About Bob Shetler Recreation Area
Number of accommodations: 60
Seasonal information
2026 Season availability
Campground Amenities
Most popular amenities
Pet friendly
River Access
RV Utilities and Hookups
- Dump station on site
Water and Hygiene
- Potable Water
Water Access
- River Access
Pets and Policies
- Pet friendly
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Rates, Sites & Availability
60 Sites Available
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Site Details
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60 Sites Available
No available sites
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Reviews (717)
What Guests Are Saying
Bob Shetler Recreation Area offers a well-maintained and spacious campground with clean facilities, friendly staff, and convenient amenities like water and sewer hookups. Many visitors appreciate the peaceful atmosphere, beautiful scenery, and opportunities for outdoor activities such as fishing, hiking, and biking. While some experienced noise disturbances from nearby road activities and motorcycles, the overall experience is generally positive, with many campers expressing their desire to return.
What Guests Are Saying
Bob Shetler Recreation Area offers a well-maintained and spacious campground with clean facilities, friendly staff, and convenient amenities like water and sewer hookups. Many visitors appreciate the peaceful atmosphere, beautiful scenery, and opportunities for outdoor activities such as fishing, hiking, and biking. While some experienced noise disturbances from nearby road activities and motorcycles, the overall experience is generally positive, with many campers expressing their desire to return.
Review Summary
Tom S
VerifiedOctober 5, 2023 • Stayed at: 52, Loop: BSHM
Some folks might freak out realizing they are camping at the bottom of a dam with millions of gallons of water, far above your camping level. I was OK with it, I got to sleep OK. The navigation of the park was weird. The dump and fresh water was at the rear of the campground. If you don't have water you should go there first to fill or dump. If you go to your campsite first, the roads are one way, arranged so you'll have to leave the campground and come back in the entrance to access the water/dump site at the rear of the campground. At the end of your stay, to dump you'll have to exit the campground and enter again to get access to the dump in the rear of the campground. It's a weird arrangement, poorly engineered by COE, IMO. Other than that, the park was clean and quite, very quiet. The access streets to get to the park are a bit long and twist from the interstate. The signage isn't good IMO, needs to be improved coming from both directions, west side and east side entrance routes.
Tom S
VerifiedOctober 5, 2023 • Stayed at: 52, Loop: BSHM
Some folks might freak out realizing they are camping at the bottom of a dam with millions of gallons of water, far above your camping level. I was OK with it, I got to sleep OK. The navigation of the park was weird. The dump and fresh water was at the rear of the campground. If you don't have water you should go there first to fill or dump. If you go to your campsite first, the roads are one way, arranged so you'll have to leave the campground and come back in the entrance to access the water/dump site at the rear of the campground. At the end of your stay, to dump you'll have to exit the campground and enter again to get access to the dump in the rear of the campground. It's a weird arrangement, poorly engineered by COE, IMO. Other than that, the park was clean and quite, very quiet. The access streets to get to the park are a bit long and twist from the interstate. The signage isn't good IMO, needs to be improved coming from both directions, west side and east side entrance routes.
Steve M
VerifiedOctober 5, 2023 • Stayed at: 57, Loop: BSHM
Camping at Bob Shetler was generally a very good experience. Sites are spacious. We hope to come back again. Shower building did not appear to have been cleaned every day, but was clean enough.
Kathy B
VerifiedOctober 4, 2023 • Stayed at: 16, Loop: BSHE
We had a very good stay at Bob Shetler. We stayed in site #16, which has a concrete pad, which is super nice! The only reason we gave it 4 stars instead of 5 stars was because the concrete at the dump station leans slightly away from the drain instead of toward the drain!! Which makes it harder to completely drain your holding tanks!!
Kathy B
VerifiedOctober 4, 2023 • Stayed at: 16, Loop: BSHE
We had a very good stay at Bob Shetler. We stayed in site #16, which has a concrete pad, which is super nice! The only reason we gave it 4 stars instead of 5 stars was because the concrete at the dump station leans slightly away from the drain instead of toward the drain!! Which makes it harder to completely drain your holding tanks!!
Donald T
VerifiedSeptember 29, 2023 • Stayed at: 04, Loop: BSHW
Who ever was supposed to police sites after people left didn't do it. Our site when we arrived the fire pit was full of junk. The restroom building never got cleaned properly. There was a hair ball in the shower for over a week. Dirty sinks and trash on the floors.
Cyndi M
VerifiedSeptember 29, 2023 • Stayed at: 62, Loop: BSHM
Very nice, clean & comfortable.
Donald T
VerifiedSeptember 29, 2023 • Stayed at: 04, Loop: BSHW
Who ever was supposed to police sites after people left didn't do it. Our site when we arrived the fire pit was full of junk. The restroom building never got cleaned properly. There was a hair ball in the shower for over a week. Dirty sinks and trash on the floors.
Cyndi M
VerifiedSeptember 29, 2023 • Stayed at: 62, Loop: BSHM
Very nice, clean & comfortable.
Robert B
VerifiedSeptember 22, 2023 • Stayed at: 51, Loop: BSHM
Site #51 is our favorite spot other than the Cement slab ones by the Saylorville Dam
Location Bob Shetler Recreation Area
Address:
Saylorville Lake Administration Office
Johnston, IA, 50131-1941
United States
From I-35, take exit 90 to Ankeny/Oralabor Road and go west for 4.8 miles. The road turns into Highway 415. Turn left onto 37th Street, then turn right onto Horseshoe Road. Turn right and drive across the Saylorville Lake Dam to the campground.
The campground is accessible from I-35 via exit 90, approximately 4.8 miles to the west on Highway 415.
Latitude & Longitude: 41.7017 / -93.6853
Elevation: 247 feet
Policies & Rules
Arrival & departure
Check in time
2PM
Check out time
12PM
Cancellation policy
- Reservation fees are non-refundable. For campsites, cabins, lookouts, yurts, group sites, and similar stays, we charge a reservation service fee of $8.
- Standard cancellations usually have a $10 cancellation fee. Customers can generally cancel before the check-in date online.
- Late cancellation rules differ by stay type.
- Individual campsites: cancelling after 12:00am local time the day before arrival usually means a $10 cancellation fee plus forfeiting the first night's fee.
- Cabins, lookouts, and yurts: cancelling less than 14 days before arrival usually means a $10 cancellation fee plus forfeiting the first night's fee.
- One-night reservations: a late cancellation usually forfeits the full amount paid, up to the total original reservation cost.
- Modifications are allowed before the cut-off window, but fees depend on the change. Changing to dates completely outside the original reservation dates may trigger a $10 change fee. Extending or shortening a stay that still includes original dates usually has no change fee, though refunds may depend on timing and facility rules. Switching to the same type of campsite for the same dates usually has no change fee, but price differences are charged or refunded.
- Early departures may or may not be refunded. At certain facilities, partial refunds may be possible if staff can mark the site available for other visitors. No refund is given for a night if the early departure is requested after that day's check-out time.
- Security deposits are separate. Security deposits may be refunded to the original payment method if the facility is left in acceptable condition, as determined by the property.
General
- Click here for more information
- Click here for a virtual tour of the Saylorville Lake area.
Safety & rules
- Quiet hours are from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., and only registered campers are allowed during this time.
Nearby Campgrounds
Last updated: June 3, 2026
