Best Tent Camping near Starbuck, MN

Rolled up in the middle of the night. $10 cash in the box for a tent site. Clean bathroom with shower. Felt safe and fell asleep quickly with the sound of the creek next to our site. Would definitely stay again.

We tent camped in the non electric sites in the Lower Campground. They were shady thank goodness, but not very flat or large. Your tent will be on rocks, not grass. 

When we were visiting, the shower house was closed due to Covid, so no review of that. The vault toilet was stocked with TP and fairly clean. The portapotty was near full and smelled awful. Didn’t look like it had been emptied all summer! Gross.

The lake was really high when we visited, which led to a useless campground fishing pier and a boat dock that you had to swim to to use. There was no beach, but there may have been if the water level was normal. Watch out for biting sunnies in the swim area and enormous snapping turtles stealing the fish off your hook at the fishing pier near the swim area.

We did go into Starbuck which is 5 miles away. Very impressive beach, groceries and a DQ all an easy drive away.

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.

I pulled in at like 11pm and went straight to find an open spot, which was pretty easy.

I had decent privacy but was in eye-shot ( through trees ) of 2 other occupied camps.

Registration is easy & self service. They have envelopes at the entrance you just fill out, so you can use any payment method including card if you’re comfortable with that.

I was only solo tent camping and got there way late & had to leave way early, so I can’t speak to much else.

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 The cabins are not modern, furnishings are a bit outdated, but provide a clean getaway on a nice fishing lake.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.

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.

This 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.

I went early in the spring for camping at this park and ended up staying in the cabin – it was sort of a, I wanna get out of the city, let’s go camping, oh the campground is still closed sort of last minute trip. I can’t comment on the facilities, as the water wasn’t even back on for the season yet (March 30). The park has two campgrounds from what I saw; one with cabins and tent sites near the wilderness center and one on Andrew Lake. The lake was BEAUTIFUL at sunset. I drove all the way around and took pictures. Lots and lots of wildlife around at this one too! Fun little café in New London (Middle Fork) – delicious French toast and friendly service; seemed like a place the locals went!

Nice, clean campground. A few of the tent sites had lake views with even a few having short paths right to the waters edge. All sites are drive in with not much privacy in between, but it was enough for me. I stayed in site 9, but would probably choose site 14 for better views next time. Even though the dnr website says the office is open daily, the office at this campground is unmanned except for the weekend, and even then, limited hours. Bring change for firewood ($6). Not much for hiking paths. There is another section of the state park that's about 11 miles north. There is a beach and boat landing near the campground, although the lake was starting to look pretty scuzzy when I was there at the end of July.

We spent two nights tent camping at the Upper Campground of Lac Qui Parle State Park in May 2022. This is a prairie setting, essentially a very large grassy field without trees or shrubs to provide privacy from neighbors or protection from winds. The campsites are well-spaced, so that provides some cushioning distance. There are many young trees planted, but it will be years before they mature. While the campground lacks privacy, its wide open skies provide wonderful stargazing on clear nights. The openness was also great for watching groups of large birds (geese, turkey vultures, pelicans) wheeling overhead.

There was one trail we could hike from the Upper Campground, and we enjoyed its grassy, rolling hills, trees, and lake views. The main parts of the park (lower campground, picnic area, beach, trails) were inaccessible due to recent storms that caused flooding and tree damage. We plan to revisit the park when it is restored and active again.

We tent camped at Sibley State Park from August 31 through September 3, 2022, in drive-in campsite #91 of the Oak Ridge campground. It was a last minute trip for us, right before the Labor Day weekend. We had the non-electric loop all to ourselves from Wednesday through midday Friday, and then the campground was a non-stop hub of activity as more campers arrived for the holiday weekend.

The park has two campgrounds. Oak Ridge is mostly wooded with some prairie sites and is more private. Lakeview is very open without privacy between campsites, but it has some mature trees for shade and is close to the beach and picnic area.

The reservation website mostly does not include tent pad dimensions, so we took a chance on a site not knowing whether our 10x14 tent would fit. Luckily, it did. Site #91 was spacious and wooded on three sides. We walked both campgrounds to check for non-electric sites that would accommodate our tent. If you have a large tent, consider these campsites: Oak Ridge 77, 78, 81, 83, 84, 87, 88, 90, 91, 93, and 94; Lakeview 46, 66, and 70.

The park is beautiful. There are lots of trails, a very nice beach and picnic area, and lots of wildflowers. We saw a lot of wildlife, including deer, raccoons, rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, turkeys, song birds, butterflies, and frogs.

The high point in the park is Mt. Tom, and there is a trail to its peak. If you don’t want to do the hike, you can drive most of the way then walk a short, paved, moderately inclined path to the top. The view is lovely.

The biting bugs weren’t too bad during the day, but they were plentiful and aggressive in the evening. Remember your insect repellent!

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!

Games Lake County Park, near New London, Minnesota, is a great spot for camping. With tent, RV, and cabin options, it suits all campers. The park offers electric hookups, clean facilities, and friendly staff. FR Legends recommends this park for its peaceful atmosphere and great amenities. Located near Games Lake, it’s perfect for fishing, boating, and family fun. A playground, beach, and boat launch make it a great getaway. Open May to September, it’s ideal for outdoor adventures!

The trails in the park have nice rolling hills and offer a unique type of beauty. The campground is small, but offers some electric sites as well as some primitive sites. I do believe there were 2 or 3 cabins that I saw. Unsure if there is a group camp with this campground being so small as it is. Firewood is available at the check in/office building. There is a bathroom/shower building in the loop with the electric sites. The electric loop and primitive loops both have vault toilets. Each loop also has a few water stations to fill containers with potable water and each loop has a dumpster for disposing of waste. Not sure if there is a dump station for RVs as I typically use a tent when camping. Nice state park in Rural central Minnesota

Each 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.

Recommended!

We had a full hookups with 50 amp service. Our site was next to US-12 and had no noise issues. The Chippewa river flows next to the camp and the adjoining river bank is woodlands. We had no insect issues. There is a super dog park and grocery just east on US-12. Found great coffee and scones in Benson at Go Set Ready Coffee.

Our site had a great camp fire pit made from a half sphere about 40 inches in diameter. Looked like the bottom of a buoy or end of a 250 lbs propane tank. The proprietor is an arborist and sold us a large bundle of hard wood that made great smores.

We picked Benson because of its close location to Glacial Lake state park and the Glacial Ridge Trail. Just take MN-29 north.  The topology change in terrain from the farm lands around Benson to the rolling hills and lakes north on MN-29 is great. Continue on MN-29 to Starbuck for a sizable lake. Take some time and explore the back roads on and around the Glacial Ridge Trail. There are many hills, forests and lakes you can explore east up to New London. 

We had an encounter with a pair of swans on the side of the road next to a lake. These are large beautiful birds! We stopped in the car, kept our distance, watched from inside of the car and enjoyed them before the slipped back into the lake.

A small park set in the middle of no where with a beautiful lake and an alright hiking trail. Nice little piece of Minnesota history there as well.

I camped here during an MEA weekend in October and even though we woke up to snow covering our tent, it was a great experience! The campground itself was located very close to the lake and offered nice amenities and privacy between sites.

Only 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.