Looking for the best tent campgrounds near Clayton? Find the best information on tent camping near Clayton, including sites, reviews, and tips for getting the most out of your camping experience. Each spot offers quick access to one or more of Clayton, Michigan's most popular destinations.
Campground closed for renovations starting Nov 2019
White Oak Campground is a primitive campground. It has eight individual and two group campsites for tent camping. Only tent camping is permitted.
$30 - $40 / night
Campers must walk approximately 700 feet to campsite #1; 1,000 feet to campsite #2 and 1,300 feet to campsite #3. Vehicles are not permitted to drive back to the campsite. It is suggested to use a wagon to get camping gear to the campsite. The wagon is not provided.
Fireplace: Fire Ring is available. Firewood is available for purchase at the Firewood Locker for $5 plus tax, credit card only. Please deposit empty bags in designated locations.
Additional Information: This campground is a primitive campground around Wiregrass Lake. It has three (3) individual campsites for tent camping only. Please note that our campgrounds required 24 hour advance reservations via phone or online. All renters will receive an email confirmation, that must be brought with you. If you made a reservation and did not receive an email confirmation please call customer service at 419-407-9700, Monday through Friday. Due to the high volumes of campers, we may not be able to accommodate requests to move campsites with less than 24 hours notice and are subject to availability.
$20 - $25 / night
The Cannaley Treehouse Village is the only public treehouse village in the country, creating an experience that is truly one-of-a-kind. Treehouse Village includes six-, four- and two-person treehouses plus three raised platforms attached to trees for tent and hammock camping.
The treehouses have electricity with heat and air conditioning. There restrooms and shower facilities are nearby.
A large common treehouse available for day uses, a group gathering place around a campfire, connecting boardwalks, a canopy bridge and a crow's nest complete the charming village in the trees.
Treehouse Village Features A six-person treehouse A four-person treehouse (ADA accesible) Two, 2-person treehouses Three tent/hammock platforms for camping in the trees A common treehouse with seating for up to 20 people (day use only; ADA accessible) A crow’s nest A canopy walk linking the common treehouse to the crow's nest Restrooms with showers Common fire pit (wood provided)
$18 - $25 / night
Pinckney Recreation Area is a paradise for backpackers, mountain bikers, anglers and other recreation enthusiasts. Pinckney is known for its extensive trail system and chain of excellent fishing lakes. Over forty miles of multi-use trail with remote campsites afford a backcountry experience. Pinckney is also a short drive from the Gerald E. Eddy Discovery Center in Waterloo Recreation Area.
$20 - $28 / night
Scout
So I checked in today to stay for a week and noticed that there is no one here. I must have ended up at the wrong campground, because I usually camp around other nomadic campers and I was having bad anxiety being the only person there. The people run this decided to play games with me.
First I told them i am leaving and they had the audacity to try and say they will charge me 30 bucks for plugging my wifi in so I can text my friend with my phone since it only runs off wifi and an argument ensued.
They suggested I use their office wifi.
I walked up to it after I unplugged my damn wifi trying to text my friend, there was no password on their office window. It wasnt free. So i walked back to my camper, plugged my wifi back in, texted the idiot who runs the place demanding the password so i can text my friend and they didnt respond, so its like they were trying to entrap me into paying them 30 bucks just for using my wifi. I told them there will be a problem. So I got in touch with my friend, my friend arrives and I made sure they gave me my full refund back. I was gonna lose it if they kept trying to interfere with me trying to reach my friend.
I do not recommend this campground. It is more like a storage unit for campers.
Still trying to find where all the nomadic people are camping right now.
Guide
What an absolute gem of a state park. Almost every site is private, with a few exceptions. Nice trails, well built picnic tables, and huge fire pits. Overall a fantastic experience.
Scout
We camped at Way Back campground llc in Michigan for three seasons, initially building strong friendships with the owners and their grandchildren. Our kids would eagerly await our weekly arrivals during the summers, often chatting and playing video games during the off-season. The campground initially offered family-friendly activities like hayrides and crafts.. these dwindled to events that included only our children and the owners' grandchildren, often overshadowed by drunken behavior unsuitable for kids. By the second season, that sense of community soured when the owners' friends/family began uninvited weekend parties on our campsite. Groups would show up, using our firewood and partying late into the night while our kids struggled to sleep, often leaving only after we became assertive and telling them to leave so we could go to bed. This disregard for our family's needs, compounded by other unsettling issues made it clearly evident that Way Back is not a family friendly campground. Our campsite being littered with debris from a previous burned, condemned camper on our lot, promises of cleanup that went unfulfilled for 3 seasons. Obscene drunken adult behaviors in front of children that went unaddressed, only created a growing sense of disappointment. We also faced safety concerns, such as homeless individuals using drugs and living in the campgrounds. Convicted sexual offenders and known drug addicts in the park. Hostile fighting and commotion usually provoked by and instigated by the owners. A lingering presence of inappropriate adults around children at the park. Despite our initial rapport and giving the owners multiple chances to make improvements, issues only escalated, leading us to strongly advise against this campground. (Photos from last day. The glass and Debris has been collected like that every weekend for the last 3 years)
Traveler
There's so much to do at the village! What a wonderful place for history lovers and/or kids. In addition to the village, there is a splash pad, a pool (in the nearby inn), and a couple of hiking trails.
We stayed in Site 23. The sites are sizable, level, and well maintained. The shower house and restrooms were extremely clean.
The campground was peaceful. It was full during our stay, and the other campers were very courteous. Nobody was loud and obnoxious.
We were able to catch the Northern Lights!
Scout
This park will accommodate any size travel trailer? Fifth wheel camper of any kind, the pull throughs are huge. The park is enormous with lots of fishing activities. Great water, the only downfall is there's no shade. Showers and restrooms are updated and always clean.
Scout
If your longer than 40ft be aware most sites will not work for you here, they do have some but the wood line, privacy and nature is great. Lots of activities for the family by camp staff. Water sports and lots of trails
Guide
I only stayed one night. I am a tent camper and where I was, it was only me in a fenced in area. I was right next to a cow field. The cows did not moo all night and there was no foul order. I needed no amenities so I can't vouch for that
Traveler
The staff were so kind and helpful. I visited in my off-grid ready camper van, and staff helped us choose a site that had good views and felt private (SITE #22). It was a little slanted, but it didn't bother me. We could see the lake and had an outhouse right nearby.
Legend
Our first time at this park and got lucky with our site. The pad was a little unlevel but easy to fix. The fire ring was fantastic and had pea gravel around it so if it rained it wasn’t a muddy mess. Great site with grass for tents and no one behind us besides a cornfield. We had a sidewalk next to us to the bathroom but there were so many bathrooms we didn’t have very many people pass by. It had pretty decent shade but unfortunately a sweet gum tree nearby so watch out if you’re barefoot. The shower house was nice but no benches in the stall and only had curtains. They were very clean and the camp hosts were friendly. We are headed back in September!
GuideStayed 5 days. Had a FHU site, of which there's a lot here. That all worked fine. Almost no trees here. None of the usual painted lines on the pavement to indicate your site boundaries, which sucks. You have to guess, and hope your neighbor doesn't spread out.
Nothing seems enforced here, and I mean nothing. Rarely saw anyone patrolling the park, never saw any staff checking sites before the next camper came in. My site had dog droppings and cigarette butts in the firepit. Neighbors had FOUR vehicles on site, two more than the rules. Witnessed endless speeding and people going the wrong way on the roads. Without exaggerating, 80% of the cars were going too fast, 75% going the wrong way. No one seems to care or enforces anything. I think the supervisor here should be fired or retrained. I camp in 4 to 8 MI state parks per summer, this is the only one where it felt like no one cares.
They need some "wrong way" signs and "speed limit 10" signs. (15 is too high, cause 15 means 20 to people, 10 means 15... ). Then they need to care.
At least the bathrooms were clean.
You can get TV from Detroit or Toledo, and T-Mobile service was ok.
Groceries and many dining options not far off.
We're 50/50 on staying here ever again.
Ranger
Our site was $59.95 a night.
We were in Site# 504. 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. We were charged $25 additional for my jeep since we were towing the trailer. We also were charged $10 because we arrived at 1:25 PM and check-in is at 2 PM. The park was close to empty so arriving early was not an inconvenience. We drove ourselves to our spot (no escort).
Our site was shaded with lots of trees. This was a smaller lot with our neighbors fairly close.
The lot comes with a concrete patio with picnic table and fire ring. They sell wood for $6 a bundle.
There is free WiFi, although not strong. They offer Cable TV and there are many channels.
There is not a community outdoor kitchen or community fire pit.
They pickup your garbage at your site daily before noon.
You are allowed to ride personal golf carts. 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 but it is currently closed due to maintenance (although it just looked closed- no signs of maintenance being done).
There is a Playground. They also offer horseshoes, corn hole, giant jinga.
They have a basic general store. There are not scheduled activities for kids.
There is not a snack bar/restaurant on site.
The streets are gravel so not great for riding bikes. This is an RV park with tent camping and cabins to rent.
They have one shower house. The shower house has individual bathrooms with your own sink, shower, toilet. These are kept very clean.
There is a laundry facility. It is a cash only facility, but they have a change machine. There are approximately 4 washers and 4 dryers. It is approximately $2.50 to wash and $2.50 to dry a load.
They have a small fenced in dog park.
There isn’t tons to doin the actual city of Perryville. But Toledo is a 20 minute drive.
Scout
Great out of the way campground. It was nice and quiet. Bathrooms were clean and well kept. The gentleman that checked us in moved things around so we could all be together not on different sites well away frome each other. Would definitely go there again.
ScoutThe sites in the tent-only section were well sized and shady. We were on the lake side and were able to get some nice views of Harrison Lake. There were families on either side of us with little kids who were well behaved, albeit a little noisy (i.e a really young child was screaming for about 2 minutes straight non-stop at 9 am until finally the parents said something). Bathroom facilities (single occupancy with shower) were about a 3 minute walk and were clean. Good stay!
ScoutWe stayed in a tent on site 32, this was a very nice campground, peaceful, with trails and ample shade. Campsites were decently sized, fire pits were big, $5 per bundle of dry wood, showers were private with hot water, and there were activities and a beach/playground for kids. Checkin/out was simple, and coffee/hot coco was provided by the campsite each morning. Will be returning to this campsite again. I suggest sites 93-96 for more private/shaded sites.
Guide
This was our 1st ever camping trip and it was a delight. Pull thru spot, super easy to get to, full hookup. Spots had plenty of room, some had grass others had concrete. Quiet, very chill RV park, small beach on a pond for fishing playground for kids and plenty of room for our small dog. Linda (owner) was amazing, very helpful and easy to use venmo for payment and for firewood use. Overall a great experience , would definitely visit again. Plenty to do around town, lakes everywhere just have to choose which one to go to.
Guide
Camped here thru the 4th of July weekend. The staff kept noise and other stupidity tamped down. They say quiet time is all the time, and I love that.
Typical MI state park, sites are electric (30a and/or 50a) only.
No real beach, but there is a swimming area. Picked up Detroit TV stations easily, good for the rainy mornings we had.
With T-Mobile, Internet service was practically non-existent. Phone calls & texts worked. The camper across from us said it was the same for Verizon.
One section is mostly paved & ADA sites, the "upper" section is grassy and/or dirt. Both restroom/shower buildings were fine, I just wish they had posted times when they'll be closed for cleaning.
All in all, we'd have no problem returning here.
Guide
I visited this campground last summer! It was a smaller campground, but very woodsy (just how I like it)! They have kayak/canoeing, a playground area for the kids, and good site sizes. The only thing that wasn’t pleasant was the beach area (too small and muddy), and the fact that my boyfriend’s mother had to pull off leeches various different times after being in the water!
GuideWonderful views from site 117. We booked the last spot of the night. It was an easy pull through with water, electric, and sewer hookup. You are right across from some good walking trails and walking distance to the beach. Lots of electric scooters, dogs, and bikes around.
Traveler
We had spot 8 and it was a good spot. It was a pull through spot that could fit a pretty large RV we will be staying here again if it is close on our travels. Highly recommend
GuideWe stayed at site 8, enjoyed not having much of a crowd. View of the river was beautiful. Easy pull through access.
Scout
We rented site 95 in the “skybox” it’s on the backside of the property. Super clean campground with friendly workers and seasonal residents were so friendly. Enjoyed the pool, pickleball and walking the trails. Has a 9hole disc golf. Very cool place and Angola has a lot to offer.
ScoutFishing but is catch and release. It is not posted any where in the rules or at the fishing spots. Nore was I told this be fore being warned about it. Cancled season and went to where I could catch and eat.
Guide
Well maintained and up kept with some neat features and trails.
Avoid the vending machines.
Scout
They have good hiking trails, nice refreshing waters, good food options at certain places
Traveler
Stayed here with my family on memorial weekend. Nice campground with friendly staff. Would come again for sure.
GuideSites are large, level, and grassy with vegetation barriers between sites with mowed buddy site access at back of each site. Shower houses are limited but modern and clean. Sunday morning’s line at the dump station can get very backed up!
Scout
The 6-foot leash rules are very clearly stated. There are many campers whose dogs remain the exception and don't abide by the rules. My leashed dod has been threatened by vicious larger unleashed dogs as I walk my dog more than once this month. So the camp host or ranger should , after warning the offending campers once, call the county animal control. This situation is way out of control.
Tent camping near Clayton, Michigan offers a variety of scenic spots and amenities for outdoor enthusiasts looking to immerse themselves in nature.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Clayton, MI?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Clayton, MI is Maumee Bay State Park Campground with a 4.6-star rating from 40 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Clayton, MI?
TheDyrt.com has all 22 tent camping locations near Clayton, MI, with real photos and reviews from campers.
