You don’t have to leave the Midwest for a great RV destination. Here are 7 sites to check

All too often, RV owners point their mobile homes west and don’t stop until they hit Colorado or Utah. Although the Midwest doesn’t have the elevation or sandstone majesty of the most famous national parks, it does offer myriad opportunities for adventure and family fun. (Plus you’ll save a bundle on gas.)

Just because these areas don’t see as many visitors as the national parks out west doesn’t mean they’re unpopular. On the contrary, several of these parks are seeing record visitors, so you should make campground reservations as soon as possible for a late-fall retreat.

Located on a peninsula just north of Green Bay, Door County boasts a whopping five state parks — Potawatomi, Whitefish Dunes, Peninsula, Newport and Rock Island — within its 482 square miles jutting into Lake Michigan. Visitors flock to the area for fishing, kayaking, hiking, biking and more. Peninsula State Park’s Eagle Trail is one favorite hike, forcing walkers to scramble over huge boulder piles and down rugged, root-covered drops. Much of the hike features gorgeous views of the lake as well.

Best place to camp: Potawatomi State Park has more than 120 campsites, although only about 40 have electric hookups. Two paved sites for campers with disabilities also are available.

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore has as much natural beauty as any national park east of the Mississippi, but far fewer of the crowds that designation can bring. Most visitors come to see the namesake cliffs rising above Lake Superior, but Pictured Rocks offers so much more, including gorgeous waterfalls and breathtaking hikes.

[ A loop around the lake: Michigan’s Upper Peninsula provides a welcome, nature-packed escape ]

The best way to see the namesake rock cliffs is by water. You can either book a leisurely cruise taking you past the iconic rock features or, if you’re feeling a little more adventurous, hook up with an outfitter such as Pictured Rocks Kayaking.

Best place to camp: Boasting an incredible location right on Lake Superior, Munising Tourist Park offers terrific value (even if there’s a bit of noise coming from the nearby highway). Splurge on a waterfront site if possible, as the sunsets are spectacular.

Referred to as Ohio’s Crown Jewel, the state’s most popular park attracts about the same number of visitors as Cuyahoga Valley National Park to the northeast. (Some folks argue that given the Hocking Hills’ abundance of gorgeous scenery and outdoor opportunities, it deserves the national park designation more.)

Hocking Hills State Park has multiple popular hiking trails, including Old Man’s Cave, which crams multiple waterfalls, sandstone cliffs and the eponymous cave into about a mile walk. It can get busy during the high season and the weekends, but you can always visit the less-crowded trails located in the bordering state forest.

Best place to camp: Hocking Hills State Park campground itself. Most of the nearly 200 sites offer electric, with a few full hookup spots available as well. Some of the hiking trails leave from the campground, so you can just park, set up and start having fun.

While driving through Custer State Park, I was shocked it wasn’t a national park like neighboring Wind Cave or Badlands, which is less than an hour east. Bison and bighorn sheep are frequent sights throughout the park — just be sure to give them plenty of room if you want to take a photo.

Although only 1.6 miles, the Cathedral Spires hike might be my favorite in South Dakota given the abundant opportunities for photos of the picturesque pinnacles. Bicyclists can take a 3-mile spur path to reach the George S. Mickelson Trail, which winds 109 miles through the center of the state.

Best place to camp: The park offers nine campsites throughout the park, although not all of them have cell service. The Game Lodge Campground is centrally located near many of the park’s most popular sites, and abuts a creek that’s perfect for a summer dip.

A young Theodore Roosevelt wrote of the “desolate, grim beauty” of these Dakota badlands, and not much has changed more than a century later. The landscape is so open and vast, on many trails you’re much more likely to come across a disinterested bison than another visitor.

There are two units, north and south, about an hour apart. Both are worth a visit, but you may want to just go north for a day trip rather than an extended stay. While there, hike the 4.3-mile Caprock Coulee Trail for its gorgeous overlooks. It can be a little rugged and hard to navigate along a rocky ridge, so try it only if you feel comfortable with a little adventure.

Best place to camp: You can choose between three primitive campgrounds inside the park — Cottonwood Campground would be my recommendation — but if you spent all your money at the gift shop, you can camp for free at the Scoria Pit in the Little Missouri National Grasslands, just outside the park boundary. There are no amenities like bathrooms or picnic tables, but the sweeping views are priceless.

A multisport adventurer’s dream, this state park an hour northeast of Duluth offers several incredible hiking trails with Instagram-worthy backdrops. Paddlers looking for a challenge can tackle the choppy water of Lake Superior, while others can find a much calmer experience in the park’s six inland lakes.

The 3-mile Baptism River hike leads to the gorgeous High Falls. There are some steep steps leading up to the falls, but they shouldn’t be a huge obstacle for most visitors. The 1.3-mile Shovel Point Trail is shorter, easier and gives hikers gorgeous views of the Lake Superior coastline.

Best place to camp: RV owners typically prefer the Baptism River Campground, with more than half the 34 sites offering electric hookups as well as the standard amenities. Hiking trails leave directly from the campground.

Nicknamed the “Little Smokies” because of the area’s resemblance to the Great Smoky Mountains, this state park about an hour south of Indianapolis offers some of the best autumn leaf-peeping opportunities in the Midwest, as the ash, sycamore and walnut trees explode with color. Throughout October the park roads are clogged with tourists, but the relatively easy hiking trails are much less crowded.

Despite Indiana’s entirely accurate reputation as being pancake flat, Brown County State Park is one of the Midwest’s best mountain-biking destinations, earning a Ride Center designation from the International Mountain Bicycling Association. Nearby Hoosier National Forest and Morgan Monroe State Forest offer additional outdoor opportunities as well.

Best place to camp: The campground inside the park offers more than 350 sites with electric hookups.

Robert Annis is a freelance writer.

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