McCormick’s Creek State Park in Indiana holds a special place in my heart as I have been going there yearly since I was a kid. I grew up near Champaign, IL in a small town called Ogden and every year a big group of people from there would rent out all the cabins and McCormcik’s Creek for a weekend of outdoor adventure and fun! When my family moved away from Ogden when I was in 2nd grade, we still kept the tradition of meeting the group there every year. I love that my kids now get to go and experience what I did as a kid! This year was the first year Michael and his kids got to experience McCormick’s Creek. Enough about me, let’s talk about this gorgeous state park!
My two favorite things about McCormick’s Creek are the creek that leads to a waterfall (known as “the falls”) and a cave you can go through called Wolf Cave. In addition to that the state park offers:
10 different hiking trails
Nature Center
Fire Tower
Stables for horse rides and hayrides
Lodging options including cabins, campground and the Canyon Inn with hotel type rooms
Basketball courts, racquetball courts, a volleyball court and many playgrounds
Two pools, one for people staying at Canyon Inn and one for people staying in the cabins or campgrounds
Restaurant and gift shop on site in the Canyon Inn
Many shelter and pavilions that you can reserve for large group gatherings
Near the park is the White River that offers fishing or kayaking/canoeing
Seriously, what more can you ask for out of a state park? It definitely checks all of our boxes. Now on to our adventure.
We loaded up the car and all the kids on Thursday evening and headed out. I love the cabins at McCormick‘s Creek, they are rustic and have bunk beds BUT you have to bring everything you’ll need. Bedding, pillows, all cooking supplies, bathroom items, food, etc. Assume nothing is there other than the beds, bathroom with shower, tables and a small stove and regular sized refrigerator. After packing for 7 people (Michael, I and our 5 kids) and getting them all in the car there was not much room to spare.
The drive from Waterloo, IL is about 3.5 hours which is about our maximum for a weekend trip with the kids. After enduring many questions of “are we there yet”, listening to “I’m hungry” and lots of arguments we finally arrived around 9pm. Keep in mind when planning that Spencer, Indiana where McCormicks Creek is located is in EST so you will lose an hour on the way there and gain an hour on the way back.
As far as sleeping arrangements go in the cabins there are two sets of bunk beds in a “bedroom” area and then a pull out queen sized sleeper sofa in the living room area. The kids LOVE the bunk beds and the sleeper sofa is okay. I think the maximum you could fit is probably our family of 7 and that was right. Luckily my parents were there and Michael’s dad and step-mom came so grandkids had lots of options and room to spread out. For $55 per night, the cabins are a great deal. But think rustic, campground cabin vs. luxury cabin in the woods. The cabins do book up very quickly and you can reserve them up to a year in advance so plan accordingly and book early!!
The next morning we gathered with the rest of the group and decided to head out on what we refer to as the “creek walk”. It starts on trail 2, involves trails 7 and 10 but basically you follow the trails down to the creek and then follow it all the way until you reach the falls. The hike from leaving our cabin to making it back to our cabin was 4.5 miles. The kids LOVE this hike and it is always my favorite. There is no way to take this walk and not get your shoes wet so plan on bringing an extra pair. Of course as a kid the best part is playing in the creek as you are walking and then getting wet and playing in the falls at the end!
After lunch and resting a bit we headed to take the trail to Wolf Cave. For this trail we drive and park in the Wolf Cave parking area and take Trail 5 which is about a 2 mile loop. After about a half mile you come to the entrance of Wolf Cave.
You will need a flashlight to go through the cave and usually there is some standing water as you go through. This year the cave was completely dry and that is the first time I have ever seen it that way. The cave is best for kids as there are tight spaces and a lot of short passageways but it is doable for an adult. I do it every year with the kids and Michael went through for the first time. It takes about 5-10 minutes to get through the cave depending on your pace. The end is a bit of a squeeze to get out so be prepared to crawl or wiggle your way out. I think our kids went through about 10 times, they loved it!! Pro tip - bring a flashlight for each kid so you don’t have a battle over who gets the flashlight. Here is Michael coming out of the cave.
Friday night we all gathered at the Friendly Shelter and ate dinner together and made s’mores. It was a great day!
Saturday had a 70% chance of rain which is why we did the falls and Wolf Cave both on Friday. Saturday we took some to go explore the Canyon Inn, recreation area and then went to check out the Fire Tower. The trail to the Fire Tower is Trail 4 and it is a 1.5 mile fairly flat trail. The Fire Tower is open for you to climb, the kids loved it!
On the trail after the fire tower we found some cool vines to swing on!
And trees to walk on!
After lunch the kids and Michael decided to hang out at the cabin and I went with a few others to explore Trail 7 and try to see where McCormick’s Creek meets with the White River. This is not a trail I have done before and it was really neat to see and we weren’t bothered by the rain. The White River looks like it would be great for kayaking so Michael and I are planning to check that out sometime.
Before we all gathered for dinner we took a hayride around the whole park. This is usually really fun (and it still was) but it was chilly and raining so we were all a little cold.
Another evening of the kids playing on the playground at the Friendly shelter, adults playing cards and then making s’mores on the campfire.
Sunday morning we packed up and headed out. This is a weekend that I look forward to every year and all the kids love it just as much as I do! See you next April, McCormcik’s Creek!
McCormick’s Creek State Park: http://www.mccormickscreekstatepark.com/index.htm