Best Tent Camping near Sumner, IA

Recent Tent Reviews near Sumner, IA

275 Reviews of 28 Sumner Campgrounds

• A

  Amanda C.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 4, 2020

  Six Pines Campground — Backbone State Park

  Great park!

  I tent camped at Six Pines Campground for 3 nights in August. The park has two campgrounds and this one is non electric with pit toilets and water. Each site has a picnic table and fire ring with a really nice grill. The sites are large and flat and the ones on the outside of the loop are well shaded. Two trails can be accessed from the tent campground - Six Pines trail and West Lake trail. There are two shower houses that you can use at the RV campground but it takes about 15-20 minutes to drive across the park to that campground. The park is very large with about 20 miles of trails. There is a spring fed creek and, if you stay away from the trout fishing area, you can play and wade in the creek. It has a sandy/rocky bottom and sandy banks. It felt wonderful on a hot day. There is a swim beach on the lake but it was closed due to E. coli in the water. There’s a small camp store too. At night in this campground there are no lights except in the registration kiosk so it’s perfect for star gazing. The Field of Dreams movie site is just 45 minutes away and makes for a fun side trip. There is a town about 10 minutes away with a couple restaurants and coffee shops. The Six Pines trail can be taken from the campground to the Backbone trail. The Backbone trail is along a rocky ridge. There are side trails down to the base of the cliffs and lots of rock climbing to do. Very fun to explore the side paths and climb up the rock walls.

• 

  Brian M.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 9, 2023

  Waukon City Park

  Great campground

  Free firewood, free wifi, water and electric at each campsite. Found a nice shady site for tent camping.

• 

  Emily S.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 28, 2019

  Pulpit Rock Campground

  Clean

  Very nice, clean campground with a lot of amenities. Tent camping on the river was neat, but tents were very close together due to the small sites

• 

  Chris C.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 3, 2017

  Bloody Run County Park

  Hidden gem

  Quiet park with beautiful campground. Great for tent camping. Had no luck fishing the stream but a friend with me caught a couple.

• 

  Ann E.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 16, 2019

  Pulpit Rock Campground

  Nothing crazy special, well kept sites

  I was there on a Monday and was the only tent around. Site 15 is the best for tent sites, it’s right at the delta of where two streams meet. It’s a quick bike ride to pulpit rock brewing and other parks.

• 

  Nichole M.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 24, 2020

  Rudd Eastside Park

  Super fun and kid friendly !!

  Loved camping here, we have 4-5 times already this year! We tent camped but they’ve got lots of spaces for campers and tents as well, bathrooms are close, there is a nice lake near with play equipment located at the lake and at the campground, the campground has old bikes for the kids to use, everyone there is so nice! We love it

• 

  Therese T.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 15, 2021

  Baileys Ford

  Love this campground

  I keep coming back to this park. The tent camping sites are quiet, well shaded and good access to the fishing stream. Running water Bathrooms closed due to covid but the vault toilets are fine. Hiking trails are absolutely gorgeous, 3 playgrounds for the kids. Little nature center was nice. Staff there were great. Highly highly recommend Bailey’s Ford!

• 

  James M.

  Legend

  

  Jul. 26, 2022

  Little Paint Campground — Yellow River State Forest

  Great State Forest CG with trout streams

  Stayed in 2 primitive tent sites: table, fire ring, shaded. Great sites for hat are all within walking to stocked trout streams! CG is in valley, cooled air, shaded, cold water streams to cool off. Pit toilets, trash bins, self registration with some sites reservable.

• 

  Dani K.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 25, 2017

  Pulpit Rock Campground

  Decorah is worth the trip! BEAUTIFUL

  Decorah is so beautiful. The river is right beside the tent sites. Hiking trails close by. Caves and water falls only a short drive away. Tubing, canoeing, and kayaking services behind camp grounds. Super affordable site rates. Shower house. Picnic tables and fire pits at each site.

• T

  Trish I.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 2, 2016

  Fontana County Park

  Relaxing

  Fontana is a small campground which fills up relatively fast. The park boasts animal displays and a nature center, fishing, trails and a playground all within the park, It's a quiet park with primitive and electrical hookups. Though I recommend better for campers since many tent sites are under pine trees.

• B

  B B.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 12, 2022

  Lake Meyer County Park Campground

  Great spot, tents included

  This is a great little park if you need a place to stop for the night. It was very inexpensive for tents ($10 I think) and the tent camping area was very nice with 3 giant pine trees and some picnic tables and fire rings. As someone who bicycle tours I appreciated fire wood being on site and close to where the tent area is. The bathrooms aren’t the best but they worked. Overall its a safe, clean, welcoming campground for both tents and RV’s.

• 

  Katie J.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 8, 2020

  Six Pines Campground — Backbone State Park

  Favorite Iowa Park

  This park is perfect for families or anyone looking for plenty of activities. They have boat rentals, amazing trails, a camp store onsite, a swimming beach and super clean bathrooms. Stayed at tent site #24 in the Southlake Campground, and it was fairly quiet even on a busy holiday weekend.

• 

  Max K.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 3, 2020

  George Wyth State Park Campground

  Good Base Camp to Explore Cedar Falls

  It was kind of loud, but it was busy. The lake for swimming was a little gross but we did it anyway. The bike trails are excellent and same for hiking. Bathrooms were a little old but clean when we were there, but there were massive hornets all over the bathroom area. It's also pretty bright here at night because it's right in the city. But overall, a decent, cheap place to tent camp if you want to explore Cedar Falls.

• R

  Rachel H.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 21, 2018

  Six Pines Campground — Backbone State Park

  Fantastic location cation for individual or group tent camping!

  I went with a group of entering sixth grade Girl Scouts on a weekend tent camping trip to this park. The campsites were simple to access and the grounds were easy to navigate. We hiked on the famous Backbone trail - a really fun hike that isn’t too incredibly long. The grounds were well kept and we had a phenomenal time. The girls gathered our firewood in the neighboring tree line, and our evenings were filled with fun and friendly camping neighbors. I highly recommend this park.

• 

  James D.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 30, 2016

  Pikes Peak State Park Campground

  Had a great time at this former military fort on the Mississippi

  This park is arranged more for RV's than tent camping and you cannot set up right along the river but can get pretty close if you are in tent spot 25. The sites are really close to each other. Bear Mound is cool to see if you appreciate the history behind it. Bridal falls is also a must see if you are there. The hiking trails can be done with a long day hike and offer some beautiful scenery as the leaves are changing. One of the few spots I have stayed along the Mississippi and one of my favorites.

• 

  Kenneth M.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 6, 2024

  Clayton Hills Campground

  Best Owners Ever

  I was looking around for a place and being the weekend after the 4th of July, I knew there wouldn't be many options. This place is literally a hidden gem and should get more focus!!! The owner had a spot for my family and me!!! When he found out that I was only tent camping, he even lowered the price!!! He didn't have to do that at all and it wasn't expected. Grassy locations everywhere. Wonderful water and electric hookups!!! A little piece of heaven here. JJ is an AMAZING host!!!

• 

  Chantal C.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 22, 2021

  Baileys Ford

  Great for Families

  The RV/pull behind spots here fill up VERY fast. This was no big deal for us since we went for a long tent camping weekend, there are plenty of sites if you are ok without all the hookups. The park has the river on one end and cold water springs all around the other side. There are restrooms which are well taken care of but no showers at the time as they were 'covid closed'. There are multiple playgrounds with grills and shelter, and tons of easy hiking for families with kids. We played in the springs when we stayed, relaxed and just walked the park. We had no neighbors at our tent spot.

• 

  Travis P.

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 29, 2020

  Pulpit Rock Campground

  Crowded, many RVs. Decent tent sites along river.

  From someone who typically prefers backpacking and sleeping in remote areas, this campground facility, pretty much in the city, is okay.

  The facilities are nice, bathrooms were clean. What I didn't enjoy was how close each RV site is. The sparks from our fire were making their way to our neighbors site.

  The campground is situated next to the Trout Run Trail, providing quick and easy access to the 11-mile loop or in to the city center of Decorah.

  Overall, decent for a city campground, but very crowded. The tent sites near the river look more spaced out.

• 

  Lourene M.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 29, 2018

  Skip-A-Way Resort

  Very family friendly

  This campground has a lot of fun activities from April 15 thru Oct 15. They have permanent sites and rentals. There is tent sites and rental campers also. Sewer, water and electric. Some weekly activities include canoeing, tubing down the Turkey River, swimming, fishing and paddle boats in the Lake, a splash pad for kids and occasionally a dumping tank for free, also miniture golf. There. Is a store and bar on the grounds as wellas a pavilion for use any time where they also have children's movies every Saturday night during season. New bathrooms with shower's and rentals for canoes and tubes for the River. Very family friendly and affordable.

• 

  Amber Z.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 19, 2018

  Pikes Peak State Park Campground

  Uneven and Open Camping

  This campground had 60+ campsites. The sites were very open and did not appear to be planned very well for camping functionality. The tent sites appeared to be very flat. Many other sites were very uneven and were challenging to get a camper into. The electric boxes in sites were also placed in strange areas (middle of campsite, 10+feet from camper parking pad, etc). The campground was also very open.

  We did enjoy the peacefulness of this campground though. Lots of star viewing opportunities. Very limited road noise. Nice hiking trails. The overlook was also a great place to relax.

  We definitely would return to this campground for the hiking opportunities; but we would chose to bring our tent instead of our camping trailer.

• 

  Lee D.

  Legend

  

  Sep. 27, 2020

  Six Pines Campground — Backbone State Park

  Many different camping options

  There are two campgrounds at this park (the first state park in Iowa): a primitive one and a “modern” one. The primitive one (Six Pine) only has a pit toilet and each site has a fire grate and a picnic table. The modern campground (South Lake) has 30 amp, 50 amp, and tent sites. The electric sites are very close together (too close for our liking) so we opted for a tent site. We were in a loop with about six sites, and while the site size was generous and spaced a decent distance apart, there was no delineation between sites and no specific place to park your vehicle (and you cannot park on the road). These sites were also decidedly bumpy and not level; it took us about 15 minutes of maneuvering our van around to find a reasonably level spot. 

  The restrooms were six separate rooms, each complete with toilet, sink, and shower; they were clean. 

  We drove around the park and saw the balanced rock (meh) and I walked the short distance to the mouth of the cave. There was good signage to find the cave but once there, no information about the cave and its safety (or not) was available so I opted not to explore its dark and wet interior! There are seven trails in the park; the East Lake trail was a treat to hike. It hugs the lake for about two miles and while you can veer off onto the Bluebird Trail, I enjoyed hiking out and back for a different view. You can also hike from the South Lake campground to the beach– about a mile but the trail does start and stop, and you have to walk on the road for a bit. You can rent kayaks, canoes, and paddleboats but we did not take advantage of this. We also did not swim so I cannot speak to the quality of the lake (other reviewers took issue with this). There is also a CCC museum, but it was not open while we were there. 

  We stayed one night which was sufficient for us. It might have been nice to stay longer if we decided to rent kayaks or hike different trails.

• 

  Ashlee L.

  Guide

  

  Apr. 18, 2018

  Pikes Peak State Park Campground

  Great campground!

  During my visit the campground was fairly quiet, and the sites are decently private with lots of shade. The bath/shower house was in fair shape and clean, plus showers were free! You can reserve the sites ahead of time for a convenience fee of 4 bucks, but they also have a kiosk to pay cash first-come first served if you can stand the suspense! Tent sites were $11/night when I visited in August.

  The nice thing about this campground is its proximity to a couple trail-heads that lead to some of the park's nice hiking trails.

  I would definitely recommend this campground, and would absolutely stay here again given the chance!

• 

  Annie C.

  Legend

  

  Jul. 31, 2019

  Fountain Springs County Park

  Solitude and not much else

  This campground also goes by the name of Holbert. Small campground but free with a handful of picnic tables and campfires. The vault toilets were cleanish, thou older. This campground is next to a pretty little creek that you can play and fish in. The campground is really just a series of campsites strung out along the creek and road. It was pretty quiet while I was there, not many campers at all. There are no hookups for RV’s/campers so it is primarily tent camping or dry camping. There is an interesting story about how this camping area has come to be: the land was donated by Ella Ellis in memory of her husband William Ellis. They apparently loved the land and wanted to make sure it was never developed and could be enjoyed by all. A lovely story.

• 

  Kerry M.

  Ranger

  

  Aug. 29, 2021

  T. F. Clark Co Park

  Off the beaten path county park in Iowa

  This campground offered much privacy when I went - I was the only person camping (tent camping). It was very quiet.

  That being said, there are not many amenities. It has a vault toilet. I did not check the water hydrant, or even try to locate it, since I brought my own water for one night of camping. There is a small playground for the kids, but it is definitely not a modern playground (think back to the 1970's style playground when I was a kid!).

  There are opportunities to hike and view wildlife - my favorite outdoor activities.

  This campground is a real bargain. It was $10/night for any site, including the electric (I stayed in one of the non-electric sites near the back).

  For me, it offers solitude. I will be coming back regularly.

• 

  Clarke N.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 2, 2020

  Hutchinson Family Farm Campground

  Large camp sites

  First off about the camping area. The sites are huge but pretty open and we needed 50’ of cord to hit electrical box (not a big deal) The lawn was nicely mowed and the sites are very level. We have a travel trailer but the tent sites looked really nice. Overall we liked our site and have no complaints. This is definitely a canoe and kayaking community! We brought are kayak with us and went down the Upper Iowa River Saturday and Sunday, if you are at this campground make sure you spend a day on the river. The owners of campground are very nice and helpful, they offered a shuttle service for 25.00 a car load to get us to drop off point with our kayak but we had transportation so it wasn’t necessary. They did give us directions to a 4 or 6 hour float and we went with the 4. The owners also told of us of a nice hike near a spring in the area that we really enjoyed. I’m a bit of a brewery buff so we hit Toppling Goliath and was not disappointed.. We did check out some of the other campgrounds and did find that some have you packed in like cord wood so double check if you go somewhere else.

• 

  Ashley F.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 12, 2024

  Baileys Ford

  Excellent campground

  What more can I say than this place was stellar. We were tent camping the site we picked was big (there were smaller sites if that’s what you need). Access to the trout stream directly from our site! The facilities were clean even for a vault toilet (regular toilets and showers available at the main building which were extremely clean) the showers had hot water and real on and off handles NOT the push to start ones. Access to the river was available and there was a boat launch site. Staff we encountered were all friendly. Firewood available to purchase on site (only available Friday and Saturday night it was $10 a bundle during our stay). Plenty of things for kids to do volleyball ball court, softball field, and several playgrounds! Many shelters available for larger gatherings. This place even had an outdoor chapel. Baileys Ford exceeded my expectations for a county campground and I will be returning 100% my only complaint was spotty service (Verizon) but then again the point of camping is to disconnect so this was not a big deal. Minimal bugs considering how close we were to the water as well!

• 

  Kerry M.

  Ranger

  

  Aug. 20, 2021

  Little Paint Campground — Yellow River State Forest

  Nice state forest with trout fishing

  Iowa only has a few state forests and this one has something the others do not... trout fishing.

  There are actually three campgrounds in YRSF... one on Little Paint Creek, one equestrian campground on Little Paint Creek, and a campground on Paint Creek. I have stayed at both non-equestrian campgrounds multiple times. All of them, including the equestrian, have easy access to trout fishing. All are primitive - non-electric.

  Little Paint Creek:

  This is the larger of the two non-equestrian campgrounds. While there are no electric sites, there are many sites suitable for a small to large RV or camper. I generally camp in a tent here. Most of the sites are large with plenty of space between adjacent sites. Many are right next to the trout stream. This trout stream is excellent for beginners. It is stocked, and there are multiple pools that are easily accessible with one that is handicap accessible. The stream can get busy when the stock truck arrives. It is popular with fly fisherman as well as spinners and power-bait. The campsite itself is usually pretty quiet. There are several pit toilets available.

  Paint Creek:

  This is my favorite of the two sites and I have camped many nights here, mostly in a tent but once in a small camper. The trout stream is bigger than Little Paint and offers more challenging fishing. Fly fishing seems to be most successful but I catch most of my trout on an ultralight spinner rig. The campsite itself is usually pretty quiet and not very busy, but it can get more busy during Iowa deer season. There are two pit toilets available.

  I have stayed in these campsites in spring and autumn months.