Looking for a rustic and comfortable horse camping experience near Albany? Camping with your horse in Albany just got easier. With our help, you'll find the best Minnesota equestrian campsites from scenic to easily accessible.
Backpack sites, located on remote lakes and ponds throughout the park, are one to two miles from the trailhead parking. New log camper cabins, located near lakes and ponds, provide bunk beds for six people and a table and benches for campers who want more of the creature comforts.
Sites are available in two campgrounds. Sites in the Lakeview Campground are near the lake and well-shaded. Oak Ridge sites include a variety of wooded and open locations.
$21 / night
$15 - $17 / night
Tie lines and water are available. Vault toilets only. For reservations, contact the state park reservation service by phone or online.
$25 / night
$30 - $60 / night
Legend
stayed here in the winter when the park was doing their lantern-lit snowshoe trail. They have 1 site available in the winter (125e I believe.. in the lower campground). We had room for a truck bed camper and a pop up clam ice fishing tent. Fire ring and picnic table at the site. The bathrooms and showers were closed for the season but cannot recall. Firewood is available at the office.
Ranger
Nice trails along the Mississippi River, easy to walk, good signage on trails, and good information signs with history of each site along the trail.
Very Clean men’s bathroom. One shower needs a new shower head.
Sites 40 to 45 are very nice and secluded. Sites 58 and 59 are prime secluded sites.
ScoutThis is a great state park. Group camping comes with its own bathroom building and shelter building with wood stove. The water is quite clean. Also there's even hot water in the bathroom.
Scout
Very quiet campground, with large peaceful, rustic sites. We stopped for one night while traveling through Minneapolis area. Found several open sites on Saturday, first weekend in June. The road into the campground was a bit bumpy, take it slow it was only about 0.75 miles.
GuideThe campsite was pretty wooded on most sides. I visited in the late spring so there were quite a few mosquitos since the campground is near the river. Bathrooms/showers were cleanish, water was mid from the outdoor taps but not horrible
LegendThis is a more rustic State Park. There's lots of history here most of it is just a plaque not actually something to see. The river was really high and there was a fair amount of mosquitoes outside but a lot of trails and a lot of signs and a lot of history in the park.
RangerNice wooded campground. Gravel sites, fairly level. Water fill and firewood available at the registration building. The water was high in iron.
Canoe and kayak rentals available. Lots of trails for hiking and biking. Bring bug spray in the summer!
Historical sites along hiking path.
Bathrooms and showers were decent. Dump station on site.
ScoutSo beautiful and spacious
LegendCamped here on Oct 9, 2023. Large wooded campground on the lakefront. Easy access to the beach. Hiking trail. Very clean restroom/shower house. Level gravel campsite with metal fire ring and table. Water spigot short walk from campsite. Campground can accomodate all sorts of camping rigs. Paved campground loop road. Nice hosts and park ranger. Need to reserve online. Quiet. peaceful evening.
Traveler
If you're looking for a beginner backpack spot, with privacy and not too far from the cities, then this will fit your bill. You can either do a short-hike from the parking lot via the road to B5 or a 1 mile easy hike via the trail. The backpacking sites are very spread out, we could barely tell anyone else was at the park with us ever.
B5 was beautiful, already lots of mosquitos for May (and appeared poison oak/ivy). I'm not sure what this park does differently than most other parks, but our privy was LOADED with spiders. I get it, it's the outdoors. But still, I've used many in-ground toilets and never had dozens of spiders covering the toilet seat/front.
Another reason we chose this park was for birding. The park ranger at check-in was not helpful and then said he's never heard of MN State Parks free birding kits to borrow, though it's clearly listed on several spots on their website. Bummer, but we still enjoyed our time.
Scout
Camped in site 81 in the Oak Ridge campground - this site was big enough for three tents, was nicely shaded and had great access to water and a bathroom w/shower. Was perfect for our group of 4. Saw a polite racoon that wandered into our campsite and then promptly left once we got it in our headlamps, we saw no evidence of its return once we turned in for the night.
Bugs at the camp site were minimal, a little heavier on the trail but nothing bug spray couldn't handle. Heard sites were very close at Lakeview so chose Oak Ride, but felt they were still pretty close and had many vehicles traveling on the one way drive from 10p until midnight. If you're a light sleeper or early to bed might be a challenge at this state park.
It was a short walk to the interpretive center and the Mt Tom trail. Beautiful views of the oak savannahs from the Mt Tom overlook and the big blue stem was just starting to fill out in the surrounding prairies. Swimming at Lake Andrew was fantastic and the beach was full of people enjoying the lake.
Overall a great park to spend a weekend at!
GuideWe were able to find a spot for our 26ft Class C. The sites are very large, good for tenting. Nice shady spots. The road is gravel and dirt with wear and tear, which might make it difficult for large motorhomes. We were pleased for our overnight stop.
GuideNice park on the Mississippi and Crow Wing Rivers. The park encompasses the 1850’s town of Crow Wing. Great hiking trails. A lot of mosquitoes. Bring spray.
Legend
The trails in the park have nice rolling hills and offer a unique type of beauty. The campground is small, but offers some electric sites as well as some primitive sites. I do believe there were 2 or 3 cabins that I saw. Unsure if there is a group camp with this campground being so small as it is. Firewood is available at the check in/office building. There is a bathroom/shower building in the loop with the electric sites. The electric loop and primitive loops both have vault toilets. Each loop also has a few water stations to fill containers with potable water and each loop has a dumpster for disposing of waste. Not sure if there is a dump station for RVs as I typically use a tent when camping. Nice state park in Rural central Minnesota
LegendNice beach for swimming. Shower and bathrooms available in the campground. Each site has a picnic table and fire ring. Firewood is available at the office for about $6 per bundle. There are 2 campgrounds in the park.
TravelerEnd of October, Stopped for just one night, probably about a 20ish minute drive from 94. Was able to purchase firewood after closing, and the campsite were easy to find after (7$)entry to the park. Campsites are reserved through an online system. We found the top campsite completely empty and plenty of sites had good tree coverage for privacy/ way no protection. Nice level sites with soft ground. Each site had a fire ring and picnic table. The only bathroom in walking distance to the upper campsites was a vault toilet located amongst the cabins. Seems like a great place to stay any season.
ScoutTent site is an open area with tall trees. It also offered an open view of the night sky & enjoyed watching the full moon! Next to the shower house which makes it a convenient trip to the bathroom. Stayed one night but will stay longer when bringing the kayaks. Price for this spot made my trip super cheap!
GuideWe tent camped at Sibley State Park from August 31 through September 3, 2022, in drive-in campsite #91 of the Oak Ridge campground. It was a last minute trip for us, right before the Labor Day weekend. We had the non-electric loop all to ourselves from Wednesday through midday Friday, and then the campground was a non-stop hub of activity as more campers arrived for the holiday weekend.
The park has two campgrounds. Oak Ridge is mostly wooded with some prairie sites and is more private. Lakeview is very open without privacy between campsites, but it has some mature trees for shade and is close to the beach and picnic area.
The reservation website mostly does not include tent pad dimensions, so we took a chance on a site not knowing whether our 10x14 tent would fit. Luckily, it did. Site #91 was spacious and wooded on three sides. We walked both campgrounds to check for non-electric sites that would accommodate our tent. If you have a large tent, consider these campsites: Oak Ridge 77, 78, 81, 83, 84, 87, 88, 90, 91, 93, and 94; Lakeview 46, 66, and 70.
The park is beautiful. There are lots of trails, a very nice beach and picnic area, and lots of wildflowers. We saw a lot of wildlife, including deer, raccoons, rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, turkeys, song birds, butterflies, and frogs.
The high point in the park is Mt. Tom, and there is a trail to its peak. If you don’t want to do the hike, you can drive most of the way then walk a short, paved, moderately inclined path to the top. The view is lovely.
The biting bugs weren’t too bad during the day, but they were plentiful and aggressive in the evening. Remember your insect repellent!
GuideNice campground. Bathrooms clean but dated. Beautiful swimming beach short walk from campground. Good hiking trails. Good biking trails nearby.
GuideNice larger sites, usual campground stuff. I stayed across from the lake and it was great. Fire pits, wood for sale, showers, water, etc.
Guide
TravelerI like the primitive sites the best. Nice lake to hike down to as well. I went in August though and the mosquitos were awful.
TravelerLake Ann Campground, located in the Sand Dunes State Forest north of Big Lake, MN is great for a weekend getaway with the family or a solo walk in trip. There are RV sites, tent sites, handicap accessible, walk in sites and group sites. Camping here is primitive with few amenities you get a fire ring and a picnic table, its great camping too be one with nature. There are several water spickets located around the campground along with outhouse type restrooms. There are no hookups or electric. Camping is on a first come first serve basis and you register at the kiosk located at the front of the campground acrid from the camp host site. There are several trails and Amaya something to do.
GuideIt was November but that's when our anniversary lands and dang it we wanted to go camping so we did. Walk in site# BP6 was a hilly 1/4 mile hike one way but worth the view. We were right on the edge looking out over a small lake with towering trees all around us. Each BP site also has it's own private latrine house slightly apart from your site. Nothing fancy but it was clean and private. There are miles of trails at this park. We didn't get to see any of the endangered Blandings turtles but there were trumpeter swans, this is a huge migratory area for the birds.
TravelerDid a camping weekend with a buddy and had so much fun. We hiked and made yummy campfire grub and hammocked and had a generally relaxing time.
TravelerI like that they have some easy drive in spots as well as some more private hike in spots.
GuideWe decided on a whim to camp here for a few days during a long weekend off - we were excited to do a bit of exploring and spend some quality time together, and didn't want to stray too far from home. This campground is perfect! We backpacked in and even took our dog - she loved it!!! Great tenting spots and even better scenery!
Horse camping in Minnesota offers a unique way to explore the great outdoors while enjoying the company of your equine friends. With a variety of campgrounds equipped with horse-friendly amenities, you can experience the beauty of nature alongside your horse.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near Albany, MN?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near Albany, MN is Lake Maria State Park Campground with a 4.3-star rating from 30 reviews.
What is the best site to find equestrian camping near Albany, MN?
TheDyrt.com has all 9 equestrian camping locations near Albany, MN, with real photos and reviews from campers.
