We enjoyed this park, but it’s definitely a mixed bag. It’s a good value: We’ve paid more for places that were a lot less pleasant. Our spot on the lake was primitive, gorgeous, and shady. Our site was mostly level. It was kind of a pain that the park doesn't have water hook-ups at each site, but we managed with just electricity. Wildlife was abundant. We saw many skunks, black squirrels, raccoons, and birds. The security is good: The guard shack is manned around the clock. The site is divided into two parts, one half that allows alcohol and one that does not. The site is convenient for shopping, and it’s close to Six Flags. Out on the pavement of Six Flags, it was a hot day. Under the trees on the shores of the lake, it was balmy. An ice cream truck and a wood truck drove by our campsite, and we enjoyed buying wood for a campfire and ice cream for all the kids. Our main complaint is that this park is not well maintained--one of my children cut her thumb on a tile in the shower and so did a girl in the camp across from us. The abandoned concrete buildings on the beach and the decommissioned nuclear power plant nearby gave us the impression that the US had peaked in the 60s and went downhill after that. Certainly, the buildings at the park looked like they had seen better days. It looked like a good place to shoot a post-apocalyptic movie. In addition, mail delivery was hit or miss. We got one package, but another was returned to the post office. We camped here in a Travel Trailer.

Campsites are large and nicely wooded but pretty much next to the park road so really no privacy at all. The speed is suppose to be 10mph for traffic. Every campsite has electricity but no water. We had to walk about 75 yards to the water pump and about the same for the showers/bathroom. We had campsites 154 and 155 reserved which were very close to the beach 50 yards away. You cannot see the beach or lake though you can hear the water at night which was nice. We were there a Monday thru Wednesday and it was not crowded at all. Only one camping party was noisey one night at about 2AM in the morning. The reserved campsites allow alcohol. All in all a good experience but be warned this beach is closed sometimes due to e-coli levels caused by those nasty gulls. Also, they have had some issues with asbestos collecting on the beach for some reason but we did not see any of this. Another thing is that there is a nuclear power plant right on the Illinois State Beach! It is no longer producing power but it sure is an eyesore on the beach. We camped here in a Tent.

The site was a good location for us as the beach is really close. The staff were very friendly. The beach along with the sites were very clean. I was really impressed with the state beach. I will definitely go back We camped here in a Tent.