St. Croix Backpack Campsites Permit

St. Croix State Park (MN) · Minnesota

One date at a time

Two backpack sites, each with two screened Adirondack shelters. DNR's page says "within a five-mile hike"; the booking system labels the facility "Backpack Campsites | 5-6 mile hike in". Either way it is a half-day walk each way.

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St. Croix Backpack Quick Facts

Permit RequiredYes

Booking MethodReservation

Demand LevelHigh7/10

St. Croix Backpack Permit Facts

As of September 2026, St. Croix Backpack in St. Croix State Park (MN), Minnesota requires a permit issued via reservation.
St. Croix Backpack is a high-demand permit, rating 7/10 on PermitSnag's demand index.
Cancelled St. Croix Backpack permits are re-released on the booking system; PermitSnag monitors availability and alerts watchers when dates open.

Live availability activity →When St. Croix Backpack permits open up →

Key Information

Permit Details

TypeBackpacking

Booking MethodReservation

Demand Level7/10

LocationSt. Croix River Valley, MN

What to Expect

Highlights

•Minnesota DNR's definition of the category: "Backcountry campsites in Minnesota state parks are not accessible by motor vehicle and are a half mile or more from a parking area. They do not have electricity, and are a popular option for backpackers, paddlers, and bicyclists."
•"Backcountry sites typically have primitive toilet facilities and water, a tent pad, and a fire ring. Some have a picnic table and a grill on the fire ring, and a few have shelters."
•The Minnesota reservation system names this facility "Backpack Campsites | 5-6 mile hike in" and it holds two units, Backpack #BEAR and #CROO. That label is the only distance figure published for it — a genuine half-day walk each way.
•Minnesota DNR's published backcountry rate at St. Croix is $23 per site, per night, plus tax.
•"Seasonal availability varies by park." DNR publishes no season for this facility specifically, so the booking calendar is the authority on which nights exist.
•Two DNR-published distances, and they do not match. DNR's own camping page says: "The park has two backpack sites within a five-mile hike. Each site has two screened Adirondack buildings. Carry in or filter your water." The state reservation system names the same facility "Backpack Campsites | 5-6 mile hike in". Both are official. Plan for the longer one and you are covered either way.
•The correction that matters: this page used to say the reservation system's "5-6 mile hike in" was the only distance figure anyone published for this facility. That was wrong — DNR publishes "within a five-mile hike" on the park's own page.
•Each site has two screened Adirondack shelters, which is DNR's own wording and unusual for this catalogue.
•Water is on you, in DNR's own instruction: "Carry in or filter your water." Elsewhere in the park it names fill stations at the St. Croix Lodge Building and the All-Seasons Trail Center and describes them as running the whole year, while the wider supply it describes only as "ON for the season" — five or six miles out, the filter is the plan that does not depend on any of that.
•Season: "Camping (including electric sites) is available year-round." DNR publishes no separate season for the backpack sites.
•Toilets: "Flush toilets are available year-round." "Vault toilets are available year-round. Some are wheelchair accessible." Campground shower buildings run early May through early October.
•Getting there in autumn 2026: "Starting after Labor Day 2026, the park entrance road will be getting a facelift. You may encounter delays coming and going into the park."
•Sourcing note: the park-page sentences on this page were read on 2026-08-10 from Minnesota DNR's own live park-content endpoint. maps.dnr.state.mn.us refuses our requests outright, so that fetch went through a Wayback Save-Page-Now capture of the live DNR endpoint, with the Internet Archive acting only as transport. www.dnr.state.mn.us and files.dnr.state.mn.us were read directly.

Best Time to Visit

DNR publishes no best-time recommendation for this park. What it does publish: a seasonal naturalist and interpretive programs "April through October," horse trails open "April 15 through the first snowfall," and "many species of birds thrive here: warblers, flycatchers, eagles, owls, and osprey are common along the St. Croix." Camping is available year-round. Set against that, DNR's own visitor tip is "prepare for bugs. We share the park with mosquitoes and ticks" — which is a real argument for the shoulder seasons on a five-to-six-mile walk in.

Hazards & Considerations

!DNR's visitor tips: "Prepare for bugs. We share the park with mosquitoes and ticks." "Cell phones don't always work here. The best reception is at the park entrance." "Check your gas tank. It is a 12-mile walk back from Head of the Rapids."
!Bears are here. DNR's own wildlife description lists "black bear, bobcats, coyotes, beaver, raccoons, gray and red fox, and deer," and adds that "eastern timber wolves are also found in the park but are not commonly seen."
!Water is not provided at the sites: "Carry in or filter your water."
!It is a genuine half-day walk each way — five to six miles depending on which DNR source you read — in Minnesota's largest state park, with unreliable phone signal.
!Pine County's non-emergency sheriff number, published by DNR: 320-629-8380.

How to Get This Permit

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About This Permit

Two distances are published for this facility and they do not agree. Minnesota DNR's own St. Croix camping page says: "The park has two backpack sites within a five-mile hike. Each site has two screened Adirondack buildings. Carry in or filter your water." The state reservation system names the same facility "Backpack Campsites | 5-6 mile hike in". Both are official, so both are printed here rather than one being chosen — plan for the longer figure and you are covered either way. There are two sites.

The Experience

Why It Matters

Two sites in the largest state park Minnesota has, and the walk in is the point: DNR's own page says "within a five-mile hike" while the reservation system calls the facility "5-6 mile hike in". Either way it is a half-day each way, which is why two units are enough to sell out.

The Feeling

Five or six miles into Minnesota's largest state park, between two of its wildest rivers, to a site with two screened Adirondack shelters and no tap. Phone signal is unreliable — DNR says the best reception is at the park entrance, which is a long way behind you by then.

Rules & Regulations

•All campsites require a reservation. Minnesota DNR: "All campsites require a reservation. Please make a reservation online or call 866-857-2757."
•Reservations open 120 days before arrival, and same-day bookings are allowed. On the day a date first becomes available, online reservations cannot be made before 8 a.m.
•The reservation fee is $8.00 online and $10.00 by phone, non-refundable. There is no fee for a same-day booking.
•Camping check-in is after 4 p.m. and checkout is by 4 p.m. If you have not checked in by 11 a.m. on the second day of the reservation, DNR may cancel it.
•"A campsite's occupancy is limited to one camping group of six people or less, one camping shelter, and one vehicle." More than that needs the park manager's prior approval.
•Quiet hours are 10 p.m. to 8 a.m., and generators may not run in those hours.
•Park hours are 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., 365 days a year, and "only campers with a reserved campsite are allowed in the park after 10 p.m."
•Every vehicle entering a Minnesota state park must display a valid year-round or one-day state park vehicle permit.
•Firewood transport is regulated. DNR allows wood bought at this park for use in this park, Minnesota Department of Agriculture certified firewood anywhere on DNR land, and an uncertified bundle only if it is not ash and was harvested in the county where you will burn it — "be sure to keep your receipt and the bundle label to show proof of purchase."
•Firewood from home, pallet wood, and painted, stained or metal-bearing lumber are all prohibited, and "collection of firewood in state parks is not allowed."
•Pets are welcome on a leash six feet or shorter, or in a portable enclosure, and must be personally attended at all times.
•It is illegal to consume or display intoxicating liquors in Minnesota state parks.
•Fireworks and metal detectors are not permitted.
•Hammocks need trees at least 12 inches in diameter and straps at least an inch wide, one hammock per tree, hung over mowed and cleared ground.
•You may pick edible fruits and mushrooms for personal consumption; picking wildflowers or other plants is not allowed.
•Campfires here run on a live burning restriction that moves with fire danger, so a fire ring at the site is not permission to use it. The authority is this park's own Camping & Lodging page, https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/st_croix/camping.html — read it in the week you travel, not the week you book.
•Read 2026-08-10, that page carried: "Attention visitors - fire danger is very high!" and "Campfires are not allowed in backcountry (hike-in/backpack and boat-in) campsites, even if there is a fire ring." DNR sells this facility as a backpack site, which is the half of that sentence the ban names. A later reader should treat that date as the last thing we know, not as today's status.
•Two DNR pages disagreed on 2026-08-10, and both are DNR. The statewide burning notice on this park's Camping & Lodging page said "Campfires are not allowed in backcountry (hike-in/backpack and boat-in) campsites, even if there is a fire ring." St. Croix's own alert, on the same page, said "At this time, campfires are allowed in the campfire rings." We are publishing the conflict rather than resolving it: assume no fire at the backpack sites until the park tells you otherwise.
•Bear country. DNR: "Do not store food, trash, clothes worn when cooking, or toiletries in your tent or camping hammock. Store in approved bear-resistant containers, or out of sight in a locked vehicle." It also says to keep a clean camp and "cook downwind and as far from your tent as possible."

Gear Checklist

Required

A pack you can carry five or six miles, loaded
A map; this is Minnesota's largest state park
A Minnesota state park vehicle permit for the car you leave at the trailhead
Water, or a way to treat it — DNR says these sites "typically" have water, which is not the same as always
A camp stove, and a meal plan that works on it — Minnesota DNR closes fire rings at short notice, and its Tettegouche notice of 2026-08-10 read "Camp stoves are permitted for cooking."

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Key Landmarks

Bear and Crooked sites
The two bookable units, named #BEAR and #CROO in the reservation system. DNR: "Each site has two screened Adirondack buildings."
St. Croix River
DNR: "Twenty-one miles of the St. Croix River, a National Scenic Riverway, form the eastern boundary of the park."
Kettle River
DNR: "Minnesota's first Wild and Scenic River... joins the St. Croix to form the western boundary."
Kettle River Highbanks Trail
DNR: "3 MILES one-way — Packed dirt • Remote — Walk along the state designated Wild and Scenic Kettle River. Enjoy scenic views of rocky rapids, nesting eagles and beautiful flowers."
River Bluff to CCC Camp
DNR: "2 MILES one-way — Enjoy a wide, flat trail starting at the St. Croix Lodge and ending at the historic Civilian Conservation Corps camp site."

Safety & Planning

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Emergency Info

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Food Storage

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St. Croix Backpack FAQ

How do I get a St. Croix Backpack permit?

St. Croix Backpack permits use a reservation system. PermitSnag sends lottery open, deadline, and results reminders; you can also enable cancellation alerts if spots open later.

When is the best time to visit St. Croix Backpack?

Check with the managing agency for current season dates. Weekdays generally have better availability than weekends.

How competitive is the St. Croix Backpack permit?

This permit has a demand score of 7/10, making it highly competitive. We recommend having backup dates and using PermitSnag's cancellation alerts.

What if I can't get a St. Croix Backpack permit?

Cancellations happen daily. Set up alerts with PermitSnag to get notified the moment a spot opens up. Pro and $19 single-permit alerts are checked about every minute, 24/7; free accounts are checked hourly.