Attention:
The Nebraska Game & Parks Commission maintains the right to establish "black-out" dates and reserve facilities or lodging for Special Events and maintenance related needs.

Willow Creek SRA, NE

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Status: Open through Sun Oct 12 2025 Season Dates
Max Reservation Window: View all

Campground
Details

Campground
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Campsite
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Date Range
Availability

Visitor
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Description

Willow Creek is a 700 acre lake with 933 acres of land adjacent. This area offers modern latrines, showers, electrical camp pads, primitive camping, power boating, fishing, picnicking, a swimming beach and 7 handicapped fishing piers.

Willow Creek, 1 1/2 miles SW of Pierce, has 1,633 acres with a 700-acre lake. Facilities include: 100 camping pads, 64 with 30 amp electrical hookups, 19 with 50 amp electrical hookups. Picnic tables and shelters, fire grates, water, showers, modern restrooms, accessible fishing pier, archery field course, unsupervised swimming, two playgrounds and an 8-mile hiking/horseback trail around the lake. Seven rock jetties provide some fine fishing access.

Willow Creek offers camping, fishing, boating and swimming. Picnickers will find shelters along with an ample supply of tables and fire grates. An 8-mile hiking and horseback trail winds through the area, with a limestone trail meandering from the swimming beach and proceeding to the west edge of Pierce. Park roads may also be used by horseback riders. Come winter, roads and the lake surface (ice permitting) are open to snowmobiles.

A few miles north and west of Grove Lake is Ashfall Fossil Beds State Historical Park, a fascinating area. Here visitors can watch ongoing excavations of prehistoric animals preserved under layers of volcanic ash deposited eons ago.

Services & Amenities:

Within Park

Archery Field Course
Bird Watching
Boat Launch
Boat Ramp
Boating
Boating, Kayaking
Campground Host
Camping, Equestrian
Camping, Equestrian Group
Camping, Improved Site
Camping, Primitive
Canoeing
Comfort Station
Corrals, Horse
Dock, Boat
Dump Station
Dump Station, Camper
Dump Station, Campers
Fishing
Fishing, PARK LAKE
Grills
Handicap Access
Hiking
Hiking Trail
Horseback Riding (Guest must bring their horses)
Hunting
Jet Skiing
Jogging/Running
Laundry
Office/Ranger Station

PARK LAKE
Parking
Photography
Picnic Area
Picnic Shelter
Picnic Tables
Picnicing
Pier, Fishing
Playground
Potable water hydrants
Restrooms
SWIMMING, PARK LAKE
Sail Boarding
Sail Boating
Showers
Stargazing
Sunbathing
Swimming - Park Lake
Trails - Hiking/Walking, Easy
Trails, Bicycle
Trails, Equestrian
Trails, Horse
Trails, Mountain Bike
Walking
Water Access, Park Lake
Water Drinking
Water Skiing
Wildflower Viewing
Wildlife Viewing

Greater Than 1 Mile

Arboretum
Fishing live bait and accessories
Fuel, Boats
Fuel, Vehicles
Golf Course
Grocery Store
Museum Complex

Restaurant
Retail, Drinks/Ice/Snack
Shelters
Swimming Pool
Tennis/Basketball courts
Town
Winery Tours

Within 10 Miles

Dining

Alerts and Important Information

ATTENTION - Firewood Alert:
Voluntary Firewood Restriction

If you have brought firewood from another state, please burn it immediately and do not transport it to another location. Many invasive pests are being transported across our country in firewood. The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is a serious pest that is near Nebraska's border. Your cooperation to help prevent EAB from invading Nebraska woodlands and landscapes is vital to protecting our valuable natural resources.

If you need additional firewood, your options are:

1) Purchase firewood at parks that sell it.

2) Purchase firewood at vendors near many parks.

3) Gather dead firewood laying on the ground within park boundaries.

Learn more about invasive pests and the risk of transporting firewood at:

www.emeraldashborer.info

www.dontmovefirewood.org

Camping reservations may be made a minimum of three days in advance of arrival and a maximum of 180 days in advance of arrival.

CHECK IN AND OUT SCHEDULE- If you check out early, the unused portion of your payment will be forfeited.

There are 100 pads in the campground, 84 with electrical hookups, which includes a handicap accessible camp pad. The modern shower house has laundry facilities, and there is a dump station. Fees are charged for camping, Campers are asked to self-register on arrival to the first-come, first-serve sites and deposit the appropriate fee in the drop box. Drinking water and vault toilets are available at the campground, as well as other sites around the lake.

Non Licensed motorized vehicles are not allowed in the areas.

Only one camping unit is allowed per campsite in the modern area. An extra tent may be used for dependant children only. Quiet hours are from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. Generators may not be operated during these hours. Pets are allowed, but they must be kept on a leash that is no longer than 6 feet. Campers staying over must re-register by 2 p.m. Check in time is 4 p.m. and check out time is 2 p.m. Campers must vacate their campsite no later than 2:00 p.m. on the date the camping reservation or registration expires. All persons entering the campground must be registered. Upon arrival, campers MUST have their camping equipment and be prepared to set up.

When a reservation is made one year to the date in advance, the arrival date must remain the same within that reservation. No cancellation of that arrival date is allowed.

A Nebraska State Park Permit is required to enter this park area. A Nebraska Licensed Vehicle Park Entry Permit is $30 for an Annual Permit, $15 for a Duplicate Annual Permit (used for that second vehicle in your family) or a Daily Permit which is $6 per day you are staying. A Non-Nebraska Licensed Vehicle Park Entry Permit is $60, $30 for a Duplicate Annual Permit or a Daily Permit which is $12 per day. You may purchase your Park Permit prior to your stay by shopping online at OutdoorNebraska.org.All vehicles entering a Nebraska Park Area are required to have a valid park entry permit.

See Reservation Policies details

Notes

Electrical campsites frequently fill. Reservations are recommended.
Referrals:
Fremont SRA
Lewis & Clark SRA

Getting There:

GPS Info. (Latitude, Longitude):
42.17361, -97.57194
42°10'25"N, 97°34'19"W

NW of Norfolk : From Hwy 13 turn west (on gravel) 852 Rd. 2 miles, turn South (left) on 549 Avenue to 851 Rd. 1 mile west (right) then north (right) 1/2 mile to enter park or go through Pierce (for paved roads) to west Willow Street and follow park signs.