Scenic State Park is a one of the best State Parks I have visited so far. The area is gorgeous - the campsite is on Coon Lake, which is one of the thousands lakes in the state. Chase Point is one of the main sites of interest in the vicinity - a couple of miles long narrow peninsula that projects into the lake. The short trail that goes on its ridge provides great views and peaceful surroundings and we ended up hiking to the tip of the peninsula every day of our stay. Other places worth seeing around are the International Wolf Center where one gets face to face (literally) with the great Timber Wolf (Minnesota has the biggest population of wolfs if we don't count Alaska). Voyagers National Park is also a stone's throw away - but bring a boat if you want to see more. The staff is very nice and helpful; the campsite clean. I strongly recommend visiting this place.
Cascade River State Park is a nice (but busy) place, and since I like more secluded spots, this campground cannot come among my favorite places to put a tent. A plus is the park's proximity to Lake Superior; seeing the sunrise on the lake is a must-do! Other than that, the park has nice trails, a small waterfall and decent amenities. Some of the nice things to see in the area are Grand Portage National Monument, Grand Marais, Pigeon Falls right on the border with Canada.. or a trail to Eagle Mountain - the highest peak in the state. :) The Superior Hiking Trail also pass through the area.
Ferne Cliffe State Park is situated in the Shawnee National Forest, in the southern part of Illinois. It is not among the best known parks, and its distance from bigger cities makes it more obscure and less frequented than other places I have visited. The campground is small, situated on a limestone bluff which is cut by a small rivulet and some seasonal small waterfalls. The area is really a hidden gem - one has to hike down to discover the natural canyon with the awesome sites. The campground is clean and well maintained. A site of interest nearby is the Garden of the Gods wilderness, which 300 million years ago was the bottom of a sea. The whole area was spared by the glacier activity, yet the weathering of the rocks has given us a sandstone plateau with numerous hoodoos. Close nearby are also Cave in Rock and Land Between the Lakes, both worth seeing.
The Tahquamenon Falls State Park is gorgeous! The campground that we visited was the one by the river mouth. The campground is well maintained, the toilets and baths - clean. The camp sites are situated in the middle of a river bend and the area is very picturesque. The town of Paradise is close nearby and one can find almost anything in the very well stocked stores. The river has a couple of waterfalls upstream from the Rivermouth Campground - the Lower and Upper Tahquamenon Falls. Other sites of interest nearby are the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point, the Point Iroquois Light at Bay Mills on Whitefish Bay. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and Mackinac Island are also fairly close (a couple of hours away driving distance) in case you need to enrich your experience. The area is also pierced by the North Country Trail. A very refreshing hike for us was the hike between the Upper and Lower Falls. A nice reward at the end of the trail is a small brewery with some interesting beer selection. The whole area is very beautiful and despite the gloomy weather it was a memorable experience.
Lake Gogebic State Park is an ok campground compared to others I have visited. Some positive things about it that it is not that well-known of a place and one can enjoy some calmness. The site has some of the best maintained restrooms and showers I have seen. The proximity to the Porcupine Mountains is another plus. A big minus for me were the millions of mosquitoes, but I guess that comes as part of the "nature package". If you want to experience the park to the fullest you need a boat. Other than that there are many great trails in the Porcupine Mountains that deserve one's attention.
Visited July 2016
The Smokemount Campground is awesome! A small rivulet (Bradley Fork) passes through it and offers a pleasant respite in the otherwise very humid and constantly soaked in rain environment. The campground is close nearby to many of the attractions in the area - the Cherokee village and museum are to the south of it. The campground is also fairly close to Clingman's Dome (the highest peak in Tennessee), Cade's Cove - a beautiful, secluded valley with many well-preserved historical houses, Gatlinburg - a touristy town with too many visitos and at least two dozens of waterfalls. What is the best about the Smokies though are the bears! With some luck you may come across them several times.
Devil's Lake State Park was the first campground I ever visited in the US. Although I have camped as a kid in my home country, this was a totally new experience for me since everything was so much better organized - a fire pit on each site + a table, showers on the campground, etc. (later I learned that this was normal for most of the campgrounds). The site was great - it provided seclusion from the neigbors around and was big enough for two tents and two cars to fit. The area is interesting for day hikers - there are several nice trails one can do, ranging in difficulty and length. The most visited hike is the one to the top of the hill overlooking Devil's Lake. The winding path among rocks and trees leads one to a nice view from above. Sites along the trail are Balanced Rock, the Devil's Doorway and Chimney Rock. In the past thee area was a zone of glacial activity and the one can find numerous remnants of that. The place is very popular with people from Chicagoland and North Illinois (and for some reason with Russians and Polish; there were huge groups of them all over the place) .
The park was visited in August 2008.