Camping near Eau Galle Lake

This campground is really beautiful. It's big with over a hundred sites, some with power. No water at the site. Water nearby at stations. Large campsites, most with thick wooded areas between the sites. Most of the trail heads start at the campground. Walked about a mile to the falls area. This was really beautiful and was only a the head was only a couple hundred yards from my site. Unfortunately, I was only able to stay one night as my cross country trip hit this campground on the Thursday before memorial day and the whole weekend was booked. It was cold and a bit muddy (though packed gound) but with some management I was able to keep the inside of the tent clean

I have long overlooked William O’Brien because I thought you had to drive a long way to get away. I was wrong! We planned this weekend with friends to camp in our matching teardrop trailers. We have never really camped with friends before, so the point was to just go, not to really travel far. We loved the trails. It was easy to takes hikes of varying lengths. There were so many different kinds of birds, and the wildflowers were blooming and ferns were unfurling -so many shades of green! This was the first really nice spring weather, and the Savanna Campground was quite full. Several people seemed to be there in groups, but we had no issues with noise. The pit toilets were cleaned and stocked with TP and sanitizer. The shower house needs some paint, but had been cleaned.

The river side of the park had been closed for months for construction, but had just opened two days before our stay. The Riverside campground appeared quite full, too.

All in all, I would visit again. There were lots of people, but it was easy to take a walk and get some space and some nature.

I stayed two nights in the campground and hiked many of the trails in this Minnesota State Park along the St. Croix River. The draw here is the potholes, but we will get to that.

My site was #24. It was tiny and my neighbors were right on top of me. Even in April the campground was mostly full. Do not pick a site inside the loop (the electrical hookup sites) if you want privacy. A few of the sites along the river have a real nice view and are slightly more secluded. The best site it #25. If there is a next time, I will shoot for that one.

The park is laid out kinda funky, but that is a product of it being on the river. Campground and Park Office are on the south end and the attraction is a 2.7 mile walk towards Taylor’s Falls along the highway to get to some very cool, unique scenery. You can drive it if so inclined. We did.

The draw here is the world’s largest glacial potholes. When the river ran 200’ higher than it does today, tornados of water eroded smooth round, massive holes in the rock. Some are so big that they still to this day have no idea how deep they go. Very cool to take the quick hike through the maze of small trails that show off these crazy formations.

So, the campground is cramped, it has lots of noise from the highway, sites are the smallest I have seen anywhere, but on balance the coolness of the rock formations and great views of the river still make this a park to consider.

Oh, and the Park Ranger Theresa is the best ranger I have ever met. She is part of a multigenerational heritage of MN Sate Park Rangers, and her family has a year-round residence in the park. She is so friendly, thoughtful, inviting and experienced. Extra star on this review just for Theresa!

General: There is a main campground and a bonus sites section; we stayed in the Main campground and this review is based on that. There are approximately 90 sites laid out in typical RV park fashion with the sites close together and no physical privacy between sites. 

Site Quality: Sites tend to be very long and could accommodate even large-size Class A rigs. The “driveways” are a mix of grass and gravel and were not very well defined. Each site has a picnic table on a concrete pad. Our site had water and electric hookups. Our challenge was that we arrived after dark, and the site numbers were posted at the back end of the sites, necessitating a sleuthing operation with my flashlight to find our site. Only a few sites had fire rings that I could see. 

Bathhouse: The women’s area had three “all-in-ones” with a toilet, sink, and shower. They were very clean with hooks, soap, and paper towels. The entire bathhouse appeared to be in a state of remodeling, and it wasn’t clear what was going to happen with the remainder of the space (plumbed but not completed when we were there). Did not use the shower so cannot comment on that. 

We arrived after dark and left the next morning but our stay on a Friday in August was quiet except for the loud trains running along the Mississippi. We heard two around 10 pm and either there were no more until the next morning, or we mercifully slept through them! This RV Park is located in the small town of Nelson and accessed through a residential neighborhood. Although not our preferred camp stay, we chose it since we knew we wanted to eat at Stone Barn Pizza (a must if you are in the area!) which is why we arrived after dark!

General: Smallish (38 sites plus four walk-in sites) Army Corps of Engineers campground. Some (see below) have electric hookups but no water or sewer hookups, however, there is a dump station. 

Site Quality: All sites are gravel/dirt (except for the ADA-accessible site), and most are very generous in size. Our site (7) sloped down but leveled out with plenty of room for our campervan at the bottom. All sites are wooded with trees providing separation/privacy between sites. Completing the site are a metal picnic table, fire ring, and lantern hook. 

Bath/Shower House: Sites 28-38 only have vault toilets (but you could trek to the other campground loop). Sites 1—27 have flush toilets and showers. They were very clean, and I especially appreciated the fact that they were cleaned daily before 6 am, a shout out to the camp host! The shower was great– warm water and great flow, although our friends (who arrived two days before we did) had cold showers when the campground was full.

Activities: Several short hiking trails. I give this campground 4 stars instead of 5 because Eau Galle Reservoir (Lake George) is about a 10-minute drive from the campground. Most Corps of Engineers campgrounds are located right on the water. There are no amenities (rentals, etc.) offered at the lake but it is small and beautiful, and we enjoyed a peaceful paddle. We saw a couple of people fishing on the lake and there is a small swimming area. At the campground, there was an interpretive center, but it was locked when we were there. There is also a nice, modern playground. 

Aside from the plentiful bugs (in August), we enjoyed our two-night stay at this campground!

The cabins in the woods are great in winter with snow on the pine trees. I would probably prefer the prairie cabins in the summer, especially with mosquitoes. The prairie cabins have significantly less privacy though with trails on either side that have good views into the heavily windowed cabins.

The cabins are well-built and heated. The wooded cabins have what seems like full-sized mattress bunk beds built into the wall. Each bunk has its own reading light. The storage in this place is amazing. Storage under the bed, one counter with ample storage under it, and even the windows are so deep that I was able to store most of my food on the sill.

The biggest downside is the middle-of-the-night trek to the bathroom. The bathroom is heated and open year round. There are two year round showers as well, but don’t plan on a long shower to unwind unless you like cold water. There was maybe 2 minutes of hot water. Basically enough to wash your body quickly, it was easy enough to avoid getting my hair wet. The shower room is also set to a cool 58 degrees in the winter. I do suspect that the floors are slightly heated though. You will need to dart across to the bathroom to blow dry your hair if you’re washing it in the winter. 

You can use a slow cooker and a coffee pot in the cabin. Otherwise you can cook over the fire as well. They have potable water in the bathroom for washing your dishes in the cabin with.

Close enough to town if you need something, far enough away for peace and quiet.