There are so many campgrounds to choose from. How do you know if it's a good campground or if it will meet your needs? Most generally, we camp at our State Parks. We live in Indiana and out of the 30 State Parks and Reservoirs, we have camped at 11 of them so far. (Our goal is to visit them all before the boys are grown and out of the house. We try to camp at at least 1 new one every year.) We have found that the State funded campgrounds have more to do than a private campground might. Since we are in Indiana, I will link to the best campgrounds we have found so far. Just know that every state has great state parks to choose from.
If you have a boat, like to fish or enjoy lake beaches, you might be sure to find a campground with water within the park. Fishing is usually better at a river rather than a reservoir. However, you will find beaches at a reservoir and more boating opportunities. We don't have a boat - but might occasionally take or rent a canoe. But we have a son that loves to swim at the beaches, so we enjoy both.
The best State Park we have found for fishing and swimming is Patoka Lake State Park in southern Indiana. We went when the boys were pretty young, so we need to visit there again. I notice there is a disc golf course there. (I don't think that was there before.) I remember we did a fitness trail that the boys really enjoyed and the fishing was good when we were there.
If you like hiking and/or biking, there are many parks that offer numerous hiking trails, including mountain bike trails. Look for a state park that has many trails to choose from at different difficulty levels. If you have young children, or children still in a stroller, you will want to look for trails that are easier. If you are the adventurous type, or have adventurous children, you might look for the more rugged trails.
Potato Creek State Park in northern Indiana (near South Bend) is a great park for trails. Even in the winter time, they have cross country ski trails. There are a few bike trails also. Even if you'd rather walk a road, there are so many loops in this campground, that you can get plenty of walking or biking exercise without really getting off a paved road.
If you like educational trips, you might look for Interpretive Centers or good Nature Centers. Many campgrounds provide programs throughout the year. If you are flexible in your dates, you might plan around one of these programs.
For example, Spring Mill State Park has an annual Gus Grissom Day in the middle of July. We visited there a few years ago. They have special programs all day and the local Stargazers club comes in with their telescopes to allow you too view stars, sun spots and other objects in space. Another great example of an educational trip, is to visit Mounds State Park near Anderson. Within their park, they have Indian Mounds that were built circa 160 BC by the Woodland Indians. They have a wonderful Interpretive Center at the head of that particular trail to explain what you will see at the mounds site and artifacts that were found within the mounds.
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