Looking for an adventure where you can explore Dent and then fall asleep in your tent? Find the best information on tent campgrounds near Dent, including sites, reviews, and tips. Would you prefer a quiet dispersed site or an established camgpround with amenities? Either way, The Dyrt makes it easy to find the perfect place to pitch your tent.
Since 1949, we've been a family-operated resort & campground on Swan Lake in Fergus Falls, MN. We offer lakeside cabins, tent camping, and full hook-up, pull-through RV sites. Here, there is time to slow down, room to breathe, and lots to explore.
Soak up the sun on the sandy beach, hike through the hidden trails, and take the pontoon out for a cruise. Be sure to turn the tech off and challenge a rival to ping pong, crack a cold one, and explore the water on stand-up paddleboard. Bring the little ones and get messy at the arts & crafts table, catch a sunfish off the docks, and indulge in s’mores around the campfire. Don’t forget to show us what you got on the volleyball court and savor an ice cream at the camp store. Curl up in a hammock and get lost in a good book, smile at the flowers and gaze in awe at the night sky. Just be.
$35 - $300 / night
Swim, fish, paddle, and picnic surrounded by rolling, forested hills here at Maplewood State Park, a name synonymous with stunning fall color. An extensive network of multi-purpose trails winds around eight major lakes and many ponds.
$22 / night
On the NCT - Laurentian Chapter Maps (LLC-006)
This campsite is located on a very large Flooded Woods. To get to the campsite, go to the Elbow Lake Road Trailhead and hike south. Flooded woods always seem really creepy and murky, and this one is no exception. The campsite itself is really nice with grassy tent pads and a nice campfire area.
On the North Country Trail in MN - Laurentian Chapter - NCT map LLC-004
$14 - $24 / night
Traveler
As a native Minnesotan who relocated to Oregon just a few years ago, I miss my regular summer visits to Itasca State Park in Northern Minnesota. From May through October, I have enjoyed tent camping and biking the trails there. Every visitor should plan to stay at least 2 days to take in all the activities they can here, including walking (or wading) across the Mississippi headwaters, hiking the volumous and beautiful trails, and if possible plan to bike one of the trail routes or rent a kayak or canoe to enjoy the lake. The tent sites are well-spaced, with plenty of privacy between, due to the thick woods. Be prepared for lots of mosquitos, woodticks, deer ticks, and occasionally biting flies... a heavy duty insect repellent with DEET is your best bet. This area is teeming with wildlife, too: watch for bald eagles, deer, fox, coyote and bears. The bears are most active around the campgrounds at night, so be sure all food and fruit-scented products are locked up in your vehicle to be safe. These are typically smaller black bears, which are easily scared off by dogs or noise, and I've never met an experienced camper who was afraid of them. However, as with all wildlife they can be unpredictable and you should always take precautions for your safety. Enjoy the wild beauty, the historical sites from early settlers, the call of loons at night, and the fabulous smell of the freshwater lake through the pine trees!
TravelerThis campground has level grassy sites. Most or perhaps all full hookup sites have seasonal RVs but there are a few overnight sites that generally have electric only (30A). Water is available did not see a dedicated dump station. Stayed 3 nights Was a nice spot. There is tent camping a short walk to the lakeshore that seemed nice.
Traveler
This campground is actually called Tipsinoh Mounds Campground & Resort. It has something for everyone. A basketball court, playground, a nice Sandy beach. Tent sites right by lake. Great for fishing and all types of water sports. Not far from the MN Central Lakes Bike Trail.
Ranger
Stopped for the night on our way west. Nice campground, nice park, nice trail system for running or biking (along the continental divide). Think it’s a little expensive for $30/night. Does have water and electric. Couple RV sites are shaded. The tent sites are really nice. Close to the lake
Guide
It was a 2.5 mile hike of all sorts of terrain. Scenery was perfect. Not much for available tent sites or hammock sites. It could fill up fast. Has a fire pit and water is super clear. Very quiet and was mosquito free till darkness set in. I would definitely camp here again.
Scout
This was such a great campground. The state park is absolutely gorgeous and the camp sites are no different. The sites with electrical hook up are less private, but it’s a family camping site so it’s very friendly. The sites without any hookups are more private and secluded, great for tent camping. There are lots of walking trails as some fishing spots as well. We absolutely loved it here and will definitely be back!
Traveler
Wonderful office staff, very kind and helpful. We intended to stay at the tent site but when we arrived we saw a lovely cabin overlooking the lake and decided to give ourselves a treat. It was very clean and comfortable. You can tell they work very hard to make the interior inviting and the kitchen well supplied with nice kitchenware. Highly recommend.
Traveler
This was a cute place and it was clean and nice. There are no designated tent spaces or directions as to where to set up your tent. That was confusing. I just ended up parking it by one of the shelters. Overall it was a great day and it was mostly quiet. The other RVr’s were quiet, you could only hear a little bit of rumbling from the nearby highway. The bathrooms were nice with all things considered. There were two bathrooms and one shower stall. The price is no longer $10 for tent camping, it is now $15. Full hook ups was $30 now.
Ranger
This resort is located on Stalker Lake, outside of Dalton MN in Ottertail County. The resort has 4 smaller cabins for rent ranging from 3 nights for $500 to 3 nights for $790. There is a minimum of 3 nights for the cabins that are equipped with a bathroom & kitchen. The cabins are not modern, furnishings are a bit outdated, but provide a clean getaway on a nice fishing lake. Tent camping is $20 per night and RV/Campers are $50 per night with electric, water and sewer hookups.
Legend
This park features fishing in Whiskey Creek, (stocked with rainbow trout, crappies, and sunfish), picnic area, children's playground, semi-enclosed shelters, campground area with full hook-up and tent sites, two camping cabins, softball fields, frisbee golf, volleyball area and a children's zoo, which includes buffalo, whitetail deer, peacocks, and golden pheasants. Site had picnic table and fire ring.
Camping with the whole family so there may be some familiar rigs from other reviews of mine.
Scout
The tent sites are all cart in, making the scenery the main focus. You don't have to stare at vehicles while you are enjoying a fire, which I love. They also have sites that you can canoe in to as well as cabins and yurts. The trails are well kept, the river clean and the lakes are motor free. You would never know that you are as close to the town as you are. And they have plenty of activities to do on the water like canoeing, paddle boarding, paddle boating, kayaking or just swimming.
GuideThis is one of the few state parks where they have canoe-in sites. It's right in the heart of lake country so there's always water around you. They have cabins as well as tent sites so its pretty easy to get around. They have a few of the new yurts that the Mn State Park system put in. These are very nice.
There's also an old house/museum where the former owner of the land lived. Apparently a few presidents visited there during the turn of the century.
Ranger
We camped here one night at the end of July as our first stop on a trip to Oregon. It was quiet on a Thursday. The swimming hole is closed this year so that probably kept some folks away.
We stayed in the electric loop as it's nice to charge things up for the next leg of the trip. They have non-electric tent sites as well.
Nice mature trees for shade. There is a large meadow with wild flowers and a trail next to the main campground. There were milkweed in bloom, wild roses and more.
Lots of trails and Buffalo River to explore.
RangerDelagoon Campground is located within Delagoon Park which is on the outskirts of Fergus Falls, the County seat of Ottertail County. The campground has 22 campsites with 14 being camper/tent sites with water & 20/30 electricity. The campsites are gravel back-in with no separation between sites so privacy is limited. The tent-only sites are against a line of trees but are still open to other campers. There are fire rings but no picnic tables so bring your camping chairs. The fishing pier is large and handicap accessible. There are non-plumbed but modern and clean restrooms within the park. The campground gets used a lot by local residents looking for a quick weekend getaway but there are usually several open spots available that are low in cost ($10 for tent-only & $20 for hookup sites). Registration is first come first serve via a self serve kiosk at the campground entrance. The noise level within the campground can be pretty high on weekends. There are no posted quiet times or on-site staff who manage the campground (it is managed by the Fergus Falls Park & Rec Dept) although the local police drive through frequently when the campground is inhabited.
Legend
Leap Day 2/29/20-3/1/20 Frog Pond
We headed to Lake Carlos for their candlelight ski, this was our first visit to this state park. Tent camping wasn’t available and we were able to reserve a camper cabin - Frog Pond. It was a nice change and a warmer option, the cabin is gorgeous! Frog Pond sleeps 6 with heat and electricity. There are 4 cabins that share 2 vault toilets.
It was a beautiful 38 degree Leap Day and we took advantage of it. They offer a large number of ski trails so we xcountry skied before dark. The trails were icy, but still enjoyable. At dark we headed to the candlelight event. It was very busy and a huge turnout. We hiked 1.2 miles and then snowshoed 2.4 miles. There are ponds and bogs that they create snowshoe trails on, so there are even more trails to explore in the winter. It was a beautiful night and we enjoyed the wooded trails and starry skies. We had a fire and enjoyed a normal outdoor cookout before bed.
We did more skiing on Sunday and checked out the 2 campgrounds as they were on the ski route. One campground is on Lake Carlos and very open. Sites have beautiful lake views. You can apparently drive your boat right into a sandy shore and dock it. They also have a swimming beach. The other campground is a bit more wooded and more suited for tents. This campground is near the camper cabins. The trails are very wooded and pretty. We enjoyed skiing the hiking club trail and ended up hitting almost every trail in our stay. I assume this park would be equally beautiful in the summer. What a beautiful state park!
Legend
Shell City Campground is in the Huntersville State Forest. If you want to camp in the woods, you want to be in the woods. Even if you are in a city. This camp is off the beaten path, without being "out of the way". Making your way there in any season without snow is certainly going to be easier, but even if there is a little snow, you'll be fine as long as you have all wheel drive. And it was really quiet! Such a pretty view!n I didn't get a chance to stay here (it's winter right now), but with only a small amount of snow on the ground, it made it easy to get a really good feel for how it might be.
Only a short distance off the main road, this isn't hard to find as long as you follow the signs. And don't get distracted by the "horse camp" sign like I did. Yes, there is a horse camp there, but if you drive just past the horse camp, you'll find a very clearly marked path to the regular tent camping sites. They are only a hop, skip and a jump apart, though, so they are easy to get to one from another.
This campground is accessible from the road if you are driving and the river if you are canoeing (and I suppose if you happen to be hiking in the area, it's easy to get to as well). If you came off the river, it's a very easy "in" from the water. Two entrances are available. One is a dirt landing that you ease into (boat landing style with a little, tiny lot for a car to pull into) and...you're there! The other comes up to about 6 wooden stairs, but nothing hard about it at all. If by car, the road winds down a tiny path and into the campsites. Easy breezy.
There is room for RVs, the sign says, and they are the same price as tents.
Tents are $14 (or you can put a camper on the site for the same price, but no hookups), or you can rent it as a "group site" for $28 (20 people max). Now I'm not sure what that means, but $28 seems awfully cheap to rent the entire place. It's not a giant campground, but there's plenty of room. All pads are within view of the river and there are plenty of trees (mainly pine) for hammocks. And the wind in the trees is divine! Ever so often you can hear a bit of road noise, but it's incredibly minimal. Especially if the wind is blowing.
There were several pit toilets. Very unusual to have more than one in a camp of this size, but nice, nonetheless! There was also a water pump for drinking water that was very easy to pump. The sites have picnic tables and fire pits too. The view of the river was my absolute favorite because it's at a bend in the river, so you can see both ways. This time of year, the ice was forming, but the water was still moving. It made for very pretty photos!
I can't wait to pitch a tent here in the spring!
Legend
Dyrt Ranger Review of Grubstick cooking gear at Hungry Man Lake
Campground Review: Hungry Man Lake has a state forest campground just south of Itasca State Park. There are 14 primitive campsites, a boat launch, small beach with dock, and picnic area. You can also hike on several trails around the lake. The campsites are large and shaded by beautiful tall pines and spaced far apart. They each have a nice fire grill and picnic table. Great for tent camping! RVs and campers can fit in many of the sites, but note that there are no hookups of any kind. Facilities include outhouse and water pump. Site 11 is not officially a handicapped site but it is flat and has hard packed ground around the picnic table and has easy access to the outhouse which has a wide door and seems to be accessible. The sites were only half taken by families and quiet fisherman, so pretty pleasant! We stayed at site 14 which was nicely set back from the other sites, but further from the lake. Supposedly it has great fishing but we didnt try. The beach area is hardpacked white sand with crystal clear water, great for swimming! A good place to camp if you want to be near Itasca State Park but not camping among the crowds.
Product review: As a Dyrt Ranger, I sometimes have the chance to try new camping products and review them on The Dyrt. While at Hungry Man Lake, we tried out the new Grubstick cooking utensils which have telescoping steel handles with rubber grips and a variety of screw-on attachments such as hotdog grilling forks, sandwich and burger baskets, bacon roaster and pastry baker. We tried them all! See product listing here: https://grubstick.com/products/deluxe-kit
Pros: The hotdog griller is generous and holds three at a time, we tried a brat, a hotdog and a corndog. They didnt fall off the fork and grilled nicely. The sandwich basket makes great grilled cheese, and the burger basket did a great job grilling a hefty bacon burger. The separate bacon attachment worked ok, but only cooks one piece at a time; cooking bacon in a grill basket might work better for multiple pieces. I really loved the pastry cylinder: you wrap dough around the steel cylinder and turn over the coals, of course it bakes on the outside, but the cylinder also heats up and cooks the dough from the inside as well—no more dough boys with baked crust and raw insides! The baked pastry cup then sludes easily off the cylinder and you can fill it with all kinds of fillings, and eat it like an ice cream cone! Doesnt leak! Tastes great! We filled ours with yogurt, berries and nuts. All the attachments worked great, the handles are long and safe over the fire by the handles dont get hot and they telescope down to a small size, and everything fits in a nice canvas bag. Comes with silicon hot pads and implements to use while cooking with the utensils, and everything cleans up like a breeze. Well made and sturdy. We look forward to using them again!
Cons: the only minor problem was that the sandwich and burger baskets clip shut with a clip that could pop open if you dont close the basket clips firmly before use. We lost one burger when flipping the basket the first time, but did a better job pressing on the clip after that. Some kind of locking clasp on the clip might be a good addition. Otherwise, everything worked great!
RangerEach site has a picnic table and some sites have a fire ring. There are tent-only sites that have no hookups and there are semi-private sites for RVs with electric hookup only or sites that are closer together for RVs that have full hookups.
Call 218-747-2959 to book a site. The campground has a lot of trees and most campsites are on grass.
There is also a motel and cabins on-site that you can book. The motel rooms, cabins and new cabins (these are like smaller mobile homes) are all lakeside giving you nice views.
The campground has paddle boards, paddle boats, kayaks and canoes that are available to guests at no extra charge, too. You can rent a fishing boat or pontoon either by the day or the week. There is a fish cleaning house on-site as well.
This campground is in the heart of Minnesota's lake's country.
Legend
We love our Boundary Waters Canoe Area to the north of us, and the North shore of Lake Superior to the east, both of which offer some of the best wilderness camping in northern Minnesota. However, they are both a good three hour drive from our home in north central Minnesota. Itasca State Park, between Park Rapids and Bemidji, is our go-to special place when we want to take to the woods for a weekend but only have to drive about a half hour to get there. Most campers at Itasca head for the main campgrounds for standard tent and RV camping...but for a near Wilderness experience, there are 11 remote backpacker campsites which are between 1 and 6 miles trek into the roadless wilderness area of the park south of the parks main loop drive. The Iron Corner Lake remote campsite is one such campsite off on its own in the backcountry, actually by the nexus of the Ozawindib Trail and the North Country National Scenic trail that runs through this part of the park. It is an easy trek in from a small parking area near Josephine Lake, or from a larger parking area at the south entrance of the park. Either trail in goes up and over the Itasca Moraine, so there is some good elevation change along the traild, but not too rugged, and it is really just over a mile that you need to pack in to this campsite. The campsite comes with fire ring and benches, beautiful bed of pine needles for a tent pad, access to a gorgeous crystal clear lake, and a clean three-sided outhouse with a scenic view toward the lake. (No need for a door—its the wilderness! ) You can camp here as a base camp, and then have the chance to hike miles of trails in every direction to dozens of other wilderness lakes in the area. The trails in are both wide, soft, and well maintained so you could easily bring in a kayak ir canoe if you dont mind portaging the distance. Quiet, rustic, pristine, and dark skies at night! Check this page for a description of the MN state park remote campsites with a link to reserve one: https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/remote_camping.html and check this link for info on the Itasca State Park overall https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/park.html?id=spk00181#homepage
Legend
In the off season, it's kind of hard to get a feel for a campground in Minnesota. They aren't terribly well used. But this one had some occupants. However, the office was closed, so I couldn't ask any questions.
The sign by the main road says "resort and campground", but the sign closer to the location only says "resort", however, their website has camping prices as well as cabin prices. But I couldn't seem to find the campground. Maybe it was one in the same for campers and RV's?
The cabins looked lovely from the outside, although there were interspersed with some old, bedraggled sheds. Some of the cabins were right on the lake and had what appeared to be really nice decks. All seemed to have BBQ grills provided as well. The office (lodge?) was a large building with an attached in ground pool. Lots of RV campers were there. So I'm assuming that this is mainly an RV park.
Their website mentions camping rates around $40/night. One of those places I think I'd bypass if I had a tent, but for an RV, it might be a good deal.
There is also a sand beach with canoes that I assume are free to use if you stay there. A nice little perk.
LegendSuper easy to find, right off the North Country Trail!
This is a long campsite. I mean, it's off the trail and kind of long and skinny from the trail down to the water. Water seems to be fairly easy access off the site itself. There is a log bench situated right next to the fire ring. Most sites in this area seem to be set up that way. The view was great…how pretty to wake up to the lake! The tent pad seemed fairly level too.
Didn't appear to be a whole lot of room for extra tents, meaning, I don't think this would be a great spot for more than a few campers that were staying in the same tent (or didn't mind getting creative with tent set up), and I don't think the tent pad would accommodate a large tent (read: larger family), but it would be perfect for a solo hiker or a couple. A few trees, but nothing that seemed terribly easy for hammock camping.
TravelerBeautiful lake. Most campsites are seasonal so make your reservations early. Bathrooms are very clean and showers are spacious. Only downside to this beautiful campground is the small sites. (We had a 10 foot camper and a tent.) Next campers slide out was over the tent. Wouldn't stop me from staying there again though!
Scout
We go tenting here. It's our favorite place so far. It's very rustic and lovely.
Guide
This is a beautiful county maintained campground. Near Brandon,Minnesota. Lots of Amenities. Nice swimming beaches. #2 of them.
GuideOnly Tents Allowed--this is the most serene place! They don't allow motor boats on one of the lakes so there is always calm water to canoe, kayak, swim, or paddleboard in.
ScoutMy friend & I stayed in their Osprey yurt, and it was perfect for our first camping trip together. I recommend yurts if you’re not 100% comfortable with/ enjoy staying in a tent.
GuideI stayed in the group site here and it was wonderful, we were along the water and there was good spots to put up tents, very clean and a neat area in general!
Tent camping near Dent, Minnesota offers a blend of serene natural beauty and a variety of outdoor activities, making it an ideal getaway for nature enthusiasts.
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