Lake Margrethe State Forest Campground

Location: 6.3 miles West of Grayling, Michigan via M-72 & McIntyres Landing Road. Click HERE for map.

Description: 37 sites for tent or small trailer use. Located on Lake Margrethe with fishing and boating. Manistee and Au Sable Rivers offer good canoeing opportunities. Closest canoe rental in Grayling (5 miles East). State Forest Pathways: Mason Tract (13 miles SE): 11.5 miles of slightly hilly terrain. Hike, cross-country ski. Closed to bicycling due to erosion and safety concerns. Off-Road Vehicle Trails/Routes: Frederic Loop Trail (5 miles North):29 miles of cycle/ATV trail and 9 miles of full-sized vehicle route. Universally accessible toilets, wells, and fire rings. Rustic campground includes vault toilets and potable water from well hand pump. Sites available on a first-come, first-serve basis. No reservations. $10 camping fee per night.


This is probably the best campground we've been to so far. We had a really nice time here. We got our camp set up before 6pm. So we had a chance to eat dinner and take a nice walk around the campground. It's set right on beautiful Lake Margrethe, so if you have a boat, be sure to bring it. There's a small picnic area with a tiny beach for swimmers. We waited till after sundown to go lay in the sand and look up at the millions of stars. You never realize how many stars there are until you're well out of the city and away from the light pollution. The next morning we got up pretty early, again Kara wasn't feeling well and was freezing to death. We just didn't realize how cold it would get out in the woods. We also know now that you shouldn't go to sleep in the clothes you wore during the day. You need to wear dry , fresh clothes to bed to keep warm. All in all we had a great time and got some nice pictures.


GRADE: A

Date Visited: August 14, 2004