Camper submitted image from Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground - 1

View Photos

Camper submitted image from Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground - 2
Roads
Camper submitted image from Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground - 3
Camping
Camper submitted image from Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground - 4
Facilities
Camper submitted image from Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground - 5
Nature
Unlock Planning Tools in App

Established Camping

Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground

Warning 8 Alerts are In Effect

There are 8 alerts for this campground. Camp safely!

Found in lakes year-round. Don't drink the water. Shower after you swim. More information.

Comfort Station #2 (serves Section E in the family campground) is currently **CLOSED** due to long-term foundational repairs that are needed. There are two other modern showers / restrooms facilities to use in family campgrounds. We apologize for the inconvenience these closures may cause. Please check back for updates.

Found in lakes year-round. Don't drink the water. Shower after you swim. More information.

Comfort Station #2 (serves Section E in the family campground) is currently **CLOSED** due to long-term foundational repairs that are needed. There are two other modern showers / restrooms facilities to use in family campgrounds. We apologize for the inconvenience these closures may cause. Please check back for updates.

Found in lakes year-round. Don't drink the water. Shower after you swim. More information.

Comfort Station #2 (serves Section E in the family campground) is currently **CLOSED** due to long-term foundational repairs that are needed. There are two other modern showers / restrooms facilities to use in family campgrounds. We apologize for the inconvenience these closures may cause. Please check back for updates.

Found in lakes year-round. Don't drink the water. Shower after you swim. More information.

Comfort Station #2 (serves Section E in the family campground) is currently **CLOSED** due to long-term foundational repairs that are needed. There are two other modern showers / restrooms facilities to use in family campgrounds. We apologize for the inconvenience these closures may cause. Please check back for updates.

Deam Lake State Rec Area, near Borden, Indiana, is a solid choice for campers looking to enjoy the great outdoors year-round. This campground offers a mix of amenities, including electric hookups and drinking water, making it convenient for both tent campers and those with larger rigs.

The area is known for its beautiful lake, which is perfect for fishing, kayaking, and swimming. Visitors have noted that the lake is especially refreshing during hot summer days, although it can get crowded on weekends. The trails around the campground are well-marked, with options for both short hikes and more rugged adventures, including access to the Knobstone Trail, a 60-mile backpacking route.

While some campers have mentioned that the facilities could use a bit of sprucing up, many appreciate the spacious sites and the natural beauty surrounding them. As one visitor put it, “The campground was nice... we had a great time fishing, kayaking, and swimming.” If you're looking for a place to unwind and enjoy nature, Deam Lake State Rec Area has plenty to offer.

Description

Indiana DNR, Forestry Division

Deam Lake State Recreation Area

The Kentucky Derby is the first Saturday in May.

There is a Forest Education Center on property with a full-time Naturalist to provide interpretive programming during the season. Please check with property for details upon your arrival.

Horseshoe Casino - 26 Miles;
Louisville Fairgrounds - 24 Miles

  • You must be 18 to rent a site, have no more than 6 people, 1 main camping unit, 1 additional tent and 1 dining fly per site, but subject to Property Manager's discretion. Leasing and subleasing are prohibited.
  • Minimum age to rent a cabin is 21 years old.
  • Check in/out time is 2:00 P.M. Monday to Saturday and 5:00 P.M. on Sundays and Holidays.
  • Quiet Hours are in effect from 11:00 P.M. to 7:00 A.M.
  • Pets must be on a leash of 6 feet or less and attended to at all times.
  • NO alcoholic beverages permitted on or around the beach area.
  • Site has electrical hook-up. Water hook-up is not available on the site, but water is available in the area. Modern restrooms and shower houses available.
  • Generators are not allowed.
  • No wagons allowed on Deam Lake roads or on Deam/Clark Horse Trails. No Horses allowed on Main Road. Horses are not allowed in the regular campground consisting of sections D, E and F.
  • Stall sites include rental of two stalls. Most barns are within 100 yards of stall sites, but maximum distance could be 1/2 mile. No horses are allowed to be on any stall site at any time.
  • Horse campers with stalls are responsible for providing their own bedding. Each stall has coarse lime provided as a ground cover. Upon departure campers are responsible to clean each stall that they rented. Dumpsters are provided for manure disposal.
Suggest an Edit

Location

Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground is located in Indiana

Detail location of campground

Directions

I-65 to exit #7 (Salem-Hamburg) turn onto Hwy 60 West. Proceed for approximately 9 miles on Highway 60 West. The park is located on the right-hand side of the road.

Address

1217 DEAM LAKE ROAD
Borden, IN 47106

Coordinates

38.46000032 N
85.86500036 W

Open in Google Maps

Access

  • Drive-In
    Park next to your site
  • Walk-In
    Park in a lot, walk to your site.

Stay Connected

  • WiFi
    Available
  • Verizon
    Unknown
  • AT&T
    Available
  • T-Mobile
    Available

Site Types

  • Tent Sites
  • RV Sites
  • Cabins
  • Equestrian

Features

For Campers

  • Market
  • Picnic Table
  • Reservable
  • Showers
  • Drinking Water
  • Electric Hookups
  • Toilets
  • Alcohol
  • Pets
  • Fires

For Vehicles

  • Sanitary Dump
  • Sewer Hookups
  • Water Hookups
  • Pull-Through Sites
  • 30 Amp Hookups
  • 50 Amp Hookups
  • Big Rig Friendly

Drive Time


Reviews

Add Review

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

28%
45%
23%
0%
10%

4.0

out of 5

18 Reviews

Reviewed Oct. 29, 2024

Nice

This is a nice campground. We went on a weekend in July and it was as pretty busy, as to be expected. Because of that, we didn’t visit the beach area, however my in laws did and they said it was nice. They swam and kayaked. Staff is friendly. Facilities are pretty clean, nothing to write home about. Didn’t use the showers. My sons enjoyed the nature center. This is the closest state park to us, so I’m sure we will be back. Be sure to stop in town for ice cream.

SiteF04
Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Kelsey R., October 29, 2024
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Kelsey R., October 29, 2024
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Kelsey R., October 29, 2024
Reviewed Nov. 5, 2023

Small State Recreation Area

   We camped here about 19 years ago & I swore I'd never go back. I hated the dirty bathrooms & showers. I hated the park in general. He talked me into going again & I was pleasantly surprised! Must be better management.  

 The playground looked fairly new. The bathrooms/showers had a plastic type lining on the walls. The rest looked like it needed a total rehaul. The bathrooms were "state park clean", which means the sinks & toilets were cleaned & not much else. I'm used to that!

    The sites were nicely kept, but some had a steep incline. I would call the park office directly if you're concerned. The F loop has the best sites. Some have a better view of the lake than others. The beach was closed for the season when we were there, but looked ok. They needed to get a Scout group or something to pick up small trash. 

  The fishing pier was closed because it's falling apart. There's a boat launch. 

The picnic areas looked uninteresting.

  The trails had pretty good with signage, but The Lake Vista Trail had downed trees every 50 feet. The vista wasn't all that great.

Although this is has 1300 acres this is a hikers park. Most of the acreage is accessible by trail. The Knobstone Trail has it's Southern most trailhead at this park. That's a 60 mile backpacking trail. The rest of the trails are much shorter, but it seems more rugged. The exceptions are Trail 1& 2- under 1 mile. The Lake Vista is 1.6 & very rugged due to the steep incline to the rock vista.

Fishing was poor according to my fishing guy, but it was in the 30s overnight a couple of nights. Warmer weather might be better.

 Sellersburg has restaurants & grocery stores. I saw a Walgreens.

SiteF 14
Month of VisitOctober
Reviewed Sep. 28, 2023

Nice lake

The lake was nice especially with the extreme heat we had. Super crowded on the weekends but not too bad during the week. The bathrooms were terrible. Dirty and no toilet paper to be had on the busy weekends.

Site17
Month of VisitJune
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Dyan F., September 28, 2023
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Dyan F., September 28, 2023
Reviewed Sep. 1, 2021

Beautiful park!

Our site was F33. Nice size. We had to navigate around the tree for our awning but it gave us some much needed shade for the heat. The comfort station closest to our campsite was clean and seemed well maintained. We enjoyed our stay.

SiteF33
Month of VisitAugust
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Marilynn K., September 1, 2021
Reviewed Jul. 31, 2021

Not the worst experience

After reading negative reviews from 2020, I was hesitant that they were true. That all of the critters from Louisville flock to this area. That wasn’t entirely untrue. This place is absolutely great for people watching, but expect the quiet time hours to not be enforced and a large number of dogs to bark all night. Early mornings are wonderful because nobody wakes up until at least 11. If you enjoy hiking; there are a nice array of trails. We avoided the beach; far too crowded. We intend on returning; but choose your spot wisely. Shower house bathrooms were very clean.

Site30 & 24
Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Chelsea M., July 31, 2021
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Chelsea M., July 31, 2021
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Chelsea M., July 31, 2021
Reviewed May. 1, 2021

Nice weekend getaway

Very nice state park with some nice trails. The Lake View trail was a good and tough hike. If you take young ones, be sure they will be self reliant. It can be very steep in some areas.

The campground is fairly large with nice size sites. Some can be short and a bit uneven, so be prepared.

The facilities were nice but needed a good cleaning. Along with the comfort stations, there are pit toilets located throughout for easy access.

The lake looked very nice and is electric motor only. It will be nice to head back with the kayaks. You may be need a permit for all boats, so check before you go.

Looking forward to another visir.

SiteF21
Month of VisitApril
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Tom J., May 1, 2021
Reviewed Apr. 8, 2021

A nice FOB

I used this location as my FOB for a weekend of hiking in southern Indiana. The campground was nice. Being the first weekend in April, the water wasn’t turned on so there were no modern restrooms/shower houses available. I’d say the camp was 30% capacity over the weekend, relatively quiet in the evenings with light road traffic. The gate staff were exceptional, suggesting a much better sight than I had registered for online.

Reviewed Apr. 5, 2021

Nice quiet lake

Nice lake with outboard motors allowed. We enjoyed the water with out listening to the motors. They are not turning on water until April 15. The campground has some nice spots with cabins and areas for people with horses. Not to big but not to small.

  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Brett K., April 5, 2021
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Brett K., April 5, 2021
Reviewed Sep. 13, 2020

First time camping

Stayed in D04. Had 30 amp plus 20 amp hookups. Picnic table. 15 pieces of firewood for 5 plus tax. Friends stayed in the chickadee cabin and d03. Neat cabins all wood with Portable AC.

A few hikes. Horse camping so was cool to see the horses. A beach location and a few fishing spots.

The lake doesn’t allow non electric motors so waters were calm. Caught some bluegills.

Public restrooms and showers.

Ice in the area cheapest at the truck stops and gas stations 2 10lbs for 5 bucks.

Would stop again if in the area.

Reviewed Sep. 11, 2019

First time I ever kayaked

Perfect lake to kayak for a beginner bc no wake zone also the cabins are cool and cozy just bring a mattress the restrooms are definitely the cleanest and well taken care of anywhere I’ve ever been

Reviewed May. 27, 2019

Ummmm... no

  1. There wasn’t anyone @ the entrance
  2. There wasn’t anyone @ check in for camping.
  3. No room for slide to come out when it said there was when we booked.
  4. No cell coverage @ most sites.
  5. Unkept grounds.
  6. Pads were so narrow that it was hard to park.. wasn’t just us.. others said the same thing..
  7. Lake was gross
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Shannon C., May 27, 2019
Reviewed Aug. 1, 2018

Nice Campground, Pretty Lake

This campground is very family-friendly and fun. There are horse trails, a beach, and great water for swimming/kayaking/canoeing. It is pet friendly as well. The bath house in our area was older but fairly clean. We felt like there was good spacing between the sites, and we weren’t too close to our neighbors. Beautiful in the Fall!

Month of VisitOctober
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Lauren M., August 1, 2018
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Lauren M., August 1, 2018
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Lauren M., August 1, 2018
  • (7) View All
Reviewed Jul. 19, 2018

Simplistic

Didn't have much to do in the area but this campsite provided the perfect night stay. Spacious drive in spots and decent bathrooms

SiteB24
Month of VisitApril
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Sarah N., July 19, 2018
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Sarah N., July 19, 2018
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Sarah N., July 19, 2018
Reviewed Jul. 18, 2018

Cardinal Cabin Getaway.

We stayed last night in the Cardinal Cabin. Tons of privacy and the best bathrooms I have ever seen. Not a single bug and they even had antibacterial hand soap at every sink. The staff was super helpful. The beach was fun to swim and water was clean. They have boats for rent which are fun and paddle around the lake.

SiteCardinal cabin
Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Angela F., July 18, 2018
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Angela F., July 18, 2018
  • Review photo of Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground by Angela F., July 18, 2018
Reviewed Jul. 9, 2018

it’s ok

the campground is alright but keep up with the news it is closed often for one problem or another

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to camp at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground?

Camping at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground can cost between $23.00 and $64.00 depending on the site.

Does Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground have RV hookups?

According to TheDyrt.com, Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground has 30 amp and 50 amp electric hookups, water hookups and sewer hookups.

Are fires allowed at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground?

Yes, according to campers on TheDyrt.com, fires are allowed at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground, although make sure to check current fire restrictions in the area.

Is there cell phone reception at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground?

According to campers on TheDyrt.com, Verizon signal is unknown, AT&T is available, and T-Mobile is available.

How hard is it to get a campsite at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground?

Some campers book as far as 6 months in advance, so on high-demand weekends it can be very difficult to get a campsite at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground. If you want to get a last-minute campsite at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground, try setting up a text message Alert at TheDyrt.com/alerts

Why is it so hard to get a campsite at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground?

There are 225 campsites at Deam Lake State Recreation Area Campground and over 80 million Americans who camp! Try snagging a cancellation by setting up a text message Alert at TheDyrt.com/alerts