Best RV Parks & Resorts near Lutsen, MN

The aspect of this campground we liked the best was that we could walk to town. The campground itself is o.k. It was full when we were and definitely felt crowded. There are some tent sites up in a wooded secluded area but most of the park is geared to RVs. Or you can pitch pitching your tent amongst RVs. Tucked up in the woods is a small tent area that is nice and quiet but a little far from the bathrooms so be prepared to walk.

There are 300 campsites of with full hookups, some with electric and water hookups and others no hookups. Some site have great views of Lake Superior, some are sunny and open and others have some large trees. Our site (#104) was very close to our neighbors and the RV right behind us and we had a big tree right in our “patio” which was not conducive to sitting outside. We had a 50 amp full hook-up site which all worked well and well-placed in the site. The campground is county-run and a mix of seasonal people (lots of whom appeared to be there for the fishing) and transients like ourselves. One aspect of seasonal campers that I don’t like is how they junk up their site and this certainly had that. 

There are four bathhouses on the property some of which are pretty old and tired whereas others are larger and more updated. The bathroom near us was large but was heavily used (which is an understatement) as four tour-size busloads of college students exiting the boundary waters spent the night in tents near it. It was pretty trashed with that volume of people. Since the park is pretty large they have amenities like baseball fields, playground, group camping sections, a beach with picnic area, fish cleaning station, and nearby boat launch. 

A short walk to downtown and you have restaurants, shopping, grocery, fuel, pretty harbor, art galleries, bait shops, and more. One of the most highly touted places in Grand Marais is World’s Best Donuts. Even before we got to Grand Marais, people in other parts of Minnesota told us about it. The donuts were really good but beware their closing hour is when they sell out which is why we went really early. We also ate at The Crooked Spoon Cafe and had an amazing meal. Nearby Grand Marais are a scattering of state parks known for their waterfalls which are worth seeing. Many people come here because it is close to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness but since we just came from the town of Ely we did not go back to the boundary waters. We liked this area and kept busy for the three days we were there but couldn’t see staying long-term.

On the outskirts of Finland, along the Baptism River, in the Finland National Forest. Just a few miles north of Eckbeck Campground, off of MN 1 & County Rd 6. Really nice wooded sites, some can accommodate big rigs. Level sites. Vault toilets. Trash bins. Some privacy between sites. I would recommend staying here overnight if the nearby state parks are full. I do not recommend staying here for peace & quiet. Noise from ATVs, a few with modified mufflers. Since there are no electric hookups, there is some noise from generators for the big RVs. What was really annoying was the noise from a bunch of drunk middle aged folks down at the group site on the night of Oct 8, 2021. I had my own drunken moments at parties, but their behavior was pathetic. Their loud voices carried throughout the campground, including some loud f-bombs. Vault toilets were just okay; not particularly clean but usable. IMO, $17 fee is too high for this particular campground. 4 bars T-Mobile.

We camp here usually once or twice a swason for the past 10 or more years. Restrooms are always clean when we have been there. Proprietors are very friendly and helpful. I've been there when when it's just me and my 2 young kids. Owner and other campers helped me out of a situation in which my pop up slide would not slide out. Did not even ask, they all came to my rescuewhen they saw me struggle. The views over the all are to die for. If you want more privacy they have wooded spots that are just as nice. Book early for prime locations. Very quite and draws a clientele that is respectful. Family friendly, for sure.

A rare find - clean, level, large RV sites with full hook ups on the North Shore not filled with residents in all the good sites. Strict rules such as no early check in and no late check out. Tents and rvs also allowed in a section next to the highway with electric only. NOTE: no onsite dump station - if you do not stay in a full hookups site you must drive into the town of Silver Bay to use the city dump facility, which may be too awful to use, depending on how many used it first. ATV trails connect to this campground, so it is very popular with them. No one starts before the 8am quiet time end, so we enjoyed watching the different types pass by. A new security code locked bathhouse is clean and nice. We stayed during the Memorial Day weekend, and were pleasantly surprised at the well behaved and polite people here. I recommend this campground as a nice place to explore the North Shore from.

Campground Review

Temperance River State Park is just off of scenic Highway 61 north of Duluth, Minnesota about 60 miles. You will be camping near the shores of Lake Superior with expansive views out over the lake from the top of several tall cliffs along the lake.

The campground has a clean bathroom with showers. There is running water available at several spots within the campground as well as at a spout outside the restroom. The sites themselves are large and tree-lined. There is plenty of space for one or two tents or a small RV or travel trailer. We camped in our 1989 16 foot Scamp trailer and had lots of room left in the campsite to cook dinner and set up chairs, as well as plenty of space for our dog to run around.

The campground is close by to many hikes within Temperance River State Park, as well as just down the road from the Superior Hiking Trail, Cascade River State Park, and several other state and national forest areas.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt I get products to test from time to time. Today I am testing the Renogy Water Filter. The full video review is below, but I'll give you the rundown here.

• Sturdy construction, should last many trips.
• Decent flow rate, filled a 32-ounce bottle in about 90 seconds.
• Contains input and output tubes, input tube float, and a prefilter.
• Filter can be removed or replaced.

The Cascade River is a great river to hike from its upper falls area to the mouth at Lake Superior. 5 falls or cascades are all visible from the trails along the river. The campsites are close and most are not level and have only electric hookup. The road in is not big rig friendly with low branches and washboard gravel roads. The hiking trails are well worn so easy to hike safely.  This is a perfect camp for small trailer or tent camping as the sites are shaded. Bath houses are fine and water sources are good. There is a free dump and fill station for campers..a bonus!

3/6/20-3/8/20. Cart-in 4

Split Rock Lighthouse State Park is situated on Lake Superior in Two Harbors. It’s a backpacker’s paradise! They are open year-round and have 20 secluded Cart-In campsites within 2000 feet of the parking lot. They have wheeled carts available to move your camping gear to your campsite - or in the winter you could sled-in like we did. Each site has a fire ring, picnic bench and a bear locker for your food or gear. They also have 4 backpack sites with their own vault toilets and are 1/2 mile to 2 mile hike from the parking lot.. The sites are all nicely spaced with some close to the water with gorgeous views of Lake Superior, some of the lighthouse and others wooded. We got to scope out almost every one of them, as only one other person was camping here this weekend. You really can’t go wrong with any site at Split Rock as they were all beautiful and have their own little something to offer. Their showers are not open in the winter but they do have vault toilets throughout

They have 12 miles of hiking trails that run along Lake Superior and double back on the Gitchi-Gami trail. The Gitchi-Gami trail is a paved trail in summer which boasts biking or hiking and unplowed hiking in the winter. In the winter the park has hiking, snowshoeing and xcountry ski trails. .

The big draw is their historic lighthouse in which they charge a separate fee to enter. For all the times I have visited Split Rock, I have honestly never been to the light house. There is also river/stream fishing and access to several rock beaches. We hiked ALL the trails during our stay. They are diverse and beautiful! We particularly enjoyed the Day Hill trail which leads up to an overlook and gives you panoramic views of Lake Superior, the lighthouse and Split Rock Point.

This state park fills up very fast and is reservable, so we opted to visit in the winter. We chose site 4 which is close to the parking lot, next to Lake Superior and has views of the lighthouse. Our site was beautiful nestled among birch and pine (which most are), with waves crashing in the background. There is a short path that leads to a private bench that provides stunning views of the lighthouse and cliff views of the lake. We had clear skies and very little wind in our campsite. Highs in the 40s - low of 15 Friday, 28 Saturday. It was perfect winter camping weather!

I highly recommend a visit to this state park!