Best Cabin Camping near Waterloo, IA

Great RV park. Lots of room and cabin rentals for folks that don’t have an RV. The fenced dog park was fantastic for those of us with dogs. A lake with beach area and an area for fishing founded it out! Would recommend!

This campground has many things to do. This place has tent, rv and cabin camping, you can choose modern or non modern camping. Fun activities include fishing, swimming in a lake and also ground fed springs, boat rentals on the lake, hiking also horse trails, rock climbing, caves, playgrounds shelters for events and parties. I am sure there are even more things to do that I didnt have the time for.

This has been one of my favorite state parks in Iowa to camp thus far. I've tent camped in April and cabin camped in October. The cabin camping was the better of the two experiences, mainly due to the unusually chilly overnight temperatures in April. During the warmer months you can rent canoes from the concession stand. Climbing/rappelling is also allowed in the park via registration at the park office.

We stayed in a family cabin that sleeps up to 4 people. You have to reserve cabins and there is a 2 night minimum stay, but the price is extremely reasonable. These cabins also offer heat and A/C. Our cabin had a common area with a kitchenette.The bathroom included a toilet and shower. The small, but cozy bedroom included a mattress - you're responsible for bringing your own linens - along with a sink. Additional amenities included stove, frig, microwave, pots and pans, and even a small coffee maker. And, the couch in the common area pulled out into a futon, providing extra sleeping space. Outdoor amenities included a fire pit and picnic bench. Bonus: The back of our cabin area looked out onto Backbone Lake.

We purchased firewood in Strawberry Point, a small town just a short drive from the park. Iowa requires that firewood be obtained within the county you're staying in due to the Emerald Ash Borer epidemic.

We fished for trout and hiked along several trails in the park. The Devil's Backbone was our favorite mainly because of the scenery along the bluff. It was the perfect way to view the changing leaves and watch the Maquoketa River flow by.

While we did have neighbors on either side of us, the noise level was minimal, and everyone was respectful of parking spaces as there is a common parking area in front of the cabins.

This is a beautiful spot to visit especially in autumn.

The two cabins are fairly new and have all of the amenities. My mother-in-law stayed here while visiting recently and we enjoyed spending time at her cabin.

While camping is no longer allowed in Tower Rock park, you can still enjoy a walk down to the river or bicycling on the paved bicycle trail. Tube rentals are available nearby for the Iowa River, and a local outfitter will rent a boat for the day to fish Pine Lake or the small lake northwest of Steamboat Rock.

Pine lake is not that far away either and offers many fun activities.

My family and I rented on eof the cabins here. They were nice cabins just off the bank of the river! The cabin comfortably fit 4 of us. It had a nice stone fireplace a decent living room, small kitchen, and bathroom. Nice hiking trails right outside the cabin, along the river. Just down the road is a large lake with more hiking as well. Nice place overall!

Backbone State Park is unlike any other place in Iowa, having geological features uncommon in Iowa.

There are two campgrounds. I have camped in both:

Modern Campground: This is a large, modern campground with all of the standard amenities found in a modern campground… electric hookups, flush toilets, water. I have camped here twice, both times in my travel trailer. Overall, it is a nice campground with decent space in between campers, however, I tend to avoid it during the busier summer and fall colors seasons.

Primitive Campground: This is my favorite at Backbone for camping, especially in the autumn after the leaves have fallen off of the trees. As this campground is non-electric, there are not many people camping after it turns colder. I have spent many nights there alone in the primitive campground, watching RVs pull in and then leave after realizing that it has no hookups.

Nearby trout fishing: Backbone is home to one of the more popular trout streams in Iowa. The fishing is easy as most of the fish are stocked (April-October). Still, it is an enjoyable fishing trip as the stream itself is mostly rocks and gravel, with several deep holes. The water is cold and clear.

Other activities: Hiking is very popular in Backbone. I have also seen rock climbing and rappelling. There are some nice spots away from the trout stream for wading and a little swimming. Backbone State Park also has a small lake with a swimming area and boat rentals during the summer. Several nice cabins are available for those who do not want to camp.

We love hiking here, and the cabins are campground are very nice.

Great scenery and views! Fun trails, great beach, lighthouse, boat docks, cabins, caves, and much more. Absolutely loved this place! Had a blast got lots of great pics and memories! Loved the trails but most of all the amazing views/scenery! Fun family oriented park!

I have visited a lot of Iowa parks and campgrounds. Backbone is one on my favorites. Backbone is the oldest state park in Iowa. You can take your canoe out on the lake or hit some of the hiking trails. There are cabins for rent if you don't want to sleep in a tent.

Click on the following link to download the trail maps: www.iowadnr.gov/portals/idnr/uploads/parks/trailmaps/trails_backbone.pdf

This is a great place to stay but make sure you get your reservations in early if you plan on staying on the weekend. If you want it to be quiet and prefer less crowds but you still want to enjoy the park, I highly suggest taking some time off of work during the week and avoiding the weekend.

This is a special place, the facilities, the showers, the campsites, the trails, and the lake are top quality.

There is a variety of things to do here. You can rent cabins, shelters, tent and RV camp, hike the trails especially the “Backbone”, explore the cave, fish trout streams, visit fish hatchery, swim at the beach, canoe, kayak or just have a picnic. Beautiful park! My sons have even repelled the bluffs.

Backbone offers 2 different campgrounds, a beach, trout and regular fishing a playground anso electric and water hookups. This park books up fast but offers walk ins so don't give up if booked online. Also offers cabins, beautiful trails, paddle boats, and a snack shack during the day. A little bit for everyone.

Union Grove is known for having good lake fishing. The lake is also a great place for kayaking or canoeing.

The campground has mostly RV sites, but there are a handful of smaller tent sites at the back, which are my favorite. The campground is quiet.

Amenities:

Showers and toilets

Dump station

Water

2 cabins

Things to do nearby:

Enjoy the lake

Matchstick Marvels in nearby Gladbrook

Cabins were nice - not luxury or glamping but clean and in good condition.  The gentleman that takes care of the campground takes great pride in his work and it shows - kudos to him!  There is a nice hiking trail around the lake, about 8 miles complete loop.  there is a bit of elevation change and not many opportunities to "bail out" so take water and pace yourself.

Iowa tends to get a bad wrap but this particular park should be love by many. I have family in Iowa and visit often. I decided on one trip to get out exploring a bit and stumbled upon this gem. Now, while there might not be mountains and alpine lakes and such, this is a beautiful park. We decided to picnic and quick day hike, but there are opportunities to do much more. There are designated trails for mountain biking and if kayaking, canoeing, or boating is your thing this place has you covered. Fishing is available for those so inclined. While we didn't stay the night, we did spy the campsites and checked out what they have to offer. They sell bait, firewood, rent boats, have concessions, a real bathroom (and some pit toilets!) and places for your trash. There is the opportunity to go rock climbing and even swimming in the lake. There are standard campsites as well as cabins to rent. While this place is not as primitive as I generally like, and was really busy, it is one heck of a park.

lots of things to do and great hikeing park, also swimming and boat rentals

This campground is near home so I know it well.

The campground itself is nice, with some decent sized campsites, many having a great view of upper Pine Lake. There are flush toilets and showers. Campsites have electric hookups. It can get busy during peak season!

Some of the campsites are near the lake, some are near the road. Noise is usually not a problem as the road has a 35mph speed limit by the campground.

Things to do: (so much to list!)

• Paddle on upper or lower Pine Lake
• Fishing, shore or boat (lake, stream, or river)
• Bicycle trails
• Hiking trails (all around lower Pine Lake)
• Beach swimming (lower only)
• Float or paddle nearby Iowa River (tube and boat rentals nearby)
• Eat, replenish supplies in nearby Eldora

Very nice great hiking couldn’t swim on our stay but nice beach canoe rentals small store bathrooms were very clean

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.

Decent sites with full hook ups. Little shade with small trees next to about each site. Gas, propane, laundry room, beach area, small boat rentals, good sized convenience store with ice, beer, snacks, milkshake machine, etc. Enough to do for a day or two without going to the water park. Overall felt pretty exposed but the amenities made up for it.

Great place to kick back and relax. The trail through the campground takes you across the river where you can find canoe and paddle boat rentals, and our favorite an off leash do area.  We all took the trail into town and found a BIT Brewery where we enjoy woodfired pizza and brought some beer home in a growler for around the fire that night.