One reason it’s so empty (there are only a handful of other campers in the 66-site camp ground) is that the whole campground gets shut down for the season tomorrow. That’s where we are now as I write this post. ![]() We wanted solitude so we moved on, eventually coming to the larger Brevoort Lake Campground, located in the Hiawatha National Forest. There were also tenters on two of the sites. We visited the north unit, of about 20 sites. There are two units here, a south and north unit. We hiked around for a half hour before moving on.įrom there it was the Little Brevoort Lake State Campground. We never could find the river and it looked like it would be very buggy in the summer. It has 12 sites for tents or small trailers or Class B motorhomes but it was also empty when we arrived. Next stop for us was the Black River campground, located seven miles northeast of the small town of Naubinway. We would have gladly spent the night but we wanted to push east and check out the several other state campgrounds off US-2, The path at Big Knob leading from the campsite to the beach Maybe because of the long, curving six mile road leading through the woods, we never thought of turning off the state highway. This is one of the nicest boondocking campgrounds we have ever seen and we never knew it existed, even though we have driven past it dozens of times. The beach at Big Knob State Campgroundīecause we were alone, I let Bo off leash and he romped and frolicked in the water and sand as Jennifer and I explored. Not a soul was there and we had our pick of 23 sites, several of which backed up to a sandy trail leading to Lake Michigan and one of the longest stretches of wild an undeveloped shoreline we have ever seen on that Great Lake. ![]() We were stunned at the beauty of the place and just played there for a couple of hours. Its a perfect way to sretch your legs after lots of time behind the wheelĪ half hour down the road, we came to the first boondocking spot to check out – the Big Knob State Forest Campground, six miles south of US-2. The city has a great boardwalk and paved tril that parallels Lake Michigan. Huge Lake Trout can be seen in Kitch-iti-kipi’s crystal clear waterįrom there, we made our way into Manistique and the first of Bo’s many hikes. Huge lake trout circled below us as the bubbling spring created ever-changing shapes and forms. Jennifer and I and Bo were the only ones to get on the self-piloting raft that takes you slowly across the spring, allowing you to look down in the crystal clear water. The beauty of the Palm Brook State Park’s Kitch-iti-kipi Springįrost was still on the ground as we arrived and the water was as flat as glass, perfectly mirroring the towering cedars as oaks that line its back. The flow continues throughout the year at a constant 45 degree Fahrenheit. Over 10,000 gallons a minute gush from fissures in the underlying limestone. Two hundred feet across, the 40-foot deep Kitch-iti-kipi is Michigan’s largest freshwater spring. There is no camping here but it’s a must see any time you are in the area, no matter how many times you have seen it. I turned the huge wheel that pulled the observation raft across the spring ![]() The temperature dropped overnight to 27 degrees but we were warm and cozy and most appreciative of the heated floors from our Roadtrek’s Alde hydronic heating systemįriday morning, we drove a half dozen miles to the northwest to the Palm Book State Park to visit one of our favorite UP stops and one of Michigan’s most alluring natural attractions - Kitch-iti-kipi - The Big Spring. ![]() Our spot was quiet and lakefront, with no one near us. The park had electric hookups but with 650 watts of solar panels and our huge bank of lithium batteries on our Roadtrek CS Adventurous XL, we seldom need to plug in. Our first spot Thursday was the Indian Lake State Park, north of Manistique. You can read about that in this previous post.īut instead of heading straight home, Jennifer and I decided to boondock our way back, taking our time and checking out backroad camping spots for future visits. We spent four days with a group of other Roadtrekers in the primitive (no hookups) Presque Isle campground in the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park. It’s been a week without plugging into electricity as we’ve traveled across the UP, enjoying the beautiful colors and staying in remote or near empty state and federal campgrounds.
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