Campground Reviews

By JORDAN & ZARA PRIDE

mclain State Park Campground is a beautiful location nestled in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, right at the corridor of the Keweenaw. It's an excellent place to stay at if you plan on sight-seeing the surrounding areas as it's quite in the middle of everywhere you may want to explore. Mclain State Park is secluded, but ideally located in the center of all of the Peninsula's fun activities, and it's only a one hour drive to the furthest reaches of the Keweenaw.

A great way to start your local sightseeing trip is by visiting the A.E. Seamen Mineral Museum of Michigan located in Houghton, where you can view the largest public exhibit of Great Lakes rocks & minerals. Perhaps metal detecting and mineral hunting sounds exciting; plan a day trip to one of the many tailing piles heading toward Copper Harbor. If yooperlite or agate hunting excites you, head out to Gratiot River County Park in Allouez or one of the many beaches located on the Michigan Rockhounds map on our website.

Mclain is a wonderful state park with humble beginnings as a small roadside campground in 1929. Today, its 443 acres offers hiking trails, fishing, berry picking, swimming, & beach-combing.

You can rockhound right there on the shoreline where there is often a lovely array of rocks, though a sandy vs rocky beach depends on water levels and erosion.

Some of the fun rocks you can discover along the shore are quartz, chalcedony, sandstone, agates, & more.

Mclain welcomes tent & RV camping, with over 100 sites available. The campground also has on-site showers, potable water, and picnic tables. A unique feature to Mclain State Park Campground is an automated 70 ft tall offshore lighthouse, the Keweenaw Waterway Upper Entrance Light, built in 1950. It's highly recommended to make reservations ahead of your trip, and if Mclain is all booked, we recommend staying at Twin Lakes State Park located in Toivola. Or if you are heading further north into the Keweenaw, check out the historical Ft. Wilkins State Park located in Copper Harbor. Both of these recommended campgrounds will be covered in later Rockbound issues so stay tuned!

So whether you're searching for a great campground to return to after a long day of adventuring, or a destination campground that has everything you desire, Mclain State Park Campground is the best centrally located hub when you want to access all of the Keweenaw.