If you're looking for a place to dispersed camp near Pictured Rocks National Park, look no further. Dispersed camping is an excellent way to get away from it all and to disconnect. Whether you're looking for a quiet location in the trees or wide open spaces, The Dyrt makes it easy to find the perfect dispersed campsite.
US National Forest Land borders day-use only land, be cautious of signs and setup camp in the appropriate areas.
Ironjaw Lake is located in the heart of the Ironjaw Semi-Primitive Area, which is managed for both motorized and non-motorized uses. Our management efforts seek to provide for quiet, peaceful recreation opportunities in a semi-primitive setting. The campsite is also located on the trail system of the non-motorized Pine Marten Run Trail, which is open to hiking, mountain biking and horse back riding. The campsite at Ironjaw is a pull-through site that also features a tent pad situated on a hill overlooking Lake Nineteen. This site is suitable for only one family with a small trailer. There is limited turnaround space. A primitive toilet is located across the road. There is no drinking water available at this site. The swimming area is poor. The boat access to Ironjaw Lake (62 acres) is down a steep hill but the surface is firm. Turn-around and back-in space at the base of the hill is very limited however, and 4 wheel drive vehicles are recommended. Parking is restricted to a small area located at the top of the hill. Ironjaw Lake is one of the better fishing lakes in the area. Crappie fishing is excellent in the spring. The lake also contains northern pike, largemouth bass, bluegill and bullheads. Horse camping is allowed at Ironjaw Lake.
Although there is only one campsite on Crooked Lake, the lake is busy with a private resort and many private homes and cabins dotting its lengthy shoreline. Anglers will find good fishing for bluegill, crappie and northern pike, and some small mouth bass are also occasionally caught. Boat access to the lake is by carry-in only, which can be found at the campsite. There are no toilets or drinking water at this site. There is only one primitive campsite on Crooked Lake. It is small (35 ft. by 35 ft.), level and suitable for one family and a trailer. Swimming is considered to be poor. Keep in mind that the boat access must be shared with the public, and anglers may pass through your campsite to access the lake.
There are two primitive campsites located on the 151 acre Steuben Lake. There is no water available at this site. There is good swimming at both sites, but because of the hill at site #2, the beach area is difficult to see from the campsite. There is a good boat access located in the northwest corner of Steuben Lake, along Forest Road 2662. This access can accommodate most fishing boats and trailers. Steuben Lake has been stocked with walleye and has supporting populations of northern pike, largemouth bass, bluegill and perch.
Traveler
There is signs posted just about everywhere “no camping or overnight parking” don’t waste your time
ScoutTons of mosquitos right next to a small danky pond.
ScoutThere are several signs saying “No Camping” and “Day Use Only.”
Scout
We went down a very deeply rutted and muddy one lane road in for about 1.5-2 miles. We have a 21 ft travel trailer. Although we stayed one night and made it to and from unscathed, we do not recommend towing down this road. We were able to kayak and it was beautiful and very private. Rain was expected the following day so we only chanced it for one night afraid a tree would block the road and the mud would get worse.
ScoutThis place is tricky to find and I would suggest keeping a low profile. I didn’t have problems but others have said locals don’t like people camping here. You’ll have a a front row seat to the lake. My hammock was almost over the water. Great spot
Scout
Great site located between two lakes. In response to the previous review, your best directions will come from locating the site on your GPS (in our case Google Maps) and dropping a pin. That took us straight to the location no problem. Totally legit dispersed camp site. Will definely be going back. Because the access to both lakes is near the camp site, we did encounter vehicles driving by, maybe 2 a day. It is the end of the road though so no one was driving to fast and it didn't cause any issues.
ScoutThe site only gives you coordinates that are actually an hour away from the site. There is no real address to get there. We pulled in pretty late, had a rough long drive so we got to where we thought it was at around 11:30 pm. Then we can’t find the site, so we go to the website and it gives us strange directions to somewhere an hour away. As we drove out there, we lost all service, were on dirt roads and we were miles past any signs of civilization. We started to get a strange feeling but we trekked on. Suddenly it gets very foggy and spooky looking and we all debate turning back, but still we keep going. Finally, we turn onto the road that it is on, just a ways down, and the stop sign is filled with bullet holes however we haven’t seen a single sign of people out there. We keep going and finally decide this all seems like an elaborate ploy to lure campers in and kill them. We decide to turn around and end up in some weird abandoned summer camp, still around thirty minutes left on the road to get to the actual site. We decide there are far too many creepy signs pointing towards this not being a good idea then as we leave and get service back, we look up the site and realize there are zero reviews at all. The site doesn’t exist on google except for these camping sites, with the same two photos only on every site and zero reviews. As we are driving away, we get an email at one am saying “hello your site is still empty, please enjoy your stay” as if there was someone waiting for us at the site even though it was a remote site with no formal check in. How did they know we were not at the site yet? And what are the chances they email us right as we turn around? I’m glad we didn’t end up staying, we all had a horrible gut feeling and I suggest no one else stay here either. Nothing about it seemed legit or safe.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular dispersed campsite near Pictured Rocks National Park?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dispersed campground near Pictured Rocks National Park is Adams Trail Dirt Lot with a 5-star rating from 2 reviews.
What is the best site to find dispersed camping near Pictured Rocks National Park?
TheDyrt.com has all 17 dispersed camping locations near Pictured Rocks National Park, with real photos and reviews from campers.
