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Rolling hills, babbling brooks, open meadows, forested ridges, a lake nestled in the hills and a river winding its way through woods and fields -- that's Ionia Recreation Area. The 4,500 acres of flat to rolling terrain is a mixture of open field, mature hardwood forest and pine plantations. Four miles of Grand River floodplain follow the river course on the north border of the park. Dammed waterfowl floodings and other wetlands dot the park. Birding is excellent, with more than 199 species identified by the Audubon Society, and wildflowers abound.
Exit 64 from I-96. Go N 3 miles to the park entrance. 30 minutes E of Grand Rapids. 30 minutes W of Lansing.
Visiting the first part of August in loop 1-50, very quiet park at this time. Most spots are shady, and many do not have grass. I'm sure it is a muddy mess here when it rains. Only one bathhouse for 100 camp sites. Bathrooms were clean, showers were very old and had a weird foam type coating which I imagine just holds in moisture/mold etc.
Playground is just some swings. Not pleased with the beach. On a small inland lake, goose poop and green algae in shallow water. We chose this spot so we could do day trips to the zoo and Meijer Gardens.
Fantastic, secluded campground. The tent only sites are pretty close in proximity but, in the off season, you have plenty of space to yourself. The hike around Sessions Lake is gorgeous, especially during peak color season. Highly recommend staying here.
We have camped here over 20 years both on the modern side and the equestrian side. Most of the campsites are shaded and are more private than other camps we have gone through. There is a very nice beach, walking trails and fishing area. The horse side does not have electricity but has some great trails to ride. There's a bridge to cross and a stream if you want to cross. You can pick how far you want to go on the maps provided. There are some sites with corrals for the horses, or you can tie the horses. There is also a nice day staging area, an arena, and an obstacle course. Both sides are well maintained. The online site shows the site and has a very good description. The only thing we have found fault with this campground is that they do not have a great area for the kids to play. There's a couple of swings and a sandbox. It is in a nice area with some trees. The campground is very close to ionia, which makes it convenient to run to town to pick up things. Dogs are welcome, generators on the horse side, but shut off at night.
Beautiful campground and well kept. Great price. The beach is nice with plenty of parking, decent pricing on food, a firepit anyone can use right on the beach. Cute shaded area. Down side is the path to get to the rail trail (for non-mountain bikes) is not easy to ride and about 2 miles from campsites; sites are close; hard to fund a large dump bin that's close; needs to be more bike friendly on main roads
I think that this park is one of the prettiest state campgrounds in the lower, lower peninsula. There is a beautiful walking trail circling Sessions Lake. We stayed on site 37 and all the sites down that row are on a forested area, perfect for hammocks, and you get lovely views while you sit at the fire.
The bathrooms are older. The men's bathroom was missing the soap dispensers and the showers had some 6 legged friends and again, were older. There is a vault toilet right next to site 37 and it did smell pretty bad (not at the site, just near the bathroom) but that was likely due to people not properly using the vault toilet.
I will definitely be staying at this park again, it is pretty comparable to Sleepy Hollow but in my personal opinion it is a little prettier.
