Cranberry Bay is a designated houseboat site — site R48 — on Rainy Lake in Voyageurs National Park, marked by a brown Park Service post on a low bedrock point with a metal fire ring on the rock. The Park Service’s own waypoint list records it as an R48 houseboat site, and mooring posts or rings secure boats to the shore.
Voyageurs is one of the few national parks that welcomes houseboats, and its designated houseboat sites offer a beach or rock landing, a fire ring, and moorings. Overnight houseboat stays run May 1 through October 31 and require a permit — $15 a night plus a $10 reservation fee — through Recreation.gov. Permits are not site-specific: developed sites are first-come, first-served, with a limit of two houseboats per site.
Rules for this place
Every campsite in Voyageurs National Park is by advance permit or reservation, arranged before you go; the park’s camping page sets out how. A fire in the park belongs in the established metal ring, and the park’s conditions page carries the closures and burning restrictions in force. Food, garbage and anything scented goes in a vehicle, a metal bear-proof locker, or hung well up and out from a tree; the park’s bear and food storage rules say so plainly. Minnesota’s invasive species law rides home with the trailer: pull the drain plug, drain the water, and leave plants and prohibited species at the access.
Verified 2026-09-07. Rules change; check the official page before you go.
