We are located almost in the very center of Ohio, 4 miles from Interstate 71, exit 140 in the peaceful country. Only open on weekends, your getaway is on a 20-acre working farm that offers PYO food (during the growing season), fresh chicken & duck eggs, primitive camping, hiking, creeking, bluegill catch & release fishing, star gazing, a pollinator maze, frog habitat pool &
We are located almost in the very center of Ohio, 4 miles from Interstate 71, exit 140 in the peaceful country. Only open on weekends, your getaway is on a 20-acre working farm that offers PYO food (during the growing season), fresh chicken & duck eggs, primitive camping, hiking, creeking, bluegill catch & release fishing, star gazing, a pollinator maze, frog habitat pool & Little Free Library. There is a nice trail alongside the creek with vernal pools & trails in the woods. The spring wildflowers are spectacular. You'll want clothing protection from the stinging nettle, wild roses & ticks when hiking. We like to play outside & have horseshoes, cornhole, & other games like croquet & bocce ball.
We enjoy sharing the peace, quiet & abundance of nature here with dark starry nights, the sounds of frogs & barred owls with plenty of lightening bugs, dragonflies & butterflies. You'll want to bring a good supply of food & water as there are no stores, gas stations or fast food (ugh) places for 4 miles. We do have a small camp store with essentials, firewood, ice, supplies & others goods. Delco water is 50 cents a gallon.
There are 31 large campsites located near the pond, alongside the woods, some open, some group areas. You may want to bring a sun shade canopy as the shaded sites get booked first. There are no hookups for electricity or water, no showers, no wifi but do have clean portapotties. We charge $5 per bike, $15 per carload for tent camping, $20 for popups, $30 for small rvs. These amounts align with wear & tear on the land, number of wheels & weight. There are no addl. fees for extra people nor for dogs, holidays or peak season.
We are a family friendly camp & people come here to for peace, quiet, relaxation and to enjoy the sounds of nature. If your group likes to be continually loud or inconsiderate with rowdy partying most of the night, then this is not the camp for you.
Check in is at daybreak, check out is dusk. A state required registration form is at the house area/parking lot by the big pole barn upon arrival. Please arrive before dusk so that you can see where you are going & not accidentally drive over a firepit, site post or porta-potty, lol. We also prefer to avoid driving at dark or delivering firewood thru the grounds since none of us likes headlights & vehicle noise around the nightly campfire.
Our rules are common sense. The most important rule is driving 5 mph so that we have time to brake for people & dogs playing, wandering chickens, the feral cats, and wildlife like baby bunnies & newborn deer just getting their legs. The 2nd rule is no glass containers - we hate flat tires & it hurts when we get glass in our feet/paws when it accidentally breaks. The 3rd most important rule is that kids under 18 must be attended to at all times with an adult - there is a frog pool with 10' of water, the fishing pond is 8' deep & the creek can turn into a churning river from heavy rains.
Trash in, trash out please. We like to help keep Mother Earth clean & have provided recycling cans for plastic & cans. A dumpster is provided by the big pole barn and if you will place broken metal poles out by the dumpster, our scrappers will recycle. Please do not burn plastic or Styrofoam with harmful dioxins that will contaminate our bodies, air, soil & water.
The driving lanes are made of grass, not concrete or blacktop & it gets soggy during heavy rains (may have to hoof it in if the tiled fields haven't yet drained). In the event of severe storms & lightening, we always open the big pole barn up for immediate safe cover where you can enjoy board games or play with musical instruments such as a washtub bass, washboards, cowbells, small drums & glockenspiel.
Within a half hour drive is the Heart of Ohio trail (hiking/biking), the Kokosing water trail (canoeing/kayaking/tubing), 3 state parks with swimming beaches & shooting facilities. Nearby water activities are listed on the bulletin board by the big pole barn. On holiday weekends, we offer scavenger hunts, contests for fishing, horseshoes & cornhole, game days and enjoy potluck dinners. We are celebrating Halloween on Saturdays on October 10, 17, 24 and 31 (more info on Facebook).
Please give time to respond as my phone is not glued to me & I work another full time job!
Since GPS does not our location, exact directions can be found at grinsandpickinscampfarm/directions . com to 1 County Road 170 in Marengo. Your booking site is auto-generated and is not the actual site reserved. Feel free to look at pics of the campsites on our website, click the Campsite Map & contact us to reserve the one you want! For more information, we are on the web & feel free to like us on Facebook! Thanks for looking! Hope to see you in the great outdoors - where you make fun happen!
- Check in: After 8AM
- Check out: Before 6PM
- Cancellation policy: Super Flexible
- On arrival: Meet and greet
- Minimum nights: 1 night
- Accepts bookings: 12 months out
You know what would make this trip even better?
Take advantage of these offers available to add to your trip to Grins & Pickin's CampFarm - tents
Activities
Offered on the Host's property or nearby.
Fishing
Catch and release bluegill, great for kids!
Hiking
There are 10 acres of woods with hiking trails & a winding creek. Spring is filled with tons of wildflowers (have documented 3 ...Read more
Wildlife watching
The wildlife is plentiful here! You will probably see lots of different frogs, deer, turkey, coyote, mink, bald eagles, barred ...Read more
Terrain
Natural features you'll find at Grins & Pickin's CampFarm - tents in Ohio.
Field
There is a mowed playing field near the fishing hole and a field of trails in the prairie garden!
River, stream, or creek
You'll need to cross the creek to get into the woods. The wildlife drink from the creek. We've found mussels, salamander, fish,...Read more
Swimming hole
There is a small area in the creek that is deep enough for a swimming hole when we get rains. During the very hot summer, the c...Read more
Wetlands
There are protected vernal pools in the woods where wood frogs hatch their young. Probably salamander and fairy shrimp too.
The vibe at Grins & Pickin's CampFarm - tents
Places to see near Grins & Pickin's CampFarm
150 Reviews
Christy is fantastic!!! We are already in the process of selecting new dates! For our first experience camping ever we couldn’t have made a better choice in campgrounds. She went out of her way to make sure we were okay! Everything was clean. The camp ground was beautiful, we enjoyed the fresh veggies and fishing. My children loved Christy!! Definetly recommend Grins and Pickins!!
Perfect quick get away spot. Easy checkin, plenty of space and very clean portable potties. We went on an impulse hoping to get to see the Perseid meteor shower and it worked out great.
Thank you Michele! The impulse getaways are the best!
My 5-year-old son and I visited last weekend. We were both quite impressed. Spacious well-maintained campsites and hassle-free check-in / check-out. We arrived around 5:30 on Saturday and didn't leave until 4:00 pm Sunday. My son got to visit the chickens and ducks and we got to spend a little time pulling some pan fish out of the pond.
Things to do:
Return with adult friends to check out a festival!
Return with my family for a few days of R&R!
We felt more than welcome and enjoyed the peaceful serenity that is synonymous with Grins & Pickens!
Thank you for the review Barry! Was very nice to meet you both!
Excellent Service! The lady managing the location went to an extra effort to contact me to let me know about an event occurring at the time of my booking. She had an eye out for our arrival and flagged us down when she saw we seemed a bit lost and confused. The property was clean. Each tent spot had it own fire pit. Very happy and will return here again soon!
Thank you for your review! Have really enjoyed our spiritual conversations. Hope that all is healed now!
Grins & Pickin's CampFarm was a wonderful experience. My wife and I hadn't been camping for a number of years, and wanted to introduce our small children (ages 4 and 1.5) to sleeping in a tent. The CampFarm was close to home, the price was right, and the hosts were awesome with our kids. The campsite was along the edge of a farm field backing up to the hedgerow and woodlot. The site was blasted by the sun late afternoon and evening, but comfortably shaded for breakfast. I look forward to camping here again.
Thank you for your review! It makes me happy that you are sharing your camping skills with your own family! Fun, fun...
This is a fantastic place to camp! Super quiet, pretty well secluded, and a really nice view. The homeowner was super hospitable and checked in with us. They also knew we wanted privacy, so they left us alone for the most part. I would highly recommend this place. I can't wait to go back.
Hi Kelly, thank you for the great review! And for coming back for hammocking!
Excellent. Great private campsite in the woods, field sites also available. Host was kind and accommodating.
Thank you for the review Brad!
First I would like to say how nice Christy was and she refunded the second night that we didn’t stay and she definitely did not have to do that. That being said, the farm was nothing like what we expected. The sites were mowed but the only thing separating them was tall weeds. The website advertised eggs and vegetables to pick and I didn’t see anything close to being able to do that. The best sites were taken and even those were not that great. The sites in the woods were way too small even for a small tent. The fire rings at the other sites were very small, I depend on a fire to cook our food and it was barely big enough to do that. The pond was small and very green and cloudy. Saw a few fish but not what we’re used to fishing in. The whole place was just not how I pictured it from looking at their website.
Hi Shannon, thank you for your review, even tho the farm was not what you expected.
Grins & Pickin’s CampFarm was perfect for my son’s first camping adventure. Before the first night was over he told me he really likes camping. Christy was an amazing host, she was full of tips, and information. She even invited us on hikes with her through the woods, telling us about different wildlife and nature in the area. Bunnies, frogs, butterflies, fish, chickens, ducks all were entertainment for my son and I. He even got farm fresh eggs for breakfast! We had a relaxing stay especially when the rain came- Christy opened her barn for us to hang out in and play games. Christy is a sweetheart and I am so happy to have made Grins & Pickin’s CampFarm my son’s first camping trip.
Hey Jessica, thank you for your review! I remember his little survival outfit complete with a compass and how his sharp eyes found that camo frog in the creek. And the time when he said he was going to catch a frog. Loved how he wanted to show that big frog to me! Thanks for those memories!
Awards
- Property
- Grins & Pickin's CampFarm
- State
- Ohio
- Country
- United States
- $15/night
- 31 Sites
Campers also viewed
Nearby cities
Best Camping near me
Tanisha! Thank you for the review! I remember how receptive you became to bugs & even taking pics of praying mantis. Could have done without the bees in the gray water tanks tho :-( Am so happy to have met you - you all have a special place in my heart!