Free camping and cell signal in Upper Peninsula
Where dispersed camping is allowed in Upper Peninsula: Ottawa, Hiawatha, Pictured Rocks & Isle Royale, which carrier will reach you to work or call for help, and what's on the road in. Free to use online. Offline use is paid: the Camp Map Pass saves the region to your phone for use with no signal.
Open Upper Peninsula in the mapCan you camp for free in Upper Peninsula?
On most national forest and Bureau of Land Management land, yes: dispersed camping is allowed outside developed sites, usually for up to 14 days, unless an area is posted closed. Michigan state forests also allow free dispersed camping more than a mile from a state forest campground, with a camp registration card posted at your site. National and state parks, wildlife refuges, tribal land and private timberland are not. In Upper Peninsula the map shows who manages every piece of public land, wilderness boundaries and the land with no public record, which you should treat as private.
Where will I have cell signal?
From the carriers' own coverage filings with the FCC, strong (in-vehicle) LTE covers about 11% of Upper Peninsula for AT&T, 9% of Upper Peninsula for Verizon, 4% of Upper Peninsula for T-Mobile, 3% of Upper Peninsula for nsighttelservices, 0% of Upper Peninsula for thumbcellularllc. Carriers model their coverage optimistically in the mountains, so the map also collects speed tests from other campers. Canadian phones usually roam on AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon here: check which one your plan uses.
Remote spots with coverage in Upper Peninsula
Ranked by distance from town and signal. Tap one to open it on the map.
- Langford Lake Boat Launch · gravel road · 6.8 km from Thayer · AT&T
- Jackson Lake State Forest Campground · gravel road · 9.4 km from Atlanta · AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon
- Courtney Lake Campground · gravel road · 5.3 km from Rousseau · AT&T, Verizon
- Big Lake State Forest Campground · gravel road · 7.9 km from Alberta · AT&T, T-Mobile, , Verizon
- Three Lakes Campground · gravel road · 3.1 km from Strongs Corner · AT&T, Verizon
- Public land near Mill Creek · gravel road · 12.5 km from Emerson · AT&T
- Public land near Little Fox River · gravel road · 12 km from Seney · Verizon
- Soldier Lake Campground · paved road · 7.8 km from Strongs Corner · AT&T
- Public land near Fern Lake · unpaved track · 11.9 km from Richardsons Mill · Verizon
- Hog Island Point State Forest Campground · gravel road · 8.5 km from Garnet · AT&T
Road access and wildfires
The map shows which roads in Upper Peninsula are paved, gravel, rough or unpaved tracks, plus parking lots and trailheads, and live wildfire hotspots and perimeters while you're online.
Open Upper Peninsula in the mapCosmic's Camp Map puts all of this on one map with land status, cell coverage by carrier, recreation sites, wildfires, services and road reports, and, with the Camp Map Pass, saves it to your phone for use without signal. See everything the map does.