About South Kawishiwi River
Number of accommodations: 21
Campground Amenities
-
Potable Water -
River Access
Seasonal information
2026 Season availability
Sites & Availability
21 Sites Available
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Site Details
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21 Sites Available
No available sites
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Reviews (116)
What Guests Are Saying
South Kawishiwi River is a beautifully maintained campground with well-spaced, clean sites and friendly camp hosts who ensure excellent upkeep, including impressively clean vault toilets. Visitors appreciate the peaceful atmosphere, great water access for canoeing, and lovely swimming spots nearby. While there are occasional issues with mosquitoes and site sizes, the overall experience is highly positive, making it a favorite destination for campers.
What Guests Are Saying
South Kawishiwi River is a beautifully maintained campground with well-spaced, clean sites and friendly camp hosts who ensure excellent upkeep, including impressively clean vault toilets. Visitors appreciate the peaceful atmosphere, great water access for canoeing, and lovely swimming spots nearby. While there are occasional issues with mosquitoes and site sizes, the overall experience is highly positive, making it a favorite destination for campers.
Review Summary
Laura G
VerifiedJuly 12, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 026, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Beautiful site!
Richard H
VerifiedJanuary 20, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 031, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
This park is just a fantastic location. The river, canoe rentals, readily available firewood, huge camps, nice separation and trees, great firepits and tables, and abundant trails make this our choice. Plus we had very good cell signal! The host couple makes the place amazing with ultra-clean bathrooms, nice features, and friendly service. Our hours at the fire late into the night, listening to loons and other critters, are some great memories.
Joyce Y
VerifiedJanuary 18, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 004, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
We love to go there! The outhouses are very clean and decorated it makes you want to keep them clean also so everyone does!! The campsites themselves are close but there is woods between each campsite which allows us privacy.
the camp hosts are wonderful: helpful and make sure everyone is ok. Its our favorite place to go!
Alan C
VerifiedJanuary 17, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 031, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
The sites were very clean and well maintained. The toilets were the cleanest I have ever seen. Will definitely be coming back.
Gregory D
VerifiedJanuary 16, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 022, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Beautiful country! The RV park wasn't made for big 5th wheels however. I wish it had easier access to water and a dump station. This really hindered our trip. Basically 2 nights was all we could go without a dump station and easier access to water.
Grant J
VerifiedJanuary 15, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 031, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
I could not have been more pleased with my stay at South Kiwishiwi. The area is beautiful, the caretakers were wonderful, and the sites were fantastic. I have never been to a camping area that was so clean and well kept. Speaking of clean, I cant be more complimentary of the cleanliness of the outhouse facilities.
I will definitely be back!
Maciej D
VerifiedJanuary 15, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 028, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Very nice place, clean and easy access. We had such a nice labor day weekend. Good boat and canoe access. Highly recommend.
Sarah D
January 13, 2020
We have camped at this campground for the past almost 10 years. Many great memories were made. We watched the popularity of this campground increase over these years; more than what we liked. The hosts for all of the years were all pretty good. Bathrooms were always clean. The water shed near site 13 has never had water which is really the only complaint I have ever had.
Susan K
VerifiedJanuary 11, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 027, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
clean sites and facilities. beautiful location. friendly camp hosts.
Shari L
VerifiedJanuary 10, 2020 β’ Stayed at: 001, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Beware there is little potable water (one tap only) and no running water for showers, etc. You can bathe in the lake, but of course much less privacy than in BWCAW.
Location South Kawishiwi River
Address:
Kawishiwi Ranger District
Ely, MN, 55731
United States
From Ely, Minnesota, travel about 10.3 miles south on State Highway 1 toward Lake Superior. Turn left onto the campground road.
Latitude & Longitude: 47.8156 / -91.7314
Elevation: 449 feet
Policies & Rules
| Category | About |
|---|---|
| General |
Traveling within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness requires a permit; day use requires a self-issued permit; overnight use requires a permit from the quota system. |
| General |
Beach and picnic areas open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. |
| General |
The South Kawishiwi River Campground holds a pavilion for rent (site 33) that can accommodate up to 26 people. The site also has an outdoor cooking area with a large grill and two picnic tables. See site 33 for more information. |
| General |
Off-road and all-terrain vehicles not allowed during camping season. |
| General |
During the walk-in season please contact the Superior National Forest for information. |
| General |
Please Note: One towed vehicle per single camping unit will be allowed for no extra charge if it can be parked completely on the surfaced area and does not create a safety hazard. Examples of towed vehicles include a boat trailer or a car towed by a motor home. Two motorcycles are considered one vehicle.
|
| General |
Reserved Sites will be held until check out time (NOON) 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. |
| General |
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). |
| General |
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. |
| General |
superior Click here to learn more about Superior National Forest. |
