Midwest Camping

[aute19]

Hey there fanatics. I'm looking for some advice.

I'm trying to arrange a few camping trips this spring, summer, fall around Iowa and/or the Midwest.

This certainly wouldn't be "roughing it", per se, but we're looking for places to camp (state parks, etc.) that aren't your run of the mill KOA, loaded with RVers, etc. Preferably with good hiking, swimming, or other outdoor activities opportunities nearby.

Any good thoughts in Iowa or the surrounding states?

The only one I have so far is Devils Lake State Park in Wisconsin.

 

[jackrabbit]

Ft. Robinson State Park in northwest Nebraska
Custer State Park in South Dakota
(Devils Tower just across the border in WY is small but
would be great for a one/two night stay)
Badlands National Park - South Dakota
Roosevelt National Park - North Dakota
(south unit has a lot more hiking opportunities)
Boundry Waters (if you want to canoe) or
Voyaguers National Park (Just west of Boundry Waters -
I've read that there is a 'backcountry' lodge that you
can rent a room/rooms at - but you would have to
investigate some more since I've never been there)

And the place I would head first the Ozarks -
but again you will have to look to others since
I have not camped there. However, I have read
that Buffalo National River in northwest Arkansas
is absolutely beautiful.

Have fun.

 

[ISUAlum05]

I have camped at and liked Backbone State Park (known for trout fishing) and Lake McBride State Park on Coralville Lake. Lewis and Clark Recreation Area in Yankton, SD is a really nice park.

 

[wxman1]

I have camped at and liked Backbone State Park (known for trout fishing) and Lake McBride State Park on Coralville Lake. Lewis and Clark Recreation Area in Yankton, SD is a really nice park.

Numerous great trout fishing streams around there, great part of the state.

 

[CloneFan319]

Might be a little to far away..but Grand Teton National Park just south of Yellowstone is BEAUTIFUL. Jackson Hole, Wyoming is a nice little town, beautiful country over there.

 

[mfelske]

I would recommend Maquoketa Caves State Park. Nice campground and a beautiful park. The caving is fun. Bring a flashlight and clothes you don't mind getting really muddy in. There is also good canoeing on the Maquoketa river.

 

[oldman]

Backbone is, IMO maybe the most beautiful park in Iowa. Lots of hiking trails and the trout fishing is good. In fact, I caught a 6 lb rainbow in the Maquoketa, just where it starts into the park. There is also a cave that some friends and I went into. Its marked in the park, and doesn't really look like much, but there is a little hole to one side that you can get into and go for a couple hundred feet.

 

[oldman]

Always loved Devil's Lake (about two hrs from Dubuque), but we had to stay in a campground off the park. Best rock climbing in the Midwest IMO.

 

[oldman]

Ledges, between Des Moines and Boone off of Hwy 17 has a lot of great hiking trails, and is very scenic river bluff country.

 

[clone99]

Boundary Waters

 

[Stelrs1995]

Ledges, between Des Moines and Boone off of Hwy 17 has a lot of great hiking trails, and is very scenic river bluff country.

The road to the lower ledges was closed all last year, anyone know if they will have it open this year?

 

[Nerdburglar]

In Minnesota along the shore of Lake Superior there are a handful of great state parks within about 30 miles of each other. My fiance and I went up there a couple years ago and loved it. There's great hiking trails and fishing, but it may not be the best for swimming unless you're fine with swimming in rivers. Lake Superior is pretty cold even in the summer.

 

[Entropy]

Boundary Waters

Good call. I'll be working there this summer in conjunction with the USFS rebuilding portage trails.

Isle Royale is a fantastic destination, and some of the best backpacking I've been on.

The Superior Hiking Trail (SHT), is a great North Shore destination and has some good spots to stop at along the way. It's in pretty good shape, and gets regular maintenance (I helped rebuild some of it last year).

Yellow River is supposed to be pretty good here in IA, but I haven't been to it yet.

 

[Doc]

And the place I would head first the Ozarks -
but again you will have to look to others since
I have not camped there. However, I have read
that Buffalo National River in northwest Arkansas
is absolutely beautiful.

Have fun.

You are absolutely correct, especially in April or May. The river warms up enough to swim in (still cold) sometime around May usually. I did a 3 day trip where we hiked 22 miles up the river in two days, and canoed back in a day. So beautiful. Probably the best trip I've been on, and I've been other places in the Ozarks, Big Bend TX, almost all the NPs in Cali, and to various places in Colorado (Lake Charles maybe beats Buffalo River).

It's probably a 6-7 hr trip from Ames. There are a bunch of campgrounds you can drive to on the River. Ozarks the only one I remember by name.

 

[oldman]

Good call. I'll be working there this summer in conjunction with the USFS rebuilding portage trails.

Isle Royale is a fantastic destination, and some of the best backpacking I've been on.

The Superior Hiking Trail (SHT), is a great North Shore destination and has some good spots to stop at along the way. It's in pretty good shape, and gets regular maintenance (I helped rebuild some of it last year).

Yellow River is supposed to be pretty good here in IA, but I haven't been to it yet.

I spent every other weekend there from Memorial day to Labor day growing up. We camped in the Little Paint area. Great for hiking around, trout fishing, and hunting. Be careful in torrential downpours, as it can flash flood.

 

[nhclone]

I spent every other weekend there from Memorial day to Labor day growing up. We camped in the Little Paint area. Great for hiking around, trout fishing, and hunting. Be careful in torrential downpours, as it can flash flood.

Yellow River would definitely be near the top of my Iowa list. Good trout fishing, decent trails, and it's kind of out of the way so it doesn't get as crowded as some of the more well known areas.

 

[isukendall]

Another one for Backbone, we had a great time there.

As mentioned, the Ozarks are great places for multiday hikes. Two of my four ISU spring breaks were spent hiking in the Ozarks. Did the Buffalo River Trail once, and the Ozark Highlands Trail once. Both are pretty awesome and worth going.

 

[clonedmax]

We weekend camp at state parks in Iowa. Some of our favorites Ledges and Backbone have already been mentioned.

Pikes Peak near Marquette has some great views of the Mississippi.

We went to Viking Lake down by Red Oak in SW Iowa last year and had a good time.

Mahoney State Park is located off I-80 between Omaha and Lincoln near Ashland, NE. This is NE's destination state park, if you will. While the scenery isn't great (it's NE after all) there are many things to do like an aquatic center, horse stables, mini-golf, driving range, large lodge w/ restaurant etc. They have 2 campgrounds and many cabins to rent. It's basically the model Iowa used for Honey Creek Resort off Lake Rathbun.

 

[BKLYNCyclone]

Ledges and Backbone are both nice. That being said, I'd go to amazon.com and look for the book "Best Tent Camping in Iowa" or something like that. They make the same book for every state I think, and it is great for those that like to tent camp without RVs everywhere. When we lived in NYC we bought it for New York State and it was an excellent resource. We hit a lot of amazing campgrounds in the Finger Lakes, Adirondacks, and Catskills. We never had a bad campground from what we chose. The MN and WI versions were the first two books I bought when I moved to the twin cities 3 months ago... Our favorite camping experience ever was in the finger lakes on a football size island that we canoed into. (2 dogs and my wife at the time). Amazing experience and a huge luxury to have that much privacy while camping.