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Camping options near Sand Lake in Michigan span from fully developed state parks to rustic forest campgrounds and private RV parks, with sites distributed along Lake Huron's coastline and the inland Au Sable River corridor. The Tawas Point State Park Campground offers tent, RV, cabin, and glamping accommodations on the Lake Huron shoreline, while Monument Campground and Lumberman's Monument provide more rustic experiences along the Au Sable River. Northern Bear Paw RV Park represents the private camping sector with 57 full-hookup sites available year-round. The region includes multiple accommodation types ranging from tent-only sites to full RV hookups.
Most campgrounds in the Sand Lake area operate seasonally, with peak season running May through September when temperatures are moderate and amenities fully operational. "We come here every summer for our annual Au Sable kayak trip! The campground is nice and clean with a good amount of space between sites," reported one visitor about Rollways Campground. Weather conditions remain favorable through fall, though water access at certain facilities like East Tawas City Park becomes limited in mid-October when water systems are winterized. Several campgrounds including Monument and Rollways operate on a mixed reservation system with some sites bookable in advance and others available first-come, first-served. Road access to most developed campgrounds is suitable for standard vehicles, though larger RVs may face challenges at some of the more rustic forest sites.
Campers consistently highlight water access as a primary attraction in the Sand Lake region. The Au Sable River provides paddling opportunities with several campgrounds positioned strategically for river trips. According to reviews, Rollways Campground even offers kayak transportation services for an additional fee, eliminating the need for self-shuttling. Tawas Point receives praise for its multiple beach options, including separate swimming areas on both the Lake Huron and Tawas Bay sides, plus a designated dog-friendly beach. Several visitors mentioned clean facilities at the forest service campgrounds despite their rustic nature, with one noting that Monument Campground features "quiet and spacious sites" near recreation opportunities at Lumberman's Monument. Mixed-use campgrounds throughout the region accommodate various camping styles, with both peaceful forest settings and lakefront experiences available within short driving distances.
"There's some walking trails here, the lighthouse is a close walk/bike from anywhere in the park. Getting to town is a few minute drive, or a very long bike ride on the road."
"Nice walking paths and the walk to the lighthouse and beach was a nice clean trail. Not to many water views from the campground, but could be seen with a short walk."
from $45 - $120 / night
Check Availability"With a soothing creek whispering in the background of our campsite, we set our camper up for a two week adventure in this northwestern part of Michigan."
"It’s sits on the Au Gres River trail to the river with seating, picnic table and fire pit. The grounds are immaculate. Very peaceful setting."
from $40 - $50 / night
Check Availability"Hike to the nearby monument and attend one of their educational programs, visit the museum, take the steps down to the floating shanty, or visit the small store."
"This is a nice campground that butts up with the Lumberman’s Memorial park with a trail leading to the AuSable sand dune. Campsites are paved with fire pits and picnic tables."
from $15 - $30 / night
Check Availability"The large campground is crowded in summer months and you have to buy tokens to take a shower, but the views and access to the River are spectacular."
"Sites are reasonably priced around$25-30/night. The park is very dog-friendly, which we appreciated.
Nice large, woodsy, level lots. Many are waterfront. "
"Large sites with easy access to water and vault toilets. $15 a night. Not many people and half the sites are first come first served (easy to get a site in the middle of the week)."
"Near a lot of recreation, including Lumbermans Monument, the paddlers memorial, and the lovely Ausable River. Minutes away from Oscoda and Lake Huron."
from $15 - $30 / night
Check Availability"This is one of my favorite campgrounds in Michigan. The sites are big, most are well shaded."
"We brought our own kayaks and spent the day at on loud lake which was about a 15 min drive away. There were plenty of vault toilets which were very clean and water stations."
from $15 / night
Check Availability"This here is one of my favorite campgrounds in Michigan. The facilities are clean and kept up. All access to trails, lakes and the river are close and easy to get to."
"Great location and our site had a nice shortcut through the woods that exited by the lake and bathrooms."
from $20 / night
Check Availabilityfrom $14 / night
Check Availability"You can walk to downtown and eat at several restaurants, go to the movies, walk to Walmart and get ice cream from 3 different locations."
"The lake is Lake Huron. US 23 divides this park from the city and there is a train track and active train on the opposite side but it only goes through once a day at about 10 o’clock at night."
"I had cabin #3, very beautiful on the lake. Wish they had a grate to cook some things, however I failed to bring my own. It made do with what I had."
"This is a great campground and very close to canoe rentals. They pick up trash right at your site! Also, buy the wood from the people driving around."
from $16 - $30 / night
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ScoutEvidently we are too loud for all the other guests at 8:00 at night so the park rangers had to come up and quiet us down three times and we barely have the radio even up where we could hear it in our campsite they take care of the whine bags there that's for sure
ScoutStandard camping affair. Many of the spots are sloped, so be careful when choosing your spot.
TravelerNice park, good people here. Great little store with all kinds of snacks DvDs ice cream Delicious Beverages the Beach is Wonderful. The restaurants are close and have good service and good food we will be back.
TravelerThis is a beautiful campground. The showers are very nice the people are nice. The light house is Amazing and the museum is very cool. We are very happy we stopped here.
GuideThis was our overall third visit in the last 4 years to this campground. The last visit was 2 years ago and we had friends visit and do the 6hr tubing ride with us and that ultimately got them into camping and willing to spend the weekend with us at this campground.
We've always been in the "rustic" area more towards the "adult/party" side of the campground, but not to scare anyone there was NOT an over abundance of loud music, or shenanigans. Everyone was pretty calmed down by 11-12.
Some of the upgrades from years past included shelving, hooks, small benches in the public shower areas (don't have to pay for shower access) water was always warm and the showers were always clean.
The store contained anything you'd need if you forget something at home, including water shoes for tubing, firewood, ice, etc.
We did the 6hr tubing trip, left at 11am and got back to the campground around 4:30. Theres more than enough locations along the tubing trip to stop and eat off to the side. The river is very shallow at some points, id say ankle deep and deep at some points, maybe 8+ ft in spots, but most of the time it was knee deep.
The staff is great, they drive around periodically and pick up trash if you leave it in bags along the driving paths, theres a security team at all hours, etc.
Cell service isn't the best, however they do offer wifi ($20 for multiple devices/week). The wifi would go in/out at times though
Overall this is one of my favorite campsites and will return next year.
ScoutThis was our first camping trip as a family and our son choked made it a memorable one. He choked on a breadstick, threw it up and had piece stuck in his throat. The park ranger ( female, maybe 5'5 light brown hair, white. Because I cant remember her name) was amazing. She was calm, asked my son questions to help distract him and her overall kindness in her all was great. The rest of the team in there was amazing as well. Next day she stopped by to see how he was doing! I loved that. The camp ground itself it very nice, the bathrooms and showers were really clean. For sure worth the stay!
GuideStayed a few nights here. Great site right in the river. Rented tubes and floated the river down to our campsite. All of the amenities. Definitely a busy place on weekends but a little calmer through the week.
ScoutThis dispersed camping free no hookups no water there are porta potties out here can't say what condition they are in I didn't look I'm boondocking in an 26 ft RV it's very pretty area lots of camping spots big enough for an RV I would say at least 45 ft roads to get in here are dirt the road actually leading down to the camp is not to bad not very wide I have a 26 ft class C RV and just as you get to the camp there is a large Sandy area I wouldn't come down here after a downpour there's camping spots in the woods, there's also an open area where you can get lots of Sunshine if you got solar. It's about 9- 10 miles East of Mio, Michigan. On Google Maps they refer to as a horse camp.
ScoutMaintained to perfection, great camping, everything you could ask for. All facilities are available and clean. The owners of the site are always happy to help and are a pleasure. Fantastic sites with full hookups, river, pond, playground and forest
Campgrounds near Sand Lake, Michigan offer rustic options that connect with the Au Sable River watershed and surrounding Huron National Forest. The region sits at approximately 600-800 feet elevation with summer temperatures averaging 75-85°F during peak camping season. Winter camping options remain limited primarily to RV sites with electrical hookups, as water systems at most campgrounds shut down by mid-October.
Kayaking transportation services: At Rollways Campground, campers can arrange boat transportation. "What's really awesome about this place is if you pay a little extra, they will provide dropoff and pickup of both your party and all your kayaks to the appropriate points so you don't have to deal with transporting everything yourself," explains Kelsey P., noting this service is "definitely worth every penny" to avoid carrying kayaks up the steep staircase from the river.
Birdwatching opportunities: The Sand Lake region serves as a critical migratory stopover. Tawas Point attracts various bird species, particularly during spring migration. As Emma W. describes, "There are plenty of trails, including one leading to the lighthouse at the end of the point, as well as kayaks for rent at the boat launch."
Hiking to scenic overlooks: The area features several observation points with educational components. At Lumberman's Monument Visitor Center, Max O. recommends taking "the forest observatory trail on the way and learn a bit about the history of the area. Definitely a place to bring the kids." Another visitor suggests hiking to "the AuSable sand dune" which requires descending "a 100+ ft sand dune down to the water."
Clean facilities despite rustic settings: Monument Campground receives consistent praise for maintenance despite minimal amenities. "Clean pit toilets and water spigots throughout," notes Lianne H., who adds there are "18 spots available. Half are reservable and half are first come first serve." Campers appreciate the balance of rustic experience with basic necessities.
Dog-friendly water access: Several campsites accommodate pets with specialized areas. As Sasha K. explains about one location, "The dog beach gives it an extra star for me. The shallows go out quite far, and is pleasantly sandy. The water is warmer than on the Huron side of the point, too."
Sunrise viewing opportunities: The region's east-facing shoreline creates optimal sunrise conditions. Emma W. recommends, "One thing I have to recommend is waking up early to catch the sunrise over Lake Huron. It is amazing! If you're more of a night owl, sunsets are equally as great looking over the bay."
Reservation systems vary widely: Some campgrounds use mixed booking methods requiring advance planning. At Devoe Lake Rustic Campground, "Sites require a reservation either at the office or Online. Not somewhere you can just pay for on spot because it's in the rifle river recreation area," explains Erin S. Other campgrounds operate on first-come systems with limited spots.
Limited cell service: Connectivity varies significantly throughout the region. Stephanie C. notes at one campground, "Cell phone reception is nill here so do not plan to make or receive calls!" This affects emergency communications and navigation capabilities.
Seasonal campground populations: Visitor numbers fluctuate dramatically by season. As Erika P. describes at one location, "We arrived on 10/12 and on 10/15 most of the available spots to rent were taken by people paying to store their RV. We are glad we arrived when we did because the few spots that are kept open for people to actually stay at the campground would not fit us."
Multiple beach options: Tawas Point State Park Campground provides various swimming areas for different preferences. Marie H. explains, "Our family loves this campground- it has a nice playground, and beach volleyball court near the entrance. There's a nice sandy beach that faces Tawas Bay in the campground, the public beach on Lake Huron has rougher water and more rocks."
Educational programs: Several campgrounds offer structured learning activities. Becky K. notes that near one campground, families can enjoy "Geocaching, canoeing, fishing or hiking to the nearby visitor center with a reproduction logging shanty or the educational programs in the pavilion."
Playground facilities: Multiple campgrounds feature play equipment. Edward C. mentions, "There's also a kids playground and volleyball court," making these sites particularly appealing for families with young children who need activity options beyond water recreation.
Winter camping limitations: East Tawas City Park maintains limited winter operation. Erika P. warns, "The city turns the water off around the 3rd week in October. There is one bathroom building open for showers and you can also get water from the side of the office building to fill your tanks." RVers should plan accordingly for reduced services.
Length restrictions: Many campgrounds cannot accommodate larger rigs. "37' is the longest length recommended. We have a 42' 5th wheel and made it fit only because we were here during the off-season," notes one RVer, adding "There's no way we would of got the RV in if people had the vehicles parked in their campsite or on the road."
Train noise considerations: Some campsites experience significant railway disruption. At East Tawas City Park, "There is a train. A very LOUD, slow moving train that blows its horn around 22 times when it goes by. When we were here, it ran Monday-Friday and went by twice between 9:30pm-12:30am."
Frequently Asked Questions
Where are the campgrounds near Sand Lake, Michigan?
Several excellent campgrounds are located near Sand Lake, Michigan. Harrisville State Park Campground offers wooded sites along Lake Huron with a beautiful sandy beach and modern facilities. Rifle River Recreation Area provides access to multiple lakes and trails with clean, well-maintained facilities. Other nearby options include Ossineke State Forest Campground and Round Lake Campground near National City. Most campgrounds in this region feature typical amenities like fire rings, picnic tables, and access to water recreation, making the Sand Lake area a popular destination for campers seeking lakeside experiences in northern Michigan.
How close is Sand Lake to National City and Tawas, Michigan?
Sand Lake is approximately 15 miles northwest of National City and about 25 miles from Tawas, Michigan. Tawas Point State Park Campground is located in East Tawas and features electric hookups, walking trails, and a lighthouse that's accessible from anywhere in the park. Getting from Sand Lake to Tawas takes roughly 30 minutes by car. Oscoda-Tawas KOA provides another accommodation option in the area. The Sand Lake-National City-Tawas triangle creates a popular recreation corridor along Michigan's Lake Huron shoreline, with multiple camping options and water activities throughout the region.
What facilities are available at Sand Lake County Park?
Sand Lake County Park offers a range of camping facilities similar to other parks in the region. Typical amenities include designated campsites with fire rings and picnic tables, vault toilets or restroom facilities, and drinking water access. For comparable facilities nearby, Port Crescent State Park Campground features large campsites with fire pits and picnic tables, clean restrooms, and proximity to fishing, kayaking and beaches. Negwegon State Park Campground offers more rustic accommodations with vault toilets, fire rings, and bear poles for food storage. As with most Michigan parks, Sand Lake County Park likely maintains seasonal operations with reduced services during winter months.
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