A truly beautiful hike filled with caves to explore! There are a total of nine caves, ranging in…read moresize from massive walk-through caverns to smaller, single-person passages. Two of the largest caves let you walk straight from one entrance to another, while one of the smaller ones requires squeezing through two tight openings before you can barely stand inside--definitely an adventure! The trails are not wheelchair accessible. The full hike took us about three hours at a steady pace. I'd recommend bringing a flashlight for exploring, though it's not absolutely necessary. Between the unique caves and the gorgeous trails, this park is a gem. I'll definitely be returning to Maquoketa Caves in the future!

There is coons but they don't attack and are mostly friendly bathrooms may have roaches but i…read morecouldn't tell it was dark because I diddent want to find the unknown light switch but if you don't think of that it's a great experience

Absolutely beautiful and so much fun! We stayed for a few nights and I wish it was longer! We went…read morefishing (we just had to bring our own supplies!) kayaking, hiking around the property and enjoyed the fire pit!! This is seriously such an amazing place to escape from the hustle and bustle of life and the people running it are awesome and so sweet!

Great park and historical site in Rock Island that's an important part of Native American culture…read more If you want to know more, come here and check out the museum about it. Black Hawk State Historic Site is located on the former location of an amusement park, that's no lie. Lodge has a museum about the famous warrior and the village that was here. The rest of the park has other feature such as trails. Black Hawk was a famous chief. In the 1800s the Sauk tribe was living here. They were later forced to move west. Soon this area became an amusement park. The railroad was used to bring people here, and when cars got popular, the park didn't have as many visitors. It soon closed. Then the Civilian Conservation Corps build the lodge and made the area a park. All this can be learned by visiting the museum. This is located in the lodge, and you can watch a video about the history of all this. Also there's trails for hiking. One overlooks the Rock River. Elsewhere in the park is the site of an 1886 coal mine. There's also a pioneer cemetery with a few old tombstones. Also there's lots of deer. The last time here we came across a bunch in the woods just standing around and eating leaves. Cool place as far as this area goes. It's got a lot of history to it. The museum in the lodge is helpful for learning about whatever.

Black Hawk State Park is a real gem for Rock Island. Beautiful at any time of the year, there are…read moreseveral picnic areas, three playgrounds, a lodge, a museum and reception hall, and many hiking trails throughout the park. I've loved coming here throughout my life! Lately I've mostly been utilizing the trails which are easy, though some maintenance is needed for deteriorating wooden walkways, washed out sections, and fallen trees on the trails. It's pretty quiet on the weekdays, though I'd imagine things will start picking up now that summer is in full swing. If you haven't been to Black Hawk Park, I highly recommend it! Please pick up after yourself and your dogs.

Cool place to go very organized and friendly place for exploring the outdoor areas of pools n…read morefishing

A Great place to camp, have gathering or Picnic, swim and enjoy nature with family. Very spacious…read moreand well kept

This was a nice place to take a break in my road trip! I was skeptical as I followed my navigation…read moreinto a rather industrial area-could there really be a park and an island there? And as promised, a little parking lot and a park sign popped up as I rounded the corner. There were a number of other cars parked in the lot, but there was ample parking. I walked along the river, and then crossed the bridge to the island. There's an display right as you enter the island, and it has information about the history of the area and the island as well as information about the wildlife present. There's also a map displaying the various trails. I did the factory trail, which takes you through the Republic Steel ruins. This connected with the Loading Dock trail, which I used to connect back to the bridge and leave the island. It was cool to see the ruins, however it is marred with graffiti. It would be a cool place for a photo op otherwise.

We took the dogs here for a morning walk with family members. It's a very nice area, somewhat…read moretranquil through the trees. Nice scenic overlooks of the backwaters. We had to do a few laps on the perimeter trail to get our steps in, will likely weave through the different trails next time. There are a few areas with graffiti and one area with a lot of broken beer bottles. Someone always has to ruin a good thing. Several locals we talked to said they've never been. I recommend giving it a try.

Great find and well maintained by the state. Great views! Kayaked on the Mississippi River which…read morewas great but came with some current struggles. The boat launch is right across the road from MP. The hosts were nice. They are only checking in people from 12-4. Find your site and your tag is on the post. There are about 10 walk up sites you can get on FCFS basis. Some electric and some primitive sites. Make sure to select the correct one. Beautiful views are with the hike up the cliffs.

We had a family get together here today and rented the pavilion. For $50, you get a really nice…read morebuilding facility that has a fireplace and several large picnic tables. The public restrooms are in this building however, and you will have people coming and going during your event. It wasn't too busy today so not a problem. There is plenty of open grassy area to play, didn't get enough wind to be able to fly the kites, but we were close! But we definitely had a lot of room to kick the soccer ball, throw the football and run around. The grill worked great, it's 4 feet long and we were able to cook plenty of burgers and hotdog and such for the family. There's also a couple of electrical outlets so we were able to plug-in a couple crockpots for beans and such. There are quite a few mice living in this facility, so just be aware of that, but you are out in the country! There are many hikes and such that leave from this location so you could use this as homebase with other family members being able to go out and take a great hike as well. We had a great day and I have a feeling this is going to become a tradition PS. Bring the bug spray :)

This is a beautiful park with super interesting geological formations (especially striking at the…read morelower level picnic area and the Punchbowl Trail). For a quick visit the Punchbowl Trail is a good short hike (a couple of miles to and back?) but there are some steep stairs if you end up on certain paths. To avoid the stairs park at the lower level and hike on the (mostly) level path to and back... The Boundary Trail is also awesome and usually very peaceful, but it takes quite a bit longer and there will be a few steep hills... The Pine Creek Grist Mill is a picturesque historic site in the park, with its own spacious parking lot, a cool bridge across the creek, and an old schoolhouse and cabin...the mill is open limited hours during part of the year...it was interesting to see the mill machinery and learn about the historic flour-making processes (but it's very hot in the building during the summer months)... Nice shelters and campsites, too, some with fireplaces and fire pits...there's probably not a spot in the park that is not scenic!

Visited for the first hike of the spring. It is my first time here. We drove from Iowa City and it…read morewas about 50mins of views of empty corn field (well it is just Iowa). The park is not very big. We went on an hiking trail near the parking lot. It would have been nice to have some sort of map or marking/signs in the park but we failed to find any. As an result I think we made a wrong turn and had too short of a hike as the result. No running water available in the bathroom so be prepared to bring hand sanitizer. But otherwise the visit was enjoyable, my friends' bunny enjoyed hopping around on the grass near the picnic area (pretty clean).

Great outdoor public area where people come to hike, fish, picnic, relax and enjoy a bike ride on…read morethe bike path, to enjoy a fun day of adventure and discovery. My brothers and I had a special Gerber bench made to honor the memory of our parents that dedicated their lives to honoring youth wrestling and supporting their deep Christen faith, that are apart of the fruits of the spirit!

great scenery and ambience with the stream running and different levels of view places to hike…read moreand views are spectacular highly recommend coming here

Nice little state park for an extended weekend. Please note that there are no shower facilities or…read moreflush toilets. Vault style only. The park features two camping areas. We stayed in Canyon Ridge, which is non electric. All 50 sites were spacious and clean. The camp host and a few area residents sold firewood, which was a nice surprise The park has a number of hiking trails that are short, but challenging. Many lead to, or start at the Apple River, so there is plenty to keep kids occupied.