Top Tent Camping near Spencer, IN

Recent Tent Reviews In Spencer

586 Reviews of 16 Spencer Campgrounds

• 

  Betsy W.

  Guide

  

  Nov. 1, 2024

  Blackwell Campground — Hoosier National Forest

  Large, open, and very clean

  Open areas with pit toilets and water available. Shade and sunny locations. Pick a spot and set up with hammock-large rvs spots. No fee, no reservations, no problems. Officers from federal, state, and local patrol. Cell service by various providers is 1-2 bars. Highly recommend.

• 

  Noah Y.

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 18, 2024

  Charles C. Deam Wilderness

  Great for casual/experienced camping and hiking

  A staple of our state here in Indiana. Unfortunately due to some storm damage, trails were rerouted or straight up inaccessible.

  Great places to find and set up camp. We even discovered a few extra hidden sites just by being forced off trails due to the damage.

  Every dispersed camper should add the hikes to the lake to their checklist.

• 

  Shane B.

  Scout

  

  Oct. 13, 2024

  Horse Camp Rd Dispersed

  HNF dispersed site

  Cool place

• 

  Sara W.

  Scout

  

  Oct. 4, 2024

  Prairie Creek

  Prairie creek

  Men's and women's shower house playground few trails rv tent and camper electric a few primitive sites 2 sites r 50 Amp I think the rest r 30 Amp water gets wonderfully hot Verizon works can have door dash and amazon delivered

• A

  Amber R.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 21, 2024

  Hickory Ridge Campground — Hoosier National Forest

  Secluded horse camp

  It’s a horse camp but we were able to camp here. There were also two vehicle campers across the way. It was peaceful. It was a ways down a winding gravel road, maybe 20 minutes on that road.

• 

  Harley G.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 16, 2024

  Berry Ridge Road - Dispersed Camping

  Nice

  Very long secluded road. Took a bit to find the first spot to camp, once we found it the other spots weren’t too far past.

• 

  Joel K.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 26, 2024

  Shades State Park

  Nice campground, but not perfect

  Stayed here recently and overall the trip was a 10, but as for the campground itself there are somethings that could definitely be better.

  First, for all intents and purposes the sites are not marked.  At some point years ago they stencil painted the numbers both on the concrete parking block and on the ground near the entry pad for each site, but obviously over time most of these are worn away.  It's very difficult to find your actual site, even during the day when it's not busy.  At night, or with a campground full of people - not a chance.   Even more perplexing is why it's still like this when it's so easy to fix.

  Second, on the back loop, where we were, almost every car we saw was going the wrong way around the loop.  I've never seen this before and wasn't just one car.  There is a sign at the start of the loop indicating it's one direction, so not sure why this happens.

  Third, they have a camp store at the entry to the family campground, but it was never open in the time we were there, which was Friday / Saturday / Sunday, during the summer, so not sure what the situation was.

  Fourth, while the campground does have functional flush bathroom and shower, they only have one, and the rest are pit toilets, so depending on how far your site is from the building, it could be a very long walk, especially at night.

  The front gate to the park did have covered firewood, but the hours of the gate operation were not clear.  The sites themselves were fine, but not particularly deep, and some are basically completely exposed to all the foot and vehicle traffic going to the toilets, the dumpsters, or just driving around, so basically zero privacy.

  We did drive into Crawfordsville, which took about 20 minutes, and it was very nice with a local college (Wabash) and plenty of retail options to restock, grab a cold beverage, or refill the tank before driving home. 

  Would I stay here again, yes 100%, but be prepared and plan ahead.  Would I recommend this to others?  Meh.

• 

  samuel C.

  Ranger

  

  Jul. 24, 2024

  Berry Ridge Road - Dispersed Camping

  Perfect

  The perfect dispersed site for my way through, quiet and peaceful. Good spot for tent camping , we enjoyed our stay.

• 

  Josie W.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 12, 2024

  Blackwell Campground — Hoosier National Forest

  Spacious Camping

  We really liked the set up of this campsite. The fire rings were spread apart amidst a green hill. There was some shade available around the edges. Plenty of room to spread out from your neighbors; it wasn’t too busy when we were there (a Thursday). Camp accesses two trailheads directly. There were two bathrooms, a place for garbage, and potable water. Screech owls and active birds made it an exciting evening.

• J

  Jerry D.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 8, 2024

  Camp Buckwood

  Very Nice and Freindly

  Stayed two nights, tent camping. It was a great time meeting new people and exploring the surrounding area.

• S

  Stephanie C.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 8, 2024

  Hickory Hills Camp Resort

  Perfect RV Resort south of Indianapolis

  We were so fortunate to have found The Retreat at Hickory Hills and stay there for a month! There’s two pools, a pickle ball court, a basketball half court, farm animals, golf cart trails, kayak/canoe/row boats, exploring creeks, fishing, a dog park, several playgrounds, Gaga ball, tether ball, volleyball, frisbee golf and several weekend activities for everyone. Saturday mornings were our favorite where we could get biscuits and gravy, coffee and the kids had craft time. It’s definitely worth bringing mountain bikes or renting their golf carts to explore their golf cart trails! We went out on these several times and it never got old! Staff and campers were welcoming and friendly. We still haven’t stopped talking about how CLEAN they keep everything. The sites were large and they’re still expanding and adding more sites. There’s a seasonal campers area and an overnight or monthly area. We stayed in the overnight/monthly area. It was peaceful and relaxing throughout the week and lively during the weekend. It was a wonderful balance!! We’ll definitely be back.

• 

  Jacob A.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 4, 2024

  Shakamak State Park

  One of our favorite parks!

  We have been coming here every year since 2016. Most of the sites are shady. Our favorite site is 72. It is close to a water hookup if you need to top off your fresh water tank, shady, and not too close to other sites. They added a new shower house close by in 2022 or 2023.

• A

  Amber R.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 3, 2024

  Berry Ridge Road - Dispersed Camping

  Secluded in the woods

  Beautiful secluded site that is pretty far off of the road, but not too far. There was no traffic or other people in site. I have a promaster conversion and had no trouble making it to this site, however the road was gravel and steep at times. I have lived in Indiana for ever and have made many trips this way, but I never knew sites like this existed.

• 

  Cynthia K.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 28, 2024

  Taylor Ridge Campground — Brown County State Park

  Meh

   First off- Brown County is a lovely park. This review is only for the campground. 

  The only time we ever camped here was in 2003 when we had 3 kids & a popup. New to the park I thought the Racoon Ridge Loop looked good & picked site 121. Bad mistake! We stayed 3 nights & every night we had a weird thing happen. The worst was the bat that found it's way into the popup one night. None of it was in any way Brown County's fault, but we never went back. 

  We were staying at Paynetown recently & decided to visit Brown County & the campground. The mirror tag helped with this. We visited on a Saturday morning in late June. The whole campground was full & it was jumpin'!

   We skipped Buffalo Ridge. Raccoon Ridge is the smallest loop. Close sites. Our former site 121 has a pit toilet right next to it now. There's several sites along the main road, also very close to each other & right on the road.

   I thought that Taylor Ridge was the best loop based on my memories from 2003. It's really a long warren of close sites, some with terrible inclines.

   I was able to write down a few sites I thought would work- Sites with no one close by: 193/194/266. 

  265 was the only pull thru I saw, but there may be others. 

  End of loop: 317/318 

  Ridge view from your site: 310/311/312/313/314 

  Random sites that looked ok: 179/188/215/223/225/242/259/260/265/277/280/287/422- these sites are just what I eyeballed while the husband was cruising down the main road. 

  We decided we were never going to camp here again. The sites are too close together. There's too many people crammed in a small space. If you go be aware that summer weekends & leaf peeper season will be very busy. The middle of the week or shoulder season would probably be your best bet for a more relaxing experience.

• 

  Cynthia K.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 25, 2024

  Hardin Ridge

  National Forest

   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!!

• 

  Cynthia K.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 25, 2024

  Paynetown Campground

  Crazy busy on a summer weekend

   This is a SRA on the shores of Lake Monroe by Bloomington Indiana. This is a boating/fishing park. We went on a hot weekend the 4rth weekend in June & it was completely full. 

  There's only 3 short trails. The longest is 1.25 miles. Not a hiking park. 

  There's a visitor center off State Road 446. This is NOT a nature center! Just a place to pick up some information. 

  The marina & boat launch get the most use. There's also a beach. 

  There's a large Class B campground closer to the marina. There's some pit toilets & one flush toilet building. No showers. No electricity.

   There's a large dump station. 

  The electric campground has 227 sites. 3 are handicap accessible. There's also 27 pull throughs. Many have lake access due to camper made trails to the lake.

  We had site 137 which was a good site due to the fact we had no one on the left. There was a woods view.

  Many of these sites have a bad incline & people were putting their rigs sideways on the site close to the road. Our site was no exception, but we were able to make it work. This site also had afternoon sun.

   Restrooms/showers were state park clean. I was impressed with the hard working staff trying their best to give us a clean bathroom!

   The best sites in the campground are 171/172& 153/154. These have a lot of sun, but a stellar view of the lake. 

  132-137 have a trail to the lake. Very bad inclines though. 

  120-124 have trails to the lake & are in the woods. 

  103 is a large site& fairly even with lots of shade. 

  The sites from 180-227 are asphalt with concrete pads. The rest of the campground is gravel. 

  There's 4 carry in campsites for tents that looked very nice. Campsites in the E area have access to a sandy peninsula that was very popular for swimmers. 

  This is known in Indiana as a party park. There's some truth to that. It's VERY noisy & busy on a summer weekend. If you like a quieter experience come Monday through Wed. or wait until the off season.

• 

  Holdun R.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 17, 2024

  Camp Atterbury Campground

  Great 1st experience

  This was my first time at a campsite, so I don't have other sites to compare to. Overall, my experience was great. Clean area with lots of amenities. They stack free firewood at your campsite to burn. I'm military, so the gunfire, canon fire, and helicopters didn't bother me at all. Those things don't happen all the time though.

• 

  Agus S.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 13, 2024

  Spring Mill State Park

  summer camp 2024

  nice camping here,but they have small area ,i see racoon,cath meow lol but they attack

• 

  rickie F.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 10, 2024

  Oak Ridge Morgan-Monroe State Forest

  Beautiful as it should be.

  We stayed pretty much on our site. Generally, we aim to do a bit of exploring, but we used their camping as a rendezvous. I was slightly disappointed by the site selections being mostly on a slant, but we did find one on the overfill site that suited our needs and we ended up loving it. I do plan on returning specifically to update a better review on the available views.

• c

  cathyL

  Guide

  

  Jun. 7, 2024

  Turkey Run State Park Campground

  Fabulous Park, Nice Campground

  Turkey Run is a fabulous state park with a nice campground. My only complaint about the campground is that many sites are in an open, level area without a lot of trees or bushes between them. You don’t have a lot of privacy. Two sections of the campground, with the higher numbered sites, are much more wooded. If I go again, I will try to be there!

  But the campground has two large modern bathrooms that are cleaned regularly. It also has clean well maintained vault toilets throughout the campground. Best of all, from the back of the campground you can access Trail 7, a moderate level trail that leads unexpectedly to a small stream running past a recessed cave. It’s a peaceful spot.

  Be advised that a “moderate” hike at Turkey Run can be challenging, with plenty of steps up and down the hillsides. Many of the trails go along stream beds, so you often need to make your way across the rocks to avoid wet feet. Be prepared with hiking boots and sticks.

  There are two covered bridges on the edges of the park. Be sure to check them out!

• 

  james W.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 6, 2024

  Berry Ridge Road - Dispersed Camping

  Real dispersed camping

  For those of you who don't understand disperse camping this is the perfect site for a tent to camp without anything but what you bring in and take out understand what dispersed camping is and then there won't be any complaints about can't get a camper in or whatever I always see the complaints this is dispersed camping at its best

• 

  KingDredd

  Scout

  

  Jun. 2, 2024

  Fowler County Park

  Amazing view and fishing

  Got in late after a spurratic decision to camp. Got here and found that point 5 was open and we tried it. Beautiful view, nice people, and great lake access. Mossy but we casted over it no problem and never had any issues.

• 

  Staci W.

  Guide

  

  May. 30, 2024

  Turkey Run State Park Campground

  Pros and Cons you Should Know beforehand

  Turkey Run is arguably the most popular campground (and state park) in Indiana and has its pros and cons.

  It is definitely designed to accommodate RVs, as the majority of the sites are situated in an open field. There are a few dozen sites that are in “loops” that are situated in shaded areas. Some camp sites have zero privacy while others have a little. Either way, if you’re here on a weekend, you’ll definitely have neighbors close by. You can see the entire campground via google maps street view, just FYI

  This is a very family friendly campground and you will see lots of kids on bicycles flying around. I’ve stayed here a few times, and no matter the day of the week or the time of year, there are always lots of kids.

  This campground has a raccoon “problem” due to campers having poor camp etiquette and feeding them. They come out of the woods towards dusk looking for food. They will come right up to you without hesitation, so don’t be alarmed if there’s one next to you while you cook s’mores over your fire (ask me how I know, hah). They will take any food that is left out. Do not turn your back to your dinner table at any time if there’s food out.

  On my last visit to turkey run (I’ve camped here 3 or 4 times) I arrived to my campsite and someone had left dog food out for the raccoons in little piles all over the place which was super disappointing. Additionally, my neighbors didn’t put their campfire out when they packed up and left.

  Perhaps I’m just used to camping in other areas where you have to worry about bears and burning the forests down…But campers here just aren’t as mindful or respectful of the campground.

  The restrooms and showers (at least the one I use at this campground) is modernized and cleaned daily but there’s no dish pit/wash room available if you cook. Just be prepared to clean up accordingly and put trash in trash receptacles. There are a few vault toilets in the campground as well.

  You can hike from the CG into the state park (highly recommend. It’s gorgeous!) just wear shoes that youre willing to get wet.

  Overall, it’s a beautiful state park with a conveniently located campground. It’s not the best campground ever but for Indiana standards, it’s great. Even with my complaints, I always return because I enjoy visiting and hiking through the state park.

• 

  Julie H.

  Traveler

  

  May. 4, 2024

  Rockville Lake County Park

  Spring beauty

  I stayed by the lake, the spaces there are parallel to the road. Which gives you a beautiful view of the lake. I was there early in April when all the flowering trees were in bloom! Full hook up made it even the nicer!

• 

  Brett B.

  Guide

  

  Apr. 29, 2024

  Yellowwood State Forest

  Great Camping & Fishing Combo

  Lots of primitive campsites here. Many have short trails from them to the lake edge, making for some great night fishing with a cozy fire to return to.

• D

  Donald S.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 14, 2024

  Hardin Ridge

  Hoosier National Forest

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

  Staff are very friendly and helpful

• 

  Bob C.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 13, 2024

  Spring Mill State Park

  Perfect location for the 2024 eclipse

  In January we found a couple of available sites at Spring Mill when trying to plan where we'd go for the eclipse, so we took them and then started looking at what the park had to offer. We started to really look forward to the park as much as the eclipse. The park lived up to expectations. We were able to do a lot of hiking. Our dog was welcome in most areas of the park (pioneer village being the only significant exception). They were planning for a ton of folks to be there for the eclipse, but the numbers were lower than expected. We had the perfect spot for viewing it right across the lane from our campsite, so it didn't really matter how many people came into the park for it. 

  The only possible negative was that our site wasn't very level for our pop up. We had our leveler with us, so it didn't matter. My wife and I decided that the eclipse was simply the cherry on top of a very good sundae. We loved the park and will likely return again.