Welcome summer with us on a classic campout in beautiful northeast Iowa! This weekend trip is the perfect celebration of the year’s longest day, full of inspiring nature time and good camp vibes all weekend long.
Celebrate the longest day of the year with a trip built around the summer solstice! We’ll be camping at Yellow River State Forest, a gem of the Iowa state park & forest system, and one of Wander Women’s absolute favorite places. We’ll spend the weekend hiking Yellow River’s gorgeous trail system (with some of the best views in the state), spotting summer wildflowers and getting crafty at camp. But the fun doesn’t stop when the sun goes down—we’ll also be going on a group sunset hike, and dabbling in a stargazing workshop to identify all the summer constellations.
This trip is designed in the spirit of classic Wander Women trips — a weekend in the woods with new pals and nature all around. Nothing too fancy, but a whole lot of beautiful nature time and intentional relaxation. If you’re looking for an awesome way to kick off official summer, we think this is the perfect way to do it.
Adventure Rating: Beginner
This trip is rated beginner because of the casual pace of the weekend and activity level. Hiking at Yellow River does involve some elevation gain and can be a nice challenge, but the trails we’ll hike on aren’t technical.
ACTIVITIES
Hike the many trails of Yellow River State Forest, one of the best hiking spots in the whole state. Along the way you’ll see beautiful wildflowers, pristine trout streams, limestone bluffs and lots of wildlife. There’s a reason this park is one of the most beloved in Iowa.
Get crafty with a summer flower crown making activity. Lean into the midsummer vibes, the beauty of the season and your feral inclinations! We’ll have all the supplies for crafting, you just model for the inevitable photoshoot.
Learn more about summer constellations and how to read the night sky in a guide-led stargazing workshop! Each participant will get their own star map to keep, and learn how to identify common summer constellations.
Wander Women trips are a challenge by choice situation—if all you want to do is hang and relax at camp, that’s a-okay by us! We’ll have plenty of games, books and activities to keep you happy.
ACCOMMODATIONS & LOCATION
We’ll be tent camping at sites at the Little Paint Campground at Yellow River State Forest. The sites we’ve chosen have easy trail access and are situated in a shady valley next to a trout stream. The camping is primitive, and there are pit toilets at the campground.
About Yellow River State Forest
Yellow River State Forest in northeast Iowa is home to stunning views, beautiful woodlands and meandering trout streams. Nestled in Iowa’s Driftless area in Allamakee County, Yellow River offers numerous outdoor recreation opportunities including camping, equestrian riding, hiking, mountain biking, fishing, hunting, and more. Yellow River State Forest was first established in 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corp, and is home to Iowa’s only fire tower, built in 1963. Today, the forest is managed for numerous natural resource benefits and recreational opportunities. Source: Iowa DNR
WHAT’S INCLUDED
Your registration provides you:
Two professional Wander Women guides to help make the trip as seamless and fun as possible
Camping accommodations & parking
A Wanderer swag bag full of goodies
All meals cooked for you by Wander Women guides
Camping accessories: Camp kitchen, camping chairs, fire kits, first aid kits, dining ware, fire wood, games, coolers
A detailed pre-trip online guide with everything you need to know for your trip
WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED
Participants will be responsible for providing/paying for:
Transportation to/from the trip (we always encourage carpooling and can connect you with other participants to ride with!) and to trip activity locations
Gear: Participants are able to rent camping gear from Wander Women
INVESTMENT
$395
PAYMENT PLAN
We offer payment plans for all our trips, so you can pay a deposit now and the rest over time! WeTravel (our booking platform) easily lets you make a downpayment (this is also your non-refundable trip deposit!) and set up automatic payments for the remainder. For the payment plan schedule, just check the WeTravel page for details. There is NO fee for choosing the payment plan option!
Deposit for this trip: $200