Looking for an adventure where you can explore Council Grove Lake and then fall asleep in your tent? The Dyrt can help you find the best tent campsites for your next trip. Would you prefer a quiet dispersed site or an established camgpround with amenities? Either way, The Dyrt makes it easy to find the perfect place to pitch your tent.
Primitive camping is allowed in the designated areas.
The 179 acres surrounding the lake is a wildlife refuge, predominately riparian timber with some native grass on the upland area. Primitive camping is allowed on the west side of the lake. Boating is restricted to fishing only. The lake population includes Channel Catfish (which are stocked during the summer months thanks to funding from the Urban Fishing Program), Black bass, Bluegill, Crappie, Flat-head catfish, and Walleye.
Kanza View Picnic Shelter is located at the east end of Council Grove Dam just off Kansas Highway 177. It offers some of the most scenic views of the lake.
Although Council Grove Lake has excellent fishing and boating opportunities, access to the water limits these activities at Kanza View. Picnicking and tent camping at Kanza View's primitive sites are this location's primary activities.
The park sits on top of a hill adjacent to the lake offering breathtaking lake views. Although the park has many open grassy areas interspersed with large Cottonwood and Oak trees, access to the lake is limited due to the steep, rocky terrain.
Multiple developed campgrounds surround Council Grove Lake in the near vicinity. The town of Council Grove affords an array of historic sites and the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve is 18 miles south on Highway 177.
$25 - $30 / night
Outlet Park is a day use park at Milford Lake located just below the Milford Dam. With one shelter available for reservation, those visitors interested in angling and wildlife observation will enjoy its location near the Outlet Pond, a popular fishing pond and wildlife attractor. Inside the park is also a great fishing areas and access to the Riverwalk Trail. Click here for the Milford Lake Virtual Tour.
Activities at Milford Lake include boating, swimming, fishing, hunting, hiking, wildlife viewing and biking. Milford Lake is known to have great sail boating opportunities as well.
The shelter has a vault toilet and grill available for use and also has a playground, horseshoe pit and sand volleyball court nearby. The shelter is located by a fishing pier which offers great fishing access.
Milford Lake is nestled on the edge of the Kansas Flint Hills and is fed by the Republican River. Milford Lake stands as the largest man-made lake in Kansas, with a surface area of 15,700 acres and 163 miles of shoreline. Milford Lake is also the home of the states third largest wetland and is known to a variety of wildlife.
The Milford Nature Center and Fish Hatchery is nearby just below the dam. There you can find live animal exhibits as well as learn about the ecosystems of Kansas. A golf course is adjacent to the nature center on the north end of the Dam and the town of Junction City is approximately five miles from North Overlook Shelter.
$25 / night
North Overlook Park is a one of the many day use parks at Milford Lake with two shelters available for reservations, great fishing access, and a playground. Also within walking distance of the shelters is a baseball field, horseshoe pits and a volleyball court. With these features offered, North Overlook Park is sure to have something for the whole family. Click here for the Milford Lake Virtual Tour.
Activities at Milford Lake include boating, swimming, fishing, hunting, hiking, wildlife viewing and biking. Milford Lake is known to have great sail boating opportunities as well.
Each shelter has picnic tables and grill available for use. Shelter 2 also has a sand volleyball court and horseshoe pits available. And there is a playground, vault toilet and baseball field located between the two shelters.
NATURAL FEATURES: Milford Lake is nestled on the edge of the Kansas Flint Hills and is fed by the Republican River. Milford Lake stands as the largest man-made lake in Kansas, with a surface area of 15,700 acres and 163 miles of shoreline. Milford Lake is also the home of the states third largest wetland and is known to a variety of wildlife.
The Milford Nature Center and Fish Hatchery is nearby just below the dam. There you can find live animal exhibits as well as learn about the ecosystems of Kansas. A golf course is adjacent to the nature center on the north end of the Dam and the town of Junction City is approximately five miles from North Overlook Shelter.
$25 / night
This recreation area is part of Council Grove Lake
Guide
We stopped for one night. $40, had full hook up, pretty level gravel site. Bathroom shower houses are OK did well for what we wanted. Only thing that might bother some people is there is a train track right beside the campground. This could be charming and rustic, or just annoying noise, depending on your point of view. It was warm, we had the AC on, didn’t bother us. It’s an older campground and it shows, but we were pleased.
Guide
It's a quaint little campground that has been around for 60 years. It's just down the street from President Dwight D Eisenhower presidential museum and library. The entrance is marked with a square blue sign I found difficult to read when approaching the campground. Our site was very level with about 15-18 foot swath of grass on either side.
If you get the chance visit the early 1900's wooden Carousel and old Abilene historic buildings. Check out the The Abilene and Smoky Valley Railroad heritage railway. Ride the Flint Hills Express on track built by the Rock Island Railroad in 1886! M&R Grill had good food, reasonable prices, and generous portions. Staff was friendly and helpful.
Scout
Pretty lake views, easy to drive in and find pretty private sites, and some fire ring
Traveler
Beautiful well-kept park with gorgeous trails, beach, lots of shade, and quiet camping. We’ve been here three times now and just love it. Outlet park is below the dam. If you’re into fishing/boating the giant lake has a marina with everything you need to get out on the water as well as a kitchen where they serve hamburgers and other food items. The Marina is currently closed as of 8-2-24 due to weather damage but will reopen.
Guide
Kansas has over 40 state fishing lakes with free camping. Lots of fishermen. I’d say over a dozen camping sites. We had a shelter, picnic table, toilet building, view of the lake. We rode our motorcycles here to tent camp. Raccoon couldn’t wait for me to zip my tent to come out and see what we left out.
Scout
Reserve online, reasonably priced. One week stay in this little park, close to Junction City and Fort Riley. Full hookups in pull- thru half circle asphalt tar or back-in sites. Close to Hwy 70 with some noise. Laundry/shower area available.
Ranger
Our site was $56.78 We were in Site# 59 The check in was at 12pm but the office was closed until 3:30pm so we grabbed our sheet left out front and got ourselves to our site.
We had Full hook- up with a gravel pull-through.
We travel towing a 14 foot trailer and were able to fit both in our pull through site along with my jeep (although the Jeep had to be parked straight across the front of our site to fit in). Also we were right on the highway.
The site was easy to level.
Our site was not shaded and without any trees. The most FRUSTRATING part is that this was a buddy site (that is NO WHERE on their website). We have rescue dogs and don’t want to share our space with neighbors we don’t know. Literally no one wants to Kumbaya by the fireside with complete strangers. Therefore our trip went from one week originally to two nights. We would have left the next day but the husband wanted to see the Evel Knievel museum.
The lot does not have a concrete patio but has a picnic table and fire grate.
They have a community fire pit with multiple swings around it. They sell wood for $6 a bundle.
They do not provide garbage service at your site so you must walk to garbage dumpster at the entrance.
You are allowed to ride personal golf carts. They do not provide golf cart rentals. There is really not a need to have a Golf cart because it is a smaller campground.
They do have a saltwater Swimming pool. They have a catch and release fishing pond.
There is a Playground. They also offer a weight room and an adorable activities room with air hockey, a library, & a pool table. There is also a scenic walking trail. The trail is almost a mile and they’ve kept it mowed and easy to identify.
They have a basic general store. There is not a snack bar/restaurant on site.
The streets are gravel so not great for riding bikes.
They have cabins for rent and a tent area (electric & primitive options).
They have 2 shower houses. The shower house in the main barn has individual shower/toilet/sink areas. The shower house in the park has the typical stalls. These are kept very clean.
There is a laundry facility in both shower houses. It is a cash only facility.
They have a fenced in dog park which is unfortunately located in the front of the park away from RV sites.
Some fun things to do outside of the campground are the Evel Knievel museum and Brown vs. Board of Education historical park.
Staff are very kind. I would definitely stay here in the future but will know to secure a site that isn’t shared with others
TravelerOn a road trip off the 70, pulled over to camp for the night! Quiet, only a few other campers around.. lovely nighttime sounds. Firepit. Some trash from other campers.. remember to pack it in and pack it out!
RangerWe found a great spot for our van that was right on the water and mostly secluded. Got pretty busy on the weekend and people had loose dogs that were causing some problems, but otherwise very chill. Lake is beautiful, decent cell service with Verizon. Pit toilets in good shape when we arrived Thursday afternoon but kind of rough by the end of the weekend.
Camp in main area to be near toilets, otherwise there’s lots of loops near the water where you can find sites with more privacy. No trash so pack it out.
TravelerCamp site was fine. Just disappointed in the amount of trash surrounding. Easily filled up a large trash bag at the single site I was on. Could be so much better if maintained.
Traveler
Stayed here off season for free. They do not close the gates so you can enter but no access to facilities, water or electric. Campground slopes to the river so very few level sites. Some noise from the road but otherwise peaceful as nobody was there.
TravelerCampsite is clean and peaceful. Beautiful lake with a waterfall a little more north. The highway nearby is a little noisy but not off putting. Regular drive bys from locals but completely normal.
Scout
In June of 2023, my husband& I decided to move into our 42' toy hauler. We searched& searched within a 30-minute radius of our property that we had bought for a campground with great amenities and where we would feel safe with our 2 babies. Walt's is by far the safest, friendliest, fun-filled campground compared to any of the others we visited around. We were greeted with friendly faces and welcoming staff from our very first day of move-in. They made sure we got settled& hooked up ok and have continued to make us feel right at home. My husband is a truck driver so isn't always home when things go wrong with the camper. The staff has always been there to help when something happens especially when we have had issues with propane leaks, or the heater not working during the colder temps. This campground offers put-put course, swimming pool with poolside pub, horseshoes, catch& release fishing, walking trail, small dog park, playground for children, shower houses/restrooms, laundry facility, on site gas station, a country store with made to order pizzas, sandwiches& tex mex! They do several family friendly events throughout the year. At the country store they have anything of convenience that you may need from toiletries, drinks, snacks, ice cream, games, books, alcoholic beverages, etc. We absolutely love staying here. The sites have been freshly graveled. During the summer the lawn, gardens, pool, etc. Were maintained regularly and they are constantly doing updates weekly here. The best part it is also right off I-70. For long term campers that are truckers they do have a small area for semis. They also have a rentable party room inside the country store as well as outdoor areas for party rentals!
GuideClean restrooms and showers. Quiet campground. Downfall is right next to interstate. Internet is not the best, but it is secure.
GuideStopping for a quick overnight at the Topeka KOA, the staff was very nice. There is a small store with plenty of affordable firewood which was great for our chilly night. The bathrooms were large and very clean. Being a dog friendly campground, it had a cute little fenced area, but lots of poop not picked up which takes away the fun. (not the campgrounds fault, but nevertheless, no fun to be around. The reason for 4 instead of 5 stars is the proximity to the highway. We had a “deluxe rv site” that backed up to the highway. So tons of highway noise all night. Additionally, the sites were pretty close together and our neighbors had an outdoor tv that was blasting for hours. Takes away from peaceful camping. In the way n, less than a mile from the campground is Happy Basset Brewing Co. - highly recommend, as well as the food truck that was on site On the Hook!! 🐟🍟
RangerBath and showers were clean. Campsite was gravel with full hookups. Had to level the camper ever so slightly. Small amount of highway noise. Good cell service signal. Friendly staff.
RangerWe stayed for three nights while staying close to Nebraska for a wedding and work obligations. Quiet lake, we were the only campers there. Little traffic through the park. Can sometimes hear the highway 77 noise but not really inside the camper. Great free spot.
Guide
The park is very quiet 7/26/22. My wife is working, and I am setting and listening to the soothing sounds of nature, and trying not to fall asleep. Lol, absolutely beautiful
GuideMultiple spots are available on the lake, and there are a couple in a grassy wooded area. They have picnic tables and fire pits already there. I stayed in the grassy wooded area and enjoyed the night. Road noise dies down around 8 or 9 and then you only hear occasional cars if you are awake... didn't bother me much. Had a dog and she had a good time.
LegendWe stopped here on our way back from Colorado. The campground is right next to a highway and an air base, so we didn’t get a very restful night’s sleep.
The road coming into the campground (49th St) is unpaved and very bumpy. Folks with larger rigs should be aware that the road narrows as you pass under the overpass, so be mindful in case there is traffic coming the other direction.
The campground features a general store, game room, salt water pool, playground, three stocked fishing ponds, and a fenced in dog walking area. The campground was well maintained and clean.
We stayed in pull through site #59. It was mostly level gravel and we had no problem fitting our 29’ class C and towed vehicle. The water and sewer hookups are in the middle between sites, which can make hooking up somewhat awkward depending on the layout of your rig. A longer water hose and sewer extension are a good idea.
TravelerHerd this campground is closed even though I read it's 10$ a night no hook ups. Anyone knows different it would be nice to know. My son lives in Lebo and he said it's closed due to flooding a few years ago. Emailed the lake and COE and got no response.
Traveler
easy access to the lake. facilities can be dirty
Scout
Beautiful campground! It had pit toilets, picnic tables, and fire rings. Solid free camping! Other campers were sort of rowdy, but it was a holiday weekend.
Guide
Sites are nice; although very exposed to the neighbor and close together. It was really windy. Almost all sites in the b loop on the lake. Bathrooms clean. Not sure if there is a shower somewhere.
Traveler
We camped in our RV at Turkey Point. The grounds are well-maintained, bathrooms were clean, hosts were friendly. No problems with water and electric hookups. Sites are well spaced, include fire rings, and almost all have shade. Gravel hiking trail, too. This was our very first trip in our brand new r v. It is only about an hour away from our house, but we will be back!
TravelerClose to the highway was our only downfall. Kinda loud when trying to fall asleep at night. Other than that it deserves 5 stars from us! Easy pull off of I-70. Very friendly staff, big snack shop with pizza, ice cream, adult beverages! Lots of things to do for kids- putt putt, playground. The pool is being worked on but will be up and running soon. Very happy about our stay!
Traveler
Got here in an incredible thunder ligtning/ high wind l/ hard rain storm. Woke up to beauty. Huuuuge campground but mostly empty. Laundromat!! But showers never warmed up
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Council Grove Lake?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Council Grove Lake is Kansas View - Council Grove Lake with a 4.5-star rating from 2 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Council Grove Lake?
TheDyrt.com has all 16 tent camping locations near Council Grove Lake, with real photos and reviews from campers.
