Family trip to the UP of Michigan

[jagocampers]

Greetings. We are currently planning a trip to the UP of Michigan. Looking for any information on private campgrounds around the Lake Superior area. Looking for full hookup, with things for kids 12-13 to do. Any and all suggestions are appreciated.
Thanks,
Shane

[reinita]

Huge UP fans here. To get a feel for what's up there, here's an episode of the public TV show Under the Radar: http://video.dptv.org/video/2365148954/

[michigansandzil]

Need-A-Vacation wrote:
We stopped by Antlers on our way back Sun about 6:30pm, but didn't stay as they only had 2 servers working on a Sun night! Wait wasn't super long, but they said they weren't seating very many at a time due to only having 2 servers working!

Not a way to stay in business if you ask me!

We went to a local Pizza Hut between Christmas and New Years (when everyone is home and eating out); there was 1 server in the entire restaurant and every single table was full. It took over an hour to get a single pizza. To make matters worse, it was the waitresses second night on the job. Crazy!!

Nobody else seems to like Antlers, but it was the best burger I've ever had in my entire life. We're planning on stopping back this summer. We'll see if the food has gone down hill.

[dverstra]

Pirate wrote:
Everyone keeps talking about the Antlers. Just talk. I wouldn't waste my money or time on a second visit.

Other than the animal mounts all over the walls and ceiling, you won't find a reason to go there especially the menu.

[Pirate1]

Everyone keeps talking about the Antlers. Just talk. I wouldn't waste my money or time on a second visit.

[Water-Bug]

Need-A-Vacation wrote:
We stopped by Antlers on our way back Sun about 6:30pm, but didn't stay as they only had 2 servers working on a Sun night! Wait wasn't super long, but they said they weren't seating very many at a time due to only having 2 servers working!

Not a way to stay in business if you ask me!

Let's face it, Antler's is a tourist attraction with decent food. Locals would probably only eat there on special occasions. February isn't exactly peak tourist season in da UP eh ? I'm somewhat surprised that it was even open in the winter.

[Allworth]

The Munising City CG has some full hookup sites that let you back down so the rear of the rig is just about hanging out over the water. Sunsets were beautiful. Nice people working there two years ago.

The City of Houghton also has a CG with FHU and water views. This time it is the Portage Canal. All of the Keweenaw Copper Country is a simple day trip from there. (That is the correct spelling. I looked it up.) The lady running the office acted like I was some kind of intruder in her personal space, but the rest of the staff was ok.

Have a great trip. It is beautiful country.

[Drbolasky]

Agree with other posts in that there is enough in the UP to keep you busy all summer long. Our experiences with the following were all good:

Mackinac Island - IMHO this is a must-do.

Whitefish Point Light/Great Lakes Shipwreck Musuem

Toonerville Trolley/Riverboat to Tahquamenon Falls

Pictured Rocks Nat'l Seashore - this is also a must-do. Take a cruise AND drive/hike the park.

Bugs - like others have said, can be bad. We did some hiking right along the Lake Superior Beach from Hurricane River to Au Sable Point Light. No bugs. To hike back we took the road and the flies were awful - repellent didn't faze them a bit. Enjoy & safe travels.

[Parrothead_Mike]

I suggest that you try some research by using RV Park Reviews.com (click below). Select a Michigan city where you might go and see if there are any campgrounds in that area. You can then go to the campground website, if available, to check on amenities available. There are also customer ratings for the various campgrounds.

http://rvparkreviews.com/regions/Michigan/

Here's a FHU campground about 45 miles west of Marquette, Michigamme Shores CG. It's along M-28/US-41 on Lake Michigamme, a very large inland lake.

http://rvparkreviews.com/regions/Michigan/Champion.html

Check out these campgrounds in the Ontonagon area. The Porcupine Mountains State Park is just south of Ontonagon and is a great place for hiking. We stayed at the Ontonagon Township Park, just north of downtown Ontonagon. It has water & electric, but I don't think it takes reservations. It's a nice campground right on the beach.

http://rvparkreviews.com/regions/Michigan/Ontonagon.html

Another campground we liked which is right on Lake Superior in Grand Marais (between Munising & Sault Ste Marie) is Woodland Park. Again, water & electric, but it's a nice park with grassy sites. You can walk into the downtown area a couple of blocks away. Check out The Lake Superior Brewing Co.

http://rvparkreviews.com/regions/Michigan/Grand_Marais.html

Almost forgot to include Copper Harbor.

http://rvparkreviews.com/regions/Michigan/Copper_Harbor.html

[Need-A-Vacation]

We stopped by Antlers on our way back Sun about 6:30pm, but didn't stay as they only had 2 servers working on a Sun night! Wait wasn't super long, but they said they weren't seating very many at a time due to only having 2 servers working!

Not a way to stay in business if you ask me!

[luvztheoutdoor1]

ExxWhy wrote:
How are the bugs in the summer up there?

It also depends if the wind is blowing off shore or not.

[jagocampers]

Thanks for the input. Will keep looking.

[dverstra]

Do a search for "Upper Peninsula" in this forum and there will be numerous posts to browse through.

Where is Travelnutz when we need him?:B:B His list is mighty Loooong.

[Alfred622]

One of the highlights for our UP trip was to head up to Copper Harbor at the tip of the Keeweena Peninsula. We camped at Fort Wilkins State park and walked over to the Living History exhibits at the Fort. This was definitely a high point of our trip! The Copper Harbor Lighthouse tour was exceptional also. Link to the State Park

Also the Glass Bottom boat tour out of Munising was excellent also: Weblink to the tour

[Need-A-Vacation]

pegdiver wrote:
We were at Antlers this June / July - food was good. We liked the specials. If you haven't been since the new owners took over a few years ago, lots of the animals are gone but the best are still there. Still has the bells and whistles.
Can't help with full hookups - we stay at town campgrounds or state parks.

It's been longer than a few years since last there, so can't speak since the new owners! Bummer most of the animals are gone.

Will post up if we stop by there next month if the family snowmobile trip happens (weather, work, etc cooperates!).