The state park is huge. The modern campsites are packed in very tightly however the Jackpine Hike-In campsites were spacious and peaceful. The dirt road that you hike in on leads to the lighthouse which is another mile from the campsites so there is a decent amount of foot traffic during the day. The dunes block a good amount of wind that comes off the water. There was not a grill on the fire pit which was a little disappointing. Rules say you are not to pick up down wood but you really don’t have a choice when you hike in.. We brought a wagon to pull additional stuff and pulling just one bundle of wood was a little challenge. Lots of raccoons! Overall, it was a very nice site.
The campground was nice and it was a fun drive in/out every time. Lots of elk! The bathroom did not have lights so if you didn’t go by dusk you’ll need a light with you. We stayed in the designated tent sites as far away from people as we could and as you can see in the photo, our neighboring site was close. Neighbors came and snored very loud, it was annoying. The 2 nights we had without neighbors were much better. A locked box is included at each site, as well as a fire pit. Outside wood is not allowed.. Good hiking trails were a little drive away in the mountains but so was everything. Hiking was beautiful everywhere we went. There’s so much ground to cover. We were always in the clouds, it was awesome to watch them float right through you. Cherokee was fun to explore lots of history and a great casino.
The location of this campground is perfect. It’s right in the shore of Lake Michigan. The sites are reservable online. It’s completely rustic, there are vault toilets and water pumps for drinking water. The drive in is also so beautiful, it’s a long ways up but the little towns are cute and have essentials. Traverse city is at least 30+ mins.
It was an alright site furthest to the back of the loop but the campground wasn’t very big and it was busy the weekend we stayed. We stayed in a tent and our dogs came. We were with a group of about 6 different sites and received a warning on Friday night from the owners to quiet down because people were complaining we were too loud. The rented camper my mom stayed in was super old but it was cheapish and had style. I don’t recall any problems with the river, we were dropped off and landed back at the campground. Good campground, but I can’t say anything draws me back to return.
It’s never busy here. I don’t have horses but I’ve seen people stay with horse trailers with their tie outs to the poles that are designed for it. There’s trails in the surrounding areas. Also water pump and vault toilets. Picnic tables and fire rings are provided as well.
Great for kids. Tons of activities all day long. It’s modern camping - showers, toilets, electricity, water, sewage, dump station. The jumping pillow is another great feature. Grew up here in the summers as a kid, great memories.
One of my favorite places to rustic camp! Sites are first come first serve, planning arrival for certain days and times is required so you can land a site. Hiking is the best part of pictured rocks, bring the right shoes and lots of big spray so you can enjoy Mother Nature’s beauty. No pets are allowed which is a bummer but understandable. I’ve seen bear while driving through the park both times I’ve camped in pictured rocks, so they’re definitely around!
We tented this past weekend at Rollways and it was great! The sites were big. We brought our own kayaks and spent the day at on loud lake which was about a 15 min drive away. There were plenty of vault toilets which were very clean and water stations. Some sites were reservable and some were first come first serve. There were two or three sites that’s were close to the water which looked most preferable.