Voyageurs National Park Backcountry Camping — Voyageurs National Park

Spent 3 nights at Lost Bay campground on Kab Lake. We took a boat taxi in, which allowed us to pack pretty luxuriously. Spent the days bumming around, swimming and exploring the bay with our paddleboard (took a day trip to Ek lake, too). Our site was on a point which gave great views of the surrounding lake and kept the bugs at bay with the breeze. I loved the water access, however I think the site would be a bit treacherous for small christen as there were a lot of steep grades and dangerous fall potential near the lake.

The wildlife was great. Lions could be heard calling at all hours. We saw plenty of turtles, deer, otter, grouse, leaping fish, and even some howling wolves.

My biggest annoyance was the motorized boat traffic. Not bad in the bay but there were a decent amount of fishermen out or people getting taxied through the bay to one of the two backcountry trailheads. The drone of motors could be heard off in the distance. If you are looking for BWCA solitude, you won’t quite get it here (albeit close and the backcountry would be a different story). I’d rate this experience as a less rigorous (logistically and physically) version of the BWCA, but also a less immersive/rich experience as well. Overall, great trip for what me and my friends were looking for.

PLAN AHEAD. This trip will likely take more planning than other trips you’ve taken. If you bring your own boat, you’ll have options. If you use a water taxi, you’d better have your supplies well-stocked and in order. The sites are primitive. My best advice is learn how to filter and treat water. Oh, and bring TP! This is likely the most isolated you’ll ever be camping.

Our campsite was beautiful! Boated out 17 mile out very own island with a dock provided. The camping pads made setting up the tents 10x easier and more organized. The lake water was refreshing and there were so many places to boat to for hiking, clift jumping, and especially fishing. Had an absolute blast!

A very unique park. All sites are boat in. Many houseboat sites for private and rented houseboats and many many family sites for tent camping. Sites are a mix of dock, beach, and rock access and are labeled on the Voyageur National Park Camping map. Sites are located on all lakes in the park: and a few back country too. Houseboat sites have tie off rings and are quiet large- they offer a fire ring and many have a picnic table. Tent sites have one or two tent pads and a fire ring and picnic table and a vault toilet usually. No electric. No water. Remember you can in fact camp anywhere you wish as long as you are 200 meters (I think) from another established site.

We stayed at site K29, Round Bear, in Voyageurs National Park. It was incredible. The views were stunning and it was easy to get our boat in and out of a small cove behind our site. There are two tent pads but we found a couple of other spots on nearby trails where you could set up a tent if you had a bigger group. My favorite feature of our site was a rock ledge that looked out over the water. We set up our chairs there and just hung out for awhile. The other nice part about this site is that it is very close to the Ash River Visitor Center (5 minute boat ride tops). This made it super easy to go back to our car for anything we might have forgotten. Highly recommend this site, especially for a group of 4-6 people!

This is a boat in site out of Ash River Visitor Center. North shore of the lake is Canada and the South shore of the lake is the US. Beautiful campsite with 4 huge tent pads, 4 bear lockers and a beautiful sandy beach. Plenty of room for 8-12 campers. Half of us were in hammocks which increased our livable space. Very secluded with ample views.

Campsites only accessible by boat or canoe. Amazing place! Didn’t catch much fish but if you want to spend $50 kettle falls hotel can bring you over to rainy lake and back. Ridiculously peaceful! I loved it!

A dock, a fire ring, two bear proof lockers- what more could you want? We had a great week, despite some rough weather (or maybe that added to the experience). We'll be back.

We stayed here with four family and a total party of 16. It has four camp pads, two picnic tables and one fire ring. Nice sand beach but a lot of leaches. We had a nice nice and would stay again.

After taking a water taxi to the trailhead, we hiked about seven or eight miles to reach our campsite: B3 on Brown Lake. After passing the B2 site, we were a little bummed to discover our site didn’t have a picnic table - but there’s a large rock and a few logs that worked just fine for seating. We were delighted to find a pit toilet and a bear pole as well. Don’t count on having cell-reception out here, but in all reality – who needs that when you’ve got miles and miles of beautiful views in all directions? Five stars from us!

Note: it’s very important that you reserve a water taxi, as the trailhead is not accessible any other way. It’s about a 10-15 minute boat ride to the trailhead on Cruiser Lake.

It is serene, beautiful, gorgeous, scenery, eagles, bear, it. real is tbe best end of the tril camping

Nothing is better then boating out to a campsite miles away! This was the third time being to voyageurs and nothing comes close to the camping here. If you can handle roughing it and have a boat this is the place to visit.

Just returned from a week camping in Voyagers National Park. Camping at its finest! 4 large lakes encompass the park.Boating is allowed . The sites have picnic tables, fire rings, pit toilets and bear boxes to store your goods. Our site had a dock. Lots of granite rock outcropping make for beautiful scenery.You are truly in the wilderness. Bring a VHF marine radio in case of problems.

Not the same as the BWCA but not bad at All! Gorgeous lakes and campsites, great for a weekend getaway.

Located about 1 mile from the Ash River Visitor Center put in, this beautiful little “front country” site is very private. Note: Get a detailed chart before attempting to navigate the lake, as the twists and turns and hundreds of islands can be quite confusing without a chart.

This campsite is located within a small lake of Kabetogama Lake, which feels like your own private domain, as most power boaters are trying to get out to fishing holes far away from the boat launch. If you don’t have a lot of time to paddle far from the visitor’s center, this could be a great location. This is a very forested site with a lot of protection from the wind, but the views are not as expansive as many of the other islands within the park. The site offers two camping pads (one tucked into the trees and the other right on the waterfront), picnic table, firepit, 2 bear boxes, and your own private toilet (bring your own TP!). The kayak/canoe landing area is a little tight, so multiple boats could be a challenge, though it is an easy “schlep” up the stairs to the campsite.

Located about 5 miles from the Ash River Visitor Center put in, this beautiful little “front country” boat in site is located in Kabetogama Lake. Note: Get a detailed chart before attempting to navigate the lake, as the twists and turns and hundreds of islands can be quite confusing without a chart.

Beautiful view of surrounding islands, two camping pads (one tucked into the trees and the other next to the landing area), firepit, picnic table, 2 bear boxes, and your own private toilet (bring your own TP!). Kayak/canoe landing area is protected from the main channel/wind, can accommodate multiple boats with ease, and is an easy “schlep” to the campsite. We fell asleep to the sounds of multiple loons calling.

Many fisherman use Lost Bay, so the main channel was a bit busy during prime fishing time, but not too bothersome. This site is also a short paddle to the landing (can only accommodate a couple of kayaks though) for access to the inland lakes, but bring your bug spray and dress for ticks!! We found about 40 wood ticks on the 2 of us after a very short hike!

Located about 12 miles from the Ash River Visitor Center put in, this beautiful little “front country” boat in site is my absolute favorite in Namakan Lake. Note: Get a detailed chart before attempting to navigate the lake, as the twists and turns and hundreds of islands can be quite confusing without one.

Beautiful view of the sunrise over Canada and surrounding islands, two camping pads (one tucked into the trees and the other right on the waterfront), firepit, picnic table, 2 bear boxes, and your own private toilet (bring your own TP!). Kayak/canoe landing area is protected from the main channel/wind, can accommodate multiple boats with ease, and is an easy “schlep” up the stairs to the campsite. We stayed here just 1 night, but would have loved to have stayed longer, though our timing was perfect to watch the full moon rise over the lake just after sunset – amazingly gorgeous and romantic while enjoying a campfire.

Northern Minnesota camping is known for being one of the few remaining places in the US where you can enjoy the wilderness with absolutely no sounds of man-made machines and cities. Camping at Voyageurs National Park is one of those experiences. It's great BECAUSE all the camping is via boat.