Best Tent Camping near Belgium, WI

The campground and campsites are pretty standard.  Nice amount of space and privacy. 101 Walk in site was quite nice. Level ground, nice tree cover so it didnt feel too open. 

Loved being close to the beach and playground area! The kids really appreciated it :) The beach was very clean and even though it was a warm, busy day we didnt feel like it was too crowded.  The earlier you arrive the better chances you have of getting a picnic table in the shade ;)  

Enjoyed the walk around the lake, some parts are still a bit muddy, but overall it was a nice walk and the kids actually made it without too many complaints ;)  Nice variety of scenery!  Even caught a couple frogs.

Definitely a place to visit again! 

*checked out some of the trails near by which were really great as well!

Mauthe lake is in the Kettle Moraine Northern Unit. It feels remote but we drove through a bunch of rural houses on the way in. The rustic roads made for good cycling. We passed quite a few pedaling up and down the hills.

The campground itself sprawls along one side of the lake. With the loops for each group peeling off, it is easy to lose your way. The signs mark the direction well so go slow. It helps to know your site number.

There was nobody at the entrance office. I’m not sure if it’s just today but make online reservations. It seems to be the 2022 way.

There is a shower house but we made use of the more convenient vault toilets. Water is available in different ways - even a drinking fountain. There seems to be only one garbage collection site on the way out. This was less convenient since we have dog droppings to deal with.

There is a nature trail that goes around the lake. By the beach and picnic area it’s paved. The rest is gravel or dirt. With recent rains we found a few puddles to walk through and mud to avoid. Our dog loved having the trail so close. Most of the trail is in the sun so bring water on hot days.

Swimming isn’t allowed due to a blue algae bloom. This left plenty of empty space for us to sit with our dog under the trees. Folks did make good use of the fishing pier and playground. We also saw kayaks and stand up paddle boards on the lake.

We've camped at Long Lake twice - both times with kids, and thoroughly enjoyed. The sites are spacious and clean. Each site comes with a fire pit, grate and picnic table. We have camped in the 800s but hope to get back for more variety in the future.

Long Lake has two separate beaches and we much prefer the South Shore beach. North Shore is a little less populated, but the hike/stairs down into the beach area can be annoying with kids, toys, camp chairs, and a cooler full of food and beer. South Shore has a boat launch, clean restrooms and a picnic cabana that can be reserved. Both beaches are large and ample. We spread out with a pop-up canopy and did not feel crowded in or like we were imposing on others.

Long Lake is big, so motorcraft are allowed. It's fun to sunbathe and watch waterskiiers and tubers fly by off in the distance.

The park is very pretty.  Walking along the trails, you can see where it gets its name!  Lots of cool ledges and rock outcrops.  We saw a moderate amount of birds and heard a bunch of critters (owls, a fox (?!)) one night.

We camped at non-electric site J.  It was nice and big.  We originally were to be at site G but it was way too small to fit our cars, tents, etc.

Pros:

- Quiet and decently spaced sites.

- Clean vault toilets.  Did not use the shower house/other facilities.  

- The firepits are flush with the ground and have cooking grates.

- Easy access to trails.

Cons:

- I'm not a trailer camper, but if I were I would not appreciate the vibes of the electric sites.  The sites are very close together and walking through it felt like going through a festival or circus more than a campground.

- The firewood was a bit pricey compared to other parks.

We mostly enjoyed our trip here over Memorial Day Weekend. It’s not too far away from our home and a nice gear testing first trip.

Pros: Spacious grassy site. This one even had an attached smaller clearing perfect for our 7 year old to use for her own space where we set up a hammock for her.

The campsites feel very private with a thick brush between each site. It’s not a huge campground.

Bathrooms and showers are very cleans and actually closed from 11am-noon each day for complete cleaning.

Gorgeous magnificent trails and right on Lake Michigan. Also a beautiful quarry lake with a trail all the way around and a cute pond full of turtles!

Very nice, completely cleaned fire pits.

Cheap bundle yourself firewood. Cons:

Gorgeous hikes, but short. We prefer more distance.

Maybe because of its proximity to the lake and Milwaukee or perhaps the holiday weekend but this was a louder campground. More of a party vibe than we really look for in state parks. A particular group was extremely loud and kept us up until 4 am the first night. No park ranger on duty. It’s nice when quiet hours are observed.

No trees really on the campground and it is built on and surrounded by wetlands that are actively in restoration. At the height of summer this place is going to be sweltering and full of bugs. The mosquitoes will be especially terrible.

Overall we have and love this park for a day trip but probably won’t return to camp.

Mid to Late October is great Fall camping in Southern Wisconsin. Cool nights range from lower 30's to upper 40's. Day time temps can exceed 60.

Pike Lake State Park is part of the northern Kettle Moraine glacial deposit. This park offers fantastic hiking for many skill levels.

The Land:

Overnight camping has standard primitive sites (all wooded sites) scattered around single paved campground loop. Sites at beginning of loop are on hillside with leved pads for your tent. Sites at bottom of loop (near bathrooms) are flatter. However sites at bottom are closer together, than at the top.

Pike Lake also has 3 (relatively new) hike in sites. I believe at least 1 of the hike in sites is non-reservable. All 3 sites have trail access from a parking lot (about 3/4 mile north from standard camp ground).

Camping:

This campground is our go to during the school year. Practically walking distance to our house, this campground is generally nice. Wooded lots make you feel overall secluded. I tend to book sites close to the bathrooms (young kids). However sites on the top of the loop are nice too. When the kids stay home, the hike in sites are very nice.

Biggest disadvantage is the campground proximity to the rest of the park. One of the biggest draws to the park is the lake / beach. The camping is on the opposite side of the park to the beach. Certainly not a deal breaker, but when you have little ones, you just have to plan accordingly.

Campground Review

For my five-year-old son's first backpacking experience, we hiked about 3 miles on the Ice Age Trail, into Pike Lake campground (in the Kettle Moraine North State Park). We camping on one of the backpacking sites right off the trail.

Our campsite was very large, fully shaded, and included a picnic table and a fire ring. There was also a port-a-potty nearby, central to the three backpacking sites. The site was really nice, and the fireflies were very active at dusk.

Within Pike Lake there are many hiking trails of varying lengths, and all are very well maintained. They are even updating the path of the trails to help stop erosion on the hills, which is impressive if you are interested in conservation and natural resource management. There is also a lookout tower that offers stunning views of the surrounding area.

The lake was beautiful and the beach area is very nice and clean. There are many picnic tables and a playground. We would have loved to swim on our last day, but it was a bit cool (not even 70 degrees F) and very breezy. My son determined that we should hike back, but he did get to play in the sand a little bit.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time, this time I got to test OOFOS OOriginal Sport Sandal and my wife got to test OOFOS OOlala Sandal.

Before testing OOFOS, I was not really a sandals person. Now I wear them more than I ever had before. OOFOS are made of a single molded piece of high density closed-cell foam. The shape of them offer excellent arch support, very cushioned overall foot support, and forces the wearer to take most of the pressure off of the heels. They are waterproof and very durable.

After our hike into our campsite, I wore my OOFOS and even hiked in them a little bit. They are excellent after hikes and runs, or after a long day on your feet.

My wife is very much a "sandals person" and she appreciated the cushion and the support she got while she was pregnant. OOFOS helped ease some of the pressure on her back. Now that we have our newborn, she still wears them daily. OOFOS has been her primary shoe for the last couple months and she loves them.

I whole-heartedly recommend them to anyone. Friends and family who know that I wasn't a sandals person before noticed the OOFOS and I share my love of these sandals. 100% Ranger-worthy and 100% recommended. The extra cost over cheap sandals is totally worth it.