FORT DEFIANCE STATE PARK
Fort Defiance State Park has 16 campsites. The camping area is non-modern. No flush toilets or showers are present. However, electrical hookups are available at eight sites. All camping permits are obtained through self-registration at the campground. Camping Fees can be paid at the site.
 | The Irish Inn - Ozark, IL BBs / Inns Offering a wee bit of Europe in Southern Illinois' wine country. We are located right in the Shawnee National Forest. Stay in a stone and log chalet, cool in summer with blazing log fires in winter. You will enjoy the
company of a genuine Belfast-born innkeeper and a full traditional Irish breakfast. There is no extra charge for the blarney, storytelling, and good Irish luck |
 | Pinnon Lake Cabins - Buncombe, IL Cottages and Cabins Tucked away in the picturesque rolling hills of Southern Illinois, our location rests on the highly acclaimed Southern Illinois Wine Trail. Pinnon Lake cabins are ten tranquil minutes from the edge of Shawnee National Forest. Moments from anywhere yet feels like miles from it all. |
 | Willowbrook Cabin Rental - Golconda, IL Cottages and Cabins LARGE 2 and 3 bedroom private CABINS located near many of the major ATTRACTIONS of the Shawnee National FOREST and the surrounding Southern ILLINOIS area. All cabins offer incredible VALUE as they are fully furnished with everything needed including full kitchens with cookware, microwave, liens, fire pits and wood, outdoor grill, satellite TV and even FREE internet. Open all seasons |
 | Cedar Rock Cabins - Goreville, IL Cottages and Cabins Located in beautiful Johnson County, Illinois, and nestled within the Shawnee National Forest. Enjoy the screened in porch at dusk and view the wildlife that wanders freely through the woods. The hot tub is located out of doors so you can relax in luxury beneath the stars.... |
 | Doc's Lakeside Cabin - Jonesboro, IL Cottages and Cabins Doc's Lakeside Cabin was built in 2012 and is located in beautiful Southern Illinois. Let us welcome you to setting where you can rejuvenate your mind, body and soul. |
Several trails take you around the park and through the hills and woodlands that make up Fort Defiance. Equestrian use is allowed on three of the trails. During winter months the park is a popular place for snowmobiling and cross country skiing.
Fort Defiance State Park's 191 acres of rugged woodland provide a beautiful contrast to the gently rolling surrounding farmlands. The park's trails, picnic areas and scenic overlooks provide a great place to relax. Its lush cover of vegetation includes hawthorn, plum, locust and many species of the state tree - the oak. In the spring, the slopes are speckled with trillium, bloodroot, hepatica and violets. A small prairie with native grasses and flowers, including the endangered prairie bush clover, thrives on a secluded knoll.
theres no place else that you can put one foot in the ohio and one in the mississippi @ the same time
Visited November 21, 2010.
While the park appears to be abandoned and the building showing decay, the reason my family visited was to see the RIVERS. It was very impressive to actually stand on a point of land and watch the Ohio and the Mississippi waters merge together. Standing on the very tip of Illinois, you look to your left accross the great Ohio River into Kentucky, you look to your right across the Mighty Mississippi into Missouri. How cool is that. I would recommend this place to anyone interested in geography.
I have talked to the park maintenance supervisor and he assured me that the park is being maintained and mowed. Funding is down (like everywhere) so consequently the park is not receiving maintenence as often as in years past. 
This park is totally abandoned and completely run down. The road is impassable due to flood damage once you get into the loop, and the area is overgrown. 