By:
Submission
The Sandy Beach Cammpground is located on the northern shores of Coralville Lake. The Coralville Lake Project is a multiple use project providing primary benefits in flood control and low flow augmentation, and secondary benefits in recreations, fish and wildlife management, and forest management. Coralville Lake provides many recreational opportinities, including boating,, camping, hiking, mountain biking, lake and river fishing, swimming, water activities, picnicking, and hunting.
Visitors enjoy Coralville Lake for camping, boating, fishing, swimming and water activities. Anglers will find large and small mouth bass, crappie, walleye, and catfish.
The Sandy Beach Campground offers 58 campsites to include full hook-up campsites, standard electric campsites, and non-electric walk- to tent campsites. Amenities include modern restroom and shower facilities, playground, dump station, drinking water, and entrance station. The Sandy Beach Day Use Area offers picnic sites, a large group picnic shelter, boat ramp, fish cleaning station, vault restroom, and lake access.
Coralville Lake is located in the Iowa River Valley, just north of Iowa City. The Sandy Beach Campground lies among a heavily wooded forest of mixed hardwood species on the northern reaches of Coralville Lake. Wildlife is abundant throughout the project. Whitetail deer, turkeys, pheasants, waterfowl, song birds and other species roam the lands around the lake.
The Devonian Fossil Gorge is just below the dam, offering a unique opportunity to explore a 375-million-year old sea floor and discover fossil remains of sea life that once inhabited this tropical marine environment. Twenty Discovery Points can be found throughout the site. The Lake MacBride Golf Course is nearby, offering nine holes among rolling hills. Several additional golf courses are scattered around the lake. Iowa City/Coralville offers the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, University of Iowa campus, hospital and clinics, numerous restaurants and shops as well as Coral Ridge Mall. Cedar Rapids has wonderful cultural, historic and ethnic attractions such as The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library and is the home of the Kernels Professional Baseball Club. West Branch boasts the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site and Presidential Library/Museum. At Amana Colonies visit seven quaint villages with outstanding restaurants, wineries, historic sites and specialty shops. Kalona is known as the Quilt Capital of Iowa and is home to an Old Order Amish and Mennonite Community.
From Interstate 380 (Shueyville, Iowa) take Exit 10 towards Shueyville. Travel east on 120th St. NW for 1.2 miles. At the stop sign, turn right onto NE Curtis Bridge Rd. Travel south on NE Curtis Bridge Rd for 1.1 miles. Turn left onto Sandy Beach Rd. NE and travel east for 1.9 miles. The entrance to Sandy Beach Campground will be located on the right side of the road. From Highway 1 (Solon, Iowa) turn onto Hwy 382 NE/E Main St at the stop light. Travel on Hwy 382 NE for 2.6 miles. At the traffic circle, turn left onto Ely Rd. NE. Travel on Ely Rd. NE for 1 mile. Turn left onto 140th St. NE and travel west for 2.0 miles. 140th St. NE will become Sandy Beach Rd. NE. Continue traveling on Sandy Beach Rd. NE for 1.7 miles. The entrance to the Sandy Beach Campground will be located on the left side of the road.
Man this place is great. Cleanest bathrooms I've ever seen. Great spot to do some fishing. Firewood available for sale! So why not 5 stars? Well, if you stay near the check-in station (I'm at site 51), you're in for a midnight tan from these nuclear powered fusion lights ... that are on all night. It's like the army corps is running a grow op out here. I feel like I'm camping in a football stadium, during a night game. As he was leaving, I asked the nice man at the check-in in station if he would turn them off... He said they were on a timer and they would go off. Great! When? I asked. He turned, winked, and said with a werthers original in between his cheek ... "around dawn" as his golf cart charioted him off ... to a darker corner of the campground no doubt. 🤔
We had to make an abrupt change due to the shootings at Maquoketa Caves. 😔 You can't go anywhere nowadays....
Needless to say... Great place and hidden gem. Grounds crew are super nice and helpful. Plenty of firewood. More importantly, it's super close to Lake Macbride Boat 🛥 Rentals. We went kayaking and rented a pontoon both days.
Showers are hot 🔥 and good pressure.
I highly recommend this place! 🔥 💪🏾 💯 ❤️
Immaculate great little wooded park on the river. Gorgeous grassy areas to play on. Amazing water pressure and clean hot showers. Flocks of gulls flying over the water were breathtaking. Highly recommend.
