Ottawa IL East Woods / Rainbow Pond

This place is AWESOME! If you are looking for primitive camping in Illinois, it is second to none. I will definitely be going back for every camp outing I do in Illinois. Upon arriving, Katie met me in town and I followed her to the property I would be staying at. We walked through the gate and down a grassy road through the woods for about 200 yards before coming to a clearing. Beautiful. As I looked out over the pond I saw all sorts of wildlife (beavers, turtles, frogs, deer, etc). We headed south as she showed me a couple more good spots I could set up and pointed me in the direction of the river, which runs right along the property. Overall a perfect experience. Huge area all to yourself without having to worry about camping neighbors right next door like every other campsite. Me, girlfriend, nephew(5yo), and 2 dogs in case you were wondering.

Response from Katie, the Host, on May 27th, 2018

Adam, thank you for being my very first Hip camp camper! You were full of smiles and cheerful! I loved your two very well behaved dogs. You were a wonderful guest and are welcome when ever you want to come to my little wild paradise. Thank you, Katie Troccoli

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Wow! What a spectacular place!! Katie came and met me when I arrive and was a very sweet and helpful host. The pond is beautiful and there are a few easy trails to hike on the property. Unfortunately I caught some lighting around 8:30 and it was too hot to sleep in my car so I ended up at a hotel but I will definitely be back. If you ask when you stay, she has a couple of other properties not listed on hipcamp. Thank you for such a wonderful stay!!

The space was nice and pretty quiet. Not much road noise (but there was a bit.) power was not working for some reason.

My time on Katie's "private state park" was beyond incredible! A large piece of wooded land with trails and a pond - you are sure to see and hear wildlife! There is a raised peninsula area overlooking the pond that is the most ideal spot to setting up camp. I felt so immersed in the beautiful rhythms of nature - hearing the birds during the day and the frogs at night.

As a solo traveler, Katie made me feel so comfortable and safe. She gave me a tour of the land and let me know what sort of animals lived there. She even invited me to text her if I got scared and she would find other accommodations for me. Katie was very accessible via text before my arrival and even suggested a local grocery store when I let her know I had to pick up a few things.

If you are visiting Starved Rock and are looking for local, primitive camping - I don't think it can get any better than this!

Thanks!

Hostess was fantastic! Site was secluded and gorgeous!

Very pretty, but lots of traffic noise.

Our host, Katie was very kind and good with communicating. The camp sites are gorgeous! - but ONLY if you dont mind some SERIOUS interstate /bar next door/hospital/ some beeping factory/ and a train station NOISE! So sad, the campground itself looked to be a million miles away, and if you're deaf, OR possibly looking for a party spot w lots of alcohol...sure would be marvelous! BUUT if u want a nice relaxing /romantic get away from the noises of city life this is NOT the place! After listening to sirens, trains,interstate.and beeping noises all night...drowing out the natural sounds we came for:(:(:( - we ended up getting up at 5am because sleep was impossible, and leaving. So sad, its such a beautiful place, if you don't mind it sounding like you pitched your tent in the middle of an intersection in downtown ottowa.:(

Hard to believe that your 5 minutes from downtown. Awesome Location.