Best Dispersed Camping near Winona, MN
Richard J Dorer Memorial Hardwood Forest provides multiple options for primitive camping near Winona. The Isinours Management Unit features both drive-in and walk-in sites with drinking water, toilet facilities, picnic tables, and fire rings. For more adventurous campers, the Reno Unit offers hike-in dispersed camping with no facilities but stunning views. According to one visitor, "The hike up the hill to the overlook is a daunting one... There are two hike in sites here at overlooks that give spectacular views."
Water-based camping options include Root River Canoe Campsite, accessible by boat or on foot with basic amenities like pit toilets and picnic tables. A review noted, "This was used and built by Boy Scouts ages ago. It's still exist, however the river changed course and is further away than it once was." Crater Island across the state line in Wisconsin provides a boat-in only camping experience with permission for campfires but no other facilities. Zumbro Bottoms State Forest offers additional drive-in boondocking approximately 30 miles north of Winona on remote forest service roads.
