Best Equestrian Camping near Wadena, MN

I am from a suburb of Twin Cities metro area in Minnesota and we wanted to go camping with my in-laws who have horses. We needed a park that was close and had equestrian camping so we decided to go to Lake Carlos State Park.

Lake Carlos State Park is roughly 2.5hours from the Twin Cities and is a beautiful getaway for a weekend trip. You can leave after work on a Friday and still have time to make it to the park, set up and still be able to cook dinner and enjoy a s’more or two.

We booked site H3 in the equestrian campground which was a VERY open site right off the main loop in the equestrian campground. It was very sunny and barely any shade for the horses. The site were in was electric and there were only three non-electric sites in the equestrian campground. The other sites were awesome for shade but were still super open to everyone.

There were great trails for hiking and horseback riding. They also allowed mountain biking on the trails.

The staff at the office were super friendly and they talked to us for about 15 minutes. Their store in the office was pretty great and they had everything from toys for the kids to s’mores stuff and stickers specific to the park. The firewood was pretty fast burning and cost 6$ a bundle so it was pretty spendy since we cook only over the fire.

The main campground was VERY busy and jammed packed. The sites were too close together and open for my comfort.

The beach was very dirty and there were army worms everywhere crawling on everything.

We took a little bike ride to the group camp which was an amazing area with a very nice shelter with electric.

All in all, this is a good park to go to if you are looking for a park close to the twin cities metro area.

I've never been to an equestrian camp before, and this was a surprise! I didn't know it was one until I arrived. But surprise or not...it was a happy accident to find the Shell City Equestrian Camp. What a beautiful little place to drop a tent, even if you didn't have a horse! And even though there was snow on the ground and a serious chill in the air, I still had the gitty up and go to make some Mountain House Beef Stew, but this time, with a twist!

Campground Review:

Shell City Equestrian Camp (and sister Shell City Camp) are run by Itasca State Park, so any info about this campground can be found under the State Park website. When I set out for the day, I anticipated finding a campground on the river, and I did find one there, but I didn't know they had a sister camp for horses. They are both located off the same road, but the equestrian campground had two ways to get in. Both are equally good, but come from different directions. The road is gravel/dirt and not a bad drive, but being unpaved, it's a bit bumpy. Be gentle when you drive. I visited in the winter, so I had snow on top of bumps and ruts and my all wheel drive was appreciated. I don't think I'd want to drive the 1/2 mile on this road in deeper snow.

Near the entrance, there are a few campsites with picnic tables and because the road into the campground is off the beaten path, I doubt there would be much traffic to bother anyone. Just past these sites are hitching posts and more campsites around a large, open area that I assume would be for horse trailers and campers (note there are no hookups here). Around the perimeter are more picnic tables, fire rings and a scattering of horse pens set in the woods. Very quaint! There was even a three stall covered horse stable (three sided). The campground also had a pit toilet and water pump for horses and people. Even if I didn't have a horse (and I don't), this would be a lovely place to drop a tent for the night. There were even horse trails to explore. Even though I didn't stay the night here, it was a great little find in the middle of the woods!

Cost for this spot was $16/night on the honor system at a drop box near the entrance.

Product Review:

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I occasionally have the opportunity to test amazing products from incredible companies and this time, I had the pleasure of trying out Mountain House Beef Stew, but on top of the product testing, I had a culinary challenge! I was asked to create a new dish from this freeze dried meal, and my tastebuds were rewarded!

This beef stew is a medley of tummy pleasing comfort foods wrapped into a meal that's perfect for a blustery day. Beef, potatoes, carrots and peas with a gentle sprinkle of spices. Seriously yummy by itself as long as you have enough patience to give it the time it needs to absorb the hot water. These meals are fully cooked, but since they are freeze dried, they take time to re-hydrate, so add the water, zip up the special bag that allows you to "cook in the bag" and walk away. Set up your tent. Hang your hammock. Go to the bathroom. Just wait...and stir...and wait. And then YUM! Absolutely worth having a little patience.

But then there's more...

I turned mine into East Indian Couscous Stew.

I was asked to take this meal and turn it into something else to tempt the tastebuds, and I wanted to keep it simple so that it could be done on the trail. What better way to keep the body nourished than to keep the flavors interesting so you actually want to eat it? I found a simple recipe at home to make an East Indian Spice Blend and then added in some plain couscous. Here's how I modified the prepared meal.

Indian Spice Blend: (mix all together and put in a little shaker)

2T Curry powder

2T Cumin powder

2 t Turmeric powder

2 t Coriander

1 t Ginger powder

1/2 t Cardamom powder

1/2 t Cinnamon powder

Recipe: I opened the Beef Stew package and added 1/2 cup of plain couscous and 1 T of spice blend. Then I added about 4 oz of extra water (beyond what the package called for) to compensate for the re-hydration of the couscous. Then, follow the package directions and that's it. Voila! Tummy yummy goodness! I served it with tortillas to bulk up the meal a bit.

note I had a little trouble with the zipper on this bag. I don't know if it ripped, or if the cold outside made the zipper brittle, but I couldn't get it zipped back up for the required "sitting" time. So I kept spilling the water while trying to agitate the bag. No harm, just a little frustrating.

The package says it contains 2.5 servings, but I don't know any "half" people, so I'll say two servings, and I'll say that's probably two hungry women. Especially since the couscous adds more bulk to the meal. A very hungry man could probably eat this alone, but you'll need to make sure you can divide this up in one sitting, because extra leftovers won't keep well on the trail. But I've never been hiking or camping when I couldn't find a willing guinea pig needing free food!

Great little campground, hot, filling meal on a chilly, snowy day. Perfection!

Several rangers directed us here so we stopped in before we left Minnesota. The ranger was very helpful and set us up with a quiet campsite. The drive in was a few miles but it gave a view of the variety of ecosystems in the park. 

Site 33 is by itself on the access road to a small non-electric loop. This meant no distraction for my dog and let the bird song entertain us. There is a very long walk to a restroom but water is close by. The site is large and has enough room for two cars. This is a great site as long as you don’t mind the walk. 

We tried out hiking along one of the trails. The grass was long and we quickly found ticks crawling up our leg. More trimming of the trails would make hiking more pleasant. There are trails for horses and mountain bikes. Another draw is the lake. Bring your boat or rent one. There is even a place to clean your catch. 

The sites in the main loop have little privacy. That, coupled with the hiking trails, made this a not so high recommendation. It would go over higher with fishermen.

We stayed 7 nights really wish we had booked a few weeks. Our site was #16. We had electric hook up, fill with water near the dump station. Our site was big and private on Grass lake facing west so we saw great sunsets sitting in our site. Our bump out was facing the water when we backed in so sitting at the dinette in the camper we had a great view of the lake. Our table & fire pit were behind the camper with a great view of the water & sunset. The small birds were amazing, the sound of the Loons and an occasional muskrat will swim by.  Every morning we had a Chipmunk warm itself up on a tree behind the camper when the sun hit that spot. The big Maple trees everywhere is nice very lush campground. When the sun set we kicked up a bonfire and took it all in. 

There are several docks on grass lake and a big dock on Beers lake you can fish from. We launched the Kayak at the boat ramp on Beers lake it's a nice ramp and not busy. We didn't get on Lake Lida it's much bigger and lots of go fast boats we prefer no wake. The bigger fish are on Lida.

There are 8 lakes in the park which 3 or 4 have easy water access to launch a canoe or Kayak. Each lake has different fish in it. Our favorite was Beers lake it had some calm coves in it, we caught some Crappies, pan fish & Bass on this lake. They say it also has Walleye and Northern Pike. Lots of beavers & muskrats swimming interesting to watch. There is a hike or boat in site on Beers lake it's nice. 

Grass lake has Pan fish, crappie, Northern Pike & more it's a smaller lake. Bass lake has trout, imagine that!

There is a 5 mile drive in the parks around some lakes that was nice we saw Swans with babies, Loons, and beavers. We loved this park. There are so many trails and so much to do.

There is a fish cleaning station, restrooms, boat ramps, canoe rentals, a swim beach and picnic area tat Lake Lida just a great place. We will go back & spend a few weeks next time were from Florida so it's a ways to go but will do it again. 

The ranger that would drive through in the evenings was very knowledgeable about the wildlife, the area & 2 other parks he works at.  Someone had 2 campers in one site he told them it wasn't allowed (I think we all know that) he made one book a spot & move. It was the only noise we heard was their dogs in that site when no one was there they barked the entire time. Glad he made the one camper move it got quiet again. We did have some people try to walk through our site we asked them not to. They had to walk between the camper & the truck I would think it was common sense. 

There is an Equestrian campground there and trails around the lakes to ride your horses on, a few water access spots for them to wet their hoofs. 

There is a town close by Pelican Rapids, the drive there is nice and it's a small town but a nice grocery store (Larry's), Liquor store, a drug store a few gift shops & good ice cream. 

I'm so happy we found this campground we will return.

We were staying in the area so we took a look at the campground. It is very sufficient for what you need if you are staying with your horses. It is a primitive campground with running water out of spigots and vault toilets. Some excess firewood in the middle and plenty of space for your horses. The hitching posts were mostly in the shade but not all were. It is separated in two different parts but for the most part you can find shade unless this gets completely full. 

We walked some trails and went up to lost lake...disappointed to see someone took apart a camper and left it there in a pile. The black flies were bad on our walk, but it did have some nice views along the way. Loads of raspberries along the road so we stopped in the shade and had a couple snacks. Lots of trails to hike and ride in the area and plenty of signs to warn you not to spook the horses which I think is good. 

We did stop in at the local ranch and asked about the programs they offered. We are thinking to come back in the winter when they have sleigh rides.

Crow Wing State Park is a good choice if you are looking for something close to the Twin Cities metro area in Minnesota. with this park being just under two hours away from the Twin Cities metro area it’s an easy choice for a nice weekend getaway. If you’re looking to stay for a long extended time it’s also a good choice as it offers electric and water. The electric sites are pretty open and close together so if you like to be secluded and not see other campers from your campsite I wouldn’t use this park. The electric sites are really on top of each other and don't feel like you are camping to me. The non-electric sites are pretty nice and secluded from each other which would make this park a park I would bring my tent to instead of my travel trailer. There is also a group camp That is separate from the main camping area.

The park office offers ice and firewood for sale. Firewood is 6$ a bundle at the park office. The only firewood you can use is the approved firewood in the local area or scrap lumber. See the Minnesota Firewood law.  Canoe rentals are offered at the park office for $15 for a half-day and $25 for a full day. There is also a water fill station and a dump station for your travel trailer or RV. This is a good park for hiking and exploring. 

If you wanna stay close to the Twin Cities metro area this is a good park for you!

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!

There are plenty of campsite in the lower area that are very close to the water and good for RV people who do not care for privacy (like camping on a golf course).  If you want privacy, go for the upper area which is completely forested with plenty of trees and brush between sites.  I was in site 17 and was totally pleased... With one exception.

I paid full price for this site.  But, the restrooms. showers, and water were shut off.  If I am paying full high season rates, I want full services!!!!!!  I appreciate there is no padlocked gate keeping people out in the off season.  But, if it easy to turn off the water, showers, and bathrooms, it should also be easy to create a reduced rate for reduced services.  Some other County, State, and Federal campgrounds charge nothing for no services off season camping.  What is Minnesota's problem?  Give people what they pay for!!!

This is purely a ripoff.  It left me with a very unpleasant memory of this area and Minnesota.