Acorn Valley Campground is located on the 26,000-acre Saylorville Lake Project, which stretches over 50 miles up the Des Moines River Valley.
The lake provides a wide variety of recreational activities, including camping, bicycling, boating, swimming, fishing, hiking and hunting.
Recreation
Anglers enjoy the lake for its abundance of walleye, wiper, largemouth bass, catfish, crappie and northern pike.
The paved Neal Smith Trail winds 24 miles from Des Moines to Big Creek State Park and connects the campgrounds on the east side of the lake. It is designated as a National Recreation Trail and is used for biking, hiking, jogging, walking and in-line skating.
Facilities
The campground offers 29 family sites with electric hookups and 54 primitive walk-to tent sites. The campground also features 2 group tent camping areas; a youth group camping area with special restrictions to organized youth as well as a standard group area open to all visitors. Amenities include flush toilets, showers, drinking water and a dump station. Nearby facilities include picnic areas with group shelters, boat ramps, a marina and a fishing dock.
Natural Features
The mature Bur Oaks at the entrance to Acorn Valley beckon visitors to explore its 26 acres on the fringe of an upland timber stand. Wildlife is abundant throughout the area. White-tailed deer, turkeys, pheasants, waterfowl and other small game animals roam the lands around the lake.
ADA Access: N
We’re big fans of Acorn Valley. It’s quiet and there is plenty of shade in the tent camping area. The tent sites lead to some small trails which end at the riverbed. Our boys love exploring here.
This is a large campground & it's clean. It was really busy though. The shower/bath house was clean. There was a party near our tent that raged for quite some time. It's supposedly an alcohol-free campground (which bummed us out) but the tents near ours apparently didn't know or care.
I tried to stay at Acorn Valley to find out it is closed after Labor Day. Bummer. I was able to get out and look around. It is clean and well maintained by the Army Corps of Engineers. It is near the lake and a nice place to use as a home base for spending time at Saylorville Lake.