Lock 22 Camping

Very cool place. A little dangerous (watch your step) as there are no guard rails and plenty of tripping hazards. Lots of large fish swimming around. The experienced angler will do well (catfish, carp). Peaceful. Beautiful sunset, sounds of nature (birds] and water noise from the lock. Beautiful farmland surroundings. The '4' is because the signage about the locks need to be updated as they are all worn out. If they are here to educate you, they will disappoint.

It's really nice but people drove through the lot all night. Ended up leaving because of so sketchy looking people.

Understand that this small camping area is for bike packing, maybe hiking or even some primitive car camping. This isn't a campground where you are going to back up to with your camper, string up some lights and get some s'mores on. Being right on the lock and having a place to access the Hennepin is what it's for. The Hennepin is an awesome waterway with plenty to see and do, unfortunately due to the tight wads in the state of Illinois some of the areas of the Hennepin are in need of updating. Like the cool signage with the maps and info of the Hennepin right off the parking lot that you can't read anymore. The camping area is relatively flat and grassy with some fire grates and picnic tables, a pretty nice place to pitch a tent. The caveat is if it's hot there probably isn't going to be

It was a chilly October evening but we stopped and captured some photos. Great photo opportunities with some fall colors.

Hubby and I were bike touring the Hennepin and feeder canals. We camped at Lock 23, but we wanted to check out Lock 22 for the future. Do NOT expect water here. (as the IDNR brochure map shows.) There is a spigot but...The raccoon that fried in the well pump box is still there. Exactly like you see cartoon skeletons when they bite hot wires. It's been there a longgggg while. The pit toilets building is a nice structure but doesn't appear to have been swept out since the spring. And no TP, bring your own. Primitive camping here would be okay. The grounds are pleasant, although not shady. It's a long distance from I-80,so no highway noise(unlike Lock 23 cg)