Best Equestrian Camping near Eau Galle Lake

First thing you need to know: It's completely in the woods, and sites are FULLY shaded. Sites 28-38 are on a loop with a picnic pavilion in the middle with some openings for sun on the road and in the picnic area. Other than that, the rest of the campground is rather dark all the time; there aren't as many sunlight openings on the road to the other sites. This is not a good place for solar panels, but almost all sites are electric.

Nice price: Cost is $20/$16 for electric/non-electric. This is an Army Corps of Engineers park which means you pay $10/$8 if you have an NPS Lifetime Senior Pass.

Services: There are full services at this campground - flush toilets, sinks, showers, trash receptacles, and drinking water/dump station near the entrance. There is an interpretive center for Saturday evening ranger programs and a playground next to it.

Roomy sites: This campground is small, but almost all sites are large. There are 38 sites plus walk in tent sites A through G and a group site. It looks like sites 28-38 can be rented for a group; the entrance was blocked off when we were there.

Equestrian section may be open to campers without a horse: There is an equestrian campground about a half mile before the main campground entrance. You may camp in the equestrian area (E1-E10) without a horse if the main area is full. We were able to reserve a site in there a couple days ahead of time because the main campground was full. It was just us and one other family on a Saturday night, and neither of us had a horse. We moved to the main area on Sunday morning because lots of sites were open on Sunday.

Beautiful shaded campground with semi private sites. Nice beach that is a walkable distance from the sites. Lots of walking, biking and horse trails that are full of wild berries. Several stairways down to the lake, no beach at these spots but good for taking the dog in the water since they aren’t allowed on the beach. Wonderful staff in the visitor center. Firewood and ice sold on site. Also boat rentals and free yard games that can be checked out at the visitor center. Clean bathrooms with showers. Lots of boat noise from the lake and a plane noise from a nearby airport. Close to Chippewa Falls for restaurants and stores. A great family destination, not so great for a peaceful couples weekend.

We 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.

For a County Park, Lake Elmo has an impressive list of amenities. Before we even get to the campsite let's mention the filtered swimming pond. This man made pond is a sandy bottom and surrounded by a nice sand beach. Large built in umbrellas are available for sun coverage and there is a concession stand and bathrooms with showers. And yes, as I mentioned the water is filtered! No gross goose poop or green algae to deal with! Next to the swim pond is a giant playground with fun for the big and little kids. Other amenities include archery, horse trails, paved and grass trails, camper spots, rustic spots and hike in camping spots. In winter the xc ski trails are lit for evening skiing. Or let's be honest early afternoon. It is Minnesota and the suns down by 4 In the Winter! They also have a newer Nordic center that's open all year round and includes a locker room with showers. The hike in camp spot we chose was on a small lake so it had a nice breeze and made it easy to bring a kayak or paddleboard and hop right in. There is also a boat launch for your larger toys! The trails in the park are quite impressive for its size. We enjoyed a 5 mile loop off the Nordic center and right past the camp spot. A picnic table and fire pit as well as nice flat tent pad were provided. If you're coming in from out of town then you're just a 5 minute drive from Woodbury and all the amenities you'd ever need but the park feels miles away from it all.