Best Equestrian Camping near Alton, IA

I spent the night here and had to pay the entrance fee to the park as well as the camping fee for my tentsite. They had only a few tentsites available amid all the RV sites, but they were right on the edge of the playground, so the families had to walk right through my campsite to get to the play area. Not too big a deal as no one wanted to use the play area at night while I was sleeping, but still.  I also looked over at the power lines. There was a flush toilet facility close by but there was a very bright light on all night. Good for families needing to navigate in the dark but not wonderful if you like sleeping in darkness. And though I was told that quiet hours began at 10PM, the site next to me was quite loud through the trees until at least midnight so the quiet hours are not enforced. Meh. I don't think I'll be going back.

Such a nice campground. Nice big shady trees and manicured lawns. They sell campfire wood for 6$ a bundle on site so we had some great campfires going. They have nice long paved trails for walking and biking. We got to walk our dogs on it to avoid tick contact from the grassy trails. There was a cool suspension bridge that was fun to walk on. The showers were very nice and hot without a lot of traffic. 

There is no sewage hookup or water hook ups. They do that 50/30 amp sites available. There is a dump station right at the entrance to dump when you leave and it also has a separate fresh water station if you want to fill up right when you get there so youre not traveling with a bunch of water in your tank. 

It was a great campground and the falls were close by and palisades state park was also in the area with a nice hike. 

There is an extra $8 car fee per night that you have to pay on top of any camping fees. If you are staying longer than 5 days it better to just get the annual parking pass for $32, which would cover parking for all state parks and recreation areas in SD. 

They have great discounts if you are a veteran and south dakota resident.

One of my favorite state parks I’ve been to in any state. Sites are spacious and the showers/bathrooms are clean and well kept. It offers the most lovely paved path for walking/running/cycling that meanders by the river and through the woods, in addition to more dirt hiking/cycling paths. The disc golf course really took this park to the next level, though be warned—the narrow fairways and dense OB make it challenging (I lost one of my discs on 10). Site 35E was ideal as it’s angle par to the tree line for additional privacy and it’s just a 3 minute stroll to the showers. Tip: the best spots are those that back up to the river as you can cut through the tree line to pop out on the walking path. Con: there is a race track nearby that was very loud Sunday night when I arrived until nearly 11PM, but that was the only real downside.