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Old 04-03-2011, 08:59 PM
 
24 posts, read 44,372 times
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A group of friends and myself are trying to plan a camping trip but we are not sure where we should go. We would like to be in a quiet secluded place where we can "rough" it for a few days. We would like to stay only a couple hours from the Detroit area. We would be hiking, and would like to be in a wooded area. Any help on where we could stay where we would be able to have a open fire and camp out for a few days without being bugged, would be greatly appreciated. Thanks ahead of time.
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Old 04-04-2011, 06:26 AM
 
Location: Loving life in Gaylord!
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Your best bet that close to Detroit may be the Pinckney State Recreation Area...or Waterloo State Recreation Area. We've stayed at both...at both are real nice. But....if your only willing to go a few hours from Detroit you most likely wont find a whole lot of seclusion.
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Old 04-04-2011, 12:52 PM
 
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Consider the Sarnia area and beyond. There is great camping around the lakes in Canada and it's within a couple of hours.
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Old 04-04-2011, 06:13 PM
 
Location: west mich
5,739 posts, read 6,933,177 times
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The Sleeping Bear walk-in sites. Beautiful, secluded, near the lake. How fast can you drive?
Campgrounds In Sleeping Bear Dunes, Michigan | LIVESTRONG.COM
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore - Backcountry Camping (U.S. National Park Service)
This is closer:
Pine Valleys Pathway - Pere Marquette State Forest - Michigan Trail Maps
Your privacy will also depend on WHEN you go.

Last edited by detwahDJ; 04-04-2011 at 06:30 PM..
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Old 04-05-2011, 06:38 PM
 
Location: west mich
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Okay, my previous suggestions were too far away if you must be within 100 or so miles of Detroit, but they are really nice if you can swing it. BTW I AM familiar with both east and west Michigan, lived and traveled in both places.
The choices close to Detroit are the "recreation areas" (Waterloo, Brighton, Island Lake, Pinckney, Proud Lake, Holly). You can google for camping info or explore these with Bing Maps. There are others which are apt to be more crowded.
http://www.michigandnr.com/parksandtrails/parkmap.aspx
http://www.trails.com/stateactivity....m=terrain&a=HK
http://www.michigan.org/Things-to-Do....aspx?city=G42
If you want more privacy and solitude, you need state or national forest campgrounds, which are not nearby. If you need no facilities, you can camp off road in the natl forests with certain rules.
Canada may be the best option but others know more about that.
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Old 04-05-2011, 07:31 PM
 
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Pinckney recreation area has rustic camping and is close to Detroit.
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Old 04-05-2011, 09:27 PM
 
Location: Somewhere below Mason/Dixon
9,470 posts, read 10,800,718 times
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Sleepy Hollow State park is about 100 miles or 1.5 hours drive from the Detroit area.(Laingsburg Mi) It is rustic, has a wooded setting and there is a trail system to hike. The lake is nice and it has decent fishing. The state park has a fishing dock if you do not have a boat. It is a bit of a drive for you, but 100 miles is easy. Ionia State recreation area is very similar to Sleepy hollow, its a little bit further out yet. The only way you will get a true rustic setting is to drive out AT LEAST 70 miles away from Detroit.
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Old 04-06-2011, 11:05 AM
 
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Thank you all for the responses all are greatly appreciated. After looking into it I really like North Manitou Island but that may be a bit to far to drive. I have been to Pinckney before on the bike trials which I liked a lot. Any other suggestions would be great.
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Old 04-06-2011, 08:01 PM
 
Location: west mich
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Hate to tell you stuff you may already know, but "rustic" Michigan really starts at Mason County northward.
A secluded place to consider is the Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness in Mason County. Off-trail camping is allowed. It abuts Ludington state park (gorgeous but busy), has miles of Lake Michigan beach with trail access only. Camping is at Lake Michigan rec area or anywhere in the Manistee natl forest. Supplies etc. are in Ludington and Manistee. More googleinfo than I can possibly post, so just some links with pix.
Forum:
//www.city-data.com/forum/michi...t-camping.html
Links:
http://michigan.sierraclub.org/huron...Spring2010.pdf
Albert Lee - Assorted Crap: Nordhouse Dunes, Part 1
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore - Camping - US-Parks.com
The lakeshore dunes:
file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-5.png (broken link)http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jensenl/visuals/album/2006/north/
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Old 04-08-2011, 06:50 AM
 
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Honestly, if you want real camping you have to go to the northern half of the lower peninsula at least, or the UP. Grayling, Tahquamenon Falls, etc. I'm not aware of any great camping spots south of Lansing, but I'm sure there are some.
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