Whether you're an RVer or tent camper, Hanover, IL is a great place to post up for the weekend—or longer. There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in. Experience some of the most stunning views that Illinois camping has to offer. Search nearby campsites and find top-rated spots from other campers.
"You have to park off a gravel road on the iowa side and its about a mile walk and a half mile off the tracks. Very beautiful and peaceful place. Great fishing, especially along the spillway."
$15 - $25 / night
"We have camped at several of the walk-in sites."
"The sites are clean, each with a fire ring and a table. Some have gravel, some dont. Some are deep enough that you forget where you are once in the tent for the night."
"Pit toilets/shelter/playground near the entrance.
Two boat launches.
Variable availability for firewood; the Cenex on the west end of Argyle reliably sells it if there isn't any at the park."
"Unique hike or paddle primitive site. Native forbs and wildlife surrounding the area. Two parking sites to hike in or access by river. Site is along river, has table, fire ring, latrine."
$70 - $80 / night
"Charcoal grill, fire ring with wood supplied, picnic table, covered porch, trail head right next to cabin. After hours offers quite park, dark skies, and trails with wildlife."
"Cabin offers modern amenities: stove, oven,micro, dishwasher, refrigerator, coffee pot, toaster, ADA access, shower. AC/heat, covered porch, firewood, picnic table, Charcoal grill, trails."
$20 - $45 / night
"Jungletown Ridge is perfect for those looking to get some space from others and enjoy some quiet nights int he woods. Check them out and share some pics from your stay!"
"People driving around the pond didn't even know we were there! The camping spot was beautiful (although you have to watch out for nettles). Great fishing while we were there too."
LegendUnique hike or paddle primitive site. Native forbs and wildlife surrounding the area. Two parking sites to hike in or access by river. Site is along river, has table, fire ring, latrine. Pack in, pack out and Leave No Trace.
LegendOne of the 6 campgrounds that you will have to choose from here at Scott County Park, Bald Eagle CG & Cabins is one that is more geared for the RV driving and trailer toting tribes as each site has FHUs with electric, water & sewage, fire rings and picnic tables; however, if you wanted to pitch a tent here, you could, although I would recommend nearby Incahias as an alternative. Unlike some of the other campgrounds here, Bald Eagle kind of lives up to its name as there’s not much in the way of tree cover or brush, so the land is somewhat BALD. The land is incredibly flat, back-in slots are spacious, hard and very level grounds are incredibly well-organized and the bathroom / shower facilities with great HOT running water and are about as impeccably clean as can be.
Near by Bald Eagle is Pride Lake, which makes this pet-friendly CG your top pick if you’re an angler or looking to get some decent oaring with your kayak or canoe. Sitting in front of Pride Lake are 2 very large shelters – Whispering Pines and Hickory Hills – as well as a playground for the kiddos and a restroom facility that is also spartan-clean. Surrounding Bald Eagle is also no shortage of hiking / biking / horse trails. We found the CG itself to be fairly quiet, although lacking in privacy without the benefit of any real brush or trees to blot out our next-door neighbors, but that said, everyone was incredibly friendly with full displays of Midwestern hospitality that this area is known for. There is also a single large cabin available for rent that has capacity for 10 people.
We loved Scott County Park so much because there is a lot that this gem offers up, from fresh water catch & release lakes, a combination of topographies (from woodlands, wetlands and prairie grasslands), a beautiful 18-hole championship golf course, outdoor exercise areas, club house and concessions, stand-alone cabins for rent, designated dump stations and trash receptacles, numerous picnic areas, a massive heated swimming pool complete with a snake-like water slide, volleyball court, ranger stations, seasonal on-site hosts, firewood available for purchase at entry stations, Walnut Grove Pioneer Village and St. Anne’s church at the park’s NW perimeter, 7 community shelters, designated picnic areas, a memorial park, equestrian area and an incredibly well-paved network of roads that allows you to easily access just about every corner of this park.
Happy Camping!
GuideLet's start with the good stuff:
Now for the not so great stuff:
Many of the campsites are sloped and some are sloped A LOT. This isn't obvious from the booking page.
The campground is absolutely jammed with camp sites- it's ridiculous. I've never been to a campground where the sites were so on top of one another.
We stayed in the Sunny Crest loop and the drinking water well was broken so we had to travel to other parts of the campground for water. When carrying a 10 gallon jug full of water back, that really sucked.
The sites that are marked as "hike in" aren't secluded and away from other sites at all, as one might expect. They are jammed in with all the others but there just isn't any parking nearby.
It had rained the day before was went and so the road to the campgrounds was blocked off (presumably because the creek was running too high), but there was NO SIGNAGE telling us how to get there another way. There was no one in the park office or in the camping registration station to ask. We finally figured out that we had to take an emergency road/auxiliary road to get to the campground, but that was after about 30 minutes of confusion.
The breakfast buffet at the restaurant is mid but very pricey- $50 for 2 of us.
The quiet hours and no alcohol policy are not enforced at all. While we were there, there was a very loud group playing beer pong into the wee hours of the morning.
About half of the fire rings don't have grill grates so bring your own or bring a camp stove (See pic). Also, when you book your site, there is no way to know if your fire ring will have a grill grate or note.
TravelerVery nice park. Well marked and maintained trails. A large lake with boat launch and beach area. Separate pet area.
We spent the weekend at site 101, which is a tent site. I wouldn't recommend this site. based on a quick walkaround, it seemed a bit smaller than other sites. That's not really a deal-breaker, but it didn't really have any flat spots to pitch the tent. We ended up pitching it up on the parking area, but it was still a bit slanted and we could feel the tire divot a little through the air mattresses. Aside from that, it was great. The site had a picnic table and fire ring that we used a lot. It was secluded from the surrounding sites.
We hiked the Windy Ridge trail and the Prairie Loop trail. both were well maintained and enjoyable trails. We also spent some time on the beach.
GuideI wanted so badly to love this campground experience, but just didn't. Site 19 was an easy walk-in that theoretically had nearby vault toilets, parking, and water.
Each site only had space for one car to park before walking in. Not a huge deal, but annoying as there were 2 of us who drove separate and we had to problem solve. When we got to the site I was shocked to see that what was labeled as a tent site had literally NO flat space to actually set up a tent. Spacious site, but fully sloped.
Also, what I would have loved to know, is that the vault toilets are closed because they are doing construction to build something new in that space. Construction that starts loudly each day at 7am. Honestly every site from about #35 down was affected by the noise because the construction is happening in the middle of the loop (and actually blocking some of the one-way road as well).
The park in general was okay. Per the usual, the pet areas were lacking. No beach at all, just grass covered in goose poop and one cut out on the raised shore between tall grasses and foliage where a dog could potentially jump in. Certainly nowhere for a human to enjoy the water with their pups unfortunately.
LegendGeneral: This is a small (29-site) county park campground situated along the North Fork Maquoketa River. Nine of the sites are reservable, and the rest are first-come, first-served. Some sites are primitive, and some have water and 30-amp electricity hookups. There is one ADA-accessible site with a paved camper pad.
Site Quality: Most sites are level. The camper pads are gravel/grass, but not all are clearly defined. Each site has a picnic table and a fire ring.
Bath/Shower: The bath/shower house was closed when we were there in November but there are vault toilets about a quarter mile from the campground (in the day-use area) that were very clean and well-stocked when we were there.
Activities/Amenities: Many activities including disc golf, three hiking trails, volleyball, two playgrounds (one in the day-use area and one by the campsites). There are two reservable picnic shelters. There is also a dump station.
We were tent camping in November on a backpacking trip so we didn’t take advantage of any of the activities but would return in our van on a future camping trip. We were the ONLY ones in the campground at this time of year!
Scoutfirst timers/ young kids- yes. Primitive campers- no. My husband had never been camping. I grew up with very primitive camping- no electricity, only pit toilets, sometimes fresh water, and no showers (milk jug showers!) Little by little, I’m warming him up to camping. This is a great place for new campers, families of young kids, or just looking for an easier trip. There’s a shower house with flush toilets, warm showers, and surprisingly CLEAN! The site was medium size. Enough room to spread out. Ground was flat so finding a tent site was no problem. Electric hookup worked. Picnic table was good. Check your site before booking! One section of sites is like an open field? No trees and full view of others. But these surround a playground- also very nice. Glamping with young kids? These sites would be a perfect. AT&T and Verizon cell service worked fine
LegendThe campground offers to camp areas: one better suited for RVs, and the other area is better suited for primitive tent, camping. Sites have picnic tables and fire rings, our recites include electric. There is a campground host, shower house, shelter and playground area there too. The tent sites are prone to flooding occasionally from the gun river. There is a boat ramp with access to the river for fishing and paddling.
RangerMud Lake is a wonderful county park near Dubuque. Beautiful views of the Mississippi River. We stayed one night on our way to Minnesota. The sites are mostly sunny. The park streets are gravel with gravel sites. The park is quiet except for the occasional train from the nearby tracks. Great value for $21. Electric and water hookups. Marina and boathouse next door.
Stayed in campsite #35 which has no shade. It was a gravel site which shares a pull-through with site 36. There was more than enough parking for my TT and truck and grass on either side. The site included: picnic table and fire ring. Utilities were located in the rear. 20A/50A electric and water. Site was level. Neighbors were nearby.
AT&T had 2 bars of LTE and Verizon 2 bars of LTE service. AT&T Speedtest: 47 Mbps down, 1.3 Mbps up. Verizon data VERY SLOW. No WiFi.
Would stay here again. We camped at Mud Lake Park in a Travel Trailer.
Tent camping near Hanover, Illinois offers a variety of scenic spots where nature lovers can unwind and enjoy the great outdoors. From peaceful riverside locations to unique wildlife areas, there’s something for every tent camper.
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