South Kawishiwi River Campground, Ely, MN

South Kawishiwi River Campground is located in the Kawishiwi Ranger District, Superior National Forest (1 hr 46 min north of Duluth, MN) with an elevation of 1,477 feet. There are a total of 30 campsites. The campground is normally open from the beginning of May to the end of September. 29 sites can accommodate RVs and trailers between 40 and 107 feet. All sites are currently reservable. Reservations can be booked up to 6 months in advance. 23 sites have electric hookups. Fees range from $20.00 to $162.00. Some amenities include boat ramp, swimming. Activities include biking, boating, fishing, hiking trails, floating sports.

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47.81542, -91.73251
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(218) 365-2963 (Information)
(218) 235-1299 (Reservations)
$20 - $162

Campsite Reviews (70)

4.6 out of 5

5 star		69%
4 star		23%
3 star		7%
2 star		1%
1 star		0%

@DavidW7736336 · Camped on Sep 25, 2024 at Campsite #23

I travel and seek out USFS campgrounds to camp in. The vault toilets at this campground are by far the cleanest and most well maintained that I have ever been in.

@JannaK9AD46E8A · Camped on Aug 8, 2024 at Campsite #26

Lovely setting. The camp hosts are great - friendly, helpful, the restrooms are very clean, and reserved sites are clearly posted and up-to-date.

@LisaP2727528 · Camped on Aug 6, 2024 at Campsite #29

Beautiful river to swim in. Clean bathrooms, excellent sites. Very well kept campground.

@DaveM7344120 · Camped on Jul 14, 2024 at Campsite #1

Clean vault outhouse and really nice campsites with a lot of privacy. The state person that was in charge stopped by to see how we were doing and tell us a little about the area. Hope to visit this place again.

@PaigeW7310088 · Camped on Jul 11, 2024 at Campsite #12

Amazing camp ground. Nice beach, toilets are very clean and well maintained. We would definitely stay here again.

@michaelg734741 · Camped on Jun 10, 2024 at Campsite #9

Gnats and Mosquitos were so bad you couldn't open your mouth outside, and not anyone's fault it rained all three days.Sites ( driveways) very small. Our in-laws couldn't even put their awning out. With rain, not convenient.

@PamH8101196 · Camped on May 28, 2024 at Campsite #26

Weve waited awhile to get reservations. Could never get in on weekends so had to wait for retirement and go during the week.Definitely worth the wait! So quiet, peaceful, great fishing and wonderful weather.

@NancyZE7152E89 · Camped on Sep 19, 2023 at Campsite #5

This campground is along the S. Kawishiwi River and provides great access to the water. It is very clean and well kept.The outhouses are always clean. The sites offer a fair amount of variety whether tenting or using some sort of RV. Dan, the campground host, will go out of his way to help you. He is quite conscientious about his duties and will take extra effort to assist you. He does an evening check to keep a quiet, well-kept campground. This campground is a hidden gem.

@RichardR254074 · Camped on Sep 16, 2023 at Campsite #4

The camp host was not very helpful. Very hard to get ahold of.

@catrinamA970C4 · Camped on Sep 15, 2023 at Campsite #9

Beautiful camp area, love how each site is laid out and no matter which site you choose its an easy walk to the river

@ToddB2939544 · Camped on Aug 22, 2023 at Campsite #26

Beautiful, scenic campsite. Clean site and restrooms. We enjoy Kawishiwi Campground so much.

@LanceS01087C27 · Camped on Aug 17, 2023 at Campsite #9

Great little campground.

@RandyD3622500 · Camped on Aug 17, 2023 at Campsite #14

clean and peaceful

@KennethB453248 · Camped on Aug 17, 2023 at Campsite #5

We definitely need clarification on what constitutes a tow vehicle. Before this visit we have never been charged $8.00 a night for an extra vehicle. We have a Class C motor home and our truck that pulls our boat. We were told that our Class C is considered our tow vehicle. If that's the case and we used it as such we would have to pull in our awning, rug, tear down camp each time we put our boat in the water. This makes absolutely no sense. We camp in your campgrounds often and each manager seems to have their own interpretation of how this works. Can you tell us once and for all what is right.

@SamanthaA5F2D6 · Camped on Aug 15, 2023 at Campsite #3

Great private campsite. Short drive to Ely. Cleanest pit toilets ever seen. Great visit!

@PeterB9363957 · Camped on Jul 9, 2023 at Campsite #29

Price of a bundle of wood is high. $8! Bought the exact same bundle 3 miles down the road for $5. Appeared to be the same vendor. Otherwise this is a great campground! Lots of privacy! Nice and quiet. Camp host is a nice guy and does a good job.

@MicheleH882182 · Camped on Jun 24, 2023 at Campsite #5

This is our second time here and we are definitely going to be back. It rained most of the time we were here but it forced us to relax and just hang out It was a good way to spend the first half of our trip

@GeneS7771803 · Camped on Jun 11, 2023 at Campsite #27

Location is all nature and beautiful. Restrooms are very well taken care of by the camp host, clean an decorated nicely. The site we had, 27, was small for our 5th wheel. Other sites would have been better for our unit. We enjoyed our stay.

@RichardS712869 · Camped on Jun 4, 2023 at Campsite #29

I've stayed here several times previously, and will likely visit again. It's a good location for a base when fishing multiple area lakes. Typically quiet, always clean, and the host goes out of their way to make the pit toilet restrooms clean and attractive, even going to the extent of installing homey little tables in the corner and pictures on the wall. I visited in early June of 2023, and forgot my personal rule about not camping in June; I paid the price. The gnats were excessive. Atrocious. Horrible! Of course, they're attracted to carbon dioxide exhaled by mammals, so they come at your face. And the exhaust from gasoline or diesel vehicles contains a similar compound that also attracts the bugs, so getting out of the truck & working on disconnecting the trailer, or setting up a tent, means working in a cloud of annoyance. That's OK. Just take a break in the car for five or ten minutes to let that pollution dissipate. Then go do your tasks with many fewer insects attacking you. I go mid-week to avoid the noise of weekenders' partying. Early & late in the year, during the school season, virtually guarantees not having to fight for an open site, or even for the best site. And there's no kids around pressing the boundaries, making noise early & late, running through your campsite, or darting out in front of your vehicle. Minus the biting swarming bugs, this was a perfect camping trip. As for recommendations, I'd vote for the site providing a dump station for campers. For water at every site. But it's well advertised that these amenities are missing, and therefore it's no surprise. There's flushing water & a dump station just 11 miles up the road at Ely, and it's only $5 for the dump, and the water's free. That's a big plus, having a dump station with a standard garden hose spigot that can attach to a camper's power flush out fitting.

@ChrisG1203337 · Camped on May 20, 2023 at Campsite #27

Beautiful location. Clean camp, friendly camp manager. The only thing this camp needs is a RV dump station.

@JoyceY8D2602A1 · Camped on May 15, 2023 at Campsite #6

The bathrooms were so clean!! And that is so important to us! the camp host was so helpful and nice. Also, the campground was quet. We will come again for sure!

@BrendaE034E7D0 · Camped on May 12, 2023 at Campsite #26

Very nice campground, camp host is easy to talk to. No problems.

@BriaS2350461 · Camped on Sep 29, 2022 at Campsite #30

Dan, campground manager, is a rock star! He really did a great job helping us prepare for our wedding at the pavilion. Beautiful location! We are lucky to have this place in Ely.

@SaraP2726429 · Camped on Sep 27, 2022 at Campsite #12

Nice large sites and very clean. Now most sites have electricity not just sites 1-15. Host was friendly and helpful.

@KerryA8234679 · Camped on Sep 25, 2022 at Campsite #31

Cleanest vault toilets I've ever seen. Campground dated but very well kept.

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