Best Cabin Camping near Brimley, MI

This beautiful state park is a stunner during the fall colors! Located just outside of the town of Paradise on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It has all the amenities of a state park such as: spacious camp sites with plenty of room for larger RV’s, fire rings, picnic tables, super clean bathrooms and showers, nature programs, a playground, and a camp store. The campsites vary from rustic to those equipped with electricity to camper cabins, depending on your needs.

There are miles of hiking trails, gorgeous waterfalls, fishing boat rentals, paddling/canoeing opportunities, large picnic areas for groups and more. In the winter, they offer snowmobiling and cross country skiing.

Camp site fees vary, but keep in mind that non-residents pay an additional $9 per day for use of Michigan State Parks.

We arrived on a Friday evening. We had a pull through site and a cabin booked. The pull-through sites are SMALL! (Cabins were basic.) If you happen to have a neighbor, you share campfire and picnic table space. Luckily enough, this place doesn’t seem like it’s ever THAT busy. There wasn’t much for the kids to do. They are all 11 and older and the playground was less than appealing to them. The pool was just recently opened and was SUPER warm. they also had a little game room and store. The first night we were there, a cabin-renter up the hill and his wife were arguing loudly and seem to be regulars at this place. While it provided entertainment in the otherwise quiet and boring campground- it was a little off putting when he started driving his truck through the pull through site next to us frequently like a mad-man. We eventually put stuff in the site to prevent this. The one staff member was friendly. We did venture out to see the falls, it was busy but worth the trip.

Our site was $99.89 night.

We were in Site# 98. We had Full hook- up with a gravel pull-through.
We travel towing a 14 foot trailer and were able to fit both in our pull through site along with my jeep. The site was easy to level.

Our site was not shaded with limited trees (many were shaded though). This was a smaller lot with our neighbors fairly close.

This lot (a premium lot) comes with a concrete patio with a round table with four chairs, two Adirondack chairs and a fire pit and a charcoal box grill.

It is an easy access to the campground from highway -(approximately 1 mile from highway).

There is free WiFi. They offer Cable TV and there are many channels.

There is not a community outdoor kitchen or community fire pit.
They sell wood for $7 a bundle.

They pickup your garbage at your site daily.

You are allowed to ride personal golf carts. They also allow you to rent regular bicycles and e-bikes. They do not provide golf cart rentals. There is really not a need to have a Golf cart because it is a smaller campground.

They do have a Swimming pool. There is a Playground. They also offer Gaga ball,horseshoe, and corn hole. There is a Reading lending library and board games to borrow.

They have a great general store. There is an electric car charging station. They sell propane.

There is not a snack bar/restaurant on site.

The streets are gravel so not great for riding bikes.

There are great places to ride bikes outside of campground. From the campground, there is a nature trail that you can take your bike that leads you to the. North Western State Trail.

They have cabins for rent and tent areas.

They have one shower house. The shower house has individual showers. Toilets with sinks are in a shared bathroom. These are kept very clean.

There is a laundry facility. It is a cash only facility. There are approximately 5 washers and 5 dryers. It is approximately $2.50 to wash and $1.50 to dry a load.

They have a fenced in dog park.

Bugs (mosquitoes/flies)did not seem to be an issue.

There were trails to hike off of the campground.

Some fun things to do outside of the campground are go to the beach (1 mile away); visit Mackinac Island (both major ferries will transport you for free - this KOA provides you information for Shepler’s Ferry). Both ferries offer packages that include horse drawn carriage rides, Fort Mackinac admission, Island Hotel Admission, Butterfly House admission, Mystery Town admission, and Parking options). There is a Jack Pine Lumberjack show.

Lime Island Recreation Area is located in the St. Mary’s River at the very east end of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. It sits in the middle of the river with Canada on one side and Michigan on the other. Raber, Michigan is the nearest shore town, 2 miles across the river. The only way to reach the park is by boat but there are no designated ferries, so the only way to reach it is by using your own boat or finding someone in the area with a boat willing to charter you and your gear. Non-motorized boats are not recommended due to the many freighters and choppy water conditions.

Overnight accommodations include six cabins that can sleep between four and seven guests each, as well as 10 tent sites on wooden platforms that look out over the river. The park is a favorite among fishermen, couples, and large families who like to rent out all the cabins for annual reunions. 

A boat slip comes with your reservation. The island has limited electricity (solar-powered only) and no running water. Portable toilets are provided and there is a pump for a potable-water well. Cabin guests need to provide all their own gear, including sleeping and cooking supplies and equipment.

Approximately 7 miles of hiking trails traverse the island, providing guests the chance to wander, explore and possibly encounter wildlife. With so little human activity you never know what you’ll find.

One of the favorite pastimes of guests is sitting and watching the large Great Lakes freighters pass by at all hours of the day. They pass so close to the island you feel you could almost touch them. It’s quite a sight!

There's a ton of history on the island, some of which is still visible. According to the Michigan DNR, “Lime Island provides a significant representation of early 20th-century industrial and maritime history. The coal dock, fuel storage tanks, Quonset hut with bunker, fuel heating and pumping equipment, other supporting buildings, and scattered industrial equipment, provide a complete picture of the island’s use as a ship refueling depot. The schoolhouse, superintendent’s house (that was brought to the island by dragging it across the frozen river), cottages, and fruit trees remind visitors of island life for the workers that supported the depot.”

It's not an easy state park to reach, but if you can find a way to get there, the seclusion should make for some great camping on the tent platforms (or hanging out in the cabins if you're into that sort of thing.)

This was my first time on Drummond and the township park was a pleasant surprise. After taking the ferry over, it’s only about a 5-10 minute drive up the road to the park. Run a lot like a rustic state park, it’s a self-serve, pick a spot, and put the money in the slot kinda place. Each site has its own rustic stone fire pit and picnic table. I believe the campground had about 48 sites and 30 of which had electric. I think probably 20 of them had lakefront (which were a bit smaller). The wooded sites were pretty large and had nice privacy. The bathrooms were rustic style pit toilets and there are no showers. There were however some beautiful hiking trails and beaches for swimming. The island itself is full of ORV trails, so most of the people come for that. The rest are just looking for some beautiful scenery on a quiet island. I will definitely be back!

Not the greatest, but certainly not the worst campground. All first come-first served, with self-checkin. $15/night for rustic, $17/night for electric. We had an electric site, however ours was not working. We were able to plugin to the reverse side amp, and make it work. I left notes on my payment envelope, but they either ignored it, or no one was on-site during our 4th of July visit. There was however, a number to call, had it been a bigger issue.

We had a group of 6, and we took sites 3 & 4 directly ahead as you entered the campground. This area was great, IF you are using both sites

PROS: •Enough space for 3 tents, 3 cars, plus a screened food tent.

•The sites behind us had a line of trees, so it was private and we felt like we had our own little are.

•Lake views through the trees, but just a very short walk down to the shore for fantastic sunset views. It was great to bring some chairs and drinks to enjoy the lake sunsets.

•Directly across from the beach-access drive.

•Directly across from one of three bathrooms.

•Campground is less than 6 miles from the ferry and also close to the “Four Corners” area with a store, restaurants and gas.

•A large sign on the main road made it easy to find, as we arrived in the dark with no GPS.

CONS: •These two sites are not only near the entrance, which can have heavy traffic, but also line the boat launch drive. Constant boats and cars passing by.

•Our sites’ landscaping wasn’t well maintained. Lots of tall grass and weeds throughout both sites.

•Only 1 fire pit for sites 3 & 4 combined.

•The nearby bathroom was by far the worst of the 3 on-site. The men’s was pitch black at all times of the day and I felt like I was going to fall through the floor. We were excited when we found it so close to our site, but we used the others further away. The other bathroom had lights, was maintained and actually locked.

•Of course, the electrical not working was a bummer, but thankfully it worked out.

Walking around during the day, I’d say site 20 might be the best. There were other sites with better water views, directly on the water, but they were flooded and also lacked any privacy. Site 20 had good views and plenty of space, surrounded by trees.

Overall, a nice little campground. Disappointed in a few things, but would likely return.

This lovely Michigan state park juts out on a small peninsula into the waters of north Lake Michigan within site of the Mackinaw bridge, connecting the lower and upper parts of the state. With over 26 miles of coastline there are no shortages of beaches to walk and find solitude.

The campsite we stayed in offered more than expected: paved campsite, electricity, solid picnic table and the beefiest campfire pit ever to come standard in a state park – Michigan is serious about their campfire pits. There is a uniformity to the water-side sites that would please even a middle child --everyone gets the same share. So, searching out the “best site” isn’t necessary, though that won’t likely stop folks from trying.

The bathrooms were clean and modern, though the pit toilets are typical Michigan State Park stinky. There is a small campground with RV full-hookups, water, electricity and sewer, in addition to a few rustic cabins which are all reserve-able on the MI DNR website, https://www.midnrreservations.com/.

The park offers miles of hiking and skiing/snowshoe trails for year-round enjoyment. The string of small islands as well as the coast would make for interesting and scenic kayaking. The area is also a wonderful place to cycle, especially in the fall with the autumn colors in full bloom.

Camp site fees vary, but keep in mind that non-residents pay an additional $9 per day for use of Michigan State Parks.

Brimley isn't a big state park at only 160 acres; it consists of the campground and a small day-use area. 

The campground is the majority of Brimley State Park, with more than 230 sites. And the sites are crammed in pretty close to one another in a relatively open area with multiple rows.

A few of the sites around the outside edge back up to trees, while others back up to the day-use area. A few are technically on Lake Superior but there is a row of trees separating them so it’s not like you’d have a waterfront view.

The sites do come in varying sizes and a few are more pull-in sideways than back in. This helps with so much variation in rig size and type. There also are a few sites with 50-amp service. In addition, there is one mini-cabin.

There are three bathroom facilities in the campground. At least one is showing its age, with only 3 stalls and 1 shower each for men and women. The other facility is a newer, modern style restroom with 5 separate gender-neutral shower stalls. 

Brimley State Park technically has two beaches, or at least areas where you can reach the water. With lake levels so high in 2019 and 2020, there wasn't much of a sandy beach available, but there is a designated swimming area.

The beach area provides a great view of the St. Mary’s portion of Whitefish Bay where you can watch all the big Great Lakes freighters line up as they prepare to pass through the Soo Locks. Make sure you head down at night, too, as the freighters often are parked offshore overnight and likely to be all lit up.

We were there near the end of the fall season so it wasn't very crowded. But during peak times, you're going to be packed in pretty tight so think about that when booking a site and try to get out along the edges if you want more elbow room.