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
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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
Bruce B
VerifiedAugust 9, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 007, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
can't beat it for the price. Nothing fancy, but the location is good
Jeffrey C
VerifiedAugust 6, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 012, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Wonderful Campsite. The hosts kept the vault toilets very clean. Having 30 amp power in a National Forest made it a great experience. Sites are long, wide and private. Great swimming beach and boat launch.
Brenda M
VerifiedAugust 5, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 001, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
It was a very nice park, clean bathrooms, water available to fill the Rv by the pavilion.
Nice little swimming area down by the river. There is a lot of things to do close by, within a 30 mile area. Lake vermilion underground mines, wolf museum, hiking, canoeing, check out the root-beer lady museum,
Would go back again!
Eric S
VerifiedAugust 2, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 031, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Excellent campground. Great views, clean sites and very clean bathrooms. Our kids had fun at the little beach. Will come back soon.
Chad K
VerifiedJuly 23, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 011, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Nice access to gravel roads to run on and close to atv trail to bike on.
frank b
VerifiedJuly 19, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 009, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
We have a 35 foot class A diesel pusher. Our RV site was clean and reserved for our use. The park is a short distance from Ely, MN which has good shopping and dining. We had 30 amp electric on site; potable water is available; sewer hookup/dump station is not available.
Grant F
VerifiedJuly 18, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 012, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Lots of dust and bugs. Camp Host was very nice and helped us work out a site switch so we could camp next to the grand kids. She always had a nice smile and friendly comment for us. Campsites where always clean and the Host was right there cleaning when a camper pulled out. Restrooms were very clean, hand sanitizer was always there. You could not ask for a better camp ground. I would recommend this campground to anyone who wants to have a great weekend.....I'LL BE BACK
Lauralee H
VerifiedJuly 12, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 011, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
The overall campground is great! It was very convenient being able to have water and electricity, especially during the heat of early July! The host/hostess was phenomenal! Always very helpful and attentive. She let campers know when there was recent bear activity while we were there. That is very helpful when you have pets. I would say the only downfall was The map of the campground states that there is more water available for filling up recreational vehicles than there actually is. The only filling station is near the campground Kawishiwi Hall. The challenge is if you are pulling a longer trailer like some of the people we saw, you have to go into the water filling area parking lot the opposite direction as the road sign state. The reason being making the turn is a challenge. We did not have a problem but we have a smaller trailer. Overall it was a wonderful experience great swimming beaches fishing really good too! We went into the local town of Ely,For their Fourth of July parade and thoroughly enjoyed it. The ranger station in town is also very helpful! I also did several hikes in the area as stated are available.
Charles W. K
VerifiedJuly 9, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 008, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Nice facilities. Decorated too!;-)
No complaints. Thanks!
Jenise R
VerifiedJuly 7, 2021 β’ Stayed at: 023, Loop: SOUTH KAWISHIWI RIVER
Sites were spacious, bathrooms very clean. Water a little far from campsites but fine.
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.
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| 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. |
