Spook Cave is a Hit!

There are many great little-known places that Camp Q has visited over the last 15 years, but some really are unforgettable.  As Halloween comes around, I am reminded of this great little campground and cave in Northeast Iowa.

Spook Cave is located about an hour and a half north of Dubuque, Iowa and was a big hit on one of our road trips.  The cave is surrounded by a beautiful, well-kept campground where the 14 of us pitched tents and played frisbee football for an hour before bed.  As we played, we did quickly find the one drawback to this wonderful wooded area...mosquitoes!  They were big, hungry, and EVERYWHERE!  The kids were doused in Off, and running madly which is probably why only Ted and I suffered the brunt of the bites.  I have to say, this was aggravating but the only think we did not love about the area.

The cave itself has a small river running through it and therefore, the tour of the cave is by boat.  This gave it an eery feel.  The bats (both real and animated), added to the effect.  The music piped into the cave immediately affected the kids and set the mood.  Along the way our young tour guide began to tell the story of the cave, including a tale about an alligator that was released into the stream.  Of course the animation continued, and sitings of the alligator began to be heard throughout the boat.  It was wonderful to hear the whispers and giggles of the kids as we slowly made our way to the back of the cave.  The lights even went out about 3/4 of the way to the back, and the set up by the tour guide had everyone wondering if it was unplanned.  The kids were completely fooled, and it was a great tale to tell after we returned to the campground.

What a great idea for people with children; I'd love to go back with my own kids closer to Halloween!

Welcome to our Crazy World!

Camp Quinlin began 15 years ago as a way to see our nieces and nephews living 300 miles away.  We had moved away from our respective hometowns following college to begin our careers, but didn't want to lose touch with our family.  My husband is the eighth of nine children and at that time, had 2 nieces and 2 nephews.  That number has grown to 22 today, and so has camp!

We decided to bring each of our nieces and nephews over the age of 6 (the summer following kindergarten) and 6th grade to our house to spend a week with us.  The goal was to do fun and inexpensive things around the Kansas City area and mainly to spend time with the kids in order to get to know them better.

It was a hit!  We now take an average of 10 of them in two minivans on a road trip for a week and not only do we experience all of the quirky and fun inexpensive escapades around the midwestern US, we get a great amount of quality time with them.

This blog is where I will log our times together.  I think many families can use the ideas for inexpensive and fun activities to do with kids in the Midwest.  They may also enjoy our adventures with the kids.