Colwell Lake Campground, MI - Latest Reviews, Photos & Campground Map

Colwell Lake Campground is located in the Manistique Ranger District, Hiawatha National Forest (3 hrs 58 min northwest of Traverse City, MI) with an elevation of 754 feet. There are a total of 43 campsites including 3 tent-only sites. The campground is normally open from mid May to the beginning of October. 34 sites can accommodate RVs and trailers between 40 and 60 feet. All sites are currently reservable. Reservations can be booked up to 6 months in advance. 5 sites have electric hookups. Fees range from $20.00 to $60.00. Some amenities include dump station, boat ramp, swimming. Activities include boating, fishing, hiking trails, floating sports.

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Campground Capacity (Next 30 Days)

Campsite Reviews (90)

4.7 out of 5

5 star		78%
4 star		14%
3 star		3%
2 star		4%
1 star		0%

@KenK5951313 · Camped on Jul 16, 2025 at Campsite #31

Favorite campground. Been going for over 25 years. Hosts are great. Bathrooms are always clean. But the state needs to do some maintenance. Entrance road is full of potholes, some 6 inches deep. The water to fill your tank and clean your sewer hose doesn't work. You have to fill up at the host's site. The water pump by the group site didn't work for a couple years but was fixed this last trip. The fishing pier has been damaged for several years as well.

@ToniaLEAE0651C · Camped on Jul 10, 2025 at Campsite #GP

Love the group site!

@DennisC7595884 · Camped on Jul 7, 2025 at Campsite #30

Nice lake, campsites are well maintained, nice trail around the lake.

@ElaineC4172EB3 · Camped on Jul 2, 2025 at Campsite #6

Our family time was great but the park definitely needs some help. The road coming into the campground was filled with potholes all the way in !! There was no available water at the dump station, no way to rinse hoses or clean the cement area. Very unsanitary conditions.

@DustinL9823734 · Camped on Jul 2, 2025 at Campsite #31

Nice quiet, clean, campground in middle of many POI

@JoshuaK6829587 · Camped on Jun 6, 2025 at Campsite #10

Great sites fairly quiet for a rustic campground and good fishing.

@TheresaC171119 · Camped on Jun 6, 2025 at Campsite #18

The host are wonderful, only bad thing I can say is the road coming into Colwell lake is horrible bad, not the host fault but the forestry, please fix them before everyone trailer get ruined

@KelleyC3228358 · Camped on Jun 5, 2025 at Campsite #6

Very well kept campground.

@PatriciaG56300 · Camped on May 30, 2025 at Campsite #31

The sites are large, fairly private & close to the water which is perfect for kayaks/canoes & casting a line. They also have a fishing peir & boat launch. If you're tenting beware; the gravel pad is as hard as cement!! I could not pound stakes in to it to secure our mat, even with a hammer!! You are not allowed to set anything up on the grass, this includes our screen tent. Our neighbors were forced to take theirs down & it was very buggie once the wind died down!! They checked out early. The host said that they (FFS "Brenda") are trying to grow the grass, although there is no sign of grass seed or fertilizer. It's a nice thought but, come on, it's a campsite in the midst of a forrest not a park that gets lots of sunshine to help the grass grow!! This is a rustic campground with pit toilets, water, a few electric sites plus a sanitation station. The hosts take very good care of the campground & the toilets are very clean. We love it but you should be able to utilize your entire site!! I am wondering if this rule is a FFS rule or a personal one. ??

@MelissaP943882 · Camped on Sep 19, 2024 at Campsite #4

Excellent Hosts!

@LawrenceE1DDBB · Camped on Sep 11, 2024 at Campsite #18

Very peaceful, relaxing campground.

@PeterP6271166 · Camped on Sep 3, 2024 at Campsite #16

We love camping at this campground! The sites are very nice and kept clean.The bathrooms are c!eaned and checked daily.The walking trail is definitely a bonus! The camp hosts, Carol and Jerry Heston, were amazing! They did a wonderful job.They are both very friendly, made you welcome, checked on every campsite and made your camping adventure truly memorable.We would like to see a few more electric sites available.As you get older, it is harder to deal with a generator.Our only complaint is that the road into the campground is terrible.Would love to see it fixed.

@DanW8978335 · Camped on Aug 29, 2024 at Campsite #25

The campground is 5 star but unfortunately other campers really ruined the experience. Loud music at a campsite in the evenings and people with a loud boat on a lake that should really be a no-wake lake. The sites were large and easy to back into with a fifth wheel. Site 25 is listed as pull-through but it is a back in site..

@RichardS712869 · Camped on Aug 29, 2024 at Campsite #13

I had to scold the Host for doing such a good job cleaning the vault toilets, It made the last campground I stayed in look so awful! I was there over Labor day Weekend and the kids and parents were all having a ton of fun. Not the quietest weekend, but you have to expect that. Love the 2 mile trail around the lake and the individual beach we had at our site (Every Site). Nice forest trails just out off the main road and City comforts were just 15 miles away.

@SteveE7846862 · Camped on Aug 14, 2024 at Campsite #2

Had again another great experience at Colwell Lake. As always the host are very friendly and helpful.

@EdwardG4063779 · Camped on Aug 7, 2024 at Campsite #25

Our dog was attacked. No size or breed limits. Half wolf dog allowed to snarl and bark all day at anyone or anything. Great Dane attacked our dog with no repercussion from the host. Dogs allowed to bark all day. Very noisy. Trash and beer cans and bottles around our campsite. ATVs drive right past the no atv sign and driving thru the campground. This is allowed by host. No trash cans at dump station. All trash receptacles are in middle of campground and smells like a dump. Bathrooms are clean.

@WendyZC33E56CE · Camped on Jul 24, 2024 at Campsite #12

Sites are private. This is a very quiet campground. We were pleased at how clean everything was kept, most impressed by the cleanliness of the pit toilets (we all know how gross those can be). We are looking forward to making this an annual camping destination.

@SteveN82C23E0C · Camped on Jul 22, 2024 at Campsite #2

This place is amazing. Gorgeous beach, lovely nature trail that winds all the way around the lake. The camp hosts, Carol and Jerry take a lot of pride in keeping this campground pristine. The bathrooms are the cleanest we've ever found. They enforce the rules, without ruffling feathers, somehow. Just really good folks. This is, by far, our favorite little vacation spot in the Upper Penninsula

@JonP6814701 · Camped on Jul 21, 2024 at Campsite #2

This is a great campground! Very spacious and level gravel sites with electricity, What made this campground great was its focus on access to Colwell Lake via a trail that went all the way around the lake, well maintained brush that felt natural, but allowed full view of the lake while having a nice forest walk. Even the bugs seemed less bothersome that most of the the other campgrounds we stayed at during our last journey in July.

@DonaldS2271497 · Camped on Jul 14, 2024 at Campsite #30

This is the best rustic campground in Michigan. Each site has it's own beach on the lake.

@BreannaE3DBE16 · Camped on Jul 3, 2024 at Campsite #9

The hosts are wonderful! They were very accommodating and helpful. This is our favorite campground to camp at! Bathrooms and beach are always clean!

@SteveE7846862 · Camped on Jun 30, 2024 at Campsite #8

We love Colwell Lake. The hosts are extremely friendly and made our stay memorable.

@MeriSueE8AEBC9 · Camped on Jun 24, 2024 at Campsite #10

Very nice campground. The campground host was very friendly and helpful.

@JamesP5278675 · Camped on Jun 12, 2024 at Campsite #31

Very clean, camp host were very helpful and kept the grounds perfect. Would deffiantly would stay there again

@RichardE734484 · Camped on Jun 5, 2024 at Campsite #24

The bathrooms and beach are always kept clean. Each site has privacy. The hosts are very helpful and accommodating.

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Colwell Lake Campground, MI - Latest Reviews, Photos & Campground Map

Colwell Lake

Campground Capacity (Next 30 Days)

Campsite Reviews (90)

4.7 out of 5

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