Free, primitive tent camping is permitted within most areas of the roughly 280,000-acre Shawnee National Forest, much of it within the path of eclipse totality. Contact the Shawnee headquarters office at (618) 253-7114. Online:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/shawnee
As of Friday, June 2, 2017, Touch of Nature Environmental Center, located between Makanda and Carbondale on Giant City Road, still has lodging packages available for the Aug. 21, 2017 total solar eclipse.
Call (618) 453-1121 for information. Or visit online at ton.siu.edu
As of FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 2017 Makanda Inn & Cottages in Makanda no longer has lodging available for the eclipse.
Camping reservations at Giant City State Park in Makanda for the August 2017 eclipse are no longer available. All sites have been reserved. Campers seeking nearby reservations within driving distance of peak totality may consider DNR's World Shooting Complex at Sparta, Illinois. More than 1,000 campsites are offered at this rural site located within the path of eclipse totality. Eclipse duration around Sparta will be approximately 2 minutes and 15 seconds.
As of FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 2017, all cabins have been reserved at Stone Creek Golf Course in Makanda.
2017 Makanda eclipse lodging
Eclipse in Makanda