired from all the stacking of the rocks on the trail, that we just improvised.
I told the lady our story that we got stuck in the trail for 6 hours with our babies and she helped us microwaved our quiche and 3 cans of chilli we bought from their fridge. She gave us plates and utensils to eat with. I asked if they did this regularly, and she said no. All the local folks sitting at the bar area was joking that she would’ve invited us to her house and made us ribs if it wasn’t so late.
We felt so special. On the other hand, we got one too many cans of chilli and were asking everyone in the store if they wanted some, but we got no takers in the end. Good thing I didn’t buy a second quiche. Whew!
My only regret is not having cash at a time like this. All of us were out of cash and we had to scramble to find pennies and quarters in our pockets to give her. I was so sad when I left, because that lady was so nice and I wasn’t able to give her extra cash for her generous hospitality.
I’ll be back, I promise!

We vacation in Camp Connell regularly, and this store has it all! We oftentimes forget something at the supermarket, and don’t feel like driving back down the mountain. & we can always find it at the general store. They always have the bare necessities, and a small produce selection.
And they now have Wi-​fi connection, so you can check your email and get a beer on tap or a cup of joe, while warming up from the cold outside, and chatting it up with the locals. Donna and Tommy are so friendly. It is always nice to see them!
And, they have some really cute souvenir stuff. I sport my Camp Connell sweatshirt on a regular basis, and my kids have Camp Connell jammies. What can I say, I Love this place!

I love Camp Connell General Store. Everyone is very friendly and helpful.
The summer concerts are a blast and I love the wine tasting events!

We’ve been twice and probably won’t be back. The menu is mediocre and the service is non existent.

Since the summer of 2010, Donna and Tommy present live music
on summer Saturday nights behind the store, in
Tommy’s Backyard. It’s a wonderful venue in all respects,
and it’s more or less the only night life within many miles.
Don’t miss it!

So what is it with my dad? When we are up at the cabin, every morning he has to go out and get both the Modesto Bee and the San Francisco Chronicle. He is going to have several days of both on his driveway when he gets home, and he needs both even up here.
So it’s about 20 frickin’ degrees out and I’m bundling up to drive him through the snow to get his papers. We do this every morning.
And I wouldn’t change it for the world.
We head to Camp Connell. We used to go to the Dorrington Store (across the highway and 100 yards further down) because my dad knew the owners. But they closed last year. And the «new» owners of Camp Connell general store used to live down the street from us — he’s a plumber and she runs the store. Nice people. And they have a nice little coffee bar in there — she can whip you up a hot sugar free, non-​fat, vanilla latte that will rival the best barista at starbucks. Am I starting to sound like my dad — going into all the little details you really don’t care about?
So we pop down, get a couple papers if they aren’t sold out and maybe a latte or coffee, and mosey around the store checking out what tire chains cost these days, what t-​shirts they have for sale, looking at the «bear» items (coffee mugs, signs, etc.). We may even get some cereal or other sundries that we are running low of.
The prices are about what you would expect for a small store up in the mountains. And they have most of what you would need — food, booze, gloves, hats, batteries, etc. They have some souvenirs, sleds for the kids (or adults acting like kids), and maybe even a weather report for you.
The building is pretty cool with its wood beams, plank floors, and big pot belly stove as you walk in. And like I said, they are darn friendly people.
Anytime my dad wants to head down the hill for his morning papers, I’ll drive him.