Upper Midwest Campgrounds

I've been in the northern portions of MN, WI, and MI for the last 45 days. Temperatures have been in 70-80s and I feel for you if you're in a triple digit area of the country.

Military sponsored campgrounds are rare in any of these states. In commercial C/Gs sewer hook ups are not the norm. Many of the public/government campgrounds do not have water on the pads. What's even worse, and unlike the south, BBQ and grits are hard to find up here.

Gas and golf is expensive. Be that as it may, the Yankees are pretty friendly.

Sky,

Our experience in MN has been much different. My wife is originally from Duluth so we go up there every other year.

In Duluth the best place is the Lakeside Boat Basin right down on Park Point, just past downtown. This is a boat storage place in the winter but in the summer when the boats are in the water they park RV's there. The parking is on a paved parking lot but they have full hookups and it is within walking distance to Canal Park and the tourist district. You do have to cross the lift bridge to get there.

In Grand Maraque (sp) up on the north shore is a city park with a huge RV park. Full hookups.

Just outside Tower, west of Ely, is the Fountain Bay Casino with a very nice RV Park with full hookups.

In Bemidji we stayed at the KOA. Usually don't like KOA's but this one is nice.

In Brainard we stayed in the city park. This one has water/electric only with a dump station.

You are right about a lack of military campgrounds. Minnesota also has a lack of military bases. The only base I've seen up there is an Air National Guard base in Duluth, a former AFB. Very few facilities available there.

Sky,

Our experience in MN has been much different. My wife is originally from Duluth so we go up there every other year.

In Duluth the best place is the Lakeside Boat Basin right down on Park Point, just past downtown. This is a boat storage place in the winter but in the summer when the boats are in the water they park RV's there. The parking is on a paved parking lot but they have full hookups and it is within walking distance to Canal Park and the tourist district. You do have to cross the lift bridge to get there.

In Grand Maraque (sp) up on the north shore is a city park with a huge RV park. Full hookups.

Just outside Tower, west of Ely, is the Fountain Bay Casino with a very nice RV Park with full hookups.

In Bemidji we stayed at the KOA. Usually don't like KOA's but this one is nice.

In Brainard we stayed in the city park. This one has water/electric only with a dump station.

You are right about a lack of military campgrounds. Minnesota also has a lack of military bases. The only base I've seen up there is an Air National Guard base in Duluth, a former AFB. Very few facilities available there.

Don't have the original post, but I would highly recommend the Burlington Bay campground in Two Harbors, about 20 miles north of Duluth. It is operated by the city and located right on the "big lake". They take reservations and some of their sites have full hookups. www.twoharborsmn.govoffice2.com/index.as...97F4-6707A6E46348%7D

Correct about military bases, but they are building a military campground at our big National Guard base, Camp Ripley, located just north of Little Falls.

We did stay in a few of the mentioned C/Gs. Fountain Bay didn't have sewer, but it was a decent campground with helpful staff. Didn't do Burlington Bay because the reservation clerk was a rude jerk. That turned out to be a good thing. We stayed at Penmaralter on the south side of Two Harbors. It was a very nice, smaller mom and pop place with super owners. From there we did a day trip to Deluth harbors. Nice city. You Coast Guard guys get all the good assignments.

Altho, it was basically a concrete lot with full services, the Grand Casino campground in Hinkley was nice at a bargain price.

We'll probably be back next year so will keep tabs on Camp Ripley.

We'll probably be back next year so will keep tabs on Camp Ripley.

No good news there. Check out my update on the Camp Ripley campground: www.militarycampgrounds.us/index.php?opt...c=45.msg1013#msg1013

The military campgrounds are few. But US corps of engineers has developed a good set of campgrounds around the Brainerd and Cross lake area. Make reservations early because they fill up in summer.