Ausable River Camping

We love camping in the AuSable area. It is one of the most beautiful and relaxing areas in the State.

Site 82D is up on a bluff with a terrific view of the river and plenty of space to spread out. There is river access but it is down a VERY steep sand slide and the walk back up is a doozy. I wouldn't recommend this spot if you want river access for any purpose, but the view is amazing - we even watched a deer grazing on an island in the middle of the river from above. It is a private spot out of view of other sites, but there is one other site that is accessed by the same road, but past this site. We had a spooky experience in the middle of the night - 1:00 a.m. - when someone drove up to our site, parked, shut off the ignition and then approached our tent with a flashlight. We called out and they mumbled something and left in the direction of the other site. Minutes later, we heard extremely loud dance music blasting from that other site, which certainly destroyed the ambiance. The whole experience was upsetting. Other than that, however, we had a great time - the site is beautiful and spacious and the birds are amazing. I do wish there was a picnic table. Next time I will probably try a site with easier river access. Did not see a ranger.

Pros: primitive, rustic, easy to drive to, site is large and clean, partially shady, close to River, close to town if needed or emergency, Great Verizon service, lots of wildlife sounds, sites are a great distance apart, close to Whirlpool River Access and Eagle Run Trail

Cons: local traffic, fish was lacking in the River, an abundance of Gypsy moth caterpillars

We just returned from Site 102D Lower Ausable in Oscoda. 5 days, 2 adults, 1 child and a dog. Great experience. We arrived to a partially shaded, clean and large open site. 5 sites in the area but very well spaced out. You wouldn’t know if there were others there unless you went to check. Our site had a path down to the river. Plenty of trees for cover and a good amount of down limbs for fire wood. We came across a porcupine, and Pileated Woodpecker. At night you’ll hear the coyotes howling, barking and yipping…what a sound that is. An abundance of birds singing in the morning is a pleasant sound. LOTS gypsy moth caterpillars. Site very close to Whirlpool River access, there is a toilet and trash cans if you prefer. Also very close to Eagle Run Trail, just be mindful that other hikers do not leash their dogs (ours is always). Just a couple cons about the location there is a bit of locals driving threw. I’m assuming they are access the River banks along the trail. We did notice (after campers left) lots of individuals occupied a spot for just a few hours and left not sure why. Locals kids using the Whirlpool access site to drink, party, and make a mess with beers bottles one night. It is located near a small airport but we did not notice that at all. We did hear road noise but didn’t bother us much. The site is more fine sandy, we prefer more dirt and more packed but that’s minor.

All in all, wonderful experience and will stay here again. Without a doubt would recommend to other.

Tick update: we only found 1 tick on the head of our dog. No others were spotted.

We had to kick some illegal campers from the area but overall the experience was nice. We have been using this spot for over 20 years annually.

Our camping spot location was perfect. Neighboring spots were far enough away we felt alone. Park ranger Rob was very helpful over the phone!

Great time. Great scenery. Couldn't ask for a better experience. The stars at night were amazing.

It was nice view with a lot of shades very private our site 060w it was 5 mins walk. Make sure don’t bring a lot or else you’ll go back and fort

This pertains to the lower AuSable river, sites 98-102, but more specifically site 98. This site is for the most part, full sun for the majority of the day, until 5-6pm I'd guess. Fire ring provided and no other amenities. Reservations are online or possibly the monument office. Ok place to fish. Fairly busy spot with locals and campers passing by to fish. Nobody seemed at catch any fish that we talked too, nor did we. Close to main road, so there is a lot of road noise all day and night long. Super close to airport, within a mile, so you can hear planes taking off and landing all day and night long. The jumbo jets are super annoying while idling on the flight line at 2-4am. high pitched whining noise kept me up several nights/early morning. There's a fairly steep bank you have to climb down to get to the riverside. Coyotes and porcupines in area, so watch your pets. It is a very pretty nature spot, don't get me wrong but noise is the only reason I'm rating this low, especially if you are a light sleeper. Probably would not stay at this particular location again. I'd find something further upstream.

Beautiful, huge site with rough steps down to river access. Easy to drive in and out of. Direct view across the river is an RV campground maybe?? It didn’t bother us and was very quiet. A lot of chipmunks, birds and even a few deer walked through!

We were evacuated due to a controlled burn becoming out of control. We were first told we'd be fine by emergency officials. Less than two hours later we were told to evacuate. There was no communication as to whether we could come back or any refund for fees paid. It was a terribly windy day and the controlled burn should have never been attempted. This was Friday, April 23, 21