Crystal B.
Legend
LegendWest Unit — Pickerel Lake Recreation Area
Beautiful Lake
Well equipped campground on the lake in South Dakota. Large sites, many are paved. There are cabins available too.
Dog-Friendly Camping near Lake City, SD
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Fort Sisseton State Park Campground near Lake City permits dogs throughout the facility while maintaining clean, well-groomed campsites. The pet-friendly area includes both tent sites and cabin options, with showers and toilets available for campers. Roy Lake State Park also welcomes pets at their East and West units, with picnic tables and fire rings at most sites. Sites are nicely spaced on the west side with two separate camping areas. Campgrounds maintain strict pet cleanup policies with most requiring dogs to be leashed at all times. Spacious grassy areas between sites provide room for pet exercise, though dedicated dog parks are not mentioned in facility listings.
Pickerel Lake Recreation Area offers pet-friendly sites with picnic tables and electric hookups, providing lakeside access perfect for dogs who enjoy swimming. The park features groomed trails leading directly from the campground where leashed pets can explore, though bug spray is recommended when walking dogs on these paths. Silver Lake Recreation Area maintains well-kept grounds surrounding the lake where dogs are welcome but must be kept out of certain sections of the campground. For travelers passing through the area, Webster City Park provides basic amenities with electric hookups and nearby access to groceries and restaurants. Wildlife encounters are common in the area, with wild turkeys occasionally visiting Fort Sisseton in the evenings, so keeping pets secure is advisable.
Best Dog-Friendly Campgrounds near Lake City (22)
1. Fort Sisseton State Park Campground
"Lots of camping extremely well maintained grounds and buildings and a good set of trails, along with access to a lake. The showers are gorgeous, there are cabins, wood for sale and all amenities."
2. Roy Lake East — Roy Lake State Park
"Located in the picturesque Coteau Des Prairies, Roy Lake State Park consists of two small units nestled on the northeast and northwest shores of Roy Lake. 95% of the state park is campground."
"Campground has canoe rentals, playground, beach, Disc Golf course, hinking path to an island and two boat docks."
from $15 - $55 / night
Check Availability3. Roy Lake West — Roy Lake State Park
"This is a large campground with lakeside campsites available. Hiking trails, beach, boating, paddling area. Campground has nice views and is well maintained."
"Well maintained park with great fishing at Roy and many other surrounding lakes!"
from $15 - $155 / night
Check Availability4. Sica Hollow State Park Campground
"Hiking trails. Well maintained. Horse trails available."
"Trash, pit toilets, corals but there are well maintained trails that go throughout and streams and small waterfalls. Some of the most interesting hiking on this end of the state."
5. West Unit — Pickerel Lake Recreation Area
"Well equipped campground on the lake in South Dakota. Large sites, many are paved. There are cabins available too."
"We walked around camp and found cabins sprinkled throughout. A vault toilet is right next to the shower house leaving me wondering why they’re so close."
from $26 - $55 / night
Check Availability6. East Unit — Pickerel Lake Recreation Area
"Would like a few more hiking trails."
from $26 - $55 / night
Check Availability7. Silver Lake Rec Area
"Very nice and well taken care of campground that surrounds silver lake. You could tell that the groundskeepers take a lot of pride in how well kept it is."
"There is actually 3 campgrounds and they surround the lake. Some of the nicest tent spots I've seen."
8. Camp Dakotah
9. Hankinson Hills Campground
"The campground is well maintained and the trail had just been mowed. Unfortunately there are stickers and poor tuck found a number of them. We still had fun."
"Nice spacious sites and there are many multi purpose trails (wheelers too!) nearby."
from $10 / night
Check Availability10. City Park
from $10 - $35 / night
Check Availability
Drive Time
- 1 hr 31 min from Fargo, ND
- 2 hrs 26 min from Sioux Falls, SD
- 2 hrs 31 min from Grand Forks, ND
- 2 hrs 48 min from St. Cloud, MN
Recent Dog-Friendly Camping Photos near Lake City, SD
3 Photos of 22 Lake City Campgrounds
Dog-Friendly Camping Reviews near Lake City, SD
71 Reviews of 22 Lake City Campgrounds
Kyle B.
GuideMeadowbrook Area Campground — Big Stone Lake State Park
Border View
We were able to grab a quite corner spot with a great view of the lake looking over to South Dakota. There are canoe rentals an ok trail system and a great swimming beach.
- JJohn M.
ScoutHartford Beach State Park Campground
This place is trimmed to the 9s
Very friendly staff, very well kept. The showers & other facilities we're cleaned every morning. Maybe more. It is clean At 21.00 it is a bargain. The sites all have electricity, picnic tables & fire ring. Lots of firewood available for donations. Nice place on South Dakota side of Big Stone lake.
Veronica S.LegendRoy Lake East — Roy Lake State Park
Nice CG. Would stay again.
Located in the picturesque Coteau Des Prairies, Roy Lake State Park consists of two small units nestled on the northeast and northwest shores of Roy Lake.
95% of the state park is campground. There are a few tent sites, many RV sites, cabins, and a lodge suite (not sure on quantity) above the campground store/commons area. The store has some Roy Lake State Park branded items and some random foods, drinks, and camping tools. I wouldn’t put stock in them having exactly what you need/want — it’s very small. The commons area has giant picture windows overlooking the lake, a TV, comfy furniture, board games, a rotating pizza cooker, and a few other random things. There is also an outside seating area that overlooks the lake.
I stayed in the east unit, which is smaller and slightly calmer than the west unit. Each side has boat ramps, beaches (smaller on the east side), cabins, and playground.
Monday through Thursday morning in June, it was very quiet, with very few other campers. It was amazing. On Thursday, people started rushing in like a flash flood. It filled up almost completely and things got a bit noisier, but it was still quiet during quiet hours. I left on Friday, so I can’t attest to weekend behavior.
The bathhouse was nice and pretty clean. Heated with free, untimed showers. Very nice, but a long walk from our site.
We stayed in tent site T6, which shares a space with T7. T7 has a nice lake access spot that we used (before campers came on Thursday) to put in our kayak, swim, and fish. T7 is a lot smaller than T6, but T6 doesn’t have its own beach access. For these sites you must park in the parking area, and walk to the site. For some extra steps, you are afforded some privacy and a more natury feel. The cattail-filled field in front of our site lit up with lightning bugs at dusk.
The campground has tons of mature native trees. There is a lot of lawn, but they don’t spray it with chemicals, which I appreciate. Be warned that this means this park (and others nearby, like Sica Hollow) will have thistles, so bring closed shoes for hikes. We saw turtles, snakes, squirrels, ground squirrels, deer, rabbits, pelicans, ducks, geese, seagulls, tons of other birds, fish, and more — just in this park.
Roy Lake was clear in June, though I didn’t get to paddle as much as I had planned due to wind. It’s a pretty decent size (3 sq miles) and just one of hundreds of lakes in the glacial lakes area. The whole coteau area was so beautiful. Definitely worth reading up on the geology of the area before coming.
There is a bit more hiking in the area than is listed on AllTrails. I’ll include a picture of the trail map for Roy Lake State Park, which you can find at the campground store (outside on the wall) and also in the SD GFP app. There is also some hiking at Sica Hollow SP, Pickerel Lake Rec Area, and Waubay National Wildlife Refuge (these trails are also not on AllTrails, a few miles and a pretty tall and scary observation tower).
Closest decent sized grocery store and other needs are in Sisseton, a half hour drive through very picturesque countryside.
Though surrounded by water, the mosquitoes were never bad. Look at weather for Lake City, not Sisseton, as the elevation and wind over the lake (on the east side) mean cooler weather. We experienced severe enough storm during our stay that we sheltered in our car. We felt safe that the bathhouse would be a sufficient tornado shelter in that event. After the storm there were straight line winds attempting to flatten our tent, but there were no limbs down in the park, which means they watch for, and clear, deadfall risks.
The cell service was as good as it can get. We were actually able to stream videos on it. Don’t count on getting firewood from the host at the east unit. Get it from a nearby town or possibly the store in the west unit (though I don’t know its hours).
We stayed at this park while my son was attending a day camp in Sisseton. I will pick this campground again if he chooses to attend the camp in the future.
- Crystal B.Legend
Hankinson City Park
City campground with many recreational attractions adjacent to it.
This campground is situated adjacent to many recreational activities such as basketball, pickle ball, tennis, park, walking trail. Sites are grassy and walking distance to businesses.
- PPatrick S.Scout
Silver Lake Rec Area
Beautiful campground
Very nice and well taken care of campground that surrounds silver lake. You could tell that the groundskeepers take a lot of pride in how well kept it is. Our site had a gravel pad that required very little leveling with very nice grass surrounding it. Our site had water and electric hookups however we shared a post with our neighbors and each post had one 30 amp and one 50 amp plug so you’ll need an adapter if your neighbor is already plugged in to 30 amp service. There was a very nice swimming beach and what appeared to be a new playground for the kids. There is a north section that is apparently for quiet people that don’t stay up late and south section for all the others. Dogs are welcome but must be cleaned up after and kept out of certain sections of the campground. I will defiantly be back
- KKyle O.
TravelerCampground at Tacoma Park Place
Peaceful quiet campground
At the edge of a field with a small lake lies Tacoma Park Place Campgrounds. A quiet location where you can relax and enjoy sitting outside listening to nature or allow the kids to run around and play. Spacious RV spots with electric, water, and sewer hookups all so you can set up camp and enjoy a peaceful getaway.
- Jillian S.Guide
Meadowbrook Area Campground — Big Stone Lake State Park
Quiet, clean state park
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.
- GGlenda W.Traveler
County Line Campground
Nice people with helpful suggestions
This is a welcoming experience with hosts who are happy to make your stay comfortable. It is near a very small town and close to the Interstate (less than one mile). The pull through sites are somewhat close together with no foliage to offer privacy but it is clean and well kept. We decided to stay in a back-in site further away from the office and pull through sites. Before we were even set up the host had brought us a beautiful, little picnic table and set it out front for us. They gave us leaflets about the area and we talked fishing possibilities with them. They have laundry and showers available as well as bait, ice, and I think even propane. We extended our stay here as it was a great place to just chill and take some exploratory drives. Although there isn't much shade to offer protection from the sun, they do have full hook ups so we could run air conditioning. We would definitely stay here again.
Guide to Lake City
Roy Lake State Park offers camping at both East and West units near Lake City, with both tent and RV sites available along the lakeshore. Sites at the West unit are generally more spacious and divided between two separate camping areas. The East unit provides a dump station while the West unit has shower facilities. Both areas feature lake access with opportunities for fishing, swimming, and water recreation, with most campsites including fire rings and picnic tables.
What to do
Explore historical sites: Fort Sisseton State Park Campground contains preserved historical buildings that provide context for the area's past. "This is a horse campground with very basic services. Trash, pit toilets, corals but there are well maintained trails that go throughout and streams and small waterfalls. Some of the most interesting hiking on this end of the state," notes Teresa T. about Sica Hollow State Park.
Water recreation: Pickerel Lake Recreation Area offers boat launches and shoreline access. "A boat launch and day use area is around the bend. This State Recreation Area has plenty to do and is beautifully maintained," writes Art S. about the West Unit at Pickerel Lake.
Fishing opportunities: Multiple lakes in the region support fishing, with Roy Lake being particularly noted. "Well maintained park with great fishing at Roy and many other surrounding lakes," according to Alex R. at Roy Lake West.
What campers like
Clean facilities: Campers frequently mention the well-maintained grounds and facilities at area campgrounds. "This is a very pretty park. Lots of camping extremely well maintained grounds and buildings and a good set of trails, along with access to a lake. The showers are gorgeous," notes Teresa T. about Fisher Grove State Park.
Wildlife viewing: The area offers opportunities to observe local wildlife. "A couple of wild turkeys came by in the evening," Leslie B. writes about their stay at Fort Sisseton.
Affordability: Several campgrounds offer reasonable rates. "An economical little spot within the City of Webster. Water and dump station available. Close to grocery, restaurants, and liquor store," reports Debra G. about Webster City Park.
What you should know
Campground layout: Some campgrounds have distinct sections with different features. "There is another one on the eastern shore. It seemed like there are only a few campers here but a group of kids and their chaperones showed up later at night," explains Art S. about Pickerel Lake.
Seasonal considerations: Most campgrounds in the Lake City region operate seasonally, with Silver Lake Recreation Area open from May 1 to October 1.
Bug preparation: Insect protection is necessary, especially on trails. "A groomed trail leads right out of camp - bug spray needed for the trail," warns Art S.
Hookup limitations: "Our site had water and electric hookups however we shared a post with our neighbors and each post had one 30 amp and one 50 amp plug so you'll need an adapter if your neighbor is already plugged in to 30 amp service," advises Patrick S. about Silver Lake Rec Area.
Tips for camping with families
Recreation options: Many campgrounds offer family-friendly activities. "Campground has canoe rentals, playground, beach, Disc Golf course, hiking path to an island and two boat docks," notes Jordan H. about Roy Lake East.
Swimming areas: Designated swimming beaches provide safe water access for children. "There was a very nice swimming beach and what appeared to be a new playground for the kids," Patrick S. mentions about Silver Lake.
Quiet vs. active sections: Some campgrounds designate specific areas for different camper types. "There is a north section that is apparently for quiet people that don't stay up late and south section for all the others," explains Patrick S.
Tips from RVers
Leveling requirements: Site conditions vary across campgrounds. "Our site had a gravel pad that required very little leveling with very nice grass surrounding it," notes Patrick S.
Dump station locations: Not all campgrounds have dump stations on site. "Only the east side has a dump site. Some sites on the west area are rather sharply angled," Gerard J. points out about Roy Lake.
Dog friendly campgrounds near Lake City: Most campgrounds welcome pets but have specific regulations. "Dogs are welcome but must be cleaned up after and kept out of certain sections of the campground," explains Patrick S. about Silver Lake Rec Area.
Frequently Asked Questions
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According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dog-friendly campground near Lake City, SD is Fort Sisseton State Park Campground with a 4.8-star rating from 5 reviews.
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