Fort Charlotte Backcountry Campgrounds

About

Fort Charlotte Backcountry Campgrounds are the only overnight camping option within Grand Portage National Monument, located where the historic Grand Portage fur trade route meets the Pigeon River at the U.S.-Canada border. The two campsites occupy ground steeped in history, near the reconstructed North West Company fort where voyageurs once portaged goods around the impassable High Falls. Access requires commitment: hikers face an 8.5-mile trek along the Grand Portage Trail from Lake Superior, while paddlers can approach via the Pigeon River from South Fowl Lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Both routes traverse rugged terrain with significant elevation changes. Each site accommodates up to nine people on tent platforms with picnic tables. Vault toilets are provided, but water from the river and trail sources is not potable. Campfires are permitted only in designated fire rings using dead, fallen wood. All trash must be packed out.

Directions

Fort Charlotte is reached by hiking 8.5 miles on the Grand Portage Trail from the historic depot at Grand Portage Bay on Lake Superior, or by paddling down the Pigeon River from South Fowl Lake. An alternative trail entry point exists where Old Highway 61 intersects the portage via County Road 17.