Looking for tent camping near Apostle Islands National Lakeshore? You can find tent campsites by type, including drive-in, walk-in, and even hike-in for a backpacking adventure. Search nearby tent campgrounds or find top-rated spots from other campers.
The farthest site is six-tenths of a mile from the parking area. Bear-proof storage lockers available.
$20 / night
A few miles north, experience Point Detour “Wilderness” Campground. Rustic camping surrounded by nature and located on an overlook of Lake Superior and the Apostle Islands.
On a first come, first serve basis
No reservations required (but advised if it's a weekend or holiday)
Pay site fees at Legendary Waters Resort & Casino Hotel Front Desk
Campground Check-in: 12PM / Campground Check-out: 11amStay six nights, get the seventh night FREE! TENT: $25 For reservations or information, please contact the Hotel Front Desk at (800) 226-8478 Toll Free.
The showers are at the casino, not the campground (but they are FREE). You must book a "time" to take a shower with the casino front desk
$25 / night
$10 / night
Located on the Sioux River, a Class A steelhead trout stream, the park offers a spot for picnicking, wildlife viewing, hiking, bank and stream fishing, and primitive camping. Camping is on a first come, first served basis only.
Amenities Number of sites: 13 Pit toilet Hand pump Fees Non-electric campsite - $13 per day No monthly rates
$15 / night
Legend
Amazing state park. Love the hiking trails and how accessible the waterfall is. Campground has bathrooms and showers as well as potable water. Firewood is available at the state park office as well as any items you may have forgotten to bring such as miscellaneous toiletries and some food items. Highly recommend this park.
LegendAmazing state park. Love the hiking trails and how accessible the waterfall is. Campground has bathrooms and showers as well as potable water. Firewood is available at the state park office as well as any items you may have forgotten to bring such as miscellaneous toiletries and some food items. Highly recommend this park!!
Legend
Nestled along the North shore of beautiful Lake Superior in the City of Two Harbors, Minnesota. You can rent kayaks, paddle boards or bicycles from local vendors or hike on our paved and unpaved City trail system as you explore the area. You can pick agates, go fishing, or boating or visit one of our local shops and museums. All sites have a picnic table and fire ring. Campground has bathrooms, shower facilities, and Wi-Fi.
Guide
We were happy to find a view site for our 25' RV on the lower loop. Our site had good separation from others. Nice and quiet except for the guy who had to run his toy car up and down the campground road. We were able to walk to town easily and enjoyed exploring Bayfield and the Apostle Island Lakeshore. Electric at the site, water accessible at 2 points within the campground.
Guide
Stayed here in September for a few days, and occupied site 1 and 2. Sites are good sized and clean. Our two sites were great, but if I didn't care about being near the lake, I would look at the new sites they put in the wooded area. They were a little more "remote", The clientele mostly consisted of fisherman and bird hunters when I was here, so it seems to attract the more long term stays and not overnighters. The bathroom / shower combination is adequate and is reminiscent of my younger days at summer camp. They have some playground equipment both at the main loop and the wooded loop, this proved to be a lifesaver for my 4 year old. I also found, since this is further from town, it is very dark here and great for star gazing.
Legend
Split rock is a great place to stay on the north shore! Great place to set up base camp and go explore nearby parks and trails! Site come with a picnic table and fire pit and wood is available at the office! Bathrooms and showers are also in the campground.
Legend
Split rock is a great place to stay on the north shore! Great place to set up base camp and go explore nearby parks and trails! Site come with a picnic table and fire pit and wood is available at the office! Bathrooms and showers are also in the campground.
Guide
Stayed here on a Labor Day weekend. Well kept good bathroom with a waterfall in the park.
Guide
This spot was easy to get to with our truck camper. Road is alittle bumpy and rocky on the way up. The spot is near Carlton peak trail head and not to far from superior hiking trail. At this spot you can see views of superior lake and the lusten mountains. We went in October and it was quiet and secluded.
Legend
I 100% agree with Legend Laura about the price of this campground. If it was simply about the location, this would get five plus stars because it's so beautiful! But if you're from out of state, the prices are even more expensive than she indicated previously, so they must have updated them.
The campsite itself is only $16 which is a bargain! But, if you are out of state like we are, there's also a $15 charge for that. And then, that doesn't include admission to the area, so you pay $11 and change for that. It ended up being about $50 total. That said, we paid it and fully enjoyed it but not sure we would do it again unless we had a Wisconsin sticker. At least to alleviate the $11 charge to get in.
All of that out of the way, the site itself is absolutely gorgeous. This park has lots of very mature trees and lots of very mature pine trees, making it very quiet. The spaces are quite distant from one another and we didn't hear our neighbors at all. We were at one of the walk-in campsites which I chose on purpose because it was literally on top of the river, we could sit by the river and wade our toes if we wanted to. It had a fire ring, a very short walk to the bathroom, and only a short distance to the car from the site. Maybe 100 ft plus about 30 stairs to get up to the parking level.
The walk-in sites also double as canoe campsites, so the river is something you can paddle if the water is sufficient to do so. There is a beautiful little picnic area near the bathrooms that sits on the river as well. Vault toilets seemed as clean as they could be, and they are a little fancier than your single vaults. They have stalls and toilet paper!
I highly recommend if you live in Wisconsin visiting this site as it wouldn't cost much at all. Out of towners, it's a bit more pricey.
Guide
Great location, and has the basics for the camping. I was in site 44, and most of the sites in the "middle" were more of an open field with a couple of trees. There were no real clear boundary lines . If you are looking for a little more shade or tree cover, book a perimeter site. This is also the first campsite I've been to where the fire pit didn't have a grill grate on part of it. There is water on site, but it is the hand pump style, so it would help to have a large open container to capture the water.
Cell service was really spot (can be a good thing when camping), and I wasn't able to pick up a lot of radio stations either. Still nice to enjoy the quite dark skies. Short walk down stairs to Lake Superior which offered some great sunset views.
Lots of great hiking trails, and close to a lot of other fun attractions. I would plan on coming back up here another time, and possible pick a different site after being here.
Guide
This was my first time backpacking and I did it solo. I camped in site 3 and it was gorgeous. Looks like they recently planted some trees. There was plenty of fallen wood nearby for firewood. The river is right there and so beautiful. I slept great to the sound of the rushing water. The latrine was hard to find at first.
ScoutWe have camped there a few times and love the accessibility to Mtn. Bike Trails and bicycle riding on the Gitche Gami State aBike Trail. Close to world class hiking on the Superior Hiking Trail and a few nice easier hikes right in the park.
Guide
We only stayed one night & I wish we could’ve stayed longer, super nice campground right on Lake Superior. We stayed in the wooded sites & those were nice & secluded
Guide
Really nice campground, our site was pretty small & very close to others so that was kind of annoying. But the bathrooms were nice & showers were really nice, overall enjoyable!
GuideSite with fire pit (no grate), nice picnic table, and the amazing sound of waves. By late August, direct views of lake is obscured by beach grass but still just as delightful. Sites were close but our neighbors never showed so we lucked out. I loved that as a tent camper, we were placed further away from the RVs and the noises that can go with them. Site 6 was close to the path for all in the rest of the campground to get to the beacb. Nicely tended bathrooms just across the road with showers.
Wind gusts took our 8 person tent down while we were out during the day. Since it was my first time here, no idea of that kind of wind is typical or if it was the season or day.
The sunsets were unbeatable!! And we lucked out catching the northern lights our first night.
ScoutShipwreck Creek Campground is a great new(er) addition to the Split Rock Lighthouse State Park. All of the sites are large and spacious with interesting rock features and vegetation that adds to the privacy. Facilities are clean and well maintained. All sites are nice, but the loop with the “300’s” sites are the most spacious and interesting.
The shower house is a lengthy walk; not a problem but consider driving up to it if you have little with. Clean vault toilets throughout the campground are convenient.
Only bummer is the lack of dump/fill station onsite; park website directs you to fill prior to arrival at the Silver Bay city/municipal shop.
Traveler
Very wooded and quiet camp area - only 3 sites total in this loop! Note that there is no cell service here or really nearby. Not an issue if you're prepared for that! Great that we could access hiking trails from camp! Great spot for exploring the Porcupines and also for some privacy compared to the modern campground in the park. Night and day difference and you can use the amenities which are like 5mins away
Traveler
Very RV resort style - pretty close together sites and not a lot of privacy . There are some sites in the back loop that seem more spacious and secluded! The lakeside sites have great views though! And nice showers. We were passing thru and the FCFS campgrounds were all full so this was a fine option close to Bayfield!
ScoutLoved the view. We had a lakeside tent site. Campsites aren’t that spread out. We had a good amount of space but we could easily hear the neighbors and was annoying late at night. There are some outhouses and ADA restrooms/showers. We were 15 minutes from Meyer’s Beach, which was great. Lakeside tent sites are right by the beach. Beach was rocky - bring a pair of crocs or similar shoe if you’re sensitive to the rocks and branches in the sand. Water was cool and felt great!
Guide
This area is definitely off the beaten path. Super skinny road with lots of rocks/hills and puddles coming in. I would recommend a car with 4WD for it and would not suggest pulling a camper unless you have experience bringing it over rough terrain. The sites themselves appeared to not be visited often. I went in early August and a lot of the places were over grown with plants! It was nice to be right by the north shore but in a spot that felt very much secluded. There was also no bugs here which was amazing! Great spot to hang out by a campfire without getting swarmed. You’ll be able to find plenty of wood from the nearby trees for a fire as well.
ScoutOur first time camping in this park. We made base camp and did day hikes from there. Site 7 was near the river, the rushing water was a convenient water source, but was quite loud - this was no calming, babbling brook, lol! We didn’t see any other humans for 2 whole days, which was a plus. The site was large for 2 tents and 2 couples, the latrine was adequate and marked with a sign. We were able to find enough deadfall for firewood. Mosquitoes were horrendous, as expected. The hikes to many of the campsites are strenuous with hilly terrain, some have been washed out and it was unclear how to access some sites. We had a great time with friends. The cascade was gorgeous, and we had it all to ourselves. Unfortunately, we didn’t pack in any fishing gear. This camping trip was a great middle ground between state park camping loops and true back country.
Guide
We were at the part close to the high way. Very noisy. Facilities are clean and well maintained. Sites are note usable by tent. I barely got the tent Ankers in the ground. Mostly RV or trailers. Not that close to the beach.
TravelerThe campsite was clean and well taken care of. My daughter and I tented it. It was so much fun! Just enough privacy to get a “real” camping experience, but not so private that we felt unsafe. It was so nice to not worry about bears!
We found this amazing picnic and hiking trail super close to the campgrounds in Gooseberry.
We will be back soon!
Scout
We camped here over the 4th of July. Our site had a short trail directly to Lake Superior. We arrived mid afternoon on the 4th and there were multiple sites still available. The campground did fill up though. Some sites had grass which had not been cut in quite some time and would make it really difficult to camp, others had the grass cut. Sites had a fire pit and picnic table. The outhouse was a bit messy, but usable.
TravelerOur site overlooked Lake Superior and the Apostle Islands but was a tight fit for our 24' van. Good 30amp electric, water spigot nearby but no dump stations at park.
Traveler
We stayed at Wildhurst about 20 years ago and had a great time, even got to see an mini-air show overhead with USAF F-16s out of Duluth doing maneuvers overhead. So, when the State Forest campgrounds were closed last spring for storm cleanup, we decided to take a cabin there. Not going back. The new owners are trying; I'll give them that. They're friendly, the little restaurant isn't bad, but the latrines (outhouses) really need to be rebuilt. I mean REALLY. Lime on the toilet seat. Early in the season and the biffys by our cabin were horrible smelling, (And I DO understand that they are open toilets. I was the ranger in a state forest campground for 26 years and had to clean weekly and pump out every year 12 of them.) and if the wind was wrong, we could smell it in our cabin. Cabins were smallish, but comparable to a state park camper cabin, they need updates, paint, roofing, and leveling the floors.
Wildhurst has potential. I wish it was as good as it used to be,
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Apostle Islands National Lakeshore?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is Lake Superior Cart-in Campground — Tettegouche State Park with a 4.6-star rating from 15 reviews.
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TheDyrt.com has all 37 tent camping locations near Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, with real photos and reviews from campers.