Lake Wapello State Park

The land that is now Lake Wapello was homeland to Native peoples of the region, including the Meskwaki and the Sauk, whose ties to the woods and rivers of southern Iowa run deep. The Meskwaki, known as the Sac and Fox of the Mississippi in Iowa, today own the Meskwaki Settlement near Tama, and their presence in the state is living and continuous rather than a thing of the past.

The park itself took shape in the 1930s, when the lake was created by damming a small creek and work crews under Depression-era relief programs laid out the roads, trails, beach, and cabins. Their signature is the group of cabins built from native stone and heavy timber, plain and solid, designed to blend into the woods rather than stand out from them. Nearly a century on, those cabins remain the heart of the park and a reminder of the era that made it.

Lake Wapello is a reservoir tucked into gently rolling terrain, and its irregular shoreline creates coves and quiet arms that reward a slow paddle. It is a no-wake lake, which keeps things calm and makes it a favorite of anglers casting from a boat or the bank, and of families letting kids fish from the shallows.

The woods around the lake are classic southern Iowa hardwood forest, oak and hickory over a floor of wildflowers in spring, with maples and other trees adding color in fall. Trails wind through the timber and along the water, easy enough for a family walk yet quiet enough to feel a good distance from anywhere.

The mix of open water, woods, and shoreline draws a good range of birds. Waterfowl rest on the lake during migration, herons stalk the shallows, and warblers and other songbirds move through the timber in spring and fall. Bald eagles are a regular sight in the colder months, perched in tall shoreline trees watching the water.

In the woods, white-tailed deer, wild turkey, squirrels, and the occasional fox or coyote go about their business, most active in the early morning and at dusk. Slow down on a shaded trail and the woods reveal more than a quick walk ever would.

Spring brings wildflowers to the forest floor and a rush of migrating birds, though trails can be soft and muddy after rain. Summer is the busy season, with the beach, picnic grounds, and cabins full and the lake alive with anglers and paddlers.

Fall is many visitors' favorite, when the hardwoods turn and the crowds thin, ideal for a quiet cabin weekend. Winter is still and stark, good for a bracing walk, with bald eagles often visible over the frozen lake.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.