Best Campgrounds near Clear Lake, IA

We have stayed at this campground many times as we have traveled the "Avenue of the Saints." Highway 218.  R Campground is just a few miles off of the saints highway on the south eastern side of town.  Interior roads and sites are gravel, many with 50 amp full hook ups.  Our favorite sites begin with "OB" for out back. These all have a view of the river. Not all of them will accommodate our 44" Blue Bird.

We have watched this campground grow from the beginning with yearly improvements and upgrades made. Laundry facilities and restroom/shower house on the grounds.

Don't miss the pedestrian bridge over the river,  the walking/bike path that runs behind the campground and a casual lunch or dinner by the main street dam.

Sites are approximately 2 miles from parking and the hike it relatively easy with minimal elevation change. You have a choice between a grassy walk or walking mainly on tar and gravel as part of the Blazing Star Trail. They are also accessible by boat.

There are 4 backpacking sites and they are well-spaced so you each have privacy. #3 and #4 are close enough that you could be in a group together but #1 and #2 are pretty isolated. Each site has a fire pit, picnic table, wood cabinet/fish cleaning table, at least 1 flat spot for a tent, and a nearby porta potty.

Views of the lake are amazing with a variety of birds making appearances. Harvesting season may bring some farm sounds but otherwise, aside from the occasional train, you'll mainly hear the sounds of nature around you.

If you can make the walk carrying everything, including water, on your back, definitely check out one of these sites.

We tend to stay at campgrounds during the off or shoulder season for a quieter experience so it was with some apprehension that we reserved this campground for a summer weekend so that we could meet friends for Paddlefest. We were happy to discover that despite being a full campground, it was quiet at almost all hours of the day and night. It was, however, an entirely different story on the lake itself, where boats gathered all day to party!

There is little separation between the sites but there are trees located throughout, some of which provide shade to the site. The camper pads were a mix of dirt and gravel and mostly level. We were lucky to snag Site 34 (reserved about three months in advance) – it was on the end, making it a much larger site than the interior sites (all end sites in our section were larger) and we had plenty of shade trees, a welcome relief on a very hot weekend. 

The paved roads leading to the sites are very narrow and would appear to be one-way but are not designated as such, resulting in some confusion. The site numbers are only listed on one side, even though most of the sites appeared to be pull-through. 

The restrooms and showers were clean and had soap and (dated) air dryers. 

Overall, we had a very pleasant two-night stay even though we were prepared for a different experience.