Best Tent Camping near Mississippi River Headwaters - Sandy Lake, MN

Wedged between the St Louis River, the highway, and a ceiling tile factory, this campground has four tent sites on the edge of the river with the rest of the campground having full hookup sites for RV’s. It is a popular campground as I got the last tent site- the last site in the entire campground- at 2 in the afternoon. There is a snowmobile trail going over the river and into the woods that is a nice walking/hiking trail in the warmer months. The bridge over the river is too high to fish from, but there seemed to be lots of places along the river that you could toss a line from. Watch out for ATV’s and bicyclists as they also use the bridge to access trails. The camp host will get you the code for the really nice, clean bathhouse that has free showers for campers. If you are tent camping you will need to park either at the bathhouse or in the park lot outside the campground as you cannot park in the tent sites, which are essentially walk in. But it is a short walk. There aren’t any hammock appropriate trees in the tent area which is basically a mowed lawn, but there are a few trees to provide some shade.

True North Basecamp is great for those wanting to “camp lite”. You’re enjoying the outdoors & camping in a tent but there’s a bathroom (outhouse style) & fresh cold water near by. Town is close enough you can even skip the cooking if you choose. Heck, the BBQ joint in town (excellent, btw) even delivers to the campground! The heated shower house has modern toilets if needed. The hot shower is nice after riding the trails all day. I wouldn’t call it glamping but it’s definitely not backcountry camping in the least. We go here for Mtb trail riding trips for all these features. Close enough to town to bike in, trail access from the campground, a lake/beach area in camp & clean, quiet campsites makes this a favorite spot.

Nothing fancy here but a locally run campground that is clean and well kept. Not a lot of privacy but spaces can be big. Being right on the water is a bonus here but watch out for the mosquitos. There are both rv and tent sites available with the tent sites being in the back.

This campground is small, but everyone is friendly. No tent sites available on the lake as those are reserved for rv, but the tent area is nice and wooded.

We stayed at tent site #1. It was very clean and the layout was nice for 2 tents. The bathroom / shower house were very clean. Everything was new or very well maintained.

Beautiful place. Non expensive. Not many tent sites but we had one down the hill and it was perfect. Very peaceful and owners are respectful and kind.

Bent Trout Lake Campground is a beauty. They have tent camping with hookups at times. There is a great, well-maintained lake which in turn makes the beach just as nice as the lake itself. Pristine waters with great piece of property surrounding it. Friendly staff and win-win for family’s and others alike.

I've stayed in both the cabins and the camping area. The cabins are my favorite because of the lake views, proximity to the bathhouse, and heat/AC units. Cabin #5 has the best unobstructed views of the lake. Cabins have WiFi. The campground is nice but only has a primitive toilet adjacent to the campsites. There are no electric or sewer hookups, but there are a couple of tent sites than can accommodate small campers. I camped in site #18 and it either isn't very level or I just did a poor job of setting up my tent because we were slanted all night. Great stargazing at both the cabins and the tent sites. 

Check-in information is shared via email (key codes for the bathhouse and the cabin locks). The emails are very informative and the owners have been prompt to reply when I had questions. They even offer up the option to have firewood delivered to your site (either cabin or tent site) before you arrive.

This is my favorite place to stay in Crosby because it's so close to both the Rally Center Trailhead and Crosby. My favorite places in town are Red Raven (great coffee shop with good breakfast and lunch food options), Crosby Pub (wide variety of food - burgers, salads, appetizers), Rafferty's Pizza (pizza and beer plus a couple of arcade games in the back), and Iron Range Eatery (a little fancier than Crosby Pub (but not by much) and offers great food as well). All of these restaurants offer outdoor seating.

Great place to camp. The dedicated tent sites are limited, but lots of rv sites. Electrical at every site and everyone is friendly. There are even showers and plumbed bathrooms. Only reason not a five star is that the bathrooms tent to get pretty bad and could use more than once a day cleaning on holiday weekends.

Nice little RV park right in the town of Cloquet. There are a few tent sites right against the river. On the west end of the property is access to a pedestrian bridge where you may find some fisherman in the summer. You can walk to the Northeastern Bar of the coffee shop. Nice little stopping spot if you are headed to the BWCAW or the Range.

A very cool place for the kids! Swimming beach on Serpent lake is nice for the whole family. When they’re tired of swimming, the skate park is always a good time. The playground is modern and very nice. And during summer months, there’s music in the park Thursday evening! Sewer, electric, and water are available. There are tent sites too. it’s a nice laid back municipal park. Walking distance to downtown. And if you’re into mountain biking, there are world class trails just a mile away at Cuyuna mountain bike trails. Well worth a stay!

Myself and some friends spent the weekend here in July. There are 10 tent sites and many cabins. We stayed in tents. The sites are rustic but have fire rings and some have charcoal grills in them. The bathrooms are spotless and come with real flush toilets and sinks. There is even showers in both of them. Most people come here to ride the red dirt mtb trails of Cuyuna so the showers are a great amenity! Beautiful views of the lake (mine pit) and swimming off of the private dock. If you want to fish here you must have a trout stamp. We want to come back and rent a cabin next time. Overall 10/10 would recommend and will return!

Stopped for a night during our cross country travels. Stayed at RV site 4 which is bordered by trees on one side which was nice for privacy. Overall the tent sites appeared to be pretty private although closer together than I expected from looking at the map. Staff was very friendly and helpful. Firewood is for sale. There is a very nice kitchen with running water and showers were large, private, and clean. Only reason I didn’t give 5 stars is because it is right off highway and you can hear traffic and I was hoping for a bit more space between sites given what I saw on map. Would definitely stay here again!

Have stayed at True North’s tent sites quite a few times and this is another great option in the area. The site here was nice and wooded. Definitely a bit more private than other Cuyuna options. MTB access to the Yawkey section was nice and will be even better after more trail is added to the zone. Was great to have a community kitchen in the main bath house to clean the dirty dishes from camp and the bathrooms/shower were also very nice. My kids had fun fishing for panfish off there dock and although we never made it, they have a swimming beach that as a bit down the MTB access trail.

This is a well maintained community campground and community park sponsored by the local Warba American Legion, which actually has its building on the premises. They take good care of the park, which includes playground and picnic shelter for day use, a campground with hookups and large grassy drive-in campsites , and an area of walk-in tent sites right by the shores of Sand Lake. There is a small beach area too, and a really nice DNR fishing pier out into the lake. The lake is really pretty and quiet, and seems to have great fishing. It would be a good place to stop if passing through, or visiting in the area. My two main concerns are 1) proximity to Hwy 2, which generates a fair amount of traffic noise, plus the bathrooms are basic pit toilets which arent in great shape