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Post by jrose on Apr 23, 2012 12:42:45 GMT -6
DH & I have been talking and he would really like to invest in a tent & go camping this summer for a few days on our week long vacation. What are your favorite campgrounds to go to? I have a 2 yr old(she'll be 3 in August) and a 4.5 yr old....so I would like kid friendly AND a nice (at least decent) bathroom facility otherwise I think my girls will have potty problems if they don't like the bathrooms. We are willing to stay close to home or travel a few hours if it will be worth it. Website links are great if you have them! Pet friendly is nice too but I can always arrange for her to be in a pet hotel if pets aren't welcome. Thanks!
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Post by sarahisis on Apr 23, 2012 20:58:10 GMT -6
My idea of camping is at the least, a cabin with running water... preferably a hotel. The only place ive camped is at apple river.. not good for young kids Imo.
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Post by jrose on Apr 23, 2012 21:11:14 GMT -6
Hahaha that's my idea of camping too. I use to love it when I was younger but not so much anymore. He won't let me have it my way though and wants the girls to experience camping in a tent and I couldn't argue with that so I'm going to suck it up and do it...I just hope it's not scorching hot in June.
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Post by bumblebee23 on Apr 24, 2012 8:52:46 GMT -6
We usually stay in KOA's....just google it and it will pull up there web site and show all the locations they have.
We have stayed in Bemidji and we went to this wildlife place that had TONS of deer just walking around and they would walk up to you and eat our of your hand! They had a few other animals there as well. We checked out the Paul Bunyun museum which is actually very small.
We went to Hayward, WI and the town is really cool. They have an old fashion type candy store, and Ice cream shop, and all kinds of other shopping. They had a big flea market one year we were there. They also do lumberjack days. They have tubing down the river...which is more like a shallow stream since the water levels have been so low. The campground is really clean and depending on your camp locations the bathrooms are really close. We also checked out the muskie museum and the wildlife walk which is tons of fun. They have all kinds of wildlife and then they have an old fashion western town set up with displays and kids can mine for gold.
We have been to Duluth but there KOA sucks and I don't plan on going back. It is super tiny and the train passes right by the office at all hours blaring the horn. We did however have fun taking a train ride and checking out the train museum and walking alone the peir but the MN / WI border, they have lots of good restarants. We checked out their zoo there too but I didn't really care for that either.
Hope this helps!
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Post by bumblebee23 on Apr 24, 2012 8:54:38 GMT -6
P.S. Most KOA's will also have a pool, miniture gold, playground etc there. When the boys where really young we would bring there bikes to ride around. They have bikes that you can rent and they often have a lot of fun activities planned depending on the weekend. One time we made tie died shirts and they have ice cream socials and hayrides around camp.
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Post by fungirls on Apr 24, 2012 11:50:51 GMT -6
To try camping for the first time with our DD's, we went to Lake Elmo Park Reserve. There is a nice, man-made lake, lots of playgrounds, and the shower/bathroom facilities are nice as well. They also enforce the quiet time after 10:00 p.m. so you don't end up around a bunch of drunks partying all night when you want your kids to be sleeping It's also close enough in the cities that if it just isn't working you can get home quickly. It is very family-friendly! I never camped growing up, and I'd also much rather spend my time where there is running water, and they have that at Lake Elmo. They also have a program/speaker on the weekends that is interesting and the topics vary.
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Post by danikasmom on Apr 24, 2012 12:59:16 GMT -6
You can go on exploreminnesota.com/places-to-stay/index.aspx and click on campgrounds. I have found a lot of fun sites to go to from there. We love going to state forest sites they are from $12-16 a night, but they are a first come first serve site. They only have toilets, but if you have a state park sticker you can go on a state park campground and use the showers. My youngest DD did not like the toilet, so I just brought a potty seat from home. I didn't have to walk to the bathroom every time she needed to go. Our favorite site is Indian Lake outside of Two Harbors. It's maybe 3 hours away from the twin cities. They have a nice beach to swim at and it's close to the north shore to drive to the many trails you can hike!! The split rock light house is right there and my kids love stopping there. Gooseberry falls is close too. The famous Betty's pies is a fun treat to have!! If you want to go more north Lamb's resort is in Schroeder. Stay on the lake if you can, it's just beautiful!! If you want to go to Itasca stay at Hungryman, it's quiter then staying at the statepark. Another great source is :The Best Tent Camping in Minnesota book. I got mine at REI and have used it to find places to stay. I am planning a group campsite with others who have kids up at Indian lake, if you are interested let me know. I can always meet up for coffee and share the book or any experiences I have had.
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Post by merrr on Apr 24, 2012 19:34:14 GMT -6
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Post by angel22 on Apr 25, 2012 7:53:57 GMT -6
Two years ago we took our girls on their first camping experience to Father Hennipen State Park in Isle on Mille Lacs. They were not quite 1, 3, and 5. We drove around the grounds to pick out where we wanted to camp then registered. There are permanent outhouses (not stinky) on the outskirts and a flushies and shower house near the middle of camp. There are also spots scattered about with running water- great for washing up the dishes or kids dirty hands and faces. We went hiking, fishing, swimming (that was WAY too cold, but it was early June,) and had a blast. DD3 wasn't walking yet so she spent most of the trip strapped in her booster chair that was strapped to the picnic table bench. She crawled around in the tent (we bought a BIG one!) and I also wore her in her Moby wrap a lot. The only downside was that there were TONS of army worms everywhere but that was just the year for them. I know others who camp there every year and have said that the army worms taking over was a fluke. Oh, we also brought our dog with. That was hard because he HATES being chained up, so we did break that rule a little just to keep him quiet. Anyway, we definitely plan on camping there again!
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Post by ReneeW on Apr 25, 2012 9:41:35 GMT -6
Years ago we camped at Baker Park and really liked it ... but that was probably like 10 years ago so I'm sure it's changed since then!
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Post by sarahisis on Apr 25, 2012 19:39:00 GMT -6
When I was little my mom used to take us to Yogi Bears Jellystone park to camp... and I was just looking up locations out of curiosity and there is one in Austin MN just North of the Iowa border. Not sure if that is too far, but it is VERY kid friendly.. lots of stuff to do!
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Post by sarahisis on Apr 25, 2012 19:39:29 GMT -6
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Post by sarahisis on Apr 25, 2012 19:41:57 GMT -6
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Post by jrose on Apr 25, 2012 19:50:36 GMT -6
Thanks for all the suggestions everyone!! I'll show them to DH. I found a huge list on the DNR site also....lots of places to choose from! We went looking at tents today...he thinks it's rediculous that I am requesting a 6 person tent vs. a 4 person tent...a 4 person tent still seems too small! I need some space! I think the girls are going to enjoy it though...they had a fun time looking at tents!
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Post by angel22 on Apr 25, 2012 20:13:47 GMT -6
Just reminder that 4 person tents are made for 4 people to lay heads at feet and packed in tight. If you have cots or an air mattress plus baggage those all take up lots of space. With kids you aren't likely to ONLY be sleeping in the tent (especially if it rains.) The "HUGE" tent we bought is a "2 room" from Menards I think. DH is an avid camper so he lays a tarp under the tent then hangs another one over it for protection and an awning so we don't have to have a super expensive, crazy high quality tent. Yes, ours is a little big for us NOW because the kids are still so small but it'll be perfect size soon enough. Yes, you'll grow into it! Better to get a slightly larger one now then to have to get another one later. Because, really, if you end up in two tents how well will any of you sleep?
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