Looking for a rustic and comfortable horse camping experience near Wayzata? Equestrian camping is the best way to experience nature. At The Dyrt, you can find top-rated spots for horse camping, as reviewed by campers.
Washington County offers two beautiful campgrounds for a relaxing getaway, one located within Lake Elmo Park Reserve and the other within St. Croix Bluffs Regional Park. Find a campsite that suits your needs, from sites with electric and water hook-ups, to group sites, to rustic hike-in sites. Enjoy all the other amenities the parks have to offer, including hiking, fishing, boating, and more.
Washington County Campgrounds are open for the season. Online, in-person, and phone reservations are now being accepted.
Group Campground Features Three sites available for groups of up to 50 people Wheeled cart available for check-out at park office Group Site #2 includes a small picnic shelter Picnic table and fire ring/grill provided at each site Vault or portable toilets available One-day reservations allowed Pets are not allowed
Hike-In Campground Features Five hike-in tent sites - one tent per site Hiking distance from parking lot is approximately 100 to 300 yards Wheeled cart available for check-out at park office with a refundable deposit Modern bathrooms and water available at the Nordic Center Pets are not allowed
Modern Campground Features Eighty campsites, suited for tents, trailers, or motor homes - most sites are back-in Sites 1-58 have 20/30/50 amp with water. Site 59 is 50 amp only (no water). Sites 60-80 are 20/30 amp Camp Host/Work Camper sites include sewer hookup Picnic table and fire ring/grill provided at each site Modern bathroom facilities with flush toilets and hot showers Trailer/RV dump station Play area Handicap accessible One camping unit per site Pets are not allowed
$23 - $80 / night
Backpack sites, located on remote lakes and ponds throughout the park, are one to two miles from the trailhead parking. New log camper cabins, located near lakes and ponds, provide bunk beds for six people and a table and benches for campers who want more of the creature comforts.
$20 - $32 / night
$15 - $17 / night
$15 / night
Come and Camp With Us! “Go with the Flow” and enjoy our fun and relaxing family campground near the city of Isanti, in central Minnesota. By day enjoy camping, tubing, canoeing, kayaking or paddle-boarding! Hop in the refreshing swimming pool or take a spin through our fun splash pad.
$40 - $75 / night
$50 / night
Guide
I stayed four nights. I would have stayed longer but ran out of water. There isn't any potable water on site. During a hot day, I took my two dogs and we hiked to a nearby river. We cooled off and enjoyed the peace and quite. The only downside is no potable water and lots of mesquites.
Scout
Nice river nearby canoeing swimming pool fireplaces and little store for treats.
RangerI'm spending three nights here. I'm writing my review after my second day. The campground is kept up very well. It has garbage cans and porta pottys. When I got here it was empty. Nice open spots and a good amount of tree cover.
ScoutGood vibes it’s a magical place when u go hiking down the hill to the hidden creeks trails and absolute peace being one with nature..
TravelerThe campground is nice and clean. Good size spaces. The tubing is a plus. Had one issue with power dropping so we had to pull the surge protector off the. It was fine. Also very hot and humid so everyone was running AC to the max. Pool was small but nice. Splash pad was even nice for adults I recommend this campground. Key thing is the river is very clean and sandy bottom.
Scout
This was a great experience overall. The sites are spacious and far enough away from others to feel like there was enough privacy.
The one negative thing was that some neighbors watched a movie each night — starting just after quiet hours. We could hear their movie from across a road and through some trees (and tents).
But overall it was great. Good hiking and geocaching.
We would go back to this campground.
Guide
I have stayed at Bunker a few times in site 33 and one of the walk in sites. Site 33 is very large and also very wide open. The walk in sites are a lot more secluded but not totally private. Really enjoy camping here, just wish it wasn't so expensive. It costs more than staying at a state park.
ScoutWent early in the season in the afternoon and had no problems getting a good spot with electric hookups. Better for someone with an RV, and more seemingly a weekend spot for the family.
ScoutI stayed here 3 weeks ago with my wife and 2 young children and it was fantastic great playground and heated pool the spaces were well kept and spaced apart 10-10 would most defiantly go again! A ton for the kids to do!
Scout
Very quiet campground, with large peaceful, rustic sites. We stopped for one night while traveling through Minneapolis area. Found several open sites on Saturday, first weekend in June. The road into the campground was a bit bumpy, take it slow it was only about 0.75 miles.
GuideVery close to other campers, but no one bothered anyone. Dog didn’t go nuts, got a good spot. Would recommend. Tent camping on the way to Alaska and filled all needs. Has a Porta-shitter and trash. Decent spot, windy.
ScoutSo beautiful and spacious
Traveler
If you're looking for a beginner backpack spot, with privacy and not too far from the cities, then this will fit your bill. You can either do a short-hike from the parking lot via the road to B5 or a 1 mile easy hike via the trail. The backpacking sites are very spread out, we could barely tell anyone else was at the park with us ever.
B5 was beautiful, already lots of mosquitos for May (and appeared poison oak/ivy). I'm not sure what this park does differently than most other parks, but our privy was LOADED with spiders. I get it, it's the outdoors. But still, I've used many in-ground toilets and never had dozens of spiders covering the toilet seat/front.
Another reason we chose this park was for birding. The park ranger at check-in was not helpful and then said he's never heard of MN State Parks free birding kits to borrow, though it's clearly listed on several spots on their website. Bummer, but we still enjoyed our time.
RangerAs previously stated, you need to follow up with the sheriif. They just want to know the duration of stay, people in the group, and vehicle information. I'm winter camping during the warm spell here in MN, and it's pretty quiet. The area is muddy with the thaw, but that's to be expected. There's quite a number of spots that all have fire rings. A large 5th wheel might have a struggle with some of the spots depending on availability, but anything else should be fine.
GuideYou’ll drive down what seems like could be a residential road, but the park is at the end of it and has some nice spots with fire pits, a playground for kids, and picnic tables. The sign says to call the sheriff to get permission to camp, but we got in a late and left early and didn’t call and had no trouble. It seemed like someone may have lived there in their camper and there was another family camping, but overall a really nice experience and the sunset was beautiful with the trees!
GuideWe were able to find a spot for our 26ft Class C. The sites are very large, good for tenting. Nice shady spots. The road is gravel and dirt with wear and tear, which might make it difficult for large motorhomes. We were pleased for our overnight stop.
ScoutIt was our first time ever I have a old pop up but it's .t first it was. Fun and the staff and. The. Host are very helpful. A ND fun
GuideI was late getting to my site due to being delayed by some bison in South Dakota, so I was racing the dark to set up my tent and start a fire. To my delight, I found that whoever was there before me had set up a nice bed of hay and kindling in the fire pit, which was very helpful! It was very peaceful and quiet...far enough from the highway that there was no noise or light pollution. The sheriff drove through once at night and once in the morning. I felt very safe.
GuideGulley that a large creek runs through surrounded by trees and large forested hills. The entire park is surrounded by farms, nearby are some really nice Minnesota small towns like Henderson and the somewhat larger St. Peter (but still small town). I hiked in about 1/2 a mile and camped in the trees but they also have some clearings closer to the entrance, with grills, where you could easily set up. $10 suggested donation. Trash bins located all over which is good , but the wind seems to blow debris around here and there, and irresponsible people leave their beer cans/water bottles strewn about, so pick them up if you find them like I did. Website and signage on location recommends to call the sheriff's office to let them know you're camping there which I did and they were nice enough, but it's probably not the end of the world if you don't. Overall this was a pleasant spot, especially being the only camper there, so hope you all enjoy! Places like this are what I love about The Dyrt, I don't think I would have found this otherwise.
LegendWe went on a day trip to the eagle point section of the Lake Elmo park district. This is set in a lush rolling prairie with lots of hiking trails in addition to other attractions like an archery range and swimming pond.
The modern campground is built for non-tent campers, which is kind of a bummer because it is so much nicer than the “rustic” tent campground. Could you set up a tent there? Sure, but most of the site is devoted to a gravel parking pad.
The rustic campground is an offshoot of the horse trailer parking lot. The sites for the most part are not spacious or private. Only portapotties. I think the best camping opportunity I saw was the group campgrounds, which had more modern outhouses. This will continue to be a great day trip location for us.
GuideGreat spot with a clean port-a-potty, a comfortable grove of trees, fire pits, and peace!
GuideNice private sites, great bike trails, lakes a little way’s from campground but you can drive or bike to it easily. Clean restrooms and showers. Electric, water and dump station.
TravelerI like the primitive sites the best. Nice lake to hike down to as well. I went in August though and the mosquitos were awful.
TravelerLake Ann Campground, located in the Sand Dunes State Forest north of Big Lake, MN is great for a weekend getaway with the family or a solo walk in trip. There are RV sites, tent sites, handicap accessible, walk in sites and group sites. Camping here is primitive with few amenities you get a fire ring and a picnic table, its great camping too be one with nature. There are several water spickets located around the campground along with outhouse type restrooms. There are no hookups or electric. Camping is on a first come first serve basis and you register at the kiosk located at the front of the campground acrid from the camp host site. There are several trails and Amaya something to do.
GuideIt was November but that's when our anniversary lands and dang it we wanted to go camping so we did. Walk in site# BP6 was a hilly 1/4 mile hike one way but worth the view. We were right on the edge looking out over a small lake with towering trees all around us. Each BP site also has it's own private latrine house slightly apart from your site. Nothing fancy but it was clean and private. There are miles of trails at this park. We didn't get to see any of the endangered Blandings turtles but there were trumpeter swans, this is a huge migratory area for the birds.
TravelerDid a camping weekend with a buddy and had so much fun. We hiked and made yummy campfire grub and hammocked and had a generally relaxing time.
TravelerI like that they have some easy drive in spots as well as some more private hike in spots.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near Wayzata, MN?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near Wayzata, MN is Lake Elmo County Park Reserve with a 4.5-star rating from 36 reviews.
What is the best site to find equestrian camping near Wayzata, MN?
TheDyrt.com has all 11 equestrian camping locations near Wayzata, MN, with real photos and reviews from campers.
