Chain O' Lakes State Park Campground

We stayed in the Turner lake south loop, which has nice and private sites. This is in contrast to Honeysuckle hollow which is open and row after row of RV sites. Fox den and Prairie view loops are nice as well with mostly primitive sites. Be aware that the map on www.ExloreMoreIL,com  (where you make your reservations) doesn't show where the restrooms are. In the Turner loop, the pit toilets are next to the path to the fishing pier, while the showers and full restrooms are between Turner and Fox den, there is a short path between sites 60 & 61. Facilities are clean and well lit.
Fire pits are slightly raised steel troughs with a heavy adjustable grill.
This is a BIG park, the campgrounds are two miles from the front gate, and it's a drive to the main boat launch at Maple Grove, where you have access to the Fox River and Grass lake. This location has a huge parking lot for boat trailers, a very well stocked general store with fishing supplies, a cafe, boat rentals and good firewood.
To get away from the crowd if you're a canoeist or kayaker it's nicer to leave the park and go back in at Oak Point picnic area and boat launch at the northern border. This will put you on the Fox river with developments to the north (including a bar & grill) or to the south which is all nature. I think the distance by boat between the two launches is 4-5 miles, but I'm not sure, Halfway there you'll meet up with the Goldfinch trail which is the shortest loop and the most diverse in term of flora.
There are horse/ snowmobile trails, but no equestrian campground.
Chain o' Lakes is one of the busiest waterways in Illinois, with motorboats everywhere in the height of the summer season. We canoe, and both times we stayed there it was October, so I can't tell you how crowded, but the vast number of picnic areas must be there for a reason.
An odd thing is that you can hear a Steam Train whistle quite often, this is from Richardson's Adventure Farm in Spring Grove. We don't have kids so we went to Stade's Farm & Orchard (which is also large and kid friendly) because they have an orchard and vegetable market.
One last thing, the gates close at 10:PM and there are tire shredders, you can leave but you can't get back in... unless you want to walk 2+ miles in the dark :)

First time taking out my 1988 pop up and it was a blast. Our site was HUGE! Plenty of space to play bags with good canopy coverage and have many guests at our fire and a short drive to the kayak launch. Kayaking the 13 lakes can easily last from morning to sundown. All in all it was a great weekend with the family!

I've gone camping here multiple times and each time has been a fantastic trip. Can't recommend enough.

My family and I go to Chain O Lakes for short hikes, kayaking and camping. We come here out of convenience, since we live twenty minutes away. The campground is decent. There are no backpacking spots. There are a handful of paddle up camping spots that are very hard to reserve. The beach is often overcrowded with local partiers, drinking and smoking, and leaving trash everywhere. After peak hours these people clear out and usually aren't actually camping there. Overall, a great place for families hiking with small children or those who camp just to relax.

It was my first time camping with my bf's family and we had a blast! We booked several sites and the sites that we got had a good amount of trees caving in so it was nicely shaded. There was a nice dock for fishing and the bathrooms were clean. We found a cave as well so some of us went to explore it!

Beautiful would go back every weekend if I could live it there

Got to camp 9/10 and will be staying thru 9/12. Lot 102 is perfect! Shade the majority of the day, very back of the camp ground and close enough to walk to everything! We got up Saturday morning and rented a row boat for the day. Spent the day checking out the lakes, then hiked a couple of the trails. Trail 1 had a huge snake on a tree that I found fascinating lol. Great neighbors made it the perfect weekend get away! Will definitely be back! The staff is amazing, the restroom/showers were clean, and the whole park is very well maintained. I have Verizon and had no service from Albion all the way to the park. My wife has ATT and had spotty service in the park, just FYI

We stayed at site #99 which is fairly easy to find and somewhat secluded from the main camper section of the campground. The site and neighboring sites are non-electric which makes you have to be creative if you need an air mattress. The site is partial sun midafternoon. The campground can get busy and loud but for the most part everyone was was respectful of others.

Chain is perfect for kayaking and canoeing with 9 connected lakes and 11 total. A couple lakes are perfect for boat fishing as long as you have an electric motor only. Overall, in my opinion, this is one of the more underrated state parks in Indiana. Worth the trip up north away from the more popular parks in the southern part of the state.

Did the 9 lake challenge. It was a new first. Love the camping area.

This is the campground that sparked my love for camping! Its not the fanciest or modern but it's filled with families weekend after weekend that share the same passion for true camping. Lot's of people cooking over their fires, hiking the trails, getting out on the water and talking around campfires late into the night.

Site 311 isn't my favorite but getting a site is better than not going at all.

Sites- gravel/grass and always groomed! Bathrooms- older, lots of iron stain the walls from well water but cleaned multiple times throughout the day! Staff- great! They have lots of hosts that will help you throughout your stay. Playground - centrally located and HUGE! Kids will make friends at Chain O'Lakes. Activities - if you like to be outside during the day you have plenty to do!

No seasonal campers which adds to the energy that flows through this campground.

Great fishing, clean , pretty alright place!!!

Would give 5 stars except for the poor cleaning of boathouse near campsite 007.

I’m glad we stayed four nights here. It gave us enough time to see both good and bad from this lovely state park. The bad included small sites, overcrowding, and a lot of raccoon activity. But the good was beautiful scenery, lots of amenities, a wonderful camp store, and a lot of friendly people!

If you're traveling with kids or enjoy the community of being near your fellow campers this is a great option. If you are looking for a peaceful retreat this may be a bit loud and busy. However, the many amenities are a great way to find peace with the 9 lakes, 12 trails and a beach for swimming. The lakes and connecting channels are stunning for canoes and kayaks and there is a convenient rental area. This is a campground of convenience with a very well stocked campground store with reasonable prices right next to the entrance. There is firewood and ice for sale as well as staple cooking items and cute souvenirs. The campsites are spacious and have a picnic table and fire pit at each. This campground is a great way to stay close to the fun and other campers. With so many options there is a something for everyone! Safe travels happy campers 😄

great for canoeuing

Nine lakes, seven connected by water ways. Many trails with ratings from easy to  rugged, distances of 1 mile to  4 miles and many of them cross to  make your hike longer.  Many campsites with some space between, but if the park was full, would be crowded.  Very friendly rangers and well kept park.

We had a really great time. Good cell coverage. Lots of security, playgrounds, well kept trails, a beach, general store. This place is MASSIVE. You will need to pay a one time entry fee 9 for out of state, 7 for in state. After you check into the campsite you will have a pass. We got a space with direct access to a huge playground, but it was closed for Covid. Major bummer. There are LOTS and LOTS of playgrounds so we had a lot of temper tantrums from my normally very well behaved toddler. He goes days and days without fussing but seeing playgrounds he can't use is too much, lol The swimming area is great for kids. They have lots of stuff for sale. I posted pictures so you can budget. Overall this place was perfect, the only downside is the temporary closures. A Walmart Supercenter is 30 minutes away. The general store really has anything(including tents) that you might need but it's overpriced as you would expect. We were able to stay on property all 5 days! Extra bonus! We were here on Memorial Day and we saw 0 people on a morning hike.

Only stopped here for the night to catch a rest so cannot speak to the trails or lakes. The place was nice enough at first glance that I’ll be back to check all those things out if I’m ever around these parts again. Would I make a many-hours-out-of-my-way detour for this place? Maybe... if the online booking looked like the park campground wouldn’t be terribly booked, because the sites are pretty jammed in there and close together, so you’d want to be there when it is less busy.

There were very cute friendly cats that came out at night to comb my site to see if there were any foodstuffs to be had. I prefer them over rodents, but missed the overly-friendly raccoons I’m used to :)

This was our first choice to camp after we bought our camper, and was it the right place!! The campground is beautifully kept, quiet, tons of camping spots! They are not full hook up, and make sure you fill up as you are not always close enough to a hydrant as I was somewhat led to believe. The only downfall to this place is phone service ice is very shady, as I have Verizon. 

Per the name, Chain O Lakes, there are 9 lakes connected, with canals connecting them all. Our 12 year old twin girls had a kayak, and my husband and I. To do them all is a total of 10 miles, MOST of which are easy. There are a few tricky spots, but you can get through it. Very picturesque going through the canals, with lily pads, and other water flowers all through your trip! 

The shower house didn’t have real hot water, especially if more than one running at a time. 

General store had everything and the staff was great! Will definitely be going back!

Very clean state park. Reasonable prices. Kayaking and the beach was a huge hit with the kids.

Great camping experience! The bathrooms are in great shape as well as the showers. The camp store is nice with many useful items. Lots seem to be well kept. The best thing about chain o lakes in my opinion is the fish cleaning station. I've been to a handful of Indiana State Parks and have yet to see one of these stations. Makes a fisherman's life so much easier!

The cabins are great! Trail 3 from the campground to the beach is a fun hike. Enjoy the kayaks and the channels between lakes. Great place and experience. Some camp sites have a lot of shade, some have none. Do your homework!

Camped here in the fall, very few campers here, loved it

Met up with 18 other skoolies our first Indiana meet. Met great people had a fantastic time. Great park kids swam, showers are clean. Electric at sites but water isn’t but very close by.

I love the lilly pad "maze"through the lake, by far the most fun I had there, and it's the most beautiful part of the park. Can't wait to go back!

Can get pretty busy during summer weekends. Nice park, good trails and the lakes and very nice. Good fishing areas. You can rent boats here. Campground is decent. Primitive sites are bigger than the RV sites and in more wooded area, but there are not many sites. Staff is friendly and welcoming. Only one car per site, but there are two large visitor lots for extra cars.

I have stayed at this state park many times since I was little. There is so much to do. Between the hiking trails, boating, fishing, kayaking, canoeing, and biking. You won’t ever get bored. The facility is clean and very safe.

They have lots of hiking, biking, and boating. They have cabins, rob hook ups, and tent camping.

Bathrooms were ok, but dirty. Camp site was soaked couldn’t really walk around. It was all the rain but you would think they would help with all the water. Make it more bearable.

A lot to do, hiking, biking, fishing, kayaking, and swimming. Only down fall is the sites are very wooded so campers with multiple slides need carefull consideration when choosing a site.