Birch Lake Campground

Picture of table with lake in the background.
Picture of picnic table and fire ring.
Picture of camping spur.
Picture of Birch Lake from boatlanding.
Picture of open grassy area.

Featured amenities

Pet Friendly Pet Friendly

Sites & Rates

Average nightly rates

21 total sites

RV Sites

18 sites

Tent Sites

1 site

Cabins

2 sites

About Birch Lake Campground

Birch Lake Campground is located in Superior National Forest near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, about 13 miles from Ely, Minnesota. It is an ideal place to relax while enjoying fishing, boating and other recreational activities.

Number of accommodations: 21

Seasonal information

2026 (Current year)

2026 Season availability

Current season
Upcoming seasons
Past seasons
Closed periods
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Currently open - May 1 to Sep 26

Campground Amenities

Most popular amenities

Pet friendly Pet friendly
Water and Hygiene

Water and Hygiene

  • Potable Water
Pets and Policies

Pets and Policies

  • Pet friendly
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Rates, Sites & Availability

Select check-in and check-out dates to see real-time availability for each site.

21 Sites Available

Site
Price
🚐 001, Loop: North RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 013, Loop: North RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 014, Loop: North RV
No Hookups
Price not available
015, Loop: North Tent
45 guests · Campfire · Pet Friendly
Price not available
🚐 017, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 018, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 019, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 020, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 021, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 023, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 024, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 025, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 026, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 027, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 028, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 029, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 030, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 031, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🚐 032, Loop: South RV
No Hookups
Price not available
🏠 Popple Cabin, Loop: South Cabin
6 guests · Campfire
Price not available
🏠 Tamarak Cabin, Loop: South Cabin
6 guests · Campfire
Price not available

Reviews (93)

What Guests Are Saying

Birch Lake Campground offers a spacious and well-maintained environment with clean bathrooms, good drinking water, and a peaceful atmosphere, making it ideal for family gatherings and outdoor activities. Many campers appreciate the privacy between sites and the beautiful surroundings, although access to the water for activities like swimming and fishing can be limited. Some guests expressed concerns about road conditions leading to the campground and occasional issues with site reservations, but overall, the campground is highly recommended for its cleanliness and natural beauty.

Review Summary

4.4
93 reviews
5
65.6%
61
4
21.5%
20
3
3.2%
3
2
5.4%
5
1
4.3%
4

Linda S

Verified

August 19, 2026 Stayed at: 024, Loop: South

5

The bathrooms are very clean. The drinking water was so good and cold.

Ken E

Verified

August 16, 2026 Stayed at: 015, Loop: North

3

This group camp is very spacious. We had 4 tents and 2 big screen rooms and we still had a huge open area for the kids to play games. The whole area was extremely well kept and clean, right down to the parking areas and the bathroom. There is a water spicket at the site too, and we did not detect any unusual smells or taste.
The positives: big area, well kept, bathroom clean and well stocked with TP, good clean water right there, isolated well from the rest of the camps.
The negatives: no good access to the water from the camp. Need to go to the boat launch if you want to swim or launch a canoe (which we brought). No fishing from shore. Very limited view of the lake from camp. There was also, at times, a bad smell from the garbage or the bathroom.

Brett P

Verified

August 10, 2026 Stayed at: 027, Loop: South

5

I absolutely love this campsite me and my amazing wife have been coming here the last 2 years and love every experience we get to enjoy here I would highly recommend coming here to fish and spend time with family

Amy O

Verified

July 21, 2026 Stayed at: 018, Loop: South

5

Love this campground. Well kept. Very peaceful.

brendon h

Verified

July 14, 2026 Stayed at: 014, Loop: North

2

The campground was nice but being forced into renting a campsite for 3 nights when we only needed one just because it was near a holiday (not on) not only left a bad taste in our mouths but it also made it so other groups were not able to use the site. I'll be giving my the areas I plan to camp a little more thought in future.

Alex Y

Verified

July 12, 2026 Stayed at: 028, Loop: South

5

Great campsite if you can score a site next to the lake.

Judith B

Verified

July 8, 2026 Stayed at: 029, Loop: South

2

We had a disappointing experience. I reserved tent site #29 for 6/26, 6/27 and 6/28. However, due to extenuating circumstances, we decided we decided wanted to rent the Tamarak cabin which was posted as being available. We had to drive a ways from the C.G. to get signal and then signed to rec.gov to reserve the site. We filled out a registration slip and enclosed a check for $285 and deposited the registration. However, when we discovered the cabin was locked we went to the C.G. host site which seemed unoccupied. We tried going back to the host site, but no-one was there. We got the number of the concessionaire to call and again drove out of the C.G. to get signal. No one answered so we left a message. No one ever got back to us so we could not use the cabin the night of 6/26. The next day we were able to reach the concessionaire and were told that the campground hosts were on vacation for two weeks. I was astounded since this period of time is prime camping time and it is unthinkable to allow a host to "vacation" for two weeks, leaving us in the lurch. The concessionaire then stated she would call the Kiwishiwi campground hosts but also stated they might be off on Saturday - also a ridiculous idea since weekends usually always have a host on duty. Fortunately that host came around several hours later and opened the cabin for us so we could stay 6/27 and 6/28.

TIm I

Verified

July 3, 2026 Stayed at: 029, Loop: South

4

Beautiful campground on a beautiful lake. S29 was a good site for camping, but is not a site that provides easy access to the water if you are wanting to pull a boat up (large rocks/swampy access).

Gary I

Verified

June 18, 2026 Stayed at: 019, Loop: South

5

mostly rain on Monday, Tuesday nice but windy, more rain on Wednesday - left early! Thor and Nancy were very nice and kept it all looking good!!

Shelly L

Verified

May 28, 2026 Stayed at: 014, Loop: North

5

Campsite and fire pit were clean. Mouse levels were low and satellite bathrooms were very clean.

Location Birch Lake Campground

Address:
Kawishiwi Ranger District, 1393 Highway 169
Ely, MN, 55731
United States

Elevation: 443 feet

Distance to downtown

13 mi drive to downtown Ely (about 23 min)

Policies & Rules

Arrival & departure

Check out time

12PM

General

  • Off-road and all-terrain vehicles are not allowed during camping season.
  • During the walk-in season, please contact the local USFS for information.
  • Please Note: One RV with tow vehicle per single site or two vehicles per tent site. Most sites can accommodate 1 extra vehicle that is not included with the reservation fee. Extra vehicle will be charged a per night fee and collected at the campground. 
  • Reserved Sites will be held until the day following your arrival date. Sites must be occupied by the checkout time of that following day to hold a reservation or the site will be forfeited and released to other guests. Once your reservation start date has begun, neither the Recreation.gov Contact Center nor the campground manager will be able to modify your reservation.
  • Refunds: Refund requests made through www.recreation.gov will be charged a $10 processing fee. This fee is retained by the reservation service contractor along with the non-refundable reservation fee. All requests for the return of the non-refundable reservation fee and the cancellation fee will be declined by the campground concessionaire as they did not receive these fees (these are the fees retained by the reservation contractor, a different entity).
  • Click here to learn more about Superior National Forest Superior National Forest 
  • Don't move firewood: To limit the spread of invasive tree-killing pests, firewood from outside the area is not permitted. Some states have quarantines and may confiscate your firewood. Please help protect our forests from invasive species by obtaining your firewood at or near your camping destination and burning it on-site. Visit dontmovefirewood.org for more information.

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Last updated: September 8, 2026

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