Best Glamping near Beaver, MN

GGreat campground! Awesome hiking, nice swimming beach. Big nature store with lots of great stuff. Lots of spots for great fishing.

Best part: very few mosquitoes!! (The cold, constantly moving water helps keep them away.)

One of my favorite parks in the state of Minnesota.

I love this area as the bluffs are stunning. It's Minnesota's little Switzerland. The park isn't much to look at and there's only a few look-out point onto the Mississippi but its a nice little campground.

Stopped here on the way up to Minnesota and our campsite was gorgeous! Everyone was very friendly and the sites were very clean. We stayed right on the water. Sites are close together but we reserved a few to have some space.

I loved the campground area which nestled in a small valley. On top of that it has this awesome living history 1800's village managed by the Minnesota Historical Society. There's also a very interesting cave with a museum and all the talactites, stalagmites, and underground pools you can imagine.

This campground was really good. It was located right on the Root River Trail System which we liked for biking and running. It has an indoor/outdoor heated pool, a big barn with a restaurant and bar, and clean restroom and shower facilities. The sites weren't huge but they had full hook-ups. The campground is near Lanesboro which is a really cute little town. Beautiful part of Minnesota.

Whitewater is by far one of the top state parks in Minnesota. Their camping facilities are clean with running water and free showers. The campsites are quite spacious but not too wooded. They have a few walk in sites but they go fast.

The best part about whitewater are the trails and views. It is located in a carved glacier valley and is surrounded by limestone. I recommend moderate to experienced hikers due to the intense climb to get to the popular views. It’s worth the visit!

What a beautiful & peaceful gem of a place in south eastern Minnesota! Came here knowing that besides the mini hikes and river/valley overlook views and birdwatching, there weren’t much activity, which we were fine with since we were just looking to relax. The views are breathtaking! The sites are a bit too close to each other, but do offer enough privacy. We saw a cardinal and 3 hummingbirds because they came to hang out right in our campsite! The fireflies at night were an added bonus!

Spent the whole day hiking the Great River Bluffs. The trail system is very well labeled with maps along each trail. The trail system is mostly level and I would label as easy hiking with rolling hills. The park contains two viewing areas King’s and Queen’s Bluff.

The campsites are spacious, completely shaded, and have a fire pit as well as picnic tables. Since the park is in a heavily wooded area you do have to watch out for the Minnesota state bird (the mosquito).

Tips:

• Bring bug spray
• Bring binoculars; the river valley is a great viewing area for waterfowl, eagles, and hawks.

Mystery Cave State Park is surrounded in in a lush green forest with huge oak and maple trees that hang over the road like a huge living canopy. My new word while we stayed there was “Forresty” due to feeling like we had entered a different world. There are so many activities to do both within the park and surrounding areas, but my most favorite thing to do was walk the endless miles of hiking trails. (Word to the wise, some of the trails are hiking/equestrian so watch your step😂) We didn’t do our homework, but if we would have known, we would have brought our fishing rods as the rivers were full of trout!!

We arrived at 2:00pm on Saturday, after a long 5 hour drive from northern Minnesota. It was amazing to watch the landscape change from iron ore mining pits to countless acres of corn and potatoes!! Check in time is 4:00pm, but our spot was empty when we arrived, so the park rangers let us set up early (Friendly and most helpful!!) We grabbed a bundle of wood for $6.00 for a campfire while we were at the park office. (that is pretty normal rates as you can’t bring in your own wood at State Parks in Minnesota) There are 3 different loops, an additional equestrian loop, and 5 cabins. We stayed in loop “C” with has bigger sites for RV’s and offers electricity. Loops “A” and “B” have smaller sites (still big!!) and both of those loops are non-electric. None of the sites are “full” hook up, but there is a dump station & fresh water fill right off the park office. The restrooms and showers are just off of the “C” loop, as was the amphitheater, and there are garbage/recycling bins every 4-5th site. The park was very noisy, but that all changed when most of the folks left Sunday. It was very peaceful the rest of the week.

There are so many things outside the park to do too!! We were not aware, but the Mystery Cave is a short drive from the state park. We took the scenic tour, and our guide Kip was fantastic!!! Hey let everyone ask all the questions they wanted to, and didn’t rush us at all!! The rate is $15.00 for adults, $10.00 for kids 5-12, and kids under 5 go for free. The pictures just don’t do it justice!! The next day we drove to Masonic Park in Spring Valley and we were amazed by the sheer size of the rock face!! There is no charge to picnic or visit there and there is one spot for camping, but you need to get permission from the city before doing so. We also toured Niagra Cave which is a longer drive, but well worth it!! The underground waterfall was super cool!! They charge $16.00 per adult, kids 4-12 are $10.00, and children under 4 are free.

All in all this was a great get away for our family, and I highly recommend staying at the park:)

About the park Whitewater State Park is a much sought-after place to camp for those that know about this region’s#1 feature- MINIMAL MOSQUITOES. I won’t say zero mosquitoes because there might be one or two that wander in there, but we did not encounter a single one on our overnight stay there. We kept on exclaiming how weird to not hear and contribute to the camping soundtrack of bugs getting slapped. Basically what you need to know is that the last set of glaciers missed this region, which left behind limestone that absorbs rainwater quickly- and since mosquitoes breed in warm shallow water they don’t really have a lot of opportunities to do so in this region.

This region also has many more bluffs and valleys than the rest of Minnesota- this is also the result of a lack of glacier activity during the last glacial era that filled the flat parts of our state with“drift” sediment. What this means is that a lot of the hikes have a lot of elevation gain. We hiked to Inspiration Point from the Cedar Hill campground- if you do this I would not recommend taking the staircase that you encounter way before the picnic area parking lot UNLESS you really like having to climb over things.

The trail also comes across Chimney Rock- if you are hiking on a hot day you might as well give yourself a few minutes to cool down by climbing into the rock- it is much cooler and there is often a breeze that is funnelled through it. If you aren’t terribly afraid of heights you should definitely keep going to Inspiration Point! In order to get back down the trail quickly you can go down the staircase that is visible from the last part of the trail to the point- you can also completely bypass all the strenuous hiking if you would rather just take this(relatively strenuous) staircase up to the point, look around, then go back down.

A river runs through the park that plenty of people were wading in and there is a swimming hole that we didn’t participate in. I have Verizon cell service and I did not have reception- I think people who have AT&T did though. The visitor center does have free wifi and a free phone to use outside the building.

About the campground Much of Cedar Hill campground is for both tents and RVs, if you don’t need an electric site then the BEST spots are along the river. I specifically liked 66, 67, and 69. Some of them had foot paths down to the river, some didn’t, but either way you get to hear the water and the sites are quite spacious. We wound up staying in site 37 which has electricity(perk of this is being able to make macaroni and cheese in an instant pot!). One thing I hadn’t considered is that 74 cuts through the park, and we were pretty close to it so at a few times there was definite car noise. It wasn’t nearly as bad as camping along the north shore though when your site is squished between Lake Superior and Hwy 61 and you hear fast traffic all. day. long.

If you are camping on the weekend expect the campground to be quite full- we camped on a Sunday night and while the majority of the neighboring sites were occupied by RVs, the campground wasn’t even halfway occupied. Most of the sites had enough tree cover to be considered private. One weird thing is that a few of the sites are kind of like adjoining suites with tiny clearings between them- it was kind of startling to look up and see two people taking a shortcut(not really though!!) through our clearly occupied site to get to theirs. Weird.

One of the negative aspects about this park is that the bathroom facilities in cedar hill haven't been updated in ages, so they are finally getting updated in 2020 so this campground is closed for the season.  The newer campground is open, but I don't like it as well since there isn't much privacy or shade.

I really liked this park. It's a bit out of the way but it's nestled in a river gorge and has a great swimming lake. I'd recommend the walk-in sites 1-4. Try to get #4 as that's right on the river.

I enjoy this park year round whether it be staying in the group cabins during the colder months (an incredibly fun stay with snow), or day hiking in the meadows or up the ridge in the summer. Never camped in the campground but I've heard good things. My father and I go flyfishing here in the summer and he has a great time. He thinks they have some of the best spots near Minneapolis.

I love whitewater. I use it for day hiking most often but have camped a few times. With plenty of trails I always find myself challenged and in awe from the views. Seems like they are adding on to either the campground or the ranger station/gift shop. But in all a wonderful southern mn state park. Camping is a little cramped in some areas. But it always seems like the neighbors are more than respectful.

Whitewater is a fabulous place to bring the family. Great hiking trails that vary quite a bit from easy to moderately difficult. The bugs are minimal, and the facilities are well kept up. Sites all have a lot of privacy, and the naturalists and park rangers are wonderful.

Beautiful park that seems to come out of nowhere. We stayed at Gooseberry Glen campground, because of good reviews. However, I wish I would have driven around the other campground right by the Ranger Station. They were way more secluded, and completely shaded, make sure to get a campsite right next to the river.

We stayed for 2 nights at Whitewater State Park with a group of 4. Site 53 was close to the showers and water spigot and it was a big enough spot for 2 tents while being private. It was a 10-20 minute walk to anywhere else. We hiked up chimney rock for some great vistas, swam at the sandy beach, bought ice cream sandwiches at the nature store, and enjoyed talking with the visitor center staff. There were a lot of picnic spots, pavilions, and fire pits for day trips. There were a lot of fresh black berries all around the state park which were fun to gather and eat. The Elba Firetower was a quick 3 miles down the road by car and was a nice little outing. Whitewater was a bit spread out for our liking and unfortunately the woman's shower/bathroom had toilets that were pulled off the entire weekend so you could see and smell raw sewage. Once they fix the bathrooms it'd be a 5 star knowing you'd have to walk a bit. We would stay again at 53, but sites 62, 63, 64 or the walk in sites looked awesome since they were along the river. They are expanding the state park camping which will be a welcomed update and addition.

I spent a day here hiking and had a blast! I hiked up chimney Rock and then looped bacj to tackle park of the Dakota trail! The hiking paths were well taken care of. There were plenty of places to stop and rest if you need to. There are also many places for non-campers to grill out and picnic. The only thing that I would like to see is more trail signs and markings. There were some places where it was hard to tell which way to go.

We went to a program about raptors. Cooked dinner over a fire. Got up early and hiked one of the bluffs. And the views were amazing. And we loved how diverse the landscape was, who knew that we would find a Praire on top of the bluff.

This was Camp Stupendous' Opening Ceremonies for the 2017 Summer season. Unfortunately, it rained a lot. Like almost all weekend. But that's not the park's problem. 

The office staff were really helpful when we discovered that because of all the rain the bulk of our originally reserved site was a swamp. They let us drive around a pick a new spot and then helped transfer our reservation to the new site. Sites were nice, decently private. The non-electric sites had nice grassy pads. This site in particular didn't have any good spots for hammocking. 

This park still hasn't had the update to the restrooms that it seems MN state parks is working on at a snails pace. Regardless, they were clean and kept up. 

We took a few hikes. Lots of stairs to get up to Chimney Rock and Coyote Point, but the vantage point offered a nice view of the valley area. Trails seemed quieter probably due to the rainy weather. One of the trails on the campground side was closed due to a bridge washout. I think there was a back way to get to it but we didn't investigate. 

There must be at least one farm nearby - there were some persistent cows making noise. 

We'd like to come back on a drier weekend and enjoy the park to a greater capacity.

This was our first trip with our new to us pop-up trailer and we absolutely loved the beauty and activities in this park! We participated in may naturalist programs including: bird banding, archery in the park, trout fishing, and learning about bats and peregrine falcons. The swim beach was small but my kids liked it and we did a few short hikes including the can't miss fire tower!

We were surprised that there were minimal mosquitoes at Whitewater. We have always enjoyed hiking here too.

we had so much fun playing on the river and exploring the park! Everything is right there and the river is so pretty! Despite the rain we had a great time! Because of the rain we went to the eagle center near Wisconsin. A must see if your looking for something indoors!

I didn’t like how far the campground was from the hiking and how there wasn’t really trees behind sites but the hiking trails in the park made up for this. Facilities were nice, bugs weren’t too bad, no cell phone service.

Most sites are for car camping or RV's. Tent site was nice and clean and a good size. Could have set up 2 tents with no problem. Not a ton of privacy from other campers. Showers/bathrooms available. Lots of hiking trails. Camp store was never open when I checked. Swimming beach was available, but there were geese (and their poop) everywhere. This state park is nice because there are NO mosquitoes. But beware, there are bears.

Nice park, good hiking trails, good beach, and alright camping.

Bluffs offer great views of the area and you can even find some small caves to explore.

There are great hiking trails around here! This is one of my favorite hiking areas,m. Be sure to bring plenty of bug spray though!

This campground had a variety of sites. Our site was tucked back into some trees for privacy and the bathrooms had trails leading to them for easy access. The beach was a short walk and we were also able to hike to Chimney Rock.