I'll be flying into Minneapolis in the afternoon and driving up to Ely, wanted to see if there were any recommended spots to camp on the way up maybe an hour or two out of town.

Thanks,
CGriff

I stayed in Wild River State Park last year. It had nice campsites and it's not too far off the interstate.

There are several state parks up along 35 on your drive north. If you want to get an hour or two out of the city maybe look at St Croix state park, Banning State Park, or Moose Lake State Park. Those are all in that range.

There are plenty of others including 3 more that are closer to the Twin Cities, and Jay Cooke which is closer to Duluth. The problem with those is that they tend to be more popular and fill up fast.

If you are flying in on a weekday you should have no trouble finding a spot or if you're flying in later in the season you should be able to find a spot on a weekend but spots on the weekend during the summer can be hard to find on short notice.

Go the MN DNR website and check out the state parks, you can book and pay for your site online which is highly recommended since there are not more first come first serve sites left anymore.

quote nofish: "There are several state parks up along 35 on your drive north. If you want to get an hour or two out of the city maybe look at St Croix state park, Banning State Park, or Moose Lake State Park. Those are all in that range.


There are plenty of others including 3 more that are closer to the Twin Cities, and Jay Cooke which is closer to Duluth. The problem with those is that they tend to be more popular and fill up fast.


If you are flying in on a weekday you should have no trouble finding a spot or if you're flying in later in the season you should be able to find a spot on a weekend but spots on the weekend during the summer can be hard to find on short notice.


Go the MN DNR website and check out the state parks, you can book and pay for your site online which is highly recommended since there are not more first come first serve sites left anymore."

Thanks, I'll be coming in on a Wed the last week of Sept. so I wouldn't think availability would be an issue. I'll take a look at the parks you recommended, one in particular you might like?

They all have their advantages and disadvantages.

St. Croix is probably the worst of the actual campgrounds due to a big blow down a few years back. But its also one of the easier ones to find a site. The river provides some good canoe opportunities.

Banning has the kettle river flowing through the park and its a pretty nice hike along it. I haven't stayed at the campground so can't comment a lot of it but I'm sure its decent.

Moose Lake is a rather simple park with decent campground and a lake to play on but its nothing special in my mind. When I've stayed here its been used as more of a jumping off point to check out other areas when I couldn't get an open site at other parks.

If you're just going to be there for a night and just need a place to crash any of them would work but I'd probably go with Banning as its a little prettier and also close to 35.

quote nofish: "They all have their advantages and disadvantages.


St. Croix is probably the worst of the actual campgrounds due to a big blow down a few years back. But its also one of the easier ones to find a site. The river provides some good canoe opportunities.


Banning has the kettle river flowing through the park and its a pretty nice hike along it. I haven't stayed at the campground so can't comment a lot of it but I'm sure its decent.


Moose Lake is a rather simple park with decent campground and a lake to play on but its nothing special in my mind. When I've stayed here its been used as more of a jumping off point to check out other areas when I couldn't get an open site at other parks.


If you're just going to be there for a night and just need a place to crash any of them would work but I'd probably go with Banning as its a little prettier and also close to 35."

Thanks for the info, I ended up booking the camper cabin at Banning. Figured I'd spoil myself the first night to get my things sorted before heading up to ely.

Good call on the camper cabin. They are simple but comfortable and it will be a nice spot to get your last bit of gear in order before the trip. Best part is you don't have to worry about it raining that night and getting your tent wet. Not fun to start a trip with already wet gear.

quote nofish: "Best part is you don't have to worry about it raining that night and getting your tent wet. Not fun to start a trip with already wet gear.
"

My thoughts exactly.

There's a short hike from the campground to Wolf Creek Falls which is a really pretty little spot. Get up early and bring a cup of coffee with you, you will enjoy it.

quote lindylair: "There's a short hike from the campground to Wolf Creek Falls which is a really pretty little spot. Get up early and bring a cup of coffee with you, you will enjoy it.



"

Wonderful! I'll be sure to check it out. Thanks for the tip.

quote jacobf: "I stayed in Wild River State Park last year. It had nice campsites and it's not too far off the interstate."

Agree. Some sites with electric--most sites nicely spaced. Alongside the St. Croix river. This campground has cold water showers.

Wolf Creek Falls is where we would go when we skipped school. Haven't seen it in a while. Bring a rod and rapala along; plenty of fish in there.

quote lundojam: "Wolf Creek Falls is where we would go when we skipped school. Haven't seen it in a while. Bring a rod and rapala along; plenty of fish in there."

Good to know, I'll definitely have my rod with me!