Location – 3/5
We visited Oak Point Campground for an easy weekend getaway. This park is located near Golcanda, IL and is about 10 minutes from Lake Glendale swimming area. Lake Glendale area is a quick detour off Interstate 24 and decently easy to find.
Campground – 4/5
One of the nice things about these campsites are the simplicity of them. There’s not much around but a nice flat private area, which is really all you want when camping. There were sufficient trees for hammock hanging and the neighbors were a decent distance away. The campsites were large and mostly flat and came with a fire ring and grill. We had planned to stay at site 53, but it was taken, though there were plenty of others available. 53 did look like it was a great spot. If you have kids, they can ride their bikes around the camp loop, but there aren’t other biking trails available.
Activities – 3/5
Swimming
The swimming area was a short drive up the road and was a $5/person entry fee. There is a concession stand selling food and drinks. Outside food and drink is allowed as long as it fall within their regulations (no coolers, no glass, no alcohol). There were other non-regulated swimming holes down at Bell Smith Springs. When you enter the path, go straight down the big steps, then find and go down the very long and steep rock staircase. Follow the white blaze trail to the right then there will be a switchback leading down to the creek. There are plenty of spots in that area to swim and a bit further in the swimming area is a place to jump off the rocks.
Hiking – 4/5
Within a 20-45 minute drive, the area has lots of great hiking including Bell Smith Springs, Garden of the Gods, and Burden Falls. These are some of the best hiking spots in hundreds of miles with some of the greatest natural features available.
Amenities – 3/5
Bathrooms
The campground had decent bathrooms near the camp sites and a much nicer facility closer to the entrance.
Firewood
Firewood was available at the host camp for $4-5 per bundle at pay post (honor system), but we brought our saw and were able to scavenge enough wood at our campsite to get us through the weekend.
Overall Rating – 3/5
Oak Point campground was a great no-frills campground that fit the bill for everything you need. We wish some of the activities were closer but it made up for it with with the sheer amount of things to do in the area. We really enjoyed camping here, and at the sister site called Redbud campground in case there are no sites left.
