Dam East - McNair Campground in IL -- Campground & RV Camping

Dam East-McNair Campground sits on the southern shore of 26,000-acre Carlyle Lake. The facility features 47 individual campsites across the North, South, and East Spillway loops, along with one reservable group picnic shelter for up to 80 people. On-site amenities include a swimming beach, bathhouses, laundry facilities, a nature trail, and a multi-use trail connected to Dam East facilities. Nearby access points offer boat ramps and courtesy docks for water sports and fishing. The surrounding shoreline features established wildlife viewing towers for migratory waterfowl.

Getting there: From I-57, take Old U.S. Highway 50 west for 22 miles to the Dam East Entrance road. Turn north and continue through the four-way intersection to the McNair Group Area.

• Little separation from through roads or other sites here, a 48-site campground with the nearest through road 0.1 miles off.
• Sits on broad, near-level ground.
• Estimated night sky: Bortle 4, a rural sky with a glow on the horizon.
• Open country, with nothing named rising within 30 miles.
• Most sites here have an electric hookup, with most of them shaded.
• The Carlyle Reservoir shoreline is 0.4 mi off.

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