We stopped here for one night while traveling south toward our home from six nights at Platte River.  We picked the one site (#11) that had the least trees because it was rainy and dank. We were scouting the area for a future kayak trip. The access from the campground to the Manistee was in bad shape and very unsafe. Only my husband used the pit toilet during our short stay and there was a working hand pump for water, but we came in with water and did not use that. The fee was $15 and not what I would consider a bargain.

Do not recommend coming in with a long trailer as it was tight driving through. We had our pick-up and 22-foot trailer.

We had two bars with ATT on our phones.

We stayed during very hot weather at the beginning of July 2020. I wanted to visit Potter Park Zoo so we choose to stay at Sleepy Hollow for a few days. Our site backed up to trees and I can't recall seeing our neighbors to the left or right. Because we didn't get any shade from the nearby trees we had to run the ac which is unusual for us in Michigan. We were in the midst of a heat-wave though and it was much appreciated. The park needs to upgrade the electrical system as this was putting a strain on their electrical equipment. We did go for a short paddle on (C) Ovid Lake, but again, no shade and HOT. I can't recall why we didn't go swimming?? Overall the campground was nice and I would stay again.

Although it's been a couple of years, I've lost track of how many times we visited the National Lake Shore and camped at Platte River. It has been a family favorite because the campground is good and being near the lake and the Platte River makes summer visits great. We have always found the campground to be well-maintained, clean, and available to many kinds of campers. There are rustic sites, pull-through sites, and walk-in sites. We really love kayaking or tubing on the river and icecream cones are only a short drive or bike ride away at the livery. The area is very popular for good reason so expect steep competition for camping and parking during the summer.

We stayed at the end of August in 2020. It was our first visit. Most of the time it was fine although nothing stands out to me. On our last night, we had trouble with very bad neighbors, and seemingly no one but myself could point it out to them at 1 am. There were some campers who brought along their speed boats. The sister campground at South Higgins looked to be dominated by boaters and even has special parking for boat trailers inside the campground. Our site was adequate and we used the shore power provided. There are bathhouses, but only my husband used them so I can't directly comment on them. The highlight of our stay was kayaking the nearby Mason Tract and getting out at Smith Bridge. I certainly want to do that again, but will opt for a quieter campground. (Don't expect to make phone calls, the cell service (AT&T) was very spotty.)

We stayed for a week at Young State Park in September of 2020. Our site was at the end of a row and we enjoyed a decent amount of space for a truck and trailer, 30 amp service, and AT&t cell service. (I ended up needing to use Teledoc :( and my husband was able to turn on the hotspot and laptop and use the web.) The site is dirt but was level.

Some sites were not in use because of high lake levels and park water problems. Leaking pipe? The small dune area leading up to Lake Charlevoix makes you feel like you are at Lake Michigan. We saw some beautiful sunsets from the edge of the water. There are a walkway and observation platform. There is some hiking, a place to walk your dog, swimming, and bathhouses. We used the campground as a base to explore surrounding towns like Boyne City and Charlevoix, but mostly for kayaking. It was very quiet during the week and was packed on Friday and Saturday nights. The fall color was building toward a peak and the scattered maple trees mixed with cedar made it very pretty. We would stay again in the offseason.