Mouth of Two Hearted River State Forest Campground

Long remote stone road drive into this Hemingwayesque fishing camp. Beautiful river, swinging bridge across it, canoe livery up the road, small number of tightly spaced fishing camp. People and nice and friendly, fishing good from shore of river or beach and best if you have a boat.

Surrounding area for miles recovering from a devastating forest fire the fall/winter of 2011-12. Miles of beaches for walking and wonderful wildlife watching. Autumn is an excellent time here.

We checked out Mouth Of The Two Hearted River Campground on the DNR site. It looked great! We checked out Rainbow Lodge site which was nearby and that looked great too. Both had great reviews, so we decided to go see it and camp there. Less than a week later, we set out to get there. It was a charred, depressing, desolate mess of a forest, with crazy, wanky dirt roads that lead to nowhere. It was desolate. It looked like the old pictures of the Siberian Explosion aftermath, only worse. The roads were impossible to navigate. WARNING: Unless you have a great, reliable truck, DO NOT attempt to drive these roads. We got stuck in the sandy road, and had to get out to push the car. Not a soul for miles, no phone service. Stranded!!! We finally made it to the Rainbow Lodge only to find it was CLOSED down. They did not even have the consideration to mention it on their website! The DNR did not even mention that the campsite was dangerous, and inaccessible by regular car, besides the fact that we later found out the campground was also closed. The DNR and owners of the Rainbow Lodge could have been more considerate of any would be tourists. I only wish I would have taken photos of the depressing sight just to show others who might be considering going there. However, I was too terrified at the thought of getting stranded that we drove like hell to get back to a normal road. NEVER again!

This camp site was an adventure to reach, in the best possible way. Yes, it entails a bit of a trek on dirt roads, but they are wide and easily accessible. We took an old SUV with no problems, and saw that other campers had made the drive with small cars. The drive in offers a surreal experience of how nature bounces back after a devastating forest fire. I really can't emphasize enough how eerily beautiful the area surrounding the camp is. I had never seen anything quite like it, and it made our stay a stand out experience. Once on the dirt roads leading in, signage for the campground wasn't ideal, but with some common sense and a good attitude we had little problem finding the site.

There isn't cell phone service in that area, which didn't bother us. It is somewhat remote, but we passed a number of vehicles and ATVs on their way through the many tracks and trails through the area. There are multiple shaded camping sites with quick & easy access to a Lake Superior beach and more sites further back into a more heavily wooded area. We camped in the back on a site with spots for multiple tents, plenty of shade and easy access to vault toilets, which were clean. Nice picnic table and fire pit, with a thin layer of pine needles off the center of the site, perfect for tent sleeping. It was wonderfully quiet.

The best part of our site was a trail access that led through pine to the mouth of the river as it spills into Lake Superior. Presumably, a berm was built to keep the forest fire from burning the campground, and a steady breeze off of it through the trees at our campsite was perfect for keeping away the dreaded black flies that swarmed closer to the lake. The only negative was the black flies, which made long stays at the beach a challenge, but that is part of the territory camping in the UP this time of year.

I enjoyed nearly every aspect of camping here. From the drive in, the site itself, trails leading through, access to both river and lake. We will definitely return.

The beach was absolutely beautiful. I gave the campground four stars because there were piles and piles of trash around the dumpsters. Of course, the only available spots were near the dumpsters. I was afraid the trash would attract animals. I took a few videos and pictures of the beach. Watch day 7 of my trip.

Michigan Road Trip - Family Vacation 2016: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLi7JF5TWttNWLYJuM4UlDZUlNg_uz7BIc

Probably my favorite campground in the state of Michigan so far. Great, fun drive down winding sandy roads (probably not a good idea to take a car, but you could if you're careful. But why would you own a car anyway when you could own a truck?) I have seen pictures of campers parked here, but you better know the best route before trying it. Beautiful and remote, but still accessible by vehicle. Awesome beach. Fascinating to look at and think about the destruction caused by the forest fire. The pit toilets and the campground were clean (of course the season hadn't started yet). My biggest problem with this campground, is that too many people know about it.

This was the highlight of our trip to the eastern Portion of the UP. It rained a lot the night before we drove in. There were very large puddles of water on the road. Don’t attempt in rain without 4x4.
We arrived at 11am on a Friday and all sites were taken for the weekend except 1. Plan to arrive mid week for a guaranteed spot. Some sites have trails to the beach. There is a suspension bridge for others to access the beach. The beach is gorgeous. We were there early July and every day was breezy and cool. We hiked a trail Through the burned forest near the campground. We find beauty in burned forests. I understand some may not. The campground is amply shaded. Potable water from the well tasted great. Bathrooms were typical pit toilets. It took us about an hour to drive in to where we had cell service.

Very beautiful and peaceful area, however very remote with poor road conditions. Plan an hour to get to any paved road. Be sure to visit Crisp Point lighthouse it’s a gem but very remote, you can go up into the lighthouse for free. We were traveling in a camper van, I don’t recommend larger rv’s and travel trailers to either of these areas. Roads are mostly dirt and sand.

Let's just say I accidentally took an off-road vehicle trail to the campground! I 100% thought I was going to die.. But GOD willing I hauled ass in my Mitsubishi Outlander (4×4 worked great)!! Thanks be to Jesus.. I made it .. Words of advice.. Ask the locals for directions cause Google Maps isn't real helpful in the UP. There is a reason this is called God's Country. The historical fire 10 years ago wiped the landscape canvas and new Jack pines are starting to pop up. Quite enchanting. The campground itself was truly spared and has 36 first come sights. Arrived on a Thursday and 10 were available. The mighty Lake Superior will lull you to sleep at night. The coastline is phenomenal and the sunrise and sunsets are priceless. No cell service - which for me was refreshing. If you truly want a rustic adventure, this campground is perfect!! An annual pass is 17$ in addition to nightly rate (if you don't have one).