Agency-listedUSFSFee
Lake Michigan Recreation Area
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MI · 44.11806, -86.42278
Ask an AI about this campsiteOpens Grok already loaded with this site. It reads the same records this page is built from, and links whatever it tells you.
Ask about this camp →U.S. Forest Service lists this as a developed campground. Expect marked sites, a fee station or a reservation, and the usual campground rules. The dispersed-camping freedom of the surrounding forest does not apply inside it. What changes is conditions — roads, gates, closures, fire rules. Check those with the unit before you commit to the drive.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook — at Lake Michigan Recreation Area
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 621 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Lake Michigan Recreation AreaNIFC · AirNow
Checking active fires & air quality…
Active wildfires from NIFC (within ~50 mi); air quality from AirNow. Always confirm current fire restrictions with the managing office before you go.
Everything you need — measured from Lake Michigan Recreation Area · Huron-Manistee National Forest · MI
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- DDump4 mi
- GGrocery4 mi
- ShShower4 mi
- WWater6 mi
- FFuel7 mi
- RxPharmacy9 mi
- @Mail10 mi
- HHardware10 mi
- LLaundry11 mi
- +Urgent care11 mi
- MMechanic11 mi
- EVEV fast charger11 mi
- AAir-up13 mi
- OOutfitter24 mi
- PPropane59 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 4 mi out.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — Lake Michigan Recreation Area
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
621 ft
State
MI
Coordinates
44.11806, -86.42278
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Lake Michigan Recreation Area · Huron-Manistee National Forest · MI (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townOak Hill · ~9.2 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~6.2 mi
- FuelMarathon · ~7.1 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~4.0 mi
- GroceriesGrocery · ~4.0 mi
- PharmacyWalgreens · ~9.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicMercy Health Urgent Care · ~11.1 mi
- HardwareWahr Hardware · ~10.2 mi
EV charging — from Lake Michigan Recreation Area · Huron-Manistee National Forest · MI — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger11.3 mi straight-line S — Wesco Ludington MI (at a public site) · RED_E · CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach8 within 25 mi · 14 within 50 · 143 within 100 · 398 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)11.3 mi — Ludington, MI - Tesla Supercharger, Ludington
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO12.6 mi — BLARNEY CASTLE MANISTERY 1, Manistee
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)9.7 mi — HAMPTON101 HAMP INN MANIST, Manistee, MI · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Pricing at the fast chargernot listed
- Power (kW)not listed by AFDC — “DC fast” spans roughly 24 to 350 kW, so ask the network.
- Read this honestlyStraight-line miles, like every distance on this site. Roads run longer than this, and you have to get back. We know where a charger is listed. We don’t know if it works today, how fast it is, or the road miles. Check the network before you commit.
Snapshot 2026-09-16 · AFDC record 351313 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Lake Michigan Recreation Area · Huron-Manistee National Forest · MI — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletLake Michigan Recreation Area · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLake Michigan Recreation Area Beach Trailhead · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLake Michigan Recreation Area Day Use · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletNordhouse Dunes Nurnberg Trailhead · ~2.3 mi S · USFS
Open Lake Michigan Recreation Area elsewhere
Other camps near Lake Michigan Recreation Area
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- USFS dispersed camp — Mason County, MI~0.2 mi
- Marzinski Horse Campground~15.0 mi
- Whelan Lake Area Primitive Campground~19.5 mi
- Bear Track Campground~19.5 mi
The unit that manages Lake Michigan Recreation Area
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Lake Michigan Recreation Area are set by Huron-Manistee National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Lake Michigan Recreation Area
Source
U.S. Forest Service recreation data
Confidence
Likely — The record is good enough to put a pin on, but thin in places. Treat the details as a starting point, not gospel.
How it was placed
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | auto:usfs-fee 2026-08-20: US Forest Service developed campground, agency coordinates, agency states a fee. No dollar amount in the agency record -- expect a charge and confirm the current rate before you go. Not field-verified. | Fee 2026-08-26: $40 per night, single site. Group sites are $100 per night for up to 25 people and $115 for 26 to 50; day use is $10, the amphitheater is $190 for day use, and additional vehicles are $10 per vehicle per day. recreation.gov publishes the same $40 standard site for the 2026 season (May 9 - Oct 12); the group entry in that same feed carries no price, so use the forest's figures for a group. Season of use is May 9 - October 13. Interagency Senior and Access passes take 50% off single campsites only. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/huron-manistee/recreation/lake-michigan-recreation-area-campground and https://www.recreation.gov/camping/campgrounds/233714.
EV chargers
US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center station locator, snapshot 2026-09-16. Straight-line miles to the nearest public, open, unrestricted station; restricted and planned units are shown but never counted.
Field check
On the agency's books. The land manager inventoried this site, so its existence is not in question — current conditions are. Nobody from here has camped it recently.
What we don’t know about Lake Michigan Recreation Area
A land record can put you within a few meters of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Seasonal & winter access
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up
- Whether a listed EV charger works today, or the road miles to it
Before you go — Lake Michigan Recreation Area
Camping near a reservoir →What “dispersed” means here →Cold-weather camping →Reading the aerial →All field notes →
Been here? Tell us what changed. This page is built from public records, so the fastest way it gets better is somebody who has actually pulled in. Road washed out, site gone, gate locked, or it is exactly as described — all of it useful. Send a report →