Best Cabin Camping near Paullina, IA

Planned to stay for the weekend to test out new tent but storms came through & we left after one night. Basic campground in shady area under trees. We did not get an electric hookup. Ground was mostly dirt not grass on our site & mostly dry. Large trees provided shade which helped as very hot & humid. We were next to a ravine but with plenty of bug spray did not get many bites. Hiked the Bear & Buffalo trails. Campground very quiet though a few people came & went. Washrooms are very basic & chose not to use shower. The Park Ranger did check on us & advise on weather conditions. Picnic table & fire pit were fine. Got only 1 bar signal on both Verizon & AT&T. No WiFi. Overall basic, woody/shaded. Good for short stay.

We stopped here for the night during our road trip. We were not sure we would even get a spot due to the July 4th Holiday. We found a primitive spot that had a fire ring and picnic table. It was very shady however the campsites are super close to each other and unfortunately the spots were quickly filled. The bathroom was so gross and the shower did not spray. It ran down the wall and I had to get really creative with washing my hair. It served its purpose, shoes were definitely left on while in the shower, and I guess I left cleaner then when I went in. The park ranger came by to verify our rental slip and was very nice. Everyone seemed to respect the 10:00pm quiet time.

This is a large state park in the northwest corner of Iowa, surprisingly wooded considering how close to Sioux City it is located. Touted as a year-round park, there is a large network of trails, some of which can be used as equestrian. HOWEVER, the trails are not labeled and there is no (or very fleeting) cell service so that even after looking at the map (located on a board in the park, not a paper one), I wandered aimlessly around the park getting lost. One of the trailheads requires that you tramp directly through Site 12 to access! I explored this trail for approximately a quarter of a mile, but it became very overgrown and because I was not sure where I was going, I ended up turning around.

The campground is divided into three sections

• Sites 1-11 are located on either side of the access road are a bit too close together for our preference and despite the park being so wooded, have no foliage or other visible separation between the sites. These sites all have electric hookups

• Sites 12-14 are at the top of the hill and have the easiest access to the restrooms; they also have electric hookups. In my opinion, Site 14 would be the most desirable. Given that there are only three sites here, there was a surprising number of cars driving past these sites.

• Sites 15-30 are primitive tent sites and located near Cabin#3 (a CCC cabin). 

The bathrooms were clean and (don’t laugh at me), the toilets had lids! Given the current virus situation, this was a nice and welcome surprise! 

There was no camp host and we only saw one ranger during our stay. There is a nice playground, but it is not located anywhere near the campground (it is located closer to two of the cabins). If you are camping with children, please note this. There are three cabins, one that was built by the CCC and a lodge which also looked to be a CCC product, although it did not appear to be open when we were there.

This is a fairly new campground that has a lot to offer.

The pull through sites are fully concrete and level. They all have a huge table and stone fire pit. Plenty of room for a second vehicle.

Full hookups are great.

Tons of activities to do here. There’s fishing, boating, biking, and swimming. The beach has giant floating lily pads that the kids loved. There are showers on the beach to wash off feet after you’re done swimming.

You can order firewood, ice, or worms, and they will drop it off at your site. I believe you can even rent or request a golf cart to make getting around easier.

The only regret I have is not staying longer. Truly a wonderful place.

Sprint/T-mobile data was around 56 Mbps down.

If half of a star was an option, I’d probably lean towards 3.5 stars.

I’d classify this as an above average county run park/campground. All sites are first come first serve. We arrived on a Saturday evening around 5:30pm and found a site no problem. There are two loops. One has electric only sites and the second has electric/water sites. One concrete pad ADA site.

Small beach area for swimming. Two playgrounds. Very nice field of wild comb flowers blooming near the shower house.

The shower house was less than than stellar. IMO it’s cleanliness kept this review from being considered near 4 stars. Usable bathrooms and shower stalls…yes, but definitely lacked attention.