This tip brought to you by our Camping Guru Carol Sponagle
on Oct 07, 2008
One of my favorite ways to spend time with my family is camping. Several times a year, we load up and travel to a new adventure. One of our favorite places has been Versailles State Park in Indiana (pronounced /VER - SAILS/, not /VER - SIGH/. This park is located along Versailles Lake, at the southeastern corner of Indiana among beautiful, rolling hills. There is an abundance of activities including fishing, hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, swimming (at the public pool), and canoeing.
We spent a large amount of time hiking the hilly trails and wading in Laughry Creek. We found several marine invertebrate fossils and other fascinating rocks from the Ordovician (500 million years ago) and Silurian (450 million years ago). We were lucky enough to help the interpretive center by supplying their exhibits with fossils and some live critters caught by my children (toads, snakes, clams, and turtles). We also spent some time canoeing on the 230-acre lake, fishing, taking pony rides, and just hanging out at the campground. The campground itself was nice and family-friendly. There were several playgrounds, trails, and clean restrooms.
I would highly recommend this park as a great place to take your family for an adventure. Indiana State Parks are nice, in general - but this one's a gem. Camping is a great way to connect with your family in these busy times, so gear up, take a hike, and see what nature has to offer.
