William S
VerifiedJuly 29, 2022 Stayed at: LOON, Loop: Loon Lake
Sylvania is an absolute gem of a backcountry park
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307 reviews
Sylvania Wilderness offers a stunning, serene environment ideal for first-time campers, with beautiful weather, mild portage trails, and clean, spacious campsites. Visitors enjoyed peaceful paddling experiences, abundant wildlife, and friendly park staff, making for a memorable outdoor adventure. While some reported issues with mosquitoes and campsite accessibility, the overall experience remains highly praised, with many eager to return.
Based on guest feedback
4.5
Based on 307 reviews
Showing 307 reviews
July 29, 2022 Stayed at: LOON, Loop: Loon Lake
Sylvania is an absolute gem of a backcountry park
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July 29, 2022 Stayed at: ERMINE-2, Loop: Mountain Lake
Wonderful place to interact with the wild.
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July 25, 2022 Stayed at: BALSAM-1, Loop: Clark Lake
The site is large and flat. We set up a screen tent to avoid the bugs, and it proved to be the key to an enjoyable trip. Adventure through the bramble and obstacle to reach the sandy beach just minutes to the west. It's amazing. Fishing the south end of the cove was good for large mouth bass. The north edge was good for small mouth bass, especially at night. I'd recommend an anchor for driftless fishing. 25 minutes from the Clark campground launch with loaded canoes and about 30 minutes on foot.
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July 14, 2022 Stayed at: EAGLE-2, Loop: Loon Lake
Clean campsites. Very clean
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July 13, 2022 Stayed at: EAGLE-1, Loop: Loon Lake
Hi Sylvania. I was at Eagle One on Loon Lake for a week. The trip had high points (fly fishing for bass on Cub lake) and low points (two days of rain and storm). I was disappointed that there was not more trail maintenance. I was disappointed, too, how rising lake levels have erased the sand beaches on Loon and Clark Lakes. The mosquitoes were really bad. I have camped at Sylvania for decades and never saw them this bad, especially on a site like Eagle One (which is high up and has a natural breeze). This is all due to global warming. I was disturbed by fireworks noise that went on for days. I guess you can't get away from it all no matter how hard you try. Otherwise, Sylvania is a gem and a great place to rough camp. My overall trip was good.
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July 8, 2022 Stayed at: BEAVER-1, Loop: Mountain Lake
Having gone to Sylvania for over 40 yers, it is exactly what we have come to expect. my son and I have done an annual trip for the summer solstice for over30 years and my grandson has joined us for the last 12. Fishing is terrific. Hiking is also a great endeavor.The Wilderness at the UP is as close to where the country was over a hundred years ago, but, there is always something new. A great place to unwind fir whatever time you have.
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July 4, 2022 Stayed at: COYOTE, Loop: West Bear Lake
We love camping and canoeing in the sylvania wilderness. It's so peaceful and quiet! We will be back!
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June 26, 2022 Stayed at: PORCUPINE-1, Loop: Crooked Lake
We love Sylvania! However, this time we stayed 2 out of 3 nights on Crooked Lake and had to deal with large, loud, beer drinking groups in neighboring sights. It’s definitely not as quiet as it used to be…
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June 20, 2022 Stayed at: RACCOON, Loop: High Lake
Everything was wonderful in terms of reserving sites, arriving, and entering. We simply did not expect the mosquitos to be as bad as they were and we weren’t adequately prepared. We had repellent, and Thermocell, and head nets but we weren’t able to keep them away enough to function outside the tent. We ended up cutting our trip short as a result.
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June 14, 2022 Stayed at: PIKE-1, Loop: Whitefish Lake
Fishing was good, weather cool, camp site was very nice! There was very little room for beaching canoes, at the Pike site. There must have been a good wind, as many trees where downed near the lake.
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Sylvania Wilderness, Watersmeet, MI 49969 United States
Elevation: 554 ft
Backcountry wilderness campsites can be accessed from the Sylvania Recreation Area by parking at the Clark Lake or Crooked Lake Boat Landings, or from entry points on the perimeter of the wilderness (see map). To reach the Sylvania Entrance Statio...
Backcountry wilderness campsites can be accessed from the Sylvania Recreation Area by parking at the Clark Lake or Crooked Lake Boat Landings, or from entry points on the perimeter of the wilderness (see map). To reach the Sylvania Entrance Station and Recreation Area: From Watersmeet, travel approximately 3.5 mi west on US 2 to County Road 535 (Thousand Island Lake Road), then drive south on CR 535 approximately 4 mi to the Sylvania Wilderness and Recreation Area entrance.
The campground is accessible via US 2, located approximately 3.5 miles to the north. From US 2, take County Road 535 (Thousand Island Lake Road) south for about 4 miles to reach the Sylvania Entrance Station.
Last updated: October 24, 2026