Hog Island Point State Forest Campground

This is a primitive state forest campground right on the shore of Lake Michigan that is larger than most in Michigan. The sites vary in size and shape, but many could accommodate everything from a tent to a small trailer, Class B or truck camper.

It's first-come, first-served so you may end up with an inner site that isn't on the water. But even with 50 sites, it's not a long walk to get to a lake access point.

Keep in mind that when it rains, this place tends to get quite muddy and the sites are mostly grass and dirt. Some sites were a bit unlevel but most seemed pretty good.

There is some road noise if you're in a site closer to the front. But if you're near the lake you won't hear the cars and trucks.

Cell service was low on a Verizon phone (1 bar LTE) but a bit better with our Verizon MiFi (2 bars LTE). Google Fi phone had spotty LTE service that came and went depending on location in the campsite.

We showed up at 11pm and lucked out with a waterfront site. The water is really high so there isn’t much of a beach right now. But the view was gorgeous and it was nice to listen to the waves of Lake Michigan while sleeping. There were several pit toilets, and our site was small, but fit the van perfectly. We had neighbors close by but still felt relatively private.

The sites are first come, first serve, and it’s self registration. There were plenty of open sites when we arrived.

What a gem these State Forest Campground are. They are rustic but the locations are incredible.

Our site had a Lake Michigan million dollar view (seriously). The sites are very private and there is a good variety.

These are all first come first served (no reservations) and in our experience these campgrounds are usually not filled. We were here midweek at the height of the season and literally had our choice of 8 lakeside sites.

Its close to a road but we never heard anything but the waves of lake Michigan which were about 40' from our rig.

Pit toilets...also the one near the beach was the least smelly.

Also...the waves were noisy (but wonderful). If that bugs you, there are plenty of sites not on the lake.

This is a great waterfront site literally 20 steps from the shores of Lake Michigan. No electric, sewer or water, but who cares....lol! It is beautiful! Make sure you plan ahead regarding food, ice, etc. the closest grocery store is 30 minutes away! There is a fresh water well pump on site. Most sites are very private 1st come 1st serve with self checkin.

We're not sure what other reviewers were complaining about because out of about 50 sites at least a dozen would easily fit any big size rig and another dozen of so would fit anything up to 40 ft. We're 52 ft long and walked by many that we could easily fit in, even several pull thrus.

We picked a site along the lake- the water was very high as there as been a lot of flooding in all the lakes.

Not another camper there that night.

If you are out of state there is a $9 fee (unless you have a state pass)

No amenities...just great views and quiet. OH- lots of mosquitos and mayflies, too.

We stayed here one night on the Thursday before Labor Day, in a beautiful spot right on the lake. The campground is on the water side of Rt 2, between mile marker 285 and 286. The sign at the entrance says “Hog Island State Forest Campground” but it is the same as Hog Island Point. The road through the campground is a bit rough. There are 50 sites here, and one on the right as you first drive in (8?) is actually a pull-through that could handle a length of 50 feet (but isn’t on the water). You do hear some road noise from Rt 2 but we aren’t bothered by that. Cell reception with Verizon fluctuated between 1 and 2 bars.

Camped night of 7/7/17.

Fee: $13/night + $9 daily out-of-state Recreation Passport fee

Nice sites, some lakeside, some in wooded areas, most had grass & were mowed. There were a couple group-type sites and 1 pull-through (that we saw). Lakeside sites had short trails to the volcanic rock shoreline. Our site (40) had a nice view of the lake and the small island offshore, with a path to the lake where we could put the kayaks in. Even though the shore was rocky around the campground, there was a nice sand beach on the east side of the campground, off the picnic area.

Water pump in our loop was gone, and the one we found was an old-fashioned hand pump. The water from that was slightly brown, not drinkable.

Sites had a large picnic table & fire ring as shown in the photos. Most sites seemed pretty level.

Mosquitoes were bad in the woods, but not bad by the lake where it was more open and breezy.

Unisex vault toilets were pretty smelly (no deodorizers), but were much better after the rangers came through and maintained them in the morning.

There's a Family Dollar in Naubinway for some basic groceries and a gas station for ice.