Best Glamping near Ontonagon, MI

We visited with our dog the first week of October to catch the fall colors. After driving up from Chicago, checking in, and then driving to Little Carp River Road, finally ready to hike at 4pm. Parking lot isn't huge and all sites were booked that weekend but we were able to snag a spot. We took the Little Carp River trail all the way to the site, which was easy to follow, a good bit of up and down but nothing too difficult. Reservation site says 2.3 miles, we did closer to 3.5 by the time we arrived. LC-7 and LC-6 are close to each other but far enough away that you have some privacy, couldn't hear the other party chatting. Fire wood in the area was sparse, everything was damp. Bear pole was tough to find, follow the trail past the site, then a stump, at the second huge tree on your left, turn to your right and climb the hill.

Site has a fire pit, logs to sit on and plenty of level space to pitch tents. It is right on the trail, so you may see some traffic. Good coverage from old growth trees, enough hills in the area to find privacy for squatting, and the river is easy to access. If I had to choose between LC-6 and LC-7, would pick 6, it's up higher and further from the trail.

We hiked back the next morning, went to Lake in the Clouds and then Ontonagon for lunch. Visited Squeeze on Main for food and beer, place is brand new, looks nice, price reasonable, food was ok. Then the bar a few doors down for more beer, they had a good selection.

Then we drove to the Pinkerton Trail head, limited parking on the side of the road, but room enough on the end for a few cars when we arrived. Pinkerton was a pleasant stroll through the woods, lots of boards, dead falls, and mud, and it's a gradual descent. Met up with the Superior Trail 3 miles in, then went left to LS-3.

LS-3 is everything we came for - right on the lake, plenty of firewood, ultimate in privacy since no other sites are within at least a half mile, perfectly level spot for the tent and a built-out fire pit area. Highly recommend.

This is a beautiful campground right next to the Porcupine Mountain Wilderness State Park in the U P of Michigan. After reading the reviews of the Union Bay Campground in the park, I'm glad I could get a reservation here!

 This is a well established campground. There's 50 sites with water & electricity, but no sewer. There is a dump station.

 Some sites have more room than others. We had site 16, which was roomy. Site 20 is also roomy & shady.

 The best sites over look the Union River. Sites 27/28 are nice & site 29 is outstanding. There are a few pull throughs. 

Any of the perimeter sites would be good. These have a woods view in the back.

Avoid sites 24A/45&46. these sites are very near the dump station, with 45 right by it. There's a tall fence separating you from it. 

The bathrooms are beautiful! Clean with hot showers. Decorated nicely, with music also. There's a community fire pit on the front lawn with swings & chairs. A nice view of Lake Superior. The sunsets are outstanding. There's a free beach across the street. You need to take the stairs down to it. Don't try climbing down the rocks! 

I didn't have much luck looking for Yooper Stones.

The gift shop is small, but has some nice things. 

Out of the 3 campgrounds we stayed at this trip, this was our favorite!

Overall a decent Campground. Lots are spacious. Layout of fire pit on sites are poor. For example lot 76, fire is offset to the left of the electrical post. This is a problem since majority of RVs have awnings on the right side and electrical hook up on the back left side. Our fire pit ended up behind the camper. Poor layout by campsite personnel. “DNR Officer” that oversees the grounds is a zealot on dog leashes! “Your dog must be on a six foot leash even while swimming,” he yelled at me. Being an owner of a finely trained Labrador Retriever that I was exercising in the water, I doubt I will be back!!!!!!!!

Great location, and has the basics for the camping.  I was in site 44, and most of the sites in the "middle" were more of an open field with a couple of trees.  There were no real clear boundary lines .  If you are looking for a little more shade or tree cover, book a perimeter site.  This is also the first campsite I've been to where the fire pit didn't have a grill grate on part of it.  There is water on site, but it is the hand pump style, so it would help to have a large open container to capture the water.  

Cell service was really spot (can be a good thing when camping), and I wasn't able to pick up a lot of radio stations either.  Still nice to enjoy the quite dark skies.  Short walk down stairs to Lake Superior which offered some great sunset views.  

Lots of great hiking trails, and close to a lot of other fun attractions.  I would plan on coming back up here another time, and possible pick a different site after being here.

The first four days were five stars. The campground was mostly full of tents, pop ups, small trailers, and a few 5ers and Class As. The site was clean and groomed. Spacing is nice and provides some privacy. The location is secluded with an easy walk to a quiet stretch of Lake Superior shoreline. The waterfalls in the area are a don't miss attraction. For a longer day trip the State Park to the east was magnificent as was Copper Peak.

The last three nights were 1 star. A large open frame generator ran 24/7 the entire time. The "camper" said quiet hours were only for TVs and radios. The generator ran even while they left the campsite. The owner ignored all requests to honor the quiet hours and insulted anyone that asked. We were three campsites away and it interfered with our sleep.

There are no camp hosts, no cellar coverage, and the Rangers do not answer knocks on the door at their offices about 20 miles away. You are on your own.

Stayed here for 3 nights over the July 4th weekend 2020. Had a great site right on the lake, fire pit was 10 feet from the water, most sites are large with trees but not many are very level. Bugs were not a problem during the day but the second that sun goes down have the bug spray ready. The park was clean and very well maintained, bathrooms were very clean. It was still early in the season so the camp store wasn’t well stocked yet but they were working on it. The beach area was nice with a nice big sandy beach for the kids. The Porcupine Mtns were a 30 minute drive north and we had a great time there. I plan to go back here again as soon as I can.

If you're a person who loves waterfalls, then I recommend you don’t miss this campground.  Presque Isle Campground is located at the southern edge of the Porcupine Mountains State Park in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.  This campground has bluff overlooking Lake Superior, there is a walkway and stairs that take you down the bluff to the shore.  Walking distance from the campground is the Presque River you can hike along and see all the beautiful waterfalls this river has to offer.  This is a Rustic campground that has vault toilets, and hand pump drinking water. The campground, restrooms and surrounding area’s were kept very clean. There are 50 campsites that are equipped for tents, trailers, and RV’s.  Each site has a fire pit, and picnic table.  There is no electrical hook up, and part of the campground is generator free.  Six of the sites are walk in sites, there are parking spots for these sites, you park and walk in a little ways to your site.  I recommend a site that is located on the outer sides of the campground loop.  They are larger sites and more privacy from your neighbors.  Inner loop sites are closer together and open.  Be prepared for mosquitoes and blackflies.  Blackflies bite, and bug spray does not affect them.  I found keeping a hand towel or fly swatter moving around me helped keep them away.  They are more active when it is humid, and down by the water.  These flies seem to be common up here along the shore.

There are many things to do around the campground close to your site and others are a little bit of a drive from your site in the Porcupine Mountains State Park.  If you like to stay close to your camp, you can hang out on the beach, hike along the Presque Isle River and discover the Manabezho Falls, Manido Falls, and the Nawadaha Falls.  Also the Lake Superior Trail and North Country Trail are right by the campground.  These trails will connect you with other trails in the Porcupine Mountains.  The Porcupine Mountains have lot’s to offer anyone stopping to visit.  We took and day and seen The Lake of the Clouds, and Summit Peak.  They both are gorgeous areas to explore.