Best Cabin Camping near Hayward, MN

40 site Totally renovated 2 years ago nestled along the little Cedar river above the dam. New Shower house/bathrooms. Natural themed kids play area including a huge tree house. City water and sewer with 50 and 30 amp to each site. Man made swimming pond with a lighted waterfall. Volleyball and walking trails with primitive camping across the road. Cabin with air conditioning and fully furnished further up the river on 200 acres of county land. Fishing above and below the dam. Picnic table and fire ring at every site.

We biked the Sakatah Singing Hills Trail from Faribault, MN to Mankato, MN (39 miles). The whole trail was paved, which was really nice and runs through hardwoods forest. We camped in Sakatah State Park and then explored the City of Mankato. Sakatah Lake is a relatively calm lake and seems like a great place to kayak.

They have 5 bike-in campsites near the trail. Other campsites include drive-in sites, electric sites, group sites, and camper cabins. The campsites are secluded just enough so that one feels like they are camping in the woods by themselves.  Unlike a lot of campgrounds, Sakatah State Park has its fire pits above ground. Very nice for keeping warm. Amenities at the campground include showers, flush toilets, vault toilets, dump stations.

Great place to camp and get away from the cities without a long drive. Firewood is available at the office and a fire ring is at each site as well as picnic table.

This campground has a TON of sites!  There are close to 60 sites in all, about a third to half of those are electric sites.  If you like open spaces, this is a wonderful place to camp.

Beautiful, clean, and recently updated bathrooms and showers!

So much wildlife to see at this park.  Seeing large groups of deer was a daily/nightly thing!

The park has 20+ miles of hiking trails through prairies, woodlands, and along the lake too!  PLus the park offers geocashing (and free GPS rental), as well as canoes, kayaks, paddle boards, and a small fishing that can be rented!

A lot to offer here!

Everything was beautiful. We camped for a week in southern Minnesota state parks, but this one is our favourite.

Beautiful, small state park less than an hour south of Twin Cities. Sites are wooded and shady but some are close to neighboring sites. Not too many mosquitos or flies for August in Minnesota! Sakatah Singing Hills paved trail runs through the park.  It was pouring on Saturday so most of the other campers checked out and we had the campground mostly to ourselves. Super friendly and helpful staff, clean restrooms. Faribault is 15 minutes away so we went antique shopping at Keeper's Antiques downtown and had cocktails at 10,000 Drops Distillery for rainy day activities.

We arrived on a Sunday and stopped at the Park Welcome area. We got the last spot with electric for 3 nights. Nice staff! Ice was available.

$34/night plus Minnesota State Park pass @ $8/day.😩

Not super spacious but very comfortable distance between spaces. Well maintained dirt road in campground. Grassy and mowed. Nice big trees! Water spigots. Very nice individual, clean rooms for showers.

Two separate campground loops in the White Fox area and another couple loops half mile down the road

The lake is gorgeous but just a few places to get to the water. Saw a sign on the park door saying kayaks and canoes available to rent.

Six miles of paved, but badly in need of care, is a bike path that meanders through thick forest and open grassy fields. Follows the lake and heads close to the town of Albert Lea.

We saw a guy setting out electric scooters that were available to rent which looked like fun!

Birds and deer abound.

Walmart 2 miles away!

We tent camped at Myre-Big Island State Park in Minnesota from September 30 to October 3, 2022. The weather was warmer than usual at this time of year, and the fall color development was a couple weeks behind normal. It was cool but beautiful during the daytime (light jacket/sweater weather). The temperature dropped at night but didn’t require anything more than our sleeping bags to keep us warm. The earlier sunset meant meal cooking and cleanup needed to be a bit earlier, but it also meant longer time for beautiful campfires in the evenings.

The trails were in great shape and beautiful with past-peak grasses and developing colors in the trees. Most of the wildflowers were done for the year, but some were still in bloom. Deer, squirrels, chipmunks, and lots of birds were active near the trails and campgrounds.

We have camped here previously, in early summer. Then the bugs were abundant and aggressive on the Big Island trails. During this fall trip, there were very few.

We arrived after dark last night so we weren't able to see the gorgeous view until the sun rose! Luckily we woke up early and went for a walk right as the sun was coming up. It was quite cold, a little over 20°, but that meant the lake was frozen solid so we got to walk around on it! Tons of fun. Unfortunately the bathhouse, water spigots, and dump station were closed. That is not a super big deal since we have a camper. And it was publicized on their website about the dump stations being closed. The sites were spacious, the one we were in was non electric and a back-in site. But for $24 a night it was pretty nice! Especially would be worth it if more of the amenities had been open, but with how cold it is, it's very understandable that they would have them closed. There was still an outhouse with a vault toilet that was open. Unsure if there is a working sink because we did not use it. We had to call to make a same day reservation which was a tad bit annoying but the man on the phone was very helpful and nice so not bad at all.

I've always considered myself blessed to have this state park so close to home. This is a beautiful, well kept state park. Now days if you plan to camp on the weekends you basically have to make a reservation here as it is usually pretty busy but even than if you can get a spot most of the sites are pretty private, you'll hear the other campers but especially in big island there's a good amount of growth between camp sites. I've camped here many times throughout my life because it's close to home and is super convenient for a quick overnight or weekend trip, it's only a few miles from home but once I'm out there and camp is set up it's an escape and it wouldn't matter if it was a few miles or a few hundred miles, it's spending time in nature. There's really nice hiking trails here and access to the lake for fishing. Both white fox and big island have new bathrooms that are very nice and updated.

Sites are approximately 2 miles from parking and the hike it relatively easy with minimal elevation change. You have a choice between a grassy walk or walking mainly on tar and gravel as part of the Blazing Star Trail. They are also accessible by boat.

There are 4 backpacking sites and they are well-spaced so you each have privacy. #3 and #4 are close enough that you could be in a group together but #1 and #2 are pretty isolated. Each site has a fire pit, picnic table, wood cabinet/fish cleaning table, at least 1 flat spot for a tent, and a nearby porta potty.

Views of the lake are amazing with a variety of birds making appearances. Harvesting season may bring some farm sounds but otherwise, aside from the occasional train, you'll mainly hear the sounds of nature around you.

If you can make the walk carrying everything, including water, on your back, definitely check out one of these sites.

This review is for the campground on Big Island, we stayed in spot 21.

The spots are very well maintained, but close to neighbors. The facilities are brand new, and very clean. Had a toilet, shower, and dish washing area. The park office does sell firewood and other things, so definitely take a look when you check in!

We dropped our kayak into the lake at the boat launch, which was a 2 minute drive to the other side of the island from the campsite. The lake was great, and calm.

We really enjoyed it here! Except for the mosquitoes, so pack repellent!

You have to check-in at the camp office, which closes at 8pm. I didn’t realize this and arrived at 8:20pm and probably made the nice state park lady work late. Don’t be me.

This remote site is about a mile hike in from the parking area. Easy/moderate hike in. Saw 6 or 7 deer hiking in. At my site, BP1 or backpack 1 or R1, you have water access nearby so prep for the sounds of waterfowl. PELICANS! They flap loudly when entering or exiting the water. Very cool to watch. I wasn’t bothered by it, just a surprise. Other posts somewhere on the internet mentioned the interstate noise being an issue at this site-I did not have that experience. Occasionally, I’d hear the revving of someone’s extremely loud motorcycle or semi engine (maybe 5 times total) in the distance, but the nature sounds covered it for me. I woke up to so many bird sounds. The 2 crows were annoying but fortunately they took off and I got to hear the songbirds more clearly.

The site itself was very nice. Partially shaded, but also allowed for sunshine during the day. The park provides firewood at the backpacking sites, which is nice since this park has a no firewood collecting rule. Flat, clear areas to pitch your tent.

The car camping sites at this park are nice and well-shaded with a constant cool breeze to beat the heat. The hiking trail on the island is cute as well. One thing to be aware of, is there are a bunch of raccoons who have figured out this is the place to go for food so be sure to pack up all food before going to sleep at night.

The near by town is also nice and fun to stop by for lunch.