Nice place to go for a picnic or a hike down the trails , can even camp out if you like, we usually…read morego during the week when less people have lunch and fish a little

A great place for the "outdoorsy" types! You can camp, fish, hike, picnic, and there is a free…read moreboat launch area. Good fishing along the river. You do compete with the river traffic, such as speed boats and barges, but we were able to catch fish. The grounds are pretty clean overall and you experience the a plethora of river foul. I also saw four water moccasins, so you should use some care along the waters edge.

It almost seemed like a dream. From the very start, cruising through a large patch of lotus plants,…read moreit felt otherworldly. Very peaceful, going at our own pace. Enjoyed the cliff walls of Buffalo Rock and the shallow waters of some side passages. We paddled for 5 hours, covering 8 miles total. After we were done we headed to charming, historic downtown Utica for drinks and dinner at Skoog's Pub & Grill in North Utica, IL. I was impressed with the logistics and operation of the kayaking experience, from the guide* to the equipment and online booking process. *Full disclosure, the guide was my twin sister, but I am being objective...seriously.

I have mixed feelings about this kayak tour company. I signed up because although I'm a very…read morecapable and seasoned kayaker, I didn't know this river and I like learning about the ecosystems and local wildlife. For this reason I like having tour guides. Going up the river was fine. Coming back went a bit sour. I went as slow as I was capable of paddling or not paddling, but apparently it was too fast for the preference of our tour guide. I was barely touching the water with my paddle. I have no idea how I could have gone any slower. It wasn't humanly possible. After shouting at me several times, he took to chasing me down and ramming my kayak so it'd spin in circles. Would I rent a kayak here and kayak the river alone? Yes. Would I personally use a tour guide here? No I wouldn't. Would I recommend? If you're a family with little kids or a drunk sorority house, absolutely. If you know what you're doing, just go it alone. You'll probably enjoy it more. Edit: If the tour guide had concerns for group safety, he could have said so. Although ramming my kayak with his seems to be a bit of a conflict as far as my safety goes. It was an unprofessional approach when he could have simply explained why he needed me to slow down

The food is exceptionally good here. It will exceed your expectations for a restaurant in a state…read morepark. Had breakfast at the end of a camping trip and loved it. The breakfast burrito with green salsa is fantastic. They also run the kayak rentals out of there and they are super helpful and friendly. This place is truly a hidden gem of Central Illinois.

Great get away from town to the Park. Pretty big menu with good food and friendly service…read moreoverlooking Dawson Lake! Casual dining. Recommended!!

Great experience and wonderful views. Very busy but also…read morevery professional. Staff was very helpful. Mark

From the minute we arrived til we left it was a great experience! 8 of us went for a float that…read moretook about three hours. Highly recommend!

The water level and rapids was perfect today for my first time experiencing whitewater rafting…read more We arrived a little after 9am, we made reservations ahead of time and there was a couple of big groups checking in ahead of us. The process was quick, check in, sign waiver forms, get your paddle, life vest and helmet and you're ready to go. Before we got in the water we got some instructions how to go down the main rapids: Wildcat Falls, Lone Star Dam and the Narrows. The Wildcat falls, go towards the right of the river, aim center of the two giant boulders and go down left. Most people went way right down it and got stuck at the bottom boulder and some fell in the water. We manage to go down successfully after watching a few rafters. The Lone Star Dam, stay close to the right side to go down it. The rest of the dam has a under tow that can be really dangerous and can pin you down specially if you go down sideways. The Narrows, make sure to hit it straight on and just ride the rapids. That was my favorite section. Yes, this can be dangerous. Just follow the instructions, ask a lot of questions and know your ability. Their is no guide on the raft with you. Tips before going. -Make sure to watch the safety video first, link provided on their website. -Make sure to check the water level and speed at the US coastguard link provided on their website as well. -Lastly know your ability or skills/experience paddling/kayaking/rafting. -I also watched a few YouTube videos to have an idea of the areas mentioned above. -They only accept cash or check. Today, 6/8/19, the water level was 8 feet deep and flowrate of 1500. Classified as Class 3. There was a huge group of boys scouts out the same time we did it and everyone got through it safely and had fun.

I went white water rafting yesterday and it is seriously beautiful! So much wildlife, nature and…read morethe path is very nice you can even see a waterfall at the end, it is dangerous if you don't know what you're doing or go alone but go in a group and research before you do this activity you will be fine. It is kind of sad that there is garbage every now and then left on land, people ruining the nature but still beautiful for the most part. As other reviews state, avoid the dam area , paddle to the right.

We had an amazing time playing paintball. The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful. I would…read morehighly recommend stopping by.

Great time! All went smoothly thanks to Larry!…read moreWill rent kayaks again. And be sure to check out restaurant too!

Love this place! Easy drive from Chicago and an easy relaxing float down the river. We try to go a…read morecouple times a year.

The staff is so nice and accommodating. The equipment is good. We come back every year!read more

We had an awesome time today! The whole crew was so helpful and informative. Definitely recommendread more

From the owner: We are a Raft Rental business located in Oglesby, Il. We rent single tubes, double tubes and…read morecooler tubes for floating down the Vermilion River. You park at our location and we take you to the entry point in a bus and then pick you up at the exit point and bring you back to your vehicle at our location. This section of the river is a "lazy river" with one section of rapids to go through. We are family friendly and encourage you to bring your kids. Life jackets are required for children but not for adults.

We had a great experience at Kickapoo adventures. While visiting Illinois, my sister wanted to do…read moresomething outdoors. Kickapoo adventures offers a variety of activities. They have a variety of kayaks, canoes, inflatable tubes, paddle boards, and paddle boats for rental. Follow the signs to the main Kickapoo office. We chose our tubes and set sail! The driver loaded them up and drove us 5 minutes to our float sight, the beautiful middle fork of the vermilion river, the first river in Illinois listed under the National Scenic River register! You could see the bottom in most spots. Perfect for rock hounding, catching some rays, and just relaxing in nature. There were a couple parts where there were "mini" rapids which were fun and sped you up a little bit! After we were done, we ended near the entrance of the Kickapoo office. We were ready for some food so we went inside the building with the restrooms on the side, Park Bistro. Everything on the menu looked great, but my husband and I decided to order catfish sandwiches, since they are rarely offered at places in the northeast. The cook was very friendly and welcoming! Our food was ready in 10 minutes. We definitely would love to visit this recreational area again! Great place for hiking, biking, playing in the water, and enjoying nature.

Choose to kayak the Lower Fork River. Peaceful, it wasn't crowded, at all, on a Thursday afternoon…read more Did 8 miles in about 3 hours, leisurely. Ate a late lunch at Kickapoo Adventures Bar & Grill. Great food - great options! Dined outside with a view of the water. Great service. Highly recommend both experiences.

After a disappointing experience at a different tubing location, my friend group was told about…read morethis spot. My friend called about 2 weeks ahead of time to reserve our group's spot. At that time, she was told this season's pricing. It was about an hour drive from Dupage County and we passed the entrance at first. When we arrived, the bus was just taking the earlier group out. We arrived about 30 minutes early for our scheduled time, however that was unnecessary. The bus returned to take us at our exact scheduled time. Ensure proper count of your group's tube and cooler tube needs. From the time of loading, driving, and unloading we got in the water about 1.5 hours after our time slot. Ok all, if you are someone seeking prestine clear waters, tubing on an Illinois River is not for you. You may have bugs land on you or get muddy. Bring water shoes or croc type shoes to protect your feet. Bring a garbage bag for your cooler tube for your snacks and drinks. No glass or Styrofoam per their policies. They advertise bathrooms and showers. However, on day of visit they only had one working toilet. After the float, we quickly took turns changing and using restroom. It was only our group and 2 other groups out at that time. It was nice. Exiting the river was a little muddy. Fun activity that is reasonably priced.

I had a blast here!!! They were really nice and accommodating of our 30 people party. Bring a…read morecooler! You will need food and drinks. They offer a tube for the cooler. I am afraid of brown water, lol, so I got the tube with the bottom and just layed in it, the whole time. I also bought my own life vest off amazon. But they do offer the ugly orange ones lol Anyway we did the 3 miles but would love to come back and do the 6 mile one. Very cheap. Also the people who did go in the water, they said the very shallow areas are very rocky & scraped their knees. The deepest part is 10 feet but other than that, it's not deep. The bathrooms are nice and they offer a shower too. At the end you wait for the bus to pick you up and bring you back. Pretty cool.