Barnes County Park Campground

This is a quaint county park off Hwy 31 in Eastport, Michigan. The campground has 70+ sites, tent and RV accessible. Some of the sites are smaller than others, but for the most part any size rig would fit easily in at least a few spots. The spots are either gravel or sand depending on which one you choose. We were on site #20 for a week in early September 2018 and it was great. A little further to the beach, but the site was level and we had a ton of room for our 30’ travel trailer. They have nice fire pits at each site, although they were built a little high. There is a gentleman down the road that sells great firewood for $12 for a wheelbarrow full. The wood was hard and big pieces, so they took a long time to burn. We had three fires with our wheelbarrow full and probably could have stretched it to four fires. Most of the sites have electricity hookups although some are primitive. Having electricity was good because the trees would have severely hindered our solar. There were only 1-2 sites that were open to the sun and they were located next to the shower facilities. Access to the beach was a great perk. There are two access points, one with no stairs and one with. We always used the stairs so can’t speak to the other method. There is a spigot to wash your feet when you come up the one with stairs. The beach was rocky but nice. It was never busy and peaceful. It rained several days while we were there, and our site did not flood. The rest of the time we had beautiful weather. All the roads in are paved and it was easy to find. The park has some sites that are reservable, but most are first come first serve. We did not care much for the layout of the reservation sites. They are a bit close together and cramped for our liking. We had no trouble getting a spot so glad we didn’t reserve. It did get busy on the weekends so arriving on a weekday is best. We arrived on Labor Day and had plenty of spots to choose from. When you arrive, choose a spot and setup. Checkout is 12:00, but check-in is whenever you arrive. You can go to the office after setting up and pay either in person or they have an envelope system if there is no one at the office. There are also maps right by the envelopes. They also come around in the evenings and take money. They do not issue refunds so if you have any doubts pay a day at a time. The staff is nice and accommodating. Cell service was spotty for us on AT&T, but we used our hotspot and was able to get decent internet. We had 1-2 bars 4G LTE most of the time. We wouldn’t have had much of anything without the hotspot. The Verizon hotspot did much better and we had 5 bars 4G LTE. The campground has potable water and a dump station. The water was a brown color and did have a funky taste despite filtering twice, but it was drinkable. The water is right next to the dump station and is labeled nicely. To access both, you must circle around most of the campground. The campground is beautiful with all the trees. It is quiet and very relaxing. We spent some time outside with the hammocks and it was great. The campground is about 40 minutes from Traverse City and about 20 to Charlevoix. We visited both cities and would recommend going to them at least one day during your stay. There is a corner grocery store not far from the campsite that everyone said you could get what you need, but we did not take advantage. We went to the grocery in Charlevoix when were there one day. The cost was a little steep at $30 night for electricity only, but the scenery and easy access to the lake made it worth it. We would recommend this campground and would stay again if ever in the area again.

This campground is run by the county, so you do not need to pay additional entrance fees if you are from out of state or don't have a Michigan Recreation Passport. The sites vary widely in size, levelness and quality. The park was probably about 30% full mid-week right after Labor Day and we were able to get a large wooded site with lots of privacy on first come first serve basis. Some sites have views of Lake Michigan. There is a narrow rocky beach that is great for finding Petoskey and Charlevoix stones and watching sunsets, however signs warned of swimming due to deep water. The showers are 50 cents for 5 minutes and were hot, but water has strong well water scent so we skipped filling out tanks here. There is an older playground on site and access to paved and unpaved biking trails. We did have our EMS shut off once due to low voltage and also got a bad fruit fly infestation when we left our ceiling vents open (even with MaxAir covers on).

This is a nice park and we plan to go back to stay there again. We were on site #60. This was a more private site with lots of trees. We were near a steep path down to the beach. We went down to the beach at least 3 times a day for a morning walk, afternoon walk and then sunset. There are some sites that are walk in tent only with no power. Most sites are electric only. There is water fill and dump station. The water is a little hard, but usable. There are 2 restroom facilities. One of them has 4 coin operated showers. Showers are 50 cents. Even though we have a shower in our RV, we did use the park showers once just to be able to review them. The facilities were kept clean and the shower had good pressure and worked well. The time was more than sufficient for a shower. There is good Petoskey stone hunting on the beach. There is a small gas station convenience store about 1/4 mile away. Our lot was spacious and fairly level. We wished we would have pulled into the site vs. backing in. Our door would have then opened up to more usable space. Some of the sites had a lot of roots, some were small and some were not very level, but most were nice. Use the park guid with the size of your RV when you make a reservation.

This campground has lots of advantages. Lots of nice big trees, large lots, steps down to the lake are not too steep or too many. It has nice walking trails. Lovely beach. Located between two nice towns- Elk Rapids and Charlevoix. Now for the things to know - Have your own water source. There is only one place for the whole camp to get potable water and it is yellow. The bathrooms are merely ok. The beach has lots of stones which is fun IF you are a rock hound. (I am) You will need a way to get through the rocks in the water to swim in the lake The rocks will hurt your feet so wear water shoes of some sort if you want to swim. There was an bad Alewife fish die off while we were there this spring but that wasn’t their fault. We are happily going back to camp this Sept. We had a tent and we used a hotspot to access internet on our tablets. Staff was very nice. Lots of kids riding bikes. Voices carry. No refunds for cancellations after 14 days. And few other quirky rules.