Hardin Ridge

 We did a drive through to check out the campground. It was $8 for day use, self pay.

This is a beautiful campground. There's 4 loops with 30 & 50 amp. 2 loops with no electric.

 Well spaced all tucked into the trees on a ridge. Also some carry in sites.

 If we tented camped still I'd be in heaven! 

You can reserve sites, or some are first come first served.

Shower/restroom with pit toilets scattered around. 

3 trails. A beach, picnic areas& a boat launch. 

This seems less popular than Paynetown, but a lot quieter!!

This place is deluxe. Sites are spacious. Good space between campsites. Restrooms are clean. Well maintained facility

Staff are very friendly and helpful

I grew up in nearby Bloomington, Indiana, and my family were actually the very first campers at Hardin Ridge in 1966. We unwittingly set up camp the weekend before the campground opened, and we saw a picture of our travel trailer on the front page of the Bloomington Herald-Telephone with a caption "Somebody jumped the gun at the new Hardin Ridge Campground!"

This is a great place to set up camp for a week or two. In summer there is a nice sandy beach on the shore of Lake Monroe (it was free last time I went) with a simple shower house. The six camping loops have several vault toilets, and most have shower houses with flush toilets. While the campgrounds are fully open April 15 to October 15, you can camp year round if you are set up to dry camp. The very first camp loop (Holland Ridge) is often open all year, and no fees are charged when the water is off.

This campground was the destination for many a summer camping trip when I was a child, and for many more when my own kids were little. It's also not far from the Hoosier National Forest, with a horsemen's camp and trails, and a little further east a dozen or so dispersed camp sites.

Beautiful spacious sites. Spread out with plenty of room between sites. Stayed in Southern Point loop. Clean facilities. Up on a ridge with beautiful views. First come sites were open and plentiful on a weekend at the end of August.

Plenty of beautiful landscapes and the campgrounds are real neat

Beautiful campground, with great sites located on the forest ridge lines.

We concluded our 2021 season at Hardin Ridge. It was absolutely beautiful. Facilities were extremely clean and campsite was very well maintained.

First, I would like to correct someone's prior review. Electric and non electric sites are both reservable and walk up. Almost half and half. The hike in sites are all walk up. As you look at their maps, if making a reservation, each site on the left of the road are NOT reservable. All sites on the right AREvreservable. However, if you want to reserve a site, I highly suggest you do it very early in the season, esp. if you are including a weekend. Depending on how busy check in is at the time you show up without a reservation (again, only for non reservable sites), they sometimes will let you drive around and pick out a site from the left when entering loop, then come back to gate and pay. You will see reserved signs on every reservable site whether anyone is actually in them that night or not. It saves a lot of trouble for all concerned by not letting you pick a site you THINK you can have by not understanding their system. On to the review: I have camped at Hardin Ridge since the 70s. I have tent camped in regular primitive, hike-in, and in electic with a camper. All the sites are large and well-shaded with tables and fire pits/grates. The grounds are kept very clean, as well as the shower rooms, bathrooms, and vault toilets. There are many electric, some electric/water, and a few full hook up. Water spigots are heavily spread throughout each loop. Also, there are the RV water spigots avail along the lanes in some of the loops in case you want to fill tanks before parking at site without it's own water. The camp hosts have always been great to me and since I usually camp alone, someone checks on me each day. That includes when I pick the most secluded hike in spot. They have never been intrusive. They do expect every rule to be followed at all times and will tell you to pack up and leave if you are an asshole about noise, dogs, etc. There are at least one pair, some two, camphost pairs in each loop. While the campground is not a rest home by any means, it is not a party place such as Allens Creek or Paynetown campgrounds that share the same lake (Monroe). Some of the loops do not allow generators and or have restricted hours of usage. The is a small beach, boat launch, multiple small playgrounds, and an ampitheater, but there is no campstore. It is about 11 miles to the nearest small baitshop/store/gas pump. There is ice and wood for sale at the gate.

We came here for the first time in April and we were pleasantly surprised! The sites are incredibly large. The bathrooms were clean with nice showers.

The campground reminded us of places that we like to go to out west. This place is a must stop!!!

My husband grew up in this area and we live 15 minutes from Hardin Ridge and we never realized this was here! Our campsite was in Pine Grove, right next to a brand new bath house. The site was super shady and quiet. The sites are very well-spaced. Lake Monroe is a short hike, and this side of the lake is less busy and more scenic. Bringing the kayaks next time!

Took the family on a weekend camping trip to Hardin ridge and had a great time!! The only spots you can reserve are non electric which is what we got and still had a nice time in our pop up camper..The camp ground does have electric sites but it’s first come first serve!!! The camp ground has nice hiking trails and it’s own boat ramp with a dock. We went fishing down by the ramp and caught a mess of bluegill which we fried up back at the campsite!!! Great weekend

There was literally only one hot shower and not in the area we were in. They were there johnny on the spot to complain about the littlest thing but never there to fix anything major, like hot water or removing the critters that apparently lived in the bathroom. But it was beautiful. The beauty of nature was the only saving grace.

Love this place, very secluded spots and heavy tree cover. Watch out for ticks. We really had a gorgeous spot my only complaint is the 3rd night we were there a park staffer came by and complained the tent was partially off the gravel despite him having been by every day prior and even stopped to chat with us.

Hardin Ridge is a fantastic place to camp, and is very close to lake Monroe. But it's also quite a ways away from any stores in case you forget anything.

This campgroung has lots of amenities to offer all the way down to a beach. The only issue we has was having to drive everywhere because the campground is so vast. But bring bug and tick repellant.

Campsites are all wooded and private. A beautiful area any time of year. Hosts are friendly and frequently make the rounds. This is our go to area. We like Bluegill loop for the playground and pond but white oak has a pond too. Lake Monroe access is a short drive or hike away. We camp in a pop up but have tent camped as well. For tent camping, check out the walk in sites, they're beautiful and very secluded. You can't go wrong with any of the sites at Hardin Ridge.

This is the best place to go!!  Around Brown County is beautiful! ...went once, was hooked! I go back as often as possible! ....CAMPING AT ITS BEST!

The campsite was small so if you have a large tent be prepared for it to take up most of your site.  The area was beautiful and had ample trees.  We would have been better off splitting into two camp sites due to the size (married couple and two friends).  It was a challenge to get both tents and a shelter set up on the site with the two cars as well. 

I was able to also set up my hammock in the near by trees. Do explore the area as lots to do and see.  The lake naturally:) but they also have a cool fire tower and cabin in the area.

This campground is on the south side of Monroe lake and has beach access. I tent camped solo and everything went great!

It has nicely shaded, private tent sites! Great place for bike riding and, also very family friendly! The staff at the camp store/entrance and the campground hosts were so friendly and very helpful!! Plus, the bathrooms and shower houses were so clean!!

tgere are some really great tent sites at this campground. We always go to the walk in sites which are incredibly secluded and overlook down a ridge line. Close to lake Monroe with plenty to do. Could use some more trashcans and bathroom facilities.

This campsite was wonderful! It was well kept, quiet, and had everything! It is part of Hoosier National so there are unlimited trails, Monroe Lake, a beach and all kinds of playgrounds.

The sites are decent sized and spaced apart for your privacy. The bathrooms and showers are especially clean. Being part of the Hoosier National Forest was pretty cool. We of course hiked and spent some time at the beach. Which the beach closed at 8pm, and they were very strict about that.

really good time camping in a pop up. site was really big with lots of shade. the fire pits are sinked into the ground which is not my favorite.

This campground is nestled on a ridge above Indiana's Lake Monroe. The wooded sites include a fire-ring, a pole for your lantern and generous flat graveled areas to pitch your tent, as well as a couple of picnic tables per site. There are pleanty of RV sites with electric hookup available as well. Each area of the campground has a knowlegeable courteous full time host, and ice is available at the main gate. Foraging for wood is allowed which is a definite bonus in this era of emerald ash-borer awareness and wood import restrictions. The plentiful raccoons seem almost tame, yet keep a safe distance from campers if you allow them to. There is a small beach to beat the summer heat, and nearby showerhouses (even in the non-electric sites) are kept clean with adequately warm water. There is a small interpretive hike with approximately 300 feet of elevation change situated near the ampitheater that can be completed in a couple of hours.