Best Equestrian Camping near Dassel, MN

We thoroughly enjoyed the hiking trails here. Plenty of space to socially distance. Equestrian camping area is nice and plenty of horse trails too. The biggest hit for me was the newly remodeled beach area on Lake Andrew. Plenty of space and a nice “fishing” pier to hang out at. They rent kayaks there too!!

Very nice quiet horse camp. Could use more horse trails, only about 12 miles worth of trails for horses.

We stayed at Ft. Ridgley horse camp. Very nice horse camp, with electric hookups, and water at every site. Bathrooms and showers right in horse camp, and a nice little creek about 50 ft behind our site, that our boys loved playing in!! Nice trails, I wish there were a few more miles, but over all very decent. We had a great time.

We stayed at site 21 in late August of 2019. It’s obvious that the park had some heavy flooding earlier in the year. A lot of the waterfront sites became sandy. The sites are close together and not very many mature trees between sites. There isn’t any cell phone coverage at the campground but there is service around the historical site. Only restrooms are single stall vault toilets. No showers. However I think the horse campground has upgraded restrooms and showers but I never checked it out because it was so far away. Mosquitoes were bad, everyone came home covered in bites. Kids had a blast playing in the creek. There was also people out on their horses offering rides to kids and educating about horse ownership.

Great place to snowmobile, hike, bike or rideas horse!

Nice clean campground very well maintained and free. Near Henderson, MN which is one of a kind small town well worth the visit for all. This is rustic with no hookups except very clean portapotty and hand lever water jack. Pick where to park in nice large grassy areas. A few areas are next to wild and deep ravines. Very nice large new play areas with slides for kids. Popular with a few horse trailers and riders on weekends because of COVID get to gather worries elsewhere. Friday morning before week end is best to get there in case of horse trailers to get nicer spot. Sometimes only a few campers are there. Call ahead to stay overnight so sheriff is aware. Not a lot of people know about it and is at end of long gravel road for peace and quiet. No problem for 5th wheels and tents both, pick your spot. Want to relax, chill out and visit your neighbors. This is worth the visit.

This is now my favorite MN State Park. Campground is VERY WELL MAINTAINED. BRAND NEW Bathroom/shower building with large ADA showers.

I was there Tuesday through Saturday and I was THE ONLY CAMPER in the whole park Wednesday through Saturday!

Drinking water is very good and many fountains and hydrants are located all throughout the park, even way out on the trails there are water fountains.

Large stone pavilion for groups picnics.

In JULY The Prairie Trails are stunning with all the wild flowers in full bloom. Many trails and nice overlooks too. I walked and hiked the trail over and over because of the beautiful flowers and trails.

The MN State Historical Society could do a much better job at EDUCATING what really happened at the Fort and why. The signage is in need of repair and restoration. Make sure to read up about the fort before arriving so that you can appreciate the importance of the site you’re camping on.

The horse campground is also very well maintained and has nice shower/bathroom building. No flys and people have been great at cleaning up manure and putting it in the compost pile.

The creek through the campground is beautiful and the sound of water over the rock is great for sleeping. The creek is cool temperature even in July but kids have fun swimming and splashing. There are marked areas for crossing the creek which make great wading areas too.

It's a great park in an area of Minnesota that is not well traveled. There's also a lot of history here with an interesting museum on the U.S.-Dakota Conflict of 1862.

Sibley State Park isn't the most amazing park in Minnesota, however it's still a very nice little campground! We came a little too early in spring so the trees weren't quite green yet, but I'm sure we will be back in the fall to see the beautiful colors from the tower lookout! I would definitely recommend going up the tower, it's pretty easy not allot of stairs and you have quite the view up there! Also nearby is the small town of New London, I would check it out! The Goat Ridge Brewery is fairly new and is definitely worth the stop!! They have a back patio right along the river near the dam with fire pits back there to enjoy your brews! They brew a pretty good root beer too for the kids!

This state park uniquely showcases an ecologic transition zone between hardwood forest, savannah, and prairie. There are also local history connections. As a bird watcher, I was very excited to see birds here that I dont usually see at home in northern Minnesota, and to learn a bit more about glaciation in this area and about prairie and savannah habitats. The park has self guided hikes, educational nature programs, and learning kits for birding and more that you can check out at the ranger station. The lakeshore is pretty, and the lakeside campground is green and leafy with mature trees but the campsites are very close together, and the beachfront and bath house are currently closed for renovation which puts a damper on waterfront activities. Away from the lake is another campground in the oak savanna section of the park, and this campground seems quieter with more spacious sites, although they are more open. The park’s camper cabins are located here and are in a very pretty setting tucked into a little hill, though a bit of a walk to the bathrooms and showerhouse. At both campgrounds there are nice ADA sites which are level, spacious and accessible, and also close to the bathrooms. I was at a conference in nearby Willmar, and this park is a good alternative for lodging if you need to be in the area. If you are really into learning more about prairies and local glacial geology, the nearby Prairie Environmental Learning Center is fantastic to visit, and lots of prairie pothole WMAs are also closeby for waterfowl watching

To be fair I'd like to preface this review with a word of caution. We went in the middle of Summer. High bug season. Take a look at other reviews as they come in and see what time of year they visited. Maybe they'll have a similar experience, maybe not. The fun thing about this state park is that all the sites are hike in. No drive up camping. It has a couple camper cabins as well. But everyone is spread out along a few trails so it's a little quieter than your typical campground.

When we pulled up to the parking lot we knew we were in trouble. The black flies were dive bombing the car like a scene from Armageddon. We prepared the kiddos for a quick grab and run and jumped out of the car. Our campsite was about a mile from the car so we started at a quick walk onto the trail. First step onto the grassy trail exploded in a cloud of mosquitos. Walking along the kids all looked like Pig-Pen from Peanuts. Even though we'd sprayed everyone down the bugs must have felt safety in numbers because we were covered in welts in no time flat. That's when the jogging began. Soon we were running and also planning out how to set up camp the quickest. Little tent first, throw the kids in, big tent second and then everyone in there while dinner was being made. Luckily at our actual campsite the bugs weren't quite as horrendous so we were able to get out a bit after applying a few more layers of repellant. Our site was on a short private trail off the main loop and opened up to a decent space. We had a picnic table and fire pit and plenty of space for our two tents and an area to play. We were all entertained by the plethora of mushroom varieties that surrounded the camp. We spent a bit of time outside and then played in the tent the rest of the night. Unfortunately the bugs were bad enough that the next morning we just packed up and headed back to the car. I would like to come back to this park in late fall and try out a camper cabin. There are three of them all on lakes so if you can get past buggy season it has the potential to be a great experience. Have you ever been to Lake Maria? Stayed in one of their camper cabins? Let me know, I'd love to hear how it went!

Stayed here overnight being its so close to my hometown. Its a nice quiet park and so are the campgrounds!!! They also have little cabins to stay in that id like to try out!

First: my only complaint... The pump for the water was very slow.

Ok done... This lovely spot is a one mile hike from the parking lot, so be ready to walk if you need to make more than one trip.

The hike itself is rather hilly, and the site is about a quarter mile off of the main path. When I went, the black flies were vicious, so be careful.

You could see the occasional car from the site, which is surrounded by a small pond. You could hear voices, but not see anyone. In fact, I went the whole weekend without seeing a single person.

There are two trees perfectly spaced for a hammock.

Love this spot.

We had a great time camping here with the family!

I visit here often, great walking trails and wildlife.

My friend had been here before and picked out the most beautiful site for us overlooking a gorgeous, untouched prairie. There was a nice picnic table and fire ring available at our site. We hiked in and had a little trouble finding trees to hang our packs from due to a lot of new growth, but overall, this place is somewhere is go back to and recommend. It's one of the nicest and cleanest places I've camped within 2 hours of the metro.

The site won't let me add photos :(

This is a great place to adventure into backpacking. The sites are about a mile hike in. We went in late April and we able to hammock camp. It felt isolated even though other sites were nearby. I also appreciated the vault toilets. Bring your own tp.

The camper cabins were cozy and I loved reading the logs of past visitors!

After hiking Lake Maria SP many times, and camping 5 times, it's my go-to spot for a consistently great experience. I hosted a ladies weekend, taught my stepson how to overnight, and have solo camped. The trails are well marked, there are easily accessible sites, as well as more rugged. Water, privies, and wood are available.

The lake is beautiful!

Give her a go!

This is a beautiful park! There are plenty of driving/biking/walking paths. Very woodsy and there's lots of wild animals!

Really enjoyed the short hike to our campsite, BP7. There is a bathroom and water station before you head out which is awesome! The campsite was secluded and absolutely beautiful. Definitely will be going back again!

Campsite included: 2 tent pads, a few areas to hammock, fire ring w/large grill, small bench, picnic table, bear box and latrine.

I don’t think I would change a thing about the campsite.

This park is only about 50 minutes away from me, and for hiking/camping I only think it is worth a trip in the fall. I went a few weeks ago for the first time in the summer and I thought it was just kind of average as far as hiking goes. Campsites and cabins are walk-in only as far as I know and the site I visited had a private rustic pit toilet a stones throw away. The campsites ARE nice though and private, this just felt too close to home and too similar to parks that are closer. Last year the middle of October was prime color season- drive to the very end where Little Mary Lake is (the bigger lake) and behold- your new destination for your annual family portrait session. Seriously, the yellow leaves are VIVID.