There is just one thing that keeps me from rating this a 5 star campground. It's the sites! So….4 stars…but read on for my thoughts on the sites.
What's up with these sites?
If you want to be be able to see what your neighbors are eating and hear their conversations, you'll love the electric sites (1 through 189).
If you like to feel like you're alone in the woods, you won't like most of the electric sites.
There is a partial solution. Sites 190-202 have no electricity, but most are fairly private/secluded. Sites 203-222 are additional primitive sites on a loop but they are not at all private; you can see lots of neighboring sites. There's a lot of shade, but you could probably set up solar panels if you require electricity.
If you want privacy in the electric section (1-189), I don't have a great recommendation other than you should stay on the outside of the loops. Then you'll only have people beside you rather than beside and across from you.
Good luck! Stay one night when there aren't many people and scope out sites for your next stay. If you're from the area, this could be a park worth returning to over and over if you are able to stay on a site you enjoy.
I've included a map of sites 1-189 and photos that show some sites I like and sites I don't like. In my opinion, a site is not one for me if I can see 3 other picnic tables while sitting at the table at my site. If you camp with other families, this would be good because you can make your own 'group' site.
Something you need to know: Indiana state parks have a $7 entry fee but you'll only pay it once (unlike some states that make you pay every day). It's supposed to be $9 for non-residents, but we were only charged $7. The hang tag for your vehicle will get you in the main entrance for the rest of your stay.
If you come without a reservation: The registration attendant assigned a site to us but maybe you can choose one. Since it was the day after Labor Day and the park was sparsely populated, there was no one near us. Privacy was not an issue for our stay, but we wouldn't have enjoyed our site on a busy weekend…although there were many sites we would have liked even less.
The basics: picnic tables, fire rings, dump station, potable water, flush toilets and sinks in the bathrooms, separate shower facility. There are vault toilets closer to sites 190-222. Sites 1-189 have electricity.
Activities: Nearby swimming pool and playground. There are almost 11 miles of hiking trails. The longest one is 2 miles, but you can combine some trails and wander in the woods for quite a while. You can also wade in McCormick's Creek; the water was low in early September. You can stay busy in this park for quite a while. And if you want to go to Bloomington, it's only about 25 minutes away
This is a awesome camp ground. Very clean big private lots. Very friendly. Lots to do in the park. And surrounding area.
This is one of my favorite state parks. We have visited and camped here several times. They have great cabins, a perfect primitive tent only camping area, a nice camper area with more amenities, and even an inn. The trails are fun and varied for all skill levels. They are well maintained and pretty easy to follow. It is a little more difficult in the Fall when they are covered with leaves but still not too bad. The creek waterfall is a great place to cool off and some of the trails criss-cross over the shallow areas of the creek as well. This place is a must visit for Southern/Central Indiana.
We stayed here over fall break in Oct, 2017. Site 177 is not the best. Make sure you know what kind of spot you need. We were lucky we had a small camper. It was much smaller and very difficult it back into. Having no one across the road made it easier to get into our spot.
Great park for hiking. The campground is very wooded and wonderful during the fall.
This is one of my favorite campgrounds! Love the water fall, great hiking, great park