I have been looking for a waterfall that doesn't require any hiking and voila this is what I found…read more We went to this place on the way to Galena it is called Thunder Bay waterfalls you just park walk a little bit and the Falls is there they even have a selfie station or a ledge that you can put your phone in and just take your selfies it's a pretty nice place to stop at for a few minutes and just take pictures. Happy sighting!

Discovered this nice , small waterfall in the Galena Illinois area. You don't need to spend much…read moretime here , maybe fifteen minutes tops. If you're in the area , it's worth a quick stop for some nice photos. The parking area is located very close to the falls. Maybe a two hundred yard walk. The terrain is a little bit bumpy for elderly people to walk on, but you can still view the falls from the road above if you don't want to get out of the car. The water empties into a beautiful , slow moving stream , surrounded by wildflowers. This attraction is free to view.

This is a park directly across the river from central Galena. You can get there via bridge over the…read moreriver - or there's parking on the east side of the river. There's a hill from the main entrance on the east side of the river to get to the top - with great views of central Galena. This is such a nice park. There are paved walkways that take you through the park There are a number of benches with various views. There's a gazebo, a statue of Grant, historic cannons/howitzers, a water fountain, a playground for small kids, and a basketball court. Can be a good place to just relax or to stroll. To stroll the whole thing - while reading the signs - took 45 minutes.

This is a good-sized park that wears many hats. It has a gazebo, where I'm sure many a ceremonial…read moreevent has been held. There are basketball courts, so people of all ages can play. There's a playlot for little ones and their carers. A fountain is part of the landscaping and probably provides some meditative white noise for people just here to relax and be. There are also several historical monuments; after all, named after favorite son Ulysses Grant, you'd expect as much. I was a bit surprised that there are two cannons here... not what I was expecting! Probably not loaded, though. There is access to Main Street on the east side of the river by using the pedestrian bridge. The lettering on the side of the park with its name was destroyed a few years back, and a Boy Scout troop repaired it. That's really cool that the local troop worked with the community in this way.

Apple River Canyon (ARC) is my favorite campground in Illinois. No question. I'll start with a…read moreexcerpt from the Illinois DNR website: "Apple River Canyon State Park is in the hilly northwest corner of Illinois in Jo Daviess County near the Wisconsin border. Limestone bluffs, deep ravines, springs, streams and wildlife characterize this area. Once a part of a vast sea bottom that stretched from the Alleghenies to the Rockies, the scenic canyon area was formed by the action of the winding waters of the Apple River." My husband and I have been coming here since the late 90's. We love it here. Pros: + Only 2 1/2 hours from Chicago. + Did you read that paragraph above that I took from the website? It's BEAUTIFUL here. + 5 awesome hiking trails; some of them easier than others. + Hike (or drive) down to the river from your campsite. There's some good fishing. And our dogs love to swim in it. (Swimming for you is prohibited, however.) + 2 big loops in the campground. Most of them are nicely sized and thoughtfully spaced apart. + Only 15 minutes to Stockton (the closest town) for groceries and firewood. + Eight bucks per night for a non-electrical site. Cons: - I am not there right now. I am at my desk, rotting under flourescent lighting. This is the kind of place that, as soon as we arrive, I'm already saying, "I don't want to go home!" But I want to be completely honest - there are no showers here, and only pit toilets. There are, of course, 2 or 3 water stations in each loop (pump). So, if maintaining hygiene is the number one most important thing for you during a camping weekend, you may not find ARC as perfect as I do. Me? I try my best to make do. You're camping for God's sake! Shower when you go home! See you at Apple River Canyon!

My review may be a bit different than other people but during my time here I absolutely enjoy the…read moreviews but what I did not enjoy here were the amenities featured. The bathrooms here were absolutely in shambles and the maintenance at the park is pretty bad. Please be cautious that your GPS will not work in this area either. Poorly labeled trails as well where you can get lost.

Great find and well maintained by the state. Great views! Kayaked on the Mississippi River which…read morewas great but came with some current struggles. The boat launch is right across the road from MP. The hosts were nice. They are only checking in people from 12-4. Find your site and your tag is on the post. There are about 10 walk up sites you can get on FCFS basis. Some electric and some primitive sites. Make sure to select the correct one. Beautiful views are with the hike up the cliffs.

We had a family get together here today and rented the pavilion. For $50, you get a really nice…read morebuilding facility that has a fireplace and several large picnic tables. The public restrooms are in this building however, and you will have people coming and going during your event. It wasn't too busy today so not a problem. There is plenty of open grassy area to play, didn't get enough wind to be able to fly the kites, but we were close! But we definitely had a lot of room to kick the soccer ball, throw the football and run around. The grill worked great, it's 4 feet long and we were able to cook plenty of burgers and hotdog and such for the family. There's also a couple of electrical outlets so we were able to plug-in a couple crockpots for beans and such. There are quite a few mice living in this facility, so just be aware of that, but you are out in the country! There are many hikes and such that leave from this location so you could use this as homebase with other family members being able to go out and take a great hike as well. We had a great day and I have a feeling this is going to become a tradition PS. Bring the bug spray :)

My husband and I really enjoyed this state park. There were a lot of spots to overlook the…read moreMississippi River and pretty sights. Also, they had a bunch of parks for our baby to play in, giving her something fun to do. There isn't an entrance fee, but you do have to pay a donation to park. We went on a Sunday early in the morning and there was almost no one there. It was super easy to find parking. The trails are clearly marked, but you don't go off path and everything is easy to walk; at least the trails we went on. Some were uphill and some were downhill, but we were able to have our stroller. Overall, it was a nice little stop from Galena and enjoyed ourselves.

Traveling the river and staying in Dubuque overnight. Anxious to visit the park because all the…read morepositive reviews. Everything says it's open. (looking at you Yelp) ITS CLOSED. SEASONAL! Thank goodness there's lots of history to find in the oldest Iowa town. The one star is for all the review sights that don't check details.

I absolutely love the Arboretum. Beautiful peaceful place. Spent hours there just soaking in and…read moreenjoying the area. The koi pond was wonderful. This place charges no fee for admittance. I don't understand how they cannot as such a wonderful place. I highly recommend

Small and quite walkable even for me with a disability. The Japanese garden was quite pretty. We…read morewere there early in the day so not a lot of other people around, which can be enjoyable. Would return to see it in different seasons.

Such a beautiful spot to explore while visiting Dubuque! The Mines of Spain has great hiking…read moretrails, scenic views, and plenty of places to stop and take in the scenery. We especially loved the views around the Julien Dubuque Monument. Definitely worth adding to your list if you enjoy being outdoors!

Beautiful and extensive trails over a surprisingly large area, many along or near pretty waterways…read more....there are several well marked parking lots near the trail heads. We did get lost trying to find the nature center which didn't seem connected to the part of the park we first arrived in...it seems there are two separate entrances? Fortunately we were near the cool castle-like tower, the Julien Dubuque Monument, which offers stunning panoramic views of the Mississippi and of the city of Dubuque. Definitely would like to come back for more hiking here!

Maiden voyage at this location was quite the surprise. In the middle of rolling luscious green…read morehills. It felt pretty safe with the warden and Ranger making frequent passes. The host was very friendly and helpful with the 411. The sites are close enough together that it doesn't feel very remote though. Unfortunately, it was very extremely high temperatures so I didn't get to explore the hiking trails. But the beach and amphitheater were definitely worth checking out. Educational programs and food truck Saturdays. Wi-Fi is a little spotty so they recommend cash. The grounds are very clean as well as the restrooms and showers. Definitely feels like you're someplace else even if you're from the state of Wisconsin.

Lovely campsites and what could have been a wonderful experience was ruined by loud, drunk and…read morenoisy campers... partying, swearing and obnoxious throughout the evening. The entire area quiet and peaceful except for these two families who chose to make it miserable for the rest of us. We've camped at numerous WI State Parks and have never experienced this kind of rude behavior. These campers proudly displayed they were from Oconomowac, WI. Ugh ...!! We ended up moving to another site. Camp office was gracious and accommodating.

Every year my family goes on a big camping trip, and this year we visited Governor Dodge! A first…read morefor us. Looking back, I'd say overall it was A-OK. We booked a double site as we had two RVs and multiple tents. It sure was plenty spacious! However, we all had noted it would have been great to see photos of the site when booking so we could know more that to expect. It was 100% full sun, and truly not chance for shade. Most other sites at this park had lots of tree coverage, which we would have loved and likely swapped to giving the chance. Being in a wide open space in the dead of summer can be tricky. The grounds are massive and well-kept, with tons of great hiking trails. Overall stunning views and vast green spaces. There's two large lakes with options to kayak, canoe, fish, ,etc. Concession stand with tasty ice cream, and a handful of convenience-store type items. Oh and we also definitely enjoyed the playground area with the kiddos. On the bad side: the shower-houses were pretty terrible. At least the one nearest to our site. It was to the point that half of us chose to forego showering all together just to avoid it. We also had a bummer experience at one of the beaches. We arrived around 10am and were all swimming for a few hours (along with tons of other visitors), when the rangers arrived and promptly closed the beach due to dangerous water bacteria. The closing wasn't the issue, but instead allowing 50+ folks to swim and fish in it before doing so. We'd all wished this water testing was done before the beach 'opened' for the day, as it left us fairly nervous having the quickly be rushed out. Overall, plenty of positives to this gorgeous state park - we made some great camping memories! Just hope those few shared pieces of feedback could help for future plans/changes.

What an absolute 'Sconi gem!…read more Anything other than 5-stars is insane! Awesome trail system with great views. The trails are wonderfully maintained. If you just want to laze about on a lake-beach, you can do that too! I have family that live less than an hour from here and they haven't been in 10+ years, that is CRAZY!

Beautiful, very nicely maintained park overlooking the confluence of the Mississippi and Wisconsin…read morerivers. Short walk to bridal veil falls along a wooden boardwalk is worth it. Lots of birds. Lovely, serene spot.

Great Iowa park to get out and walk and enjoy the scenic views from higher up along the…read moreMississippi. The park has some nice easy hiking paths to discover. It has 11 miles of trails to check out. We did bridal veil falls trail and then Point Ann trail from the McGregor parking area. Other nearby attractions like effigy mounds national monument and local small town businesses. If you are from Iowa, don't forget to cross the river and grab some spotted cow beer from the town of prairie du chien in Wisconsin! They have a campground as well and river activities. Yellow river state park isn't far and is one of our favorites. Highly recommend for a vacation spot either for a day trip or multiple days to check out the surrounding attractions.