From Camp Dearborn 35 minutes out to Sleeping Bear Dunes and Pictured Rocks up north — a Detroit-local list of campgrounds worth towing to.
Tony Marchetti
Tony Used Campers, Detroit
Living on Michigan Ave gives us a good view of where people actually go. These are the runs our customers tow most — sorted by how far you are willing to drive on a Friday after work.
Camp Dearborn sits on 626 acres in Milford with six lakes, and it is about 35 minutes from downtown Detroit. Full hookups, a beach, and enough programming that kids do not ask what there is to do. It books out for holiday weekends — the local crowd knows about it.
Island Lake Recreation Area in Brighton is a state recreation area with a campground loop, a swimming beach and miles of paved trail. Basic sites, no hookups, and a location that makes a one-night turnaround easy.
Pontiac Lake Recreation Area north of Pontiac is the same idea: state-park simple, close enough that you can leave after work and still eat dinner at your own table.
Sterling State Park in Monroe is the closest Michigan state park to Detroit and the only one on Lake Erie's shore. marsh trails, a beach, and a launch if you are towing a boat behind the camper.
Warren Dunes near Sawyer is worth the two hours for one thing: 240-foot dunes over Lake Michigan. Climb them at sunset. Sites are inland of the beach, so bring the wagon.
Muskegon and the state parks along that shore give you the Lake Michigan beach towns without the Traverse City drive — good for a three-day trip.
Traverse City country — including the state parks around the bay — is the drive most of our July customers make. Book early; the good loops go months ahead.
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is a national park in everything but name. The dune climb, the Pierce Stocking scenic drive and the quiet of the Leelanau Peninsula justify the five-hour tow. Campgrounds in the area fill by spring.
Pictured Rocks near Munising is the far end of a Michigan trip — sandstone cliffs, sea caves and the inland lakes. Seven hours from Detroit, and the sort of run where a self-contained camper beats a motel by a mile.
Fort Custer near Kalamazoo holds late into the fall and opens early, which makes it the pick for a May or October weekend when the northern parks are still closed. Holland state park gives you the tulip time crowds and the lake shore in one.
Check the pad length against your rig, confirm the hookup amperage (a 30-amp pedestal will not run two air conditioners), and know your gray and black tank capacity for longer stays without hookups. If you are unsure whether your trailer fits a loop, call the park — they measure, and they will tell you no more honestly than a booking site will.
Pick the campground first, then the route. It is a better way to plan than the other way around — and if you do not have the camper yet, come see what is on the lot. Two hours of highway is an easy first trip in the right unit.
Every unit on the lot passes a 120-point inspection, and you get the report before you pay anything. See what's in stock today.