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Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Activities powered by Viator. Prices and availability come from each provider and are confirmed when you book with them.

  1. Home
  2. Illinois
  3. Dam East - Mcnair Campground

Camping at Dam East - Mcnair Campground near Carlyle

Public campground · Carlyle · 46 campsites · 1 group

A forested campground near fishing, hiking, and mountain biking. RV fit varies by site.

About this campground

Dam East McNair Campground sits on the southern shore of Carlyle Lake, Illinois' largest man-made lake, about 50 miles east of St. Louis.

5.0 on Recreation.gov · 282 reviewsBook on Recreation.gov
View all 6 photos

At a glance

  • RV sites up to 75 ft

    Length limits vary by campsite.

  • Electric hookups
  • Pets welcome
  • Flush toilets

    Showers on site. Dump station on site.

OverviewCampsitesAmenities & locationReviewsPlan your stay

1 available sites

1 open of 46 sites
Site 44
PopularRarely open on these dates: in past years it was reserved on at least 85% of these nights.
RV or tent · Up to 8 peopleElectricSpillway loop
Available all 2 nights
$40 for 2 nights
$20/night · before taxes & fees
View full availability calendar · night-by-night from Recreation.gov

Availability on Recreation.gov. Showing 40 of 47 sites.

SiteFr
13
Sa
14
Price
44
standard electric
✓✓$20
33
standard electric
RR$20
34
standard electric
RR$20
35
standard electric
RR$20
36
standard electric
RR$20
37
standard electric
RR$20
38
standard electric
RR$20
39
standard electric
RR$20
40
standard electric
RR$20
41
standard electric
From $40 for 2 nights
$20/night · Before taxes & fees
1 site available for your entire stay

You book directly on Recreation.gov. Rates and availability can change until reserved. Campground page on Recreation.gov ↗

1 openSites from $20/night
Book on Recreation.gov

Amenities & location

  • Accessible Flush Toilets
  • Beach Access
  • Day Use Area
  • Drinking Water
  • Dump Station
  • Electric Hookups
  • Flush Toilets
  • Grills
  • Parking Area
  • Picnic Shelters
  • Picnic Tables
  • Showers
Check-in
5:00 PM
Checkout
4:00 PM
Pets
Allowed (per listing)
Maximum stay
14 nights

Hookups (individual campsites): 46 electric individual sites · group site listed separately (1 electric).

Location

801 LAKE ROAD
Open in Google Maps ↗

Dam East - Mcnair Campground: questions answered

What is the maximum RV length at Dam East - Mcnair Campground?
Longest RV site listed: 75 ft (19 of 47 RV sites list a length) (per the listing)
Does Dam East - Mcnair Campground have RV hookups?
46 electric individual sites · group site listed separately (1 electric) (per the listing)
How do I reserve a site at Dam East - Mcnair Campground?
Reservable on Recreation.gov (per the listing)
Are pets allowed at Dam East - Mcnair Campground?
Allowed (per the listing)
Sources and details

At a glance

Official facts link to their source; “Listing” facts come from the Recreation.gov listing. Anything we can't source says so.

Max rig length
Listing Longest RV site listed: 75 ft (19 of 47 RV sites list a length)
Hookups & power
Listing 46 electric individual sites · group site listed separately (1 electric)
Pull-through / back-in
Listing 4 pull-through, 43 back-in
Road & site access
Listing 48 paved site driveways
Pets
Listing Allowed
Cell signal
Listing Visitor-reported signal on Recreation.gov (higher is better): Verizon 3 (101 reports), AT&T 3 (93 reports), T-Mobile 3 (31 reports)
Water
Listing Water at 32 sites
Shade
Listing 36 of 48 sites that report shade are listed as shaded
Booking
Listing Reservable on Recreation.gov
Price
Listing Lowest listed rate $20/night (live price once you pick dates)
Stay limits
Listing 14 nights max
Getting there
Listing 801 LAKE ROAD (map in Location below)
Generators · Quiet hours · Starlink / satellite
Not listed — check with campground

Reviews

Themes from recent written reviews on Recreation.gov. Quotes are verbatim.

Quiet, wooded sites · 2 reviews

“The thibk I noticed and appreciated the most, was the absolute QUIET!”

Jennifer N · Oct 2025

Selected reviews

Verbatim from guest reviews on Recreation.gov ↗ (282 reviews, ★ 5.0). Not written or edited by us.

“Quiet little campground. Shower house / bathrooms are spotless . Host in very nice & helpful”

KENT F 5 · Oct 2025 · Recreation.gov

“We loved our stay! Such a beautiful place. Unfortunately, we arrived after dark, and had a really hard time getting to the right campground. Better address would be super helpful!”

Beverly C 5 · Oct 2025 · Recreation.gov
Nearby

Campgrounds to compare

Prefer a roof?

Prefer a roof over your head

All glamping →
  • St Louis Mulberry RV Gardens20.6 mi · Mulberry Grove
  • Washington County State Recreation Area22.5 mi · Nashville

Explore nearby

  • Campgrounds near Carlyle
  • RV rentals near Carlyle
  • Glamping & cabins near Carlyle
  • RV rentals in Illinois
  • Glamping in Illinois

Guides for this trip

  • How much does it cost to rent an RV?
  • Camping with dogs
R
R
$20
42
standard electric
RR$20
43
standard electric
RR$20
45
standard electric
RR$20
46
standard electric
✓R$20
47
standard electric
RR$20
22
standard electric
CC$20
2
standard electric
CC$20
14
standard electric
CC$20
4
standard electric
CC$20
24
standard electric
CC$20
25
standard electric
CC$20
27
standard electric
CC$20
23
standard electric
CC$20
1
standard electric
CC$20
5
standard electric
CC$20
29
standard electric
CC$20
17
standard electric
CC$20
9
standard electric
CC$20
8
standard electric
CC$20
12
standard electric
CC$20
26
standard electric
CC$20
21
standard electric
CC$20
20
standard electric
CC$20
16
standard electric
CC$20
18
standard electric
CC$20
30
standard electric
CC$20
10
standard electric
CC$20
31
standard electric
CC$20
11
standard electric
CC$20
28
standard electric
CC$20

✓ available · R reserved · X not available · C closed · W first come, first served · N not yet released

Available Nov 13–15 · 2 nights56 sites open for every night

Eldon Hazlet State Recreation Area

3.8 mi from Dam East - Mcnair Campground (straight-line)
Sites $20/night
$40 total for Nov 13–15 · before taxes & fees
Rates & availability from Illinois State Parks · you book on their site
View Campsites
Available Nov 13–15 · 2 nights3 sites open for every night

St Louis Mulberry RV Gardens

20.6 mi from Dam East - Mcnair Campground (straight-line)
Sites from $30/night
$60 total for Nov 13–15 · before taxes & fees
Rates & availability from Campspot · you book on their site
View Campsites
Available Nov 13–15 · 2 nights27 sites open for every night

Washington County State Recreation Area

22.5 mi from Dam East - Mcnair Campground (straight-line)
Sites $18/night
$36 total for Nov 13–15 · before taxes & fees
Rates & availability from Illinois State Parks · you book on their site
View Campsites
Trip idea

Ideas for your stay

An idea to start from, built from this campground's listing and real tours nearby. Times, openings and prices change, so check each before you go.

  1. Day 1 · Arrive and settle in

    • Check in and set up camp.
    • Swim at the beach or go fishing (per the campground listing)
  2. Day 2 · Get out and explore

    • Frank Lloyd Wright's Home & Studio Tour Ticket Illinois area · 1 hr · from $27/person
    • Skip the Line: Public Tour-Adult Admission Ticket (50 mins) Illinois area · 50 min · from $20/person
  3. Day 3 · One more stop, then head home

    • Grafton History and Ghost Tales Illinois area · 1 hr · from $25/person
Ways to stay

Bring a tent or have an RV waiting

  • Tent camping here: 46 sites take tents. See open sites ↑
  • Electric sites: 46 sites have power.

Need an RV for your stay?

Rentals that may deliver here and whose listed length fits sites up to 75 ft. Delivery may be available — confirm fees and dates with the owner before you book.

2020 Cherokee Wolf pup
2020 Cherokee Wolf pup

Travel trailer · 16 ft · sleeps 4 · 59 mi from campground

$80/night listed · Outdoorsy · Delivery may be available

View rental
Fully Furnished, Loaded Bunkhouse RV!
Fully Furnished, Loaded Bunkhouse RV!

Travel trailer · 36 ft · sleeps 10 · 73 mi from campground

$124/night listed · RVshare · Delivery may be available

View rental
2017 Jayco Jay Flight SLX
2017 Jayco Jay Flight SLX

Travel trailer · 29 ft · sleeps 8 · 76 mi from campground

$120/night listed · RVshare · Delivery may be available

View rental
Things to do

Activities near Dam East - Mcnair Campground

Bookable tours nearby

Paid experiences on Viator. Distances are from this campground when the tour lists its own start point.

Frank Lloyd Wright's Home & Studio Tour Ticket
Frank Lloyd Wright's Home & Studio Tour Ticket

Illinois area · 1 hr · from $27/person

Skip the Line: Public Tour-Adult Admission Ticket (50 mins)
Skip the Line: Public Tour-Adult Admission Ticket (50 mins)

Illinois area · 50 min · from $20/person

Grafton History and Ghost Tales
Grafton History and Ghost Tales

Illinois area · 1 hr · from $25/person

Best time to go

Seasons, rates and how booked it gets

  • Off-peak Nov 1–Dec 31: RV & Tent $20 per night
  • Off-peak Jan 1–Apr 1: RV & Tent $20 per night

stays up to 14 nights (Recreation.gov rules).

Share of site-nights open, booked and closed on Recreation.gov for the next months, checked Nov 7. Months further out may not be released for booking yet.

MonthOpenBookedClosed
Nov 202617%15%68%
Dec 202631%1%68%
Jan 202732%0%68%
Feb 202732%0%68%
Mar 202732%0%68%
Apr 202787%10%2%
May 202785%15%0%

Seasonal loop closures in this window: NORTH LOOP (Nov 2026, Dec 2026, Jan 2027, Feb 2027, Mar 2027, Apr 2027); SOUTH LOOP (Nov 2026, Dec 2026, Jan 2027, Feb 2027, Mar 2027, Apr 2027); McNair Group Area C (Nov 2026, Dec 2026, Jan 2027, Feb 2027, Mar 2027, Apr 2027).

Plan your stay

How far ahead to book Dam East - Mcnair Campground

For May weekends, book about 171 days ahead. Three in four May Friday and Saturday arrivals were booked later than that, and half were booked 97 days or less before arrival. Past timing is guidance, not a guarantee of what is open now.

See booking patterns
Arrival monthFri/Sat arrivals: half booked at leastA quarter at leastOther days: half booked at leastA quarter at least
January——0 days ahead5 days ahead
February2 days ahead15 days ahead1 days ahead4 days ahead
March23 days ahead52 days ahead6 days ahead34 days ahead
April53 days ahead125 days ahead36 days ahead101 days ahead
May97 days ahead171 days ahead60 days ahead152 days ahead
June90 days ahead155 days ahead54 days ahead162 days ahead
July55 days ahead142 days ahead36 days ahead152 days ahead
August42 days ahead117 days ahead26 days ahead142 days ahead
September46 days ahead115 days ahead30 days ahead121 days ahead
October75 days ahead146 days ahead9 days ahead103 days ahead
November10 days ahead28 days ahead4 days ahead20 days ahead
December0 days ahead1 days ahead0 days ahead4 days ahead

Months with fewer than 30 reservations of that kind are left blank. Sites where nearly every booking was made the day of arrival (pay on arrival) are left out. Closed seasons, windows not yet released for booking, and currently unavailable nights are separate from this history.

Based on Recreation.gov reservations, FY2015–2025 (10,926 reservations in the years scored). Counts reservations made, not nights actually camped: cancellations aren't in the data, and nights a site was closed count as not booked. FY2020–21 (COVID) are left out of the scores.

Compare site types

46 individual reservable campsites from Recreation.gov, checked Nov 7 · 1 group site listed separately. Rates are the listed nightly rates.

Standard sites with electric

Tent or RV, with power

46 sites · $20/night

Loops: SOUTH LOOP (20), Spillway loop (15), NORTH LOOP (11)

1 open Nov 13–Nov 15

Group standard electric (group)

1 site · $125/night

Loops: McNair Group Area C (1)

0 open Nov 13–Nov 15