Prairie Flower Campground, IA, October 2025
Park Information
The campground is open from about May – October. Water is available May – October. The park website is here.
Warnings
| Poison Ivy: | Unknown | Potholes: | No |
| Speed Bumps: | No | Narrow Roads: | Yes |
| Crime: | No | Limited Bridge: | No |
| Camp Residents: | No | Maintenance: | Yes-ish |
| RV @ Check-in: | Yes | Trees Trimmed: | Yes |
| Car Fee: | No | Person Fee: | No |
- In 2026, you were directed to just go to your site with no need to check-in.
- In 2026, the mowing was marginal. The grass was about 8-12 inches tall.
- Similar to Summit Lake State Park, IN, the road has joints that bump-bump and jerk the truck and RV. They are not nearly as bad as Summit Lake, but expect to drive slow through the park.
- 2025 visit was short and mostly about getting a tire replaced. Poison ivy may or may not be an issue
- Many (or all) of the camp loop roads are single lane
Infrastructure
| Office: | Yes-ish | Boat Ramp: | No |
| Camp Store: | No | Shower house: | Yes |
| Rental Store: | No | Restrooms: | Yes |
| Nature Center: | No | Roads: | Good |
| Museum: | No | Bridge: | No |
| Historic Site: | No | Storm Shelter: | Yes |
| Campgrounds: | No. | Camp Sites: | 153 + 10 group |
| Modern Sites: | No. | RV Sites: | 153 + 10 group |
- Sandpiper park nearby has a boat ramp, but it is a fee park.
- Brick and stick bath house is the closest thing to a storm shelter
- Group camp sites are in their own loop with group circles to park around
- There is a check-in office at the entrance.
Amenities
| Sites: | E 50/30/20 | Laundry: | No |
| Dump Station: | 1 | Washers: | N/A |
| Grey Station: | No | Dryers: | N/A |
| Water Station: | Many | Slop Sink: | No |
| Recycling: | Yes | Power: | Stable |
- All sites are 50 amp
- Dump station is near the entrance with three side by side dumps with adequate clearance
- Potable water is available at the dump station
- Potable water spigots are sprinkled around the campgrounds
- Water quality and water pressure were acceptable
Activities
| Naturalist: | No | Hiking: | 24 miles |
| Friends of Park: | Unknown | Kayaking: | Yes |
| Rentals: | No | Road Biking: | 4 miles |
| Pool: | No | Trail Biking: | 24 miles |
| Beach: | May-Oct | Mountain Biking: | N/A |
| Playground: | Yes | Disc Golf: | No |
| Archery: | No | Pickle Ball: | No |
| Shooting: | No | Local Attractions: | Yes |
- The campground does not rent kayaks, canoes, paddle boards, or boats, but there are nearby places that do.
- The campground does not have an archery range, but the nearby Bob Shelter Recreation Area does.
- There are disc golf courses near by
- There is a beach within a connector path to Coneflower Loop
Park Overview
- Core of Engineers (CoE) park on Saylorville Lake
- In the suburbs of Des Moines, so near stores
- Near a Blue Compass for RV work
- Has a bike trail going from park to Des Moines
- Paved and primitive trails around Saylorville Lake
- Has sites 50 to 100 feet from lakes. Lake views, but not lake side
- Reasonable park roads, but bike trail does use park road
Coneflower Campground Loop
This is specifically for the Coneflower campground loop.
Campground Loop Overview
| Sites: | E 50/30/20 | Laundry: | No |
| Dump Stations: | 0 | Washers: | N/A |
| Grey Stations: | 0 | Dryers: | N/A |
| Water Stations: | 7+ | Slop Sink: | No |
| Shower Houses: | 2 | Restrooms: | 2 |
| Private Showers: | No | Vault Toilets: | 0 |
| Hot Water: | Yes | Clean: | Y |
- Potable water stations are sprinkled around the campground. You are probably expected to fill at the dump station rather than block the road. Or pick a site where you can reach the water station from your site.
- Bathrooms are gender divided with shower and restroom stalls.
- The water quality and pressure seems good.
- The showers are push button, but they run for about 60 seconds per push.
Site C84
| Type: | Back-in | Pad: | No |
| Utilities: | E 50/30/20 | Pad Length: | N/A |
| Length: | 75 ft | Pad Type: | N/A |
| Width: | 21 ft | Shade: | N |
| Driveway: | Concrete | Fire Ring: | Yes |
| Front Slope: | Slight | Restroom: | 600 ft |
| Side Slope: | Flat | View: | Partial |
| Difficulty: | Moderate | Quiet: | Y |
| Fits Cars: | Side-by-side | Channels: |
| Provider | Down | Up | Latency | Jitter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T-Mobile: | ||||
| Cricket Mobile: | ||||
| Starlink: | 150-250 | 36-39 | 24-27 | 2 |
- Entire site is concrete.
- 300 feet from the bathhouse, if the middle short cut is mowed
- Low retaining wall around back. Limits backup distance, but makes for easy ladder access.
- Unobstructed Starlink mounted on the ladder
- Water spigot within 50 feet of the campsite for filling tanks while parked in the site
- Partially obstructed view of the lake
- Sufficient angle on the site for backing in, but the single lane road means you may end up driving through the edge of the site across the street.
Alternate Sites
- C88: 82 foot back-in with double wide concrete pad. On land side of road. Can overhang in back. Water spigot within reach of campsite at 80 ft away. Trees between C88 and C111 appear to be gone.
- C111: 85 foot back-in with double wide concrete pad. On land side of road. Can overhang in back. Water spigot within reach of campsite at 100 ft away. Trees between C88 and C111 appear to be gone.
- C85: 68 foot back-in with double wide concrete pad. On lake side of road. Can overhang in back. Water will need filling at dump station?
Driving Directions
To the park
From the park
Medical Facilities
- Not determined
Attractions
- Big Creek State Park, Polk City, IA
- Saylorville Lake Visitor Center, Polk City, IA
- Neal Smith Trail, Des Moines, IA
- Iowa Gold Star Military Museum, Johnston, IA
- Des Moines