Best Glamping near Stephenson, MI

Stayed for 5 nights. The third party computerized reservation system gave our site to someone else. Fortunately, we were put into a first-come first-served campsite right on the water which is a major upgrade. All of the sites (except for a few paved handicapped sites) are grass. Perimeter sites can be muddy. Interior sites can have enough slope that the trailer A-frame is on the ground in order to level. Electricity is reliable. Restrooms are immaculate. Showers are nice. Dump station with fresh water is clean and works well (2 bay). 

My main complaint is a common, almost universal complain - people are right on top of one another. We have a truck camper 6 feet from our screen room with its AC on high and a very "fun" family sitting right outside our trailer on the other side. The "infield" is much worse - seems like each site has multiple vehicles and space is so tight that they are stacking kayaks. Family groups with clustered sites. Seems like a kennel as well with dogs everywhere. On the plus side: very little music being played, people were respectful, dogs well behaved for the most part without unattended barking dogs, people stayed quiet in off hours. The park itself is small with no biking trails or significant hiking trails. Not a lot of birdlife. They do have a nice beach which is a draw for families. We enjoyed our stay overall. We would return only if we had a waterfront site for a max of 3-4 nights. Off season would be better than summer.

My family and I camped for 6 days and 5 nights here and it was great! They are well-known for having the cleanest bathrooms/showers in the area and their bathrooms did not disappoint! They are air conditioned with individual, private stalls and hot water! I often met an employee doing a quick wipe down during the early morning and the evening hours but they shut down the bathroom for 2 hours a day for deep cleaning. Amazing! Our campsite was close to the campground office/store which was very convenient. They also have a game room with a pool table to keep the teenagers entertained. It was such a great experience! We will definitely be back!

My family and I camped for 6 days and 5 nights here and it was great! They are well-known for having the cleanest bathrooms/showers in the area and their bathrooms did not disappoint! They are air conditioned with individual, private stalls and hot water! I often met an employee doing a quick wipe down during the early morning and the evening hours but they shut down the bathroom for 2 hours a day for deep cleaning. Amazing! Our campsite was close to the campground office/store which was very convenient. They also have a game room with a pool table to keep the teenagers entertained. It was such a great experience! We will definitely be back!

Site #403

When we pulled into this campground we couldn’t believe how empty it was. Compared to all the other campgrounds we had been to in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and seeing as it was still the busy summer camping season we were shocked. We were wondering what was “wrong” but nothing really surfaced. It could just have been that we were there during the week and the weekend rush hadn’t come yet. 

There are 96 campsites that sit on 74 acres so there was plenty of room for us to walk our dog and not feel like we were going in circles. Campsites are the usual mix of pull thrus and back-ins, rustic tent and water/electric. None of the sites have sewer but some have 20/30/50 amp electric with water and others are rustic tent sites. The electric and water sites long enough for any size RV but leveling may be difficult in some of the sites (which are grass). Picnic tables and fire pits accompany every sites. Some sites have their fire pits located at the back of the sites which makes for a big line of fire pits which was kind of weird. There are some large pine trees that provide some shade but this is not a wooded campground by any means. 

For a county-run park there are plenty of amenities including WiFi which was slow and depends on where you are located in the park.  The showers and flush toilets were clean but a little on the old side. A store sells ice, firewood, soda, snacks and ice cream. There is a really nice picnic pavilion that would be great if you had a lot of people in your group. It is covered with a “kitchen” area and lots of picnic tables. Since the park is on the Escanaba River there is a boat launch (albeit not really suitable for large boats with deep draft) and you can fish from the bank. Disco golf fans will love the 27-hole course that winds through the woods and property. For the kids, a playground area is large with lots of things for them to climb and play on. 

The park is located off HWY 2 so access is easy but there is a bit of road noise. Plus, when we visited there was road construction going on that produced traffic backups and more noise. But the real problem is the train tracks that runs alongside the campground and seemed busy 24/7. It is not so bad in the front of the park but back where the tent section is must be pretty bad if you are in a tent.

As of this writing, 2024, they have recently installed new showers and flush bathrooms. I live near this campground, so I have stayed at almost every site in the park. If you cant have or don't want a lake site, site #4 is the largest. It is almost 35 yards across the front. Trees are growing back, but not many mature trees on the East of the park. There is a really nice beach area adjacent to, but not in the campground. It is a nice short walk. Each site has electric hookup, and some sites have more than one box.  Not much ambient light in this park, so it is great for viewing stars and Northern Lights. This  park also is situated near the ATV trail, and has access to the 160 mile Blue Ox trail system.

The people in the office were very nice and chill, always a good start when the people checking you in put off a warm vibe. We booked a river site but changed to a basic water and electric and saved 5 bucks for a better site. The sites on the river are not well laid out and it's hard to tell where to set up. None of the sites here are very private, but they are all very clean and larger with nice tall pines and big fire pits. The playground is awesome and there is a large grassy ballfield for playing. The river itself is a bit underwhelming, kind of marshy and not clear. There's a large dropoff from the campground to the river so it's only really accessible at the boat ramp, which is fine if you expect that going in. There is laundry and reasonably priced firewood. Overall a solid campground.