Hurricane River Campground

Great secluded campground. Water and vault toilets only so be prepared for that. Cant wait to go back soon

The setting on the North Shore of the U.P. is incomparable. Campgrounds were clean, quiet, and scenic. We enjoyed walking to the light station and stopping along the way to enjoy the beach. Going west on the rustic trail was a highlight. Every evening we watched the sunset on the beach--It is the envy of Key West. My wife, dog, and I are rejuvenated and are already planning our next trip to Pictured Rocks. We checked out the Cruise line's dog kennel for use during the 2 1/2 hour coastal tour and it looks safe and adequate for our pooch. The vault toilets were well kept.

Thanks so much,
Ken Adams

I threw together a last minute four day camping trip to the UP and this was my only site not in backcountry. It was still quiet, beautiful, and one of the cleanest campgrounds I’ve ever seen.

It was inconvenient that there was no water running at the spigot

Hurricane Campground is in a nice location right next to Lake Superior and you can walk down the 1-mile trail to the Au Sable Lighthouse. On the shoreline, there is an old ship-wreck that can be viewed from the trail. The campground does have vault restrooms but no electricity. It's a great place to watch the sunset in the summer.

We had an absolutely phenomenal visit to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore & Hurricane River campground! We visited in the last week of October 2020 & were the only campers in the campground the entire week. Sure it is a little cool that time of year, but the calm solitude due to the lack of other visitors more than makes up for the cooler weather! Added bonus; visitation in the late fall means no biting flies, which can easily ruin a trip up here during the summer months. We got to see some amazing fall foliage and beautiful scenic views of the lake. We hiked several of the trails available in both the eastern & western areas of the park & were able to see historic lighthouses, stunning waterfalls, & the amazing Superior lakeshore. The RECREATION.GOV webpage did notify us that all water would be off during our visit due to the cold weather, so we planned ahead for that, however there was no obvious notifications advising visitors that the vault toilets are closed during the winter months, so we were surprised when a work crew came out on our second day and locked them up. If you plan to camp here in the late fall and winter months, be sure to consider the lack of restrooms in your planning. Part of the attraction of Hurricane River is the isolation and solitude, so the complete lack of cellular service in the campground is to be expected and relished. On some of our hikes we did run across pockets of cellular service where our phones jumped to life and inundated us with the backlogged notifications. The trail to the Au Sable Light Station was one area where we noticed the coverage to be especially strong. I would also like to thank both the forward-thinking personnel at RECREATION.GOV & Pictured Rocks for making this campground reservable. We drove 1,600+ miles to get to Hurricane River Campground and would never have made the trip if we didn't have a guaranteed place to camp. There is no place for first come first served camping in the Internet age.

Great views, no cell service, perfect escape

This was our absolute favorite campground before they made it reservation only. We still love the setting, beach, and size. As annoying as it is to have to pay $15 to stay in the off season (we go yearly first or second weekend of November) it’s fine. Except when we got there and find the vaulted toilets were locked. We’ve been multiple times a year for 6 years and this was the first we’ve had to pay for off season AND not have access to the toilets (so what did I pay $15 dollars for?) I would like to think this is a result of covid...but I’m not sure why it’s not posted on the reservation site. Only warning there is about the water turned off as it always is at this time. So in short, I love this campground...and it holds a special place in my heart..but I was already struggling with the reservation only and paying for off season...to get there and not have access to the VAULTED toilets (not having a toilet while camping isn’t a problem when we are prepared for it...But we didn’t bring our normal system as we knew there was something there.) A little warning would have been appreciated and maybe I missed it on the app...Just be prepared for that if you go. I’m not convinced we will be returning as often when there are other free or cheaper off season camping options with no toilet available.

We opted for this campsite since twelvemile beach was booked full. For our first time in the upper peninsula, this was a very good experience. The campsites sit within walking distance of the beaches of lake superior. The wind was very strong over lake superior but the trees around the campsites provided much protection from the wind. The waves and rustling trees from the wind could be loud at times but overall it wasn't an issue. The camping pads are clean and well maintained as well as the restrooms. I highly recommend these campsites.

Great hike to Au Sable Light. Sun came out just as we arrived. One of three best hiking experiences on the U.P.