17 Great Places to Go Camping Near Chicago
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Picture: Shutterstock Sleep under the stars at beautiful parks, extensive lakes and more when you visit the best camping spots near Chicago.Renowned biologist and journalist Jerry Sullivan said that in Chicago,”we can delight in the riches of life in one of the world’s biggest cities and link ourselves to the natural world.”Chicago might be the country’s third largest city, but there are plenty of choices for outdoor camping and exploring beautiful parks within a couple of hours’ drive. Whatever your version of connecting to the outdoors world– whether it’s pitching a tent or cozying up in a cabin– there are camping areas varying from rustic to full outdoor resort. You can camp a couple of feet away from the Midwest’s finest hiking and biking tracks or invest lazy days checking out and relaxing near a lake. Here are the very best campgrounds near Chicago for seasonal and year-round camping tent websites, recreational vehicle and trailer-accessible sites, cabins and recreational activities. RECOMMENDED: The very best lakeside Airbnbs near Chicago An email you’ll actually
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Discover the best of the city, first.By entering your e-mail address you agree to our Terms of Usage and Privacy Policy and grant receive e-mails from Time Out about news, occasions, offers and partner promos. Remarkable, you’re subscribed!Thanks for subscribing! Keep an eye out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon!Top places for outdoor camping near Chicago Set on 6.5 miles of Lake Michigan coastline, you can delight in stunning stretches of sand, dunes, marshes, forests and treking trails before heading
to the campground in the southern portion of Illinois Beach State Park to get some rest. With 241 sites, there’s lots of room for tents, Recreational vehicles, cars and trucks and trailers– and they all have access to electrical power, toilets and showers. Open Apr 1– Dec 31. Reserve a campsite. Although most people head to Starved Rock to walk among the park’s winding sandstone canyons and snap images in front of its seasonal waterfalls, it’s also possible
to spend the night. Each of the 129 campsites at Starved Rock function space for 2 vehicles, a picnic table, a fire pit and access to electrical power. There are likewise 2 showerhouses(with flush toilets, an outdoor camping high-end!)and a playground for the kids. Open year-round, weather permitting. Reserve a campsite. To most Chicagoans, “a weekend at the Dunes”suggests a trip to this popular Indiana State Park, about a half-hour drive from the Illinois border. Visitors usually hang around unwinding on the beach or passing through a 1.5-mile path that allows you to climb atop the threehighest
dunes in the park. Campers have a couple of choices: the little 66-site Dunewood Camping site just south of the park or the bigger(and popular)Indiana Dunes State Park Camping Site, which is within a mile of the beach. Dunewood Campground: Open Mar 31– Oct 31. Reserve a camping area. Indiana Dunes State Park Campground: Open year-round. Reserve a campsite. A fan favorite for Chicago-based weekend travelers, Wisconsin’s Devil’s Lake State Park is just over three hours outside the city.
Located along the 1,200-mile Ice Age National Scenic Path, thesensational landscape of hills, ridges and valleys was when
the edge of the substantial glacier that covered much of North America over 15,000 years ago. This park canget loaded,
but no stress– with three campgrounds and over 400 sites, make a reservation and you’ll be set. Spend your time sprinkling in the water or climbing the 30 miles of trails for scenic views, and be sure to snap a picture overlooking the lake from the 500-foot bluff. Open year-round. Reserve a campsite. You most likely won’t see a sasquatch at this Wisconsin State Park(just across the border from Illinois), however you can delight in canoeing and kayaking on Lake Geneva before retiring to
a relaxing camping area.
There are 100 websites to pick from– including a lower ring of sites that’s just a short walk from a devoted parking lot– and each is geared up with a fire ring and a picnic table. Open year-round. Reserve a camping area. Just north of Rockford, Illinois, Rock Cut State Park contains two lakes( the stretching Pierce Lake and the smaller Olson Lake)and lots of room for hiking
, fishing and boating. Thecamping site boasts more than 250 websites with access to electrical energy, showers and toilets. There’s likewise a single cabin (with space for 6 individuals )that can be leased, though you’ll likely need to prepare well in advance. Open year-round. Reserve a camping site. Located just over two hours from Chicago by car, this expansive state forest north of Milwaukee is called for the large depressions in the land (a number of which later on became bodies of water)formed by melting
glaciers thousands of years back. After you hike the Glacial epoch Trail
, invest the night at the Pinewoods, Ottawa Lake or Whitewater Lake campgrounds. Each area uses different amenities(Whitewater Lake is primitive, without a showerhouse )and each boasts a couple of more remote walk-in websites. Open year-round. Reserve a campsite.Tucked among the largest concentration of natural lakes in Illinois, Chain O’ Lakes State Park provides scenic hiking and popular fishing spots in addition to boat and canoe rentals. After a day on the water, you can pitch a tent in the Class A Honey Suckle Hollow and Fox Den camp areas or one of three Class
B camping areas(Turner Lake South, Meadow
View and Mud Lake East), which are about half the rate per night. Open Jan-Oct. Reserve a campsite. Drive west of Chicago to this 1,550-acre stretch of grassy field, surrounding a 300-acre manmade lake that is popular with fishers. The lake is equipped with large and smallmouth bass, bluegill, walleye, muskie and more– you can also take a boat out on the water if you like. A total of 150 campgrounds offer a location to rest after a sunsoaked day, each with electricity,
a picnic table, fire rings and lorry gain access to. Open year-round, with some exceptions. Reserve a campsite.Set in a Cook County Forest Preserve not far from Tinley Park and Orland Park, this little campground has space for all kinds of campers, along with access to the Tinley Creek Path System and an indoor climbing wall. Bring a tent, park your RV or reserve among Camp Sullivan’s bunkhouses or cabins. Cook County citizens get reduced rates, which is as good of an excuse as any for a weekend away(but not too far away)from the city. Open year-round.
Reserve a camping area. This extensive website in Michigan’s”Harbor Country “has long been a preferred destination of weekending Chicagoans, and with the three miles of dreamy Lake Michigan coastline, breathtaking dune views and activities varying from the chill(bird-watching) to the extreme( hang moving), we can see why. With 185 contemporary camping areas with electric hookups, 24 rustic websites and 3 mini-cabins, there’s an area for each kind of camper here.
Provide yourself time on the drive home to sample some
of the numerous appealing dining establishments, wineries and breweries nearby. Open year-round. Reserve a campsit e. As the name might suggest, the 3,200-acre lake is the huge draw here. Campers can enjoy lots of chances for fishing, boating and swimming, or check out more than 5 miles of treking trails through a variety of various environments. The household camping site sports 96 websites(29 with electrical connections ), however Lake Kegonsa’s most significant
advantage may be for groups– their 6 group sites canaccommodate as many as 20 campers, with enjoyable features such as a common area with a picnic shelter, a sand volley ball court and a horseshoe pit. Open May 1-Oct 31. Reserve a camping site.< img src ="https://media.timeout.com/images/106037667/image.jpg "alt="https://media.timeout.com/images/106037667/image.jpg"/ > 2 hours from Chicago along the coasts of Lake Michigan is Harrington Beach State Park, over 700 acres of forest, overload, meadows, wetland ponds and a limestone quarry lake. The 69-unit campground are located about a mile inland from the lake and one unique kayak website for approximately six people is feet from the water. The park consists of about a mile of Lake Michigan shoreline and a series of moderate
tracks of less than a mile, so you can take pleasure in the outdoors at a simple pace. Just thirty minutes’drive north of Milwaukee, drop in Cream City on your method back to Chicago for great breweries, art and history. Open year-round. Reserve a camping area. Another Forest Protects of Cook County gem for camping close to the city is Camp Bullfrog Lake in the Palos Preserves system( and yes– you can really hear bullfrogs here ). Select from 6 campsites and one big group camping site for up to 30 people, numerous cabins, or recreational vehicle or path sites and check out the comprehensive system of nearby hiking, trail running, or mountain cycling routes. With Bullfrog Lake at your front door, you can delight in ice fishing in the winter and kayaking and canoeing in the summer.
Open year-round. Reserve a campground.
Under 3 hours from Chicago in Angola, Indiana, Pokagon State Park is among Indiana’s earliest state parks and has more than 70 camping tent and over 200 recreational vehicle and trailer websites. Located in the county with the most lakes in the state, it’s naturally a hotspot for water recreation, so pack your swimwear. Winter season visitors can wrap and evaluate the toboggan run, a quarter-mile, 90-foot drop built in 1935 that
will have you flying at over 30 miles an hour. The flat drive east along Indiana’s I-90 isn’t the most exciting, but you can plan a series of fascinating or quirky stops along the method– attempt South Bend for museums and excellent eats or Shipshewana for among the country’s biggest flea markets and Amish culture centers. Open year-round. Reserve a camping area. Less than an hour outside the city in Palatine, Forest Preserves of Cook County’s Camp Reinberg is perfect for a quick weekend escape or one-night outdoor camping experience. Located in the 2,000-acre Deer Grove Forest Preserve, you’ll have access to an estimated 15.5 miles of trails for cycling, path running, cross-country snowboarding or horseback riding. There are 13 camping areas, 6 RV sites, and a number of heated cabins are readily available year-round (and do not forget Cook County homeowners get a discount rate)so you can experience nature no matter the
season. Open year-round.
Reserve a campsite. Forest Protect District of DuPage County’s Blackwell Household Campground is a seasonal (May-September)choice with 60 tent websites. You’ll hear the sounds of summertime simply an hour outside Chicago and have activity alternatives like archery, 7 miles of treking or running routes, and canoeing, kayaking or row boating on Silver Lake. And if you’re aiming to enhance your wilderness survival skills in a safe setting, try the self-guided compass course on Mount Hoy, a long-ago trash site-turned winter sledding hill. Open May-Sept. Reserve a camping site. An email you’ll really love Enter a relationship with our newsletter. Discover the best of the city, first.By entering your e-mail address you agree to our Regards to Use and Personal privacy Policy and consent to get emails from Time Out about news, occasions, offers and partner promos. Incredible, you’re subscribed!Thanks for subscribing! Watch out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon!An e-mail you’ll in fact enjoy Enter into a relationship with our newsletter. Discover the best of the city, first.Déjà vu! We already have this
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Keep an eye out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! Enjoy the great outdoors at these camping spots near Chicago, including parks in Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin.