Upper Campground
Lac Qui Parle State Park
Write a Review 14047 20th St. NW Watson, MN 56295 320-734-4450 Reservations: 866-857-2757 Official WebsiteGPS: 45.0443, -95.879
Overview of Upper Campground
A Minnesota State Parks vehicle permit is required for all vehicles entering state parks and state recreation areas. Daily or annual permits are available and may be purchased online, in-person, at self-service kiosks or by phone. Learn more: Minnesota State Park Vehicle Permit Information
Last Price Paid: $41
Reported by JD on 7/1/2021
Longest RV Reported: 35 feet (Class A)
Reported by JanAndDougS on 7/7/2018
Number of Sites 43
Pad Type gravel
Reservations yes
Open Seasonally April - November
Elevation 1,017 ft / 309 m
Max Stay 14
Tent Camping Yes
Discover a smarter way to RV with Roadtrippers
All your Campendium favorites and more are now in Roadtrippers.
Q&A - Ask the Community about Upper Campground
To ask questions of the owner or manager please contact the campground directly. 320-734-4450
Campendium users haven't asked any questions about Upper Campground
Reviews of Upper Campground 5 people have reviewed this location.
Cell Phone Coverage
Confirmed by 3 Users
Last reported 7/1/2021
Confirmed by 1 User
Last reported 6/24/2017
Confirmed by 2 Users
Last reported 7/2/2023
“Beautiful, Relaxing and Really Friendly 13 Lined Squirrels”
Reviewed 2/19/2024
| Days stayed: | 5 |
|---|
Overall Rating
We were there July 23’. Yes. Water is reddish brown. There are some Full hookup sites. 13 lined squirrels are everywhere and friendly. Saw many varieties of birds. Lots of orioles. I will be back.
Park, Camp & Relax would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“ Beautiful Views Of The Valley”
Reviewed 7/2/2023
| Days stayed: | 3 |
|---|
Overall Rating
Great open view of Lac Qui Parle! Loved our stay
| Access | |
| Location | |
| Cleanliness | |
| Site Quality |
T-Mobile 5G
Rangerrickmn would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Nice campground but no trees and bad water”
Reviewed 7/1/2021
| Nightly rate: | $41 |
|---|---|
| Days stayed: | 5 |
| Site Number: | 10 |
| RV Length: | 26' (Class C) |
Overall Rating
Stayed in the upper campground with full hook-ups end of June 2021. Sites are very spacious and away from neighbors. Zero privacy but with the space between, who cares. We had site 10. Our site was fairly level. Dump station/fill water at the entrance of upper campground. Our site and pretty much all sites in the upper campgrou... more
Stayed in the upper campground with full hook-ups end of June 2021. Sites are very spacious and away from neighbors. Zero privacy but with the space between, who cares. We had site 10. Our site was fairly level. Dump station/fill water at the entrance of upper campground.
Our site and pretty much all sites in the upper campground have zero shade. We had three growing trees that gave our outdoor living space some shade. One tree, years down the road, might actually shade the RV parking spot.
The water is brown and has a very rusty smell. It even stained our shower yellow. Probably the worst water at this point in our travels. Been on the road 1-1/2 years full time. Our under-sink water filter plus our filtered water pitcher were able to eliminate the color and flavor of rust.
We had good cell reception with our Visible/Verizon.
All in all this is a good campground just needs more trees and better water. We camped here for 5 days.
| Access | |
| Location | |
| Cleanliness | |
| Site Quality | |
| Noise |
Verizon 4G
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Beautiful & Relaxing!”
Reviewed 7/7/2018
| Nightly rate: | $33 |
|---|---|
| Days stayed: | 10 |
| Site Number: | U9 |
| RV Length: | 35' (Class A) |
Overall Rating
Watson, MN – Lac Qui Parle State Park – Upper campground What a beautiful park! In early July 2018 we stayed for 10 nights in the upper campground in site U9, which had FHU, 50 amp. The site was large, grassy, with fire ring/grill and picnic table and surrounded by corn fields and prairie with lots of wild flowers. We could see the ... more
Watson, MN – Lac Qui Parle State Park – Upper campground
What a beautiful park! In early July 2018 we stayed for 10 nights in the upper campground in site U9, which had FHU, 50 amp. The site was large, grassy, with fire ring/grill and picnic table and surrounded by corn fields and prairie with lots of wild flowers. We could see the water in some places. Nightly sunsets were spectacular. There is plenty of space between sites. It was a calm and relaxing place. The visitor center was very interesting and the staff was very friendly and helpful. The clerk forgot to take care of our tow vehicle permit but a ranger came by a few days later and took care of it for us. The hiking trails are mown trails through the prairie and woods and were nice to walk through, with the exception of the woodsy area, where the mosquitoes swarmed like crazy. That’s not unexpected given all the rain this area has had. Price was $33/night for FHU plus we paid the annual vehicle permit of $35. There is not much around to do there, Verizon cell was 4G 3-4 bars and OTA digital channels were slim but we very much enjoyed the calming atmosphere, watching the birds and 13 Lined Ground Squirrels. Our only complaint is the water: it has a bad alkaline smell and taste (even with double filters) and leaves a brown stain in the shower. Bring drinking/cooking water with you.
| Access | |
| Location | |
| Cleanliness | |
| Site Quality | |
| Noise |
Verizon 4G
JanAndDougS would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Not a particularly exciting state park”
Reviewed 6/24/2017
| Nightly rate: | $27 |
|---|---|
| Days stayed: | 4 |
Overall Rating
The lower campground is pretty standard for most Minnesota State Parks, with somewhat decent privacy between some of the sites, and the sites aren't necessarily spaced out equally. But, it was absolutely unbearable with mosquitoes. I opened my window to take a picture and, no lie, about 50 of them got in my car. I left and instead camp... more
The lower campground is pretty standard for most Minnesota State Parks, with somewhat decent privacy between some of the sites, and the sites aren't necessarily spaced out equally. But, it was absolutely unbearable with mosquitoes. I opened my window to take a picture and, no lie, about 50 of them got in my car. I left and instead camped at the upper campground. I've heard a lot of people routinely ask to change campgrounds because of this.
The upper campground is newer, with zero privacy between sites. It's obviously intended for RVers, and a few of the spots have great views out of one or both windows. Most sites seemed very level. It was windy almost the entire time I was here, which is good, because while the mosquitoes are better than the lower campground, they're still here. The wind can get very, very strong. Watch children and pets around RV doors because they will slam shut very hard with the wind. I rarely use my stabilizing jacks, but I had to here to get any sleep as the wind shook me.
The lower campground had no cell service on AT&T, Verizon, or T-Mobile.
The upper campground had:
AT&T - very reliable, 52ms ping, 15mbps down, 1mbps up, 4 bars LTE
Verizon: 58ms ping, 2.76mbps down, 1.92mbps up, 3 bars LTE
T-Mobile: 71ms ping, 9.2mbps down, 1.3mbps up, 2 bars LTE
In my opinion, the best sites are the ones at the edge closest to the lake. The pull-through spots (U28e, U33e, and probably U40e) would give your passenger side unobstructed sunset views of the lake. U27e is almost as good, because of the angle.
The park didn't have all that much to do and see, but I do think this is an excellent central location if you're a full-timer with a car, because it's halfway between Montevideo (a decent-sized town with a Walmart) and Ortonville near the South Dakota border (a small town, but has groceries). I enjoyed driving from here up through Milan, Appleton, the Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge, Ortonville, and Big Stone Lake State Park. That park has a campground too, but that state park is even less exciting than Lac qui Parle.
| Access | |
| Location | |
| Cleanliness | |
| Site Quality | |
| Noise |
AT&T 4G
Verizon 4G
T-Mobile 4G
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
Be the first to add a note for Upper Campground!
Be the first to add a video for Upper Campground!
Have you written a blog post about Upper Campground?
Contact us to update this listing.
Amenities
Hookups
- 50 Amp
- 30 Amp
- 20 Amp
- water
- dry camping
- sewer
- Full Hookups
Recreation
- boat ramp
- fishing
- picnic area
- recreation trail
- swimming beach
- water access
Site Amenities
- big rig
- fire ring
- picnic table
- pull thru
Facilities
- cabins
- dump station
- restrooms: flush
- showers
- trash
- water available
Pets
- pets
Nearby RV Rentals
In partnership with
Nearby RV Rentals
In partnership with
3 Reviews
2022 TRAVEL TRAILER
Jayco Jay Flight SLX 7 195RB
$125 /night | Sleeps 3 Guests
8 Reviews
2019 TRAVEL TRAILER
Forest River RV Patriot Edition 26DBH
$135 /night | Sleeps 8 Guests
6 Reviews
2024 TRAVEL TRAILER
Starcraft Autumn Ridge 26BHS
$160 /night | Sleeps 10 Guests
New Listing
2014 FIFTH WHEEL
Forest River RV Crusader 295RST
$141 /night | Sleeps 5 Guests
3 Reviews
2024 TRAVEL TRAILER
Starcraft Autumn Ridge 27BHS
$160 /night | Sleeps 10 Guests
1 Review
2021 TRAVEL TRAILER
Heartland Mallard 32
$134 /night | Sleeps 9 Guests
Nearby
Please select a reason for flagging this item: