Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Grand Marais, MI

This was our first campground experience with our RV. Not being sure what to expect but we really enjoyed our stay. We had a back in site, very close to the bathhouse which was nice and clean. Cleaned daily &closed for cleaning between 9-10am. Our site was right across from Lake Superior with beautiful sunset and sunrise views. There was a dog park for dogs to enjoy. Location is in the town of Grand Marais so you are a 10 minute walk into town for stores & dining. Very quiet campground, perfect for relaxing. Long staircase leading down to the beach. We will definitely be back.

Blind Sucker Campground deserves a visit just for the funny name alone. This campground is located in Lake Superior State Forest off County Road 407 about 13 miles east of Grand Marais. The gravel road leading here has some pretty bad washboard sections that will rattle your teeth and some potholes that would swallow your car, but hey, this is the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and a little off the beaten path. 

Nothing fancy here. This is a great little rustic campground with 32 non-reserveable sites (all on a first come, first served basis) buried under trees set on a lake. The shady sites are suitable for tents and small RVs and makes for a nice place to rest and relax. When we visited, there was only one other camper as this campground is not as popular as Blind Sucker #1 and the nearby Lake Muskallonge State Park. There is potable water from a hand pump and vault toilets which much to our delight were clean, stocked with toilet paper and didn’t smell even on warm days.

The lake has a pathway going down the lake for a short hike or for bank fishing.  We were set to go for a walk and cast a line until the bothersome black flies changed our plans. There is also a 6-7 mile trail that passes through the campground for a longer hike and connects to the   There is a boat launch but other than that, there are no amenities. If you are looking for a place to swim where you don’t have to worry about leeches, just across the road a short distance away is Lake Superior. The lake is perfectly refreshing and the beach was completely empty of people which made for a great place to hang out during the afternoon.

Other camping options in the area are Blind Sucker #1 and Lake Muskellunge State Park (where you can pay for a shower and purchase firewood). Grand Marais has a small market, gas station, hardware store, and some restaurants. Grand Marais is also the eastern end of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and a great place to explore. Dog owners – be warned that Pictured Rocks NL is not very dog-friendly and they are allowed in very few places and just a couple of short trails.

Gorgeous primitive sites in Pictured Rocks. No cell service for many miles. We stayed at site 19 lake side. A large private site with many trees. A short walk behind our site lead to a gorgeous overlook of Lake Superior. Great location near all of the beauty of Pictured Rocks. Campground had pit toilets, water, and lots of bear safe trash cans. There is no shower so bring your camp soap and shower or wash up in the lake. We picked up wood near Grand Marais, but you can find it for sale coming in from Munising too. Summer south winds may bring the stable flies. We had real problems when hiking and they were annoying at our site as well. If you have a screened in pop up, bring it. Be sure to check out the natural wonders but also the adorable town of Grand Marais. We hope to be back in fall when the flies may leave us alone.

My party stumbled upon this campsite over Memorial Day Weekend while exploring the UP. We were so happy to have found it, and to our surprise there were many open spots despite it being a holiday weekend. We stayed after hiking around Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. I later mentioned this place to a friend and she said her family has been trying to keep this campground a secret for years, maybe I shouldn't be reviewing it lol.

It is close enough to Grand Marais for any amenities you might need, and less than an hour from the mouth of the Two Hearted by way of dirt road. Great excuse to kick the truck into 4x4!

The camp sites, though in the forest, are steps away from Lake Superior. When leaving in the morning we stumbled upon a black bear sow and her two cubs in the middle of the road. Pure Michigan goodness! One of my favorite camping experiences in all of Michigan. :)

Hurricane river Lower is a beautiful well kept campground. The sites are very spaceous, especially the ADA site we had during our stay. The only draw back we had was the enormous fire ring that even if you were in a wheel chair, you could not feel the heat from the fire. It was very chilly when we were there in the first week of July, but we had the pleasure of seeing the northern lights!!!There are paths in between all the campsites to either the main road or up to the upper campground. The main campground road is also attached to the lighthouse trail/road and the parking lot to visit the day use area and swim at Hurricane River. The camp host was very friendly amd greeted us upon arrival. As far as closeness to sights, we were 2 miles away from the Log Slide on the Grand Marais dunes, 4 miles away from Twelvemile beach and campground, 37 miles to Munising, 12 miles to Grand Marais and there is limited cell service unless you are close to those 2 cities. There are pit toilets located at the end of the campground road, just before the dumpsters that are bear proof. There is no electric, but generators can be used in the lake front lots, but not the back lots. The quiet hours were 8pm-8am and everyone adhered to this which is hard to find these days.