2355 E. 75 South
Albion, IN 46701
(260) 636-2654
Chain O' Lakes State Park is located about 4 miles north of the Intersection of U.S. 33 & State Road 9 in North Eastern Indiana. The park is called chain-of-lakes because there are 8 lakes that connect with each other within the park. One of the more popular activities at Chain-O-Lakes is canoeing the lakes. Other outdoor activities include, hiking, biking, swimming, fishing, cross country skiing, & camping.
Cross-country skiing is a popular winter activity at Chain-O-Lakes. There are two trails: the beginners & advanced. The beginner's trail has small rolling hills and is easy to navigate. The advanced trail is very challenging. It has many steep slopes, some of which have curves and abrupt turns at the bottom of the hills. You will need to bring your own skis because the park stopped renting skis in the middle '90s. Being just outside the southernmost edge of the lake effect snow zone, normal winters provide less opportunities during each winter than for state parks farther north.
Chain-O-Lakes maintains rustic family cabins that are open year round. Since the cabins are very popular, you should reserve them early! It is common to reserve the cabins up to a year in advance. Keep in mind that pets are not allowed in the cabins.
Chain-O-Lakes supplies shelters for you to reserve. They may be reserved up to one year in advance. Shelters not reserved one day in advance will be open on a free, first-come, first served basis. Shelters are open from 7am to 11pm. Reservations may be make in person at the park office or by telephone.
The campgrounds are divided into 4 separate campgrounds. A camp store is open during the busier weekends and sells most needed items as well as firewood.
Half of the campsites can be reserved, the others are available on a first come first served basis. You can only reserve the sites by mail or in person. When sending a reservation in by mail, you must include a $6 reservation fee in addition to the fee charged for the site. As of February 1, 2002 electric sites (class A) are $16/night, non-electric sites (class B) are $13/night, and primitive sites (class C) are $8/night.
Camping reservations can be sent in as early as March 1st for reservations between May 25th through Labor Day. When making reservations for Memorial Day, July 4th, & Labor Day, you must reserve and pay for the site for three nights. Sorry, no telephone reservations are accepted yet. Reservations cannot be cancelled by may be reassigned to other people or changed to other dates if you have your reservation receipt.
The family campground contains 331 electric (class A), 49 non-electric(class B), & 33 primitive (class C) campsites.
Up to 6 people may occupy any one site. Up to 2 tents or 1 camper and 1 tent may occupy any 1 site. Only 1 vehicle is allowed on each site and this regulation is strictly enforced! A site may be rented for a maximum of 14 days.
The rally campground contains 4 primitive campsites and are designed to accommodate large groups of 5 or more camping units. The rate for this campground is $8/night times the number of camping units. The facilities include: nearby drinking water and pit toilets. Advanced reservations are required to camp in this campground. Up to 2 weeks should be allowed in reserving by mail or you can reserve an area in person between Monday through Friday. Mailed in reservations should include at $25 deposit plus a $6 handling fee.
The youth tent campground area contains camping areas for groups of 10 or more with campers under 21 years and their adult leaders. The sites are available to public, semi-public, and not-for-profit groups only. Only tent camping is permitted. The facilities include: fire rings, picnic tables, pit toilets, and nearby drinking water. The rate for these sites are $2 per person per night. Reservations can be made by sending a $20 deposit, which will be credited toward the total bill, plus a $6 handling fee.
The canoe campground is a secluded campground that is only accessible by hiking a short distance or canoeing a larger distance. The rate for the this campground is $8/night. Facilities include fire rings, picnic tables, pit toilets, and nearby drinking water.
Up to date Camping Rates & Other Camping Info
Number of times this page has been accessed since July 9, 1998
Last updated March 22, 2002