Peak camping season kicks off this month

Iowa state parks and forest staff are busy preparing for the summer camping season, turning on water, sprucing up campgrounds and freshening up bathroom, cabin, lodge and shelter facilities.

With more than 759,000 campers and more than 13.5 million visitor days last year, state parks are anticipating another busy season.

More state parks are offering real-time availability and ability to make online reservations for 100% of their campground sites.

In 2025, Backbone, Geode, Lake Macbride, Palisades-Kepler and Rock Creek state parks transitioned to 100% reservable at iowastateparks.reserveamerica.com.

Several state parks are showcasing new or renovated amenities:

•Red Haw — campground renovation and playground scheduled to be completed by July 1, 2025.

•Viking Lake — new campground playground.

•Wildcat Den — shelter and sidewalk renovations.

•Lake Manawa — concession building remodel.

•McIntosh Woods — fish cleaning station replacement.

•Fort Atkinson — restoration of historic buildings.

•Big Creek — accessible fishing pier.

Several state parks also are busy with new construction projects during the 2025 season:

•Clear Lake — lodge/shower buildings/beach restroom renovations are being designed and will go out for bid this year. The campground is undergoing renovations and is closed to reservations, with a portion reopening in June 2025.

•Lake Kemoah — lake restoration, lodge window and pedestrian bridge replacement.

•Lake Ahquabi — lodge and shelter renovations.

•Lewis and Clark — visitor center repairs and renovations.

•Brushy Creek — campground renovations. A closure is in place for the entire recreation season, but walk-ins are being accepted now in the South and Beach campgrounds until a timeline on construction is available. The North campground will remain closed all year.

•Ledges — new shower building and shelter renovation.

•Pine Lake — boat ramp repairs.

•Lake Macbride — kayak launch and accessible parking.

To learn more about Iowa state parks, go to iowadnr.gov/stateparks or make a reservation at iowastateparks.reserveamerica.com/.