Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Glen Arbor, MI

The first time I camped here was in the 1970's. It is beautiful, peaceful campground on Lake Leelanau which is located on the Leelanau peninsula in between West Traverse Bay and Lake Michigan in close proximity to the little town of Lake Leelanau, Suttons Bay, Leland and many Michigan wineries. Also not far from Glen Arbor and Sleeping Bear Dunes.

This is one of my favorite campgrounds in Michigan.

One of my favorite parts of MI. 35 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline. The campground is 4 miles from Glen Arbor and barely a mile walk to Glen Haven. The Heritage trail runs right through the campground. The sites are rustic and wooden and farther apart than normal sites. The campground is between Glen Lake and you can walk to the shore of Lake Michigan. Nearby the dune climb, Empire bluffs and North Bar Lake as well.

Overall the campground has a very pleasant and rustic charm. The foliage helps create privacy but the campsites are close in proximity overall. The one warning that should be more clearly indicated is that there is poison ivy surrounding every single site so please be aware if you have pets and small children. The fact that there was so much poison ivy is the only reason I gave it four stars. Lake Michigan is a short walk away and you are able to walk to sleeping bear dunes along the beach. For those who would like convenience Glen Arbor is only five minutes down the main road and has a ton of restaurants, parks and a nice grocery store.

I love that this camp ground is right on Lake Michigan, with a sandy beach. It's rustic enough, but close to Glen Arbor if you need anything. Also on the Heritage Trail, which is an added bonus.

I love driving down M22 to this state park. It’s rustic with beautiful views of Lake Michigan. There are a few sites which are right on the sand which I recommend if you don’t mind a little sand in your tent. definitely check out all of the quaint little towns in the area, especially Glen Arbor and Sutton’s Bay!

This is one of my favorite campgrounds in Michigan. It is all walk ups so plan accordingly though the park service is might changing it to reservation. The sites are wooded and semi private. There are a few next to the beach. The Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail goes through the campground so bring your bicycles. Glen Arbor is near by with a good grocery, restaurants, and shopping.

Enjoyed the D H Day Campground. Really liked the elevated boxes for tent placement and the site was clean. Pretty close to your neighbors, but our site still had some good tree cover. Easy walk to Lake Michigan through the campground. Vaulted toilets, community water and trash. Make sure you have bug spray. Great proximity to Glen Arbor and Empire. Short drive to the dunes for hiking and cannot over recommend Empire Beach to watch a sunset.

Great campsite with spacious sites not too close to each other. Sites are close to the beach (3-5 min walk). Vault toilets are to be expected. Quiet at night when I was there. Easy access to hiking trails and Glen Arbor. Would stay again! $20 for basic tent site (non-electric).

I've been coming here for over a decade and I still love it. Quiet park, quiet beaches, beautiful views. Going into Glen Arbor is fun and checking out all the different parts of Sleeping Bear is a treat. The only thing I don't like are the pit toilets, but it's the tradeoff for no electricity or running water.

I have been to D.H. Day repeatedly over the years. It is one of my favorite campgrounds on the planet. All the sites are close to the beach. The campground is a great base to explore the Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes National park. The campground is close to Glen Arbor where you can get a decent dinner.

Great location and very close to Lake Michigan. Glen Arbor and Traverse City were close by as well. Enjoyed morning walks on the beach and a nice refreshing swim. It was also a nice campground to walk through with a few side trails. The camp sites were spacious and well kept.

But the reason I am giving it a 3 is because of the poison ivy. I am not allergic but did touch a log for our fire that had come in contact with the plant. My girlfriend ended up with the rash and we were later told that DH Day is known for having poison ivy.

Camped here in late October. Small rustic campground right on shores of Lake Michigan in Sleeping Bear Dunes. So beautiful-quick walk to the most beautiful beach. Expected to see sunsets but surprised with awesome sunrises! Fall colors the best. Pit toilets but does have water filling station and dumping station! Most sites suitable for tents and small campers but there are a couple of sites where larger RVs can fit. Nearby Glen Arbor so quaint. Can see why Sleeping Bear Dunes voted most beautiful beach in America. Loved that they had separate sites for those using generators (I personally find the noise of those sooooo irritating!). Even in fall campground was mostly filled on weekend but very quiet.

Site 60 gave us direct beach access (short path over the dunes). The Heritage bike/hike trail (22 mi.) runs right through the campground. 17 nearby trails greet you along with the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. A few miles away, little town of Glen Arbor has a smattering of shops, restaurants, and a market and gas station. There’s so much to explore here, don’t expect to do it in one day. Now go search for Petoskey Stones!

This campground feels like campgrounds should! It is a small, family-run place. The sites are a little small and close together, and with fewer trees than I prefer. But everything else about it makes it on my list to return annually! Location is close to so many great towns and attractions: Glen Arbor/Sleeping Bear Dunes, many Lake Michigan beaches, kayaking/canoeing/tubing river trips, great fishing if that's your thing. The camp store and little outdoor cafe are great and serve a delicious breakfast. Bathrooms were clean and had great ventilation (important when camping during a pandemic like this summer). They have several cute cabins and vintage campers sprinkled among the campsites that are available for rent, and a nice bike path runs right in front of the campground. The campground is very family-friendly.

Site 60 landed us right on the Heritage Trail. A private footpath over the dunes directly behind our campsite led to the gorgeous beach and a clear view of the night sky. A brief stroll takes you to historic Glen Harbor. A quick drive or bike ride will land you at the Dunes trail or Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. 2.5 miles by car or bike on the Heritage Trail leads to all the conveniences of Glen Arbor. Mid-October brought a crisp chill and some rain, but with warm sleeping bags and extra blankets, we were tent cozy. There was more than our two night stay allowed time to explore. We’ll be back!

The location of this campground is great and it's best feature in my opinion! This park is just two miles to downtown Traverse City (one of Michigan’s most popular resort towns), a quarter mile from a pretty beach and the beautiful blue waters of Lake Michigan, and it sits along the TART Trail which is a 10.5-mile bicycle trail running through the city.

While the park is small at just 47 acres, it holds pretty many campsites – approximately 350 (and two cabins). Campsites are set among tall pine trees so there is a bit of shade but that also means that they are sandy with little grass. Roads are paved and narrow if you are trying to maneuver with a large (40+ RV) and you may have difficulty backing into your site with the numerous trees lining the road. All sites are back-in with electric. Sites and patios are sandy with varying degrees of levelness. There is a dump station and water spigots are scattered throughout the campground. Picnic tables and fire pits are at each site. Sites are $31/night ($49/night for the cabins) and reserveable online.

This park is right on US-31/M-72 which means there is easy access in and out but it can be noisy if your campsite is close to the road. Expect the campground to be very busy on weekends and in the summer and tightly packed.

Amenities include: picnic area, beach, fishing, hiking/bicycling trail, three bathhouses, playground area, camp store, pet walk (no off-leash dog park).

Outside of the park there is a lot to do in Traverse City. Early July is the ever-popular Cherry Festival which lasts for a week. But you better book your campsite early if you want to enjoy all the festivities (which happen to be close to the park). The summer farmers market is great and held every Wednesday and Saturday. Early in the season, asparagus is plentiful and locally-grown asparagus is the best you will ever have being super sweet, tender, and inexpensive. For beer drinkers, consider paddling the beer trail that takes you from Boardman Lake to Lake Michigan and past numerous breweries where you pull over for a pint. If it's ice cream you want, you have come to the right place. There are multiple creameries with Moomer's being our favorite and for some reason eating it right at the farm stand was the best.

I was raised near here and the camping at DH Day is always great. Sites are compacted and sometimes you're in a puddle if it rains, but the Beach & view of the stars make up for anything that's lacking. Reserve 6 months in advance to get your site--the good ones are hard to get now that booking can be done online.

It's a short bike ride along the Heritage trail to Glen Haven historical area or Glen Arbor, which although busy in summer, has several great restaurants & lots of shops to buy anything you need. The Crystal River also runs through here & is great for kayaking, tubing, or canoeing.

Drive a few miles & you can climb Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes or head over to Empire Village Beach for a perfect sunset & place for kids to play.

This is a great rustic state forest campground. It seems to be easier to get a site here when the neighboring sleeping bear dunes campgrounds are full.

It is first come first serve but we went on a beautiful summer weekend and could still get a site. We brought our kayaks and would recommend bringing two vehicles so you can put in higher up the river, if you try to kayak up the river from this campground to float back down you will feel like you are in an infinity pool, the flow is very strong in this part of the platte river.

If you stay it’s worth the drive 30 minutes north to visit Glen Arbor for the day!

pros

less crowded, sites have large spacing inbetween, great platte river viewing, feels like you are deep in the outdoors camping, $15 site fee is a great price, clean water pumps and vault toilets, 30 minutes from sleeping bear dunes and 15 minutes from the shores of Lake Michigan.

considerations

This campground is for tents and small trailers, it’s rustic so no electric hook up, no hand sanitizer in bathrooms,

Wooden Shoe Campground in Ellsworth, Michigan is a small campground set on a hill above Ellsworth Lake. This park is great if you want to sometime explore Michigan’s waterways. When we visited the park, it was about 25% full which made it very quiet and relaxing. There are some great sites that overlook the lake that are inviting for an evening fire and enjoying a pleasant view.

The park has 45 RV sites with water, 30 amp electric, cable TV, and internet. There are seven designated tent sites in a heavily wooded area with some glimpses of the lake. Some sites have a nice amount of shade while those towards the front of the park are more open and have a better water view. Picnic tables and fire pits are at each site. The main road throughout the park is paved, in good condition, and easily navigable with even large RV. There is a dump station at the entrance of the park that is easy to get in and out of. A camp host is on site. The price per night to stay here is $25 and they offer a super inexpensive price of $125/week. Reservations can be made by emailing a reservation request or calling the city. 

The town of Ellsworth is quite small with a couple of shops and restaurant or two. The quaint coastal town of Charlevoix is 10 minutes away where you will find plenty of shopping, restaurants, a pretty harbor, weekly live music (in the summer), a farmers market and really great library with a large room that has a great selection of books for sale for a few bucks. The towns of Boyne City and Boyne Falls are about 20 miles away and also worth visiting if you have the time. For dog owners, Boyne city has an off-leash dog park and Boyne Falls has a large ski resort that is perfect for walking dogs in the summer.  The larger town of Petoskey is about a 45 minute drive but well worth a visit. 

If you want to “get away” and enjoy water activities this is a good place to come. There is a canoe/kayak boat launch just down the hill from the park that puts you in a narrow stretch of water that connects Lakes Ellsworth and Saint Clair. A short (approximately 1 mile) paddle into Lake Saint Claire lands you in a beautiful nature preserve administered by the Little Traverse Conservancy.  Be sure to visit Friske’s Orchard which has a fruit stand, bakery with pizza and sandwiches, general store and petting zoo and is only six miles away on Rt. 31.

The good things about this park are the price, access to pretty water for kayaking/canoeing/fishing and the view from some of the sites. You are not too far from some of northern Michigan’s most popular towns yet only paying $25 night. The small size of this park gives it a quieter feel than some of the nearby state parks that have hundreds of sites. When we were there about half the campers appeared to be seasonal who come to enjoy the boating and fishing. Many of these people were not there during the week which made the park super quiet. 

A couple dings for this park are that many of the sites are not level and even pitching a tent can be difficult. The bathroom/shower facilities are old and run down. The main bathhouse is located in the front of the park with port-a-potty’s scattered about. Some of the sites are close together and give a crowded feeling. 

Overall, I would say this is an average park which is why it gets three stars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vBh0Dej5Ro

This campground is in this system ( the Dyrt) like 3 times under similar names, and I just want to be sure you all know how great it is! This is a first-come-first-served campground, so get there earlier in the day if you want a site, even on a weekday. There are rustic bathrooms, no flushing, no sink, nothing. No showers available here, either. However, it is so close to Glen Haven, Glen Arbor, Empire, and the Sleeping Bear Dunes. The location is truly fabulous. You are able to take a short walk down to Lake Michigan from your site. The sites are hard packed ground, dirt, rocks...so bring a mallet or hammer to pound in your tent stakes! I would also advise a sleeping pad or air mat for this same reason. The tent pads are nice and level though, which is awesome. It rained quite a bit over night when I stayed, so I’m thankful for the level ground. There is LOTS of poison ivy on location, so stay on the trails!!! Sites were only $20/night but you also need a National park pass which is $20/week or $40/year, so be mindful of that. This is also an “Active Black Bear Site,” so everything with a scent—clothes, candles, etc., must be stored in your vehicle. No, we did not see any bears while we were there. Everyone was very friendly, and the campground was so much more quiet than anticipated. It was very peaceful and serene. Firewood is available for purchase on site through a wood vending machine basically, so have $5 bills on hand. Stayed at site #88

This campground, first and foremost, requires a National Park Pass, which is $20/week or $40/year, for 1 year from purchase date. Tent camping was $20/night. This campground was in a great location, lots of signage helps you find it and navigate the roads without use of GPS. Seriously, you don’t need one. At least from Empire, anyway. One thing to be cautious of is the poison ivy. It is everywhere. Two other notes on the side of caution, when my mom and I were hiking in the area we did see two ticks, and secondly, the campground is an active black bear area, so keep food and scents in your car. You will be located near Glen Arbor, Glen Haven, and Empire, and quite close to the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive as well as the Sleeping Bear Dunes. The campground backs right up to the Heritage Trail, which is 20 paved miles to hike, bike, walk, ski, or whatever. Th campground, while quite packed, was still so so quiet at night, which was really nice. The tent pad is nice and level which really matters when it rains, like it did while we stayed. Firewood is available out of a mobile vending machine, and takes $5 bills. WiFi is available at the ranger station, I believe.

Campground Review: What an adorable little “backcountry” camp in the middle of Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore. Just 1.5 miles on a very easy sandy trail from the parking area at the Lake Michigan shore is this 6 site campground complete with a reasonably clean pit toilet and group cooking/campfire area with bear box.

Each site has a bit of privacy as they are well spread out from each other and have a good deal of space for multiple small tents, though no tent pads which could be a drainage issue. Nicely wooded, so lots of shade, but also lots of mosquitoes in the late spring/early summer months...bring your bug spray! The trail to the beach is just about ¼ mile across the dunes from the campground.

We ran into a group of young girls from a nearby summer camp who were experiencing their first “backpacking” adventure. They were adorable and having a ton of fun, but if you are seeking to get away from kids and tourists, be forewarned that the kid's camp nearby uses this area throughout the summer months.

In addition to this campground, there are endless options for activities in the area from dune climbing to all types of water sports to cycling to wine tasting to gorgeous sunsets! Lots of good eats in the village of Empire and Glen Arbor as well. The Village Inn in Empire has amazing pizza and Boonedocks in Glen Arbor has good food and fun music on the deck. Don't miss out on Cherry Republic's fun treats, too.

Backcountry permits of $10 per night are required from the Sleeping Bear Dunes Visitor’s Center.

Product Review: As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I was able to test the Klymit Motion 60 Backpack while camping at White Pine. My husband was in the market to update his old backpack when I won the May camping review contest from The Dyrt. I spent some additional money and purchased their top-of-the-line backpack for him to enjoy.

What we like most about this backpack:

• Super lightweight and comfortable…a mere 2.7 pounds. His old backpack weighed at least 2x as much.
• A few well-placed, exterior pockets make organizing and finding things much easier than one large dark tunnel of stuff. The two small hip pockets (one of which doubles as the air pump for the back comfort bladder) is large enough to hold a pocket camera or phone. The brain pocket has a clever diagonally placed zipper that makes accessing your stuff much easier. There is a secret dry pocket in the brain for keys, phone, and wallets. The large and very accessible pocket on the back is great for snacks, lunch, cameras, maps, or anything you want to get to regularly. It too has a diagonal zipper. The two somewhat stretchy neoprene pockets on either side are large enough to hold fuel bottles, tent poles, sleeping pad, water bottles, or a hammock.
• The air frame bladder adds rigidity to the pack and lifts the bag off your back for air flow. This bladder can be pumped up and/or deflated while the bag is on your back to change how the weight of the pack is distributed between your shoulders, back, and hips.
• Multiple compression straps help you can fine tune the backpack for your comfort and gear placement. Also, there are 4 straps on the hip belt to help distribute the weight on your hips.
• There is a Velcro loop strap in which you can hang your water bladder inside the pack, as well as 2 slits for the hose to come through.
• The pack is made from nylon and silicone impregnated nylon, making it durable and relatively waterproof. The zippers open and close easily.

Some concerns:

• My husband was used to carrying a pack with a bit more volume, so found it a bit of a challenge to get everything he usually carries inside. With newer technology and lighter, smaller equipment, we look forward to the challenge of pairing down what we really need.
• The only other concern is possibly puncturing the air frame bladder, but patching should be as easy any repairing any sleeping pad.

Product Link: https://www.klymit.com/motion-60-backpack.html

Product Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLq7TQPzPa8&t=8s