Best Equestrian Camping near Johnsonville, IL

This campground qualifies for the senior pass for reduced rates. It is directly on Carlyle Lake, ,the largest lake in Illinois. It has activities for children on the weekends. The campsites have sewer and water on some sites, as well as other sites with electricity available. There are a lot of mature trees in the campground that provides plenty of shade int he summer. Many of the sites are blacktopped and large RV's will fit on the sites. There is a beach very near the campground that is within walking distance. There are also pools located near to the campground that can be used by the public.

North and South Sandusky campground is located in southern Illinois on Rend Lake. It is a large state park with tons to do. From boating and swimming to hiking and relaxing. The sites have many areas that fit different needs. I have stayed this year in both. My site at North Sandusky was on the water and I could pull my pontoon right behind my campsite. The kids were close enough to the bathrooms and showers to walk. And there was fresh water located there as well. There was a park a bit further down the way as well. But no need as the lake was in the backyard.

South sandusky site was across from a park, bathrooms, showers and water. The beach was a 2 mi hike on a beautiful trail. But we could walk across the street to a fishing swimming spot as well.

The beach is super clean and monitored well.

The bathrooms were cleaned every morning before 7 am. Water had great pressure and was always nice and hot.

I love these campgrounds and can’t wait to go back.

Harmonie State Park is a nice campground. It has 200 sites, electric only, 5 bath houses and 2 pit toilets. There are also 11 cabins. They have a nature center in the middle of the campground that is open Thursday-Sunday in the summer. There are 3 playgrounds through out the campground. They have various events through the summer season with a big Halloween event in the fall. Most campsites are big and spacious, with several loops that allow campers to face one another. It is located back in the hills, far off the highway. Very little cell phone signal. Very relaxing and enjoyable. Olympic size pool open during summer-has water slide, diving boards, separate baby pool with shade awning, and concessions.

The state park is located on the Wabash River and has a boat ramp. They also have a youth tent area that is primitive, and day use horse trails.

This is a small state park in an out of the way part of the state. Located in Southwest Indiana, about 40 miles from Evansville. 

This is a typical Indiana State Park. Some sites are pretty close together, some are spacious. There's electricity, but water is shared. Some sites have 50 amp, so when you're looking to reserve, check that out. IMO, the best site is site 39. It's at the end of the row, with somewhat secluded. It's a walk to the bathroom, but worth it. Site 22 is also a good site at the end of a row & has a trail from the site to the small pond. 

Be sure to watch for the grade also. Some of the sites had a noticeable incline. 

Bathrooms are pretty dismal. They smelled bad too. They need to start replacing these old, worn out comfort stations with something from this century! The nature center is in the campground & is pretty small. We enjoyed it though.

The camp store is in the park office& is ridiculous. Bring everything you need, cause you won't find it there!

8 trails the longest is 2.5 miles, the shortest.25 miles. There's also mountain bike trails & a 4 mile horse trail.

Ranger Review Primus LiTech Trek Kettle at Dam West Campground

Campground Review

What a great campground on the shore of Carlyle Lake! Right next to the marina and with many sites right on the lake, you can’t go wrong here. Sites looked a bit more level on the inside of the loop than the lakeside sites, but I guess that’s the price you pay for real estate. My site was not the most level, but only steps from the beach with a few trees that might work for hammocking. The site was really clean and had plenty of space, with a nice paved parking pad, fire pit, picnic table, and electric hook up (all sites have electric!). Across the drive was a nice amphitheater and playground and a basic bathroom. The fairly clean shower house for the whole campground is up near the entrance (it also has a laundry room, but I did not check it out). The campground host for this summer is super nice and is likely to visit for a bit as he buzzes around on his scooter. There is a bike path that goes right past the campground that was busy all weekend with bikers, runners, and walkers, and takes you from the shower house to the marina in just a short walk.

Gear Review

Primus LiTech Trek Kettle As a Ranger for The Dyrt, from time to time I get new gear to review. On this camping trip I tested out Primus LiTech Trek Kettle. I have to say, this may be my new favorite cooking pot. It is the perfect size for one person(which works well as I frequently camp solo). I used it to heat up some frozen chili for dinner and then used it again in the morning to heat water for oatmeal. Here’s what I liked: The kettle holds just a bit more than a liter of water(or chili), which is about all you need to make coffee, heat large single servings of food, or just about anything It’s non-stick, so clean-up is a breeze and doesn’t retain odors The handles fold out and are easy to grip, and fold around the pot for easy out of the way storage Its super light weight(perfect for backpacking) Even though it was taller than wide, water heated up in it very quickly My little fuel canister fits inside perfectly with almost no rattling Primus included a nice carrying bag that fits the pot and has a small bit of room to spare Here’s what baffled me: The lid doubles as a tiny nonstick frying pan. But it is big enough for maybe one egg. It is so small that I am not exactly sure what you could make in it. I understand the desire to make the lid“usable”, but maybe a regular lid with a colander built in would have been more useful. The lid is not a great fit, and when packing up for storage, it kept sliding off. Despite the weird frying pan lid, I am really happy with the LiTech Kettle. It meets all of my needs in a lightweight package. It is easy to clean up, packs small, has good handles, and is a great addition to my camp cooking arsenal.