The Lodge Campground — Scenic State Park

This state park is in my top favs. It’s quiet and remote and there’s a lot to explore. We stayed at a remote watercraft site, accessible only by water so that was thrilling!

The landscape here is fun, with the huge peninsula jutting out into the lake, makes for fun canoeing/kayaking with many little areas to explore, and a couple little islands!

The site itself had a rustic log shelter built in it overlooking the lake, very cool.

The Chase Point peninsula is a great hike and has a little boat landing area at the tip of it to so you can start from either end.

Scooped out Chase Point campground though we didn’t stay in it - sites spaced well, quite wooded. Water and toilets spaced out well too, very accessible from anywhere in the park.

Very cool feature is the little boardwalk with docks along Coon lake and campground edge - makes for easy access to park your kayak or canoe and just a fun little morning walk or place to view sunset over the lake. So charming!

Scenic is definitely the word to describe this park!

After walking around and kayaking around I’ve come to realize this place is always full for a reason. The hiking and lake provide something to do for everyone.

The water: boating, kayaking, canoe, and beach to swim. Everyone has something to do here. I kayaking all of the two lakes and there are some good fishing to be had if you can find the right spots. The families were all along the shoreline having a blast! Lots of people out in canoes and very few in boats. Sure there isn’t a lot around the park itself but you don’t need a lot to be around if you are going to nature!

The campground: two campgrounds here. You have the lodge which is smaller and fewer electrics and a little quieter. Sites are a little bigger. I stayed in 78 and it’s right next to the water and where people put in their canoes/kayaks. I had no problem as it’s a deep sore so you can get away from them. Around me it was easy to see everyone which was ok as people were friendly. Sites are bigger which was nice. There is a small loop of electric sites here and non electric mixed in. Chase point is the busy place! Sites are smaller and more on top of one another. Louder when I walked through and less privacy. Hike in sites: these are the place to be! Yea it takes some work to get too but you are never gonna be disappointed as you are isolated form people which is really nice. They are directly on the water and for sure have the best views. Shower houses were very clean and nice so I was very happy to see that with as many people as we have.

The hiking: the trails are not long and not demanding so they are perfect for families. I’d say it was a good time away from the water which was perfect. Some great views of the water but mostly wooded. Of course hike out to chase point for sunrise bc that’s totally worth it.

Overall: yes!!! This place is perfect! It’s up there for a reason! It takes a while to get here and that’s ok. It is very much worth the drive! Highly recommend it.

We visited Scenic State Park Lodge Campground in July, 2018, with two other families, for three nights, on our annual camping trip. The park was pretty nice, but there was not much to do outside of activities in the park. The campground was very open and you could hear everyone around you. Our site was a bit more private (L89), but our friends at L78 and L79 were completely open to everyone around them.

The Lodge Campground is a little smaller than Chase Point. Facilities were fine - two shower rooms in male and female showers each. Clean bathroom stalls very close to all sites. Fishing pier and beach were very close, so that was awesome for kids. The second you dropped your line in, a fish was on it.

The disadvantage was that although there were quite a few activities in the park, there wasn't much to do around the area if you wanted to go offsite. We hiked the Chase Point Trail to the edge of the esker on a nice breezy day, so the bugs were not bad. On the very hot day, we rented boats - canoe, two kayaks, and a paddle board - from the park office, which was very fun! Our kids had a blast trying them all out. Otherwise, the swimming and fishing were all that was left. The other hike out the fire tower trail was very buggy and several ticks were spotted on one of the adults who took his bike out that trail.

Overall, a nice weekend trip, but we might not make a second trip there due to the limited activities.