Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois
Camping,  Midwest Travel

Illinois Beach State Park and Campground

We recently visited Illinois Beach State Park and Campground  in Zion, IL for a summer camping weekend. We really enjoyed the beach and opportunities for fishing and as always appreciated being able to bring our dog along. At just an hour north of Chicago just south of the Wisconsin border you can’t beat the convenience of that location. We will share our experiences here of this well loved State Park.

Campground

Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois

We booked two nights for tent camping in the campgrounds. We had a lovely site, right up against some woods and it was a large space. This is a pretty popular campground, full of lots of families. Somewhat because of this the place has a family party vibe at night rather then a peaceful night under the stars vibe. I think it is the perfect site to go with a group of friends or a family reunion. But if you are looking for a peaceful night of solitude in the woods you won’t find what you are looking for. The sites have electricity and there is a bathhouse with toilets and showers that is moderately clean.

Hiking

Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois

There is a tiny walking path between the campgrounds and the beach that we had a nice stroll with our dog. It is not long enough to be described as hiking. For that you need to leave the campground and drive about fifteen minutes down by sand pond off of 17th Street or take the biking trail down past old beach road. You are still within Illinois Beach State Park but you have to drive out onto Sheridan Road to get anywhere. This is where you will find some real hiking, through woods and prairie. It is all on flat ground so it’s not too difficult a hike. The trails have numerous openings onto the beach in case you want to walk along that as well. The one  downside to the beach path is that you can’t bring dogs onto the beach.

Illinois Beach

Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois

The biggest draw to this site is definitely the beach. The State Park is right on Lake Michigan and has two sand beach swimming areas to enjoy. They were a really lovely place for a dip on a hot afternoon, especially for families. Depending on when you are out there it will be pretty busy. You can see above the difference between a hot Saturday afternoon and a quiet Sunday morning. Be sure to check out or pile up your own statue of the white rocks that are all along the beach.

Sand Pond

Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois

Still within Illinois Beach State Park is a lovely fishing spot called Sand Pond. Again you have to go out on Sheridan and onto 17th Avenue to get there. Once there it has a great little deck area with some shade right along the pond where you can sit and fish. Even on a Saturday, it was not at all crowded and was a peaceful spot to sit and for me to read a book. There were some geese around but we were still able to bring our dog to join us without much problem.

The Marina

Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois

At the top end of Illinois Beach State Park is the Marina. It is where all the boats are stored and launched into Lake Michigan. There is  an outdoor pool and playground and plenty of convenient parking. It is also a good spot to fish off of the docks. Ryan did not catch anything this time but it was still a good spot to try his hand at some Lake Michigan fishing.

Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois #illinoiscamping

Overall, we enjoyed our visit to Illinois Beach State Park and campground. We would love to come back with a group sometime. We had a nice large space to camp out with our dog.  We also enjoyed some lovely fishing, hiking and beach time. We found out exactly why it’s a family friendly summer camping hotspot.

Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois
Illinois Beach State Park and Campground - Only an hour North of Chicago and South of Wisconsin -Sandy Lake Michigan Beach - Hiking & Fishing -Pet Friendly #campstateparks #illinoisbeachstatepark #travelIllinois #illinoiscamping

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