Best Tent Camping near Ruthven, IA

Was it expecting how nice this campground was compared to more primitive ones in the area. Beautiful site! Has tent camping, full rv hook ups, and a nice playground for the kids.

The campsite seems to be more for RVs. Tent camping is just a field with a few picnic tables in it and has a bit of a walk from the parking lot with your equipment. The shower house was nice and clean. There is a barn there to use as a picnic shelter which is very pretty. The overall campground is pleasant and in beautiful country.

I stumbled across this Park traveling through and looking for a place to spend the night. I drove in and saw the beautiful lake and the campground so I talked to the camp host, told him I just needed a primitive spots I didn't need electricity or water is it all good just grab a tent site, they are $6 a night and 30 amp electric with water is 15 tonight. And if you rent for 7 days you only pay for 6 and it's a beautiful quiet I'm sure there's fish in the lake you can swim in it's a wonderful place I'm so happy I stumbled across this Jewel

I found this to be a great little spot to stay bike touring through Iowa. It is right in a lake, has water, and a nice vault toilet. Unlike the other reviewer I was literally the only one there. That’s always a bit odd but in this case it didn’t bother me at all. I highly recommend for tents. RVs not so much.

This campground has RV sites along the edge with all the tents on a hill by the lake. Every time we go camping here we make a new friend, get some great camping recipes. There is a beach near the camping area and another one for the park. The tent area is nice and big for several tents, but could use a few more trees for shade.

Really nice spot almost overlooking the lake (Through the trees), had fire ring, picnic tables and room for quite a lot of tents! For me and my family it was perfect!

Camp sites for tents are super tiny and irregular shaped. Lots of sloping on sites. Generally tight quarters to other campers and plenty of road noise until about 10 PM. A few good options for fishing, boating and hiking near by.

Stopped for the night , so I could see the Grotto in the morning. Very clean restrooms/showers. Only one other camper here. Shaded spots, great Wi-Fi, good cell service. Next to train tracks but only one train came by and it wasn’t loud. Definitely recommend if you’re in the area. You pay at the gift shop across the street. $20 for RV and $10 for tent.

Out in the farm fields in the middle of nowhere is this tiny little park and campground. When I first pulled up I didn’t see the campground, just the park. The park is actually divided in two parts with a wooded area in between. On the left is the park with bathrooms, meeting building and playground and on the right is the campground. The campground is really just a place for rvs to pull up and have some power and water. There are only about a dozen of these pull thru’s and no designated tent area. There are some trees that are well spaced for hammocks but you would be right next to someone’s RV. You have to walk to the other side of the woods to access the bathrooms. It was mown and maintained, but nothing special. Thankfully the place was empty so I could hang my hammock between two sites to relax and no one was around to care that I put my tent up in the grass instead of in a pull thru.

Ratings are really subjective. What are you after? 

~A secluded spot in nature? 0 stars. 

~A small campground inside a small town with flushing toilets and showers (albeit not new, super clean, or extremely nice), a lake with docks and boat ramp, large playground (with the cool old structures AND new ones), a baseball diamond, football field, city pool, creek with fish, and a tennis/basketball court? 5 stars. Yes, ALL of those things are right next to the campground.

I grew up in Lake Park, and I've stayed in this campground as an adult with kids (simply to visit family, certainly not to "get away" and enjoy nature). Lake Park is a small, rural town, and the current local passtime appears to be driving around town in ATVs and side-by-sides. It is noisy and extremely annoying. Every single person that drives by will stare at you; welcome to a small town.

There are a couple tent spots (one of which we utilized) that have some shade, a picnic table, and a fire ring. There's also a small RV area where people live in their RV's (complete with decks) for the summer. 

If you stay here, perhaps to visit the lakes area without the crowds or at a lower cost, perhaps to fish in Silver Lake, or... well I don't know why else you would stay here... you should definitely try the breakfast or taco pizza at Stans Corner -- the local gas station/convenience store. You could also walk to the 2-block downtown on Market Street and try out one of a couple restaurants or a few bars. If you want to swim in the lake (I really don't think it's good for swimming anymore, but if you want to try your luck) you can go to the boat ramp by the bridge by the city park, the dock at the end of Trappers Bay, or to the public access area (dock and boat ramp) on the west side of the lake, accessed via 110th Ave (go west on Hwy 9, and turn left onto 110th st., it's a mile or two in on the right side of the road.

Regardless of the passtimes of driving around and staring, the people of Lake Park are generally very friendly, so you should definitely walk around and meet some people.

Fishing from the Island is awesome here! Even if your catching nothing theres a great view!

It a boat launch with a couple campsites. They do have power. Open space. Great to get a nights rest. Shower and restrooms worked well.

New paved roads, boat landing to river and frisbee golf connected. No water hook ups at each site. Has one in central location so luckily I had just enough hose to fill up the camper. Close to state park with trails and bison so had a great weekend!

Don't know yet. I'll find out tomorrow but it was beautiful clean I think I'll love it peaceful