U.S. Forest Service · Superior National Forest · MN

Silver Island Lk Rustic Campgd & Backcountry Sites

First come, first servedNo reservation, and none to be had: the sites go to whoever pulls in first.

This is how it should work.

Right now
Closed for the seasonOut of the season the agency publishes
A night
FreeNo camping fee
Season
May 10 – October 1Open May 10 through October 1
Drawn from the record · 1,650 ft · 19% tree cover · Silver Island Lake within reach · Bortle 2 sky
1,650 ftElevation
218 ftWater · Silver Island Lake
28.8 miN of Silver Bay, MN
19%Tree cover
Bortle 2Night sky · 17th darkest of 77 in MN
Open May 10 through October 1Today

The place

the agency’s own description · what’s there

In the agency’s own words

Silver Island Lake is a large lake with both an eight site rustic campground and three backcountry campsites on its shores. Access to the backcountry sites is through the boat launch at the rustic campground. Choose the camping experience that suits you best!

Source: USFS Enterprise Data Warehouse · Aug 24, 2026

Facilities

Boat ramp
Yes
Source: Stated in the agency description

Around the campground

On the water
Lake
Source: Stated in the agency description

Nothing to book, just show up

One of 1,623 federal campgrounds where the site still goes to whoever pulls in first, and it costs nothing at all. Get there before noon on a summer weekend.

recreation.gov publishes no availability for a campground you can’t reserve, so there’s no thirty-night reading to draw here. The season bar above is what the agency does publish.

BookingNo reservationsNothing to book, and no release date to wait forthe record
A nightFreeNo camping feethe agency’s fee record
A weekendNothingDerivedFriday and Saturday, everything includedours, from the lines above
Runs itU.S. Forest Servicethe agency’s record
Every line of the receipt · 4

What you actually pay

The sign priceU.S. Forest Service
Camping feeFree
There is no fee at rustic campgrounds or backcountry campsites.
The booking feerecreation.gov
Nothing. This campground takes no bookings, so there’s no reservation fee to pay.
What a stay costs
A night, and a whole weekendDerivedNothing

Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s own record says there’s no camping fee, and no booking fee, because this campground takes no reservations. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.

How we know this receipt · 5
Source: USFS Enterprise Data Warehouse · Aug 24, 2026

record Aug 24, 2026 · How we know all this

Seen something wrong here? Tell us.

Getting there

the map and the coordinate

The weather

the next four days · the thirty-year normal

Next four days, and the thirty-year normal

Forecast

This Afternoon44°Mostly Sunny
Tonight30°Partly Cloudy
Saturday55°Sunny
Saturday Night40°Mostly Clear

NWS forecast for Finland, MN

Typical weather

Typical October night 34°F, day 51°F.

Coldest night of the open season: typical October night 34°F. Bring the bag rated for it.

90°32°-10°

Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or moreOutside the published season

A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Julys are colder than the July line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.

Measured at: WOLF RIDGE ELC, MN (USC00219134), 19 miles away and 250 ft lower

The land, and who answers for it

what threatens it · who answers for it

Roadless country, and what’s coming for it

Roadless
Kawishiwi Lake To Sawbill15,305 acres · 7 mi · inventoried roadless area

You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.

Who answers for this land

Pete Stauber, official portrait

Silver Island Lk Rustic Campgd & Backcountry Sites is in Minnesota’s 8th congressional district. Its representative, Pete Stauber (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →

Seen something wrong here? Tell us.

How we know

every fact on this page, and where it came from
Right now: The agency lists it out of season. The season it publishes is the bar below.
Season: USFS Enterprise Data Warehouse · Aug 24, 2026
Cell signal: the Forest Service’s own campground description, read as text by CAMPANAC. None of this is a measurement. It’s what the land manager published about the place, and phones, carriers and weather all disagree with each other; treat it as a warning, not a promise.
Nearest place of any size: Finland, MN, 19.6 mi NNE (a census designated place). Straight line.