4 Places You’ll Love Camping in Winnebago County | Rockford Campgrounds

Looking for camping near Rockford? Make a weekend trip easy with these four parks and preserves for the best camping in Winnebago County!

4. Hononegah

Hononegah

Located just outside of Rockton, just across the Rainbow Bridge lies Hononegah Forest Preserve. Nestled in mature white oaks and hickory trees, Hononegah is the oldest forest preserve offering camping in Winnebago County. RV and car campers alike can reserve one of the 50+ sites within the preserve or use the campsites as a launching point for your fishing trip on the Rock River!

Make a reservation with the Forest Preserve here.

3. Seward Bluffs

SewardBluffs

Split down the middle by Grove Creek, Seward Bluffs features stunning limestone bluffs and magnificent oak trees for some great camping only twenty minutes away from Rockford! Take advantage of one of the 47 campgrounds that the Winnebago Forest Preserve operates from May to October. The preserve has room for RVs or Car Campers and offers over eight miles of hiking and equestrian trails to explore the Bluffs. Take a look at the next available date here!

Click here to make a reservation with the forest preserve!

2. Sugar River

Best River Camping Near Rockford

The largest of the Winnebago Forest preserve campgrounds with over eighty campgrounds, Sugar River has some of the best primitive river camping in Winnebago County. As one of the only places with showerhouses, this forest preserve is a great place for beginner or advanced campers!

sugar river forest preserve
Sugar River Forest Preserve (Tedvillaire)

If you’re willing to haul your stuff just a little bit from the parking lot, you should look at one of the primitive campgrounds just along the river. The campsites lie right along the Sugar River, allowing you to fall asleep to the sounds of rushing water and wake up the colorful birds that call the shores home.

Plan your trip on the Forest Preserve Site today!

1. Rock Cut State Park

Best Camping in Winnebago County

RockCutBeach

A quick twenty minutes away, Rock Cut State Park offers the best camping near Rockford, IL! With a large lake for kayaking, canoeing, and fishing and another 75 miles of combined hiking, mountain biking, and equestrian trails it’s impossible to stay bored during your visit!

Rock Cut holds over two hundred Class A sites and another sixty Class B sites, this is the best opportunity for camping in Winnebago County. They even have equestrian only campgrounds if you’re looking to ride in and out of your trip. During the day, check out Olson Beach – a great place to spend a hot day playing volleyball, eating ice cream, and swimming! The lake is full of largemouth bass, bluegill, redear sunfish, catfish, bullhead, northern pike, muskellunge, and walleye if you need to catch dinner.

camping-near-Rockford

During the winter, explore groomed cross-country and snowshoe trails and cozy up in the primitive cabin available at the park.

Find the next date available now!

Additional Options

If you’ve already explored these and want to tackle some new campgrounds, check out Starved Rock in LaSalle County or our guides for the nearby McHenry and Kane Counties! Don’t see your favorite Winnebago County campground? Drop us a line!

About the Author

Photo of author

Robbie

Robbie is a Co-Founder and editor at Midwest Camping. Robbie has backpacked over three hundred miles of the Appalachian trail, visited seventeen national parks, and camped regularly for the last two decades.

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