Best Tent Camping near Hatley, WI

This campground is right on the Ice Age Trail and a nice place to stop off during an extended hike.

There are not that many sites available here and most do supply electricity. More people tent camp here rather than RV camping. There are pit toilets but no shower house although there are water spigots for drinking water. The sites are closer together than some campgrounds but it's not like a city block of camps like some KOA's I have camped at. The night time temperatures dipped in the low 30's in the middle of May when I was there. The campground attendants were on site twice a day to sell firewood and collect camping fees. The DNR rangers do patrol the campgrounds on a regular basis. There is places all along the river to fish and I was told the fishing is good, however I did not have very much luck when I was there. The campground firepits with cooking grates were OK and the wooden picnic tables are worn, but there is level ground for pitching tents.

The scenery and hiking along the river and on the Ice Age Trail is great. If you had better luck fishing than I did this would have been a great camping weekend. Bring warm cloths and a great sleeping bag.

We decided to hit the road on Labor Day Weekend and took a chance on not knowing where we'd stay the night. This first come first served campground with only 7 sites still had some available. The sites are a decent size and it's right on the Ice Age Trail with lots of hiking to be enjoyed right from your camp site. It was a bit tricky to find as its north of the park and not well identified. The water is a bit of a hike down the trail and through the woods so you might want to bring your own. The fire rings are quite large and hold a lot of fire wood. There are no grates for cooking over the fire ring but there are stand alone grills at each site that would require charcoal. The pit toilets are not in the best shape and have no lighting so bring a flashlight. There are no showers but that didn't bother us for the 2 nights we were there. Others we spoke to that stayed there before said its hardly ever full and you can easily get a spot. For $15 a night, it was a decent stay and we would go again if ever in the area.

I took my daughter and her friend here for the weekend, 10 years old. We rented a cabin for the weekend. Amazing cabins, amazing setup, they all have picnic tables and benches on porch. Cabin had three beds, fridge, air conditioner, two windows, plenty of plugs in. Bring your own sleeping bags/towels and etc as these are not provided. Fire ring provided down the stairs from us, even further down was the huge extremely clean pool, bathrooms, showers. Both of which were amazing! And free of use. Pool is very well maintained and kept, plenty of chairs to use and tables. Right next to the pool was a huge and brand new kids play area. They also have rock mining for kids located by the pool which the kids loved. They also liked the store; a lot of neat things in there for adults, kids, camp, and even animal friends. Commons area which is open at the front, made for a nice sitting to relax. Also located on the beach which was nice to see and the dock area was nice, kids liked it. The set up is great, a little confusing the first time but easy to learn. All of the Cabins were close except for the first two which were at the entrance of the park and bigger. They were two rooms compared to our one room. Permanent residence were extremely nice, the campsite is privately owned and operated which we loved and met the owners. We will certainly be back again! Additional information that may be helpful since I researched this campsite extensively May 15 th to October 6th is the campsites open/ closed dates. Check in for campsites and yurts are different. Campsites is at 2, cabin and hurts 3pm but we checked in early about a half hour. No additional charge. Animals welcome, must be leased and friendly. If you have visitors must be gone by 9pm- they actually let my husband stay with no additional charge or fee and accommodated our two vehicles. Otherwise one vehicle per cabin. Location was extremely easy with the signs directly off of highway. Not far from town, if you need something or go to store there; they probably have what you need. Basic sites, some with piers overlooking the beach and huge! Beautiful absolutely will camp there with our tent. Pull through and deluxe sites, seasonal sites, decks, and dogi pots(hint hint). All campsites babe electric and water, the yurt is amazing! It comes with couch, beds, tables, and so much more! It is located on the water scenery and a little more private by being set back. Yurt also has heat and ac; wouldn’t mind staying there in early May or late September. Outdoor picnic area, plenty of room for about 15 people and includes setting in a circular setting located directly by the playground/ pool and playroom. They have events as well, the kids and I not only used the mining system by the office but we watched a movie by the playground area- it was amazing and free! Camping lakeside or not lakeside. There was a secluded campsite and raised above, number 155- I’d suggest this one for anyone who want to get a way and be alone. It was a nice site and I didn’t notice it until we left. The cabin we rented was$80 a night, non refundable since it was last minute. This included two adults and up to four kids. I could see how four kids would easily fit because of the bunk beds and queen bed in our cabin. Oh forgot to mention there was also a microwave in the room and a broom, garbage bins. The door was rustic and still has a lock on it but it was the pulley door which the kids loved. To my understanding there are no pets allowed in the yurt. Also the only, one and only thing I didn’t like was that wood couldn’t be purchased else where. The wood purchased there burnt fast and didn’t last long, we only used it to cook food on our tripod due to how fast the wood burnt. Although there was also a park grill on the cabin premises too which we didn’t use; very used and had nothing to clean it with. There are seasonal sites, I don’t know how much they are but it’s a very quiet campground and everyone folllowed rules for the quiet time. Another thing I noticed is the seasonal all keep their yards very well maintained. They had beautiful landscape, yards were mowed, and nice fences- porches- decor- and sheds. Camp owner/ host lives directly across from the check in office/ store so that was comforting knowing someone was at the gate at all times. We walked down to the beach, lake area. At the tome it was being worked on but it was still beautiful and very quiet. No bugs in this area either. You can make reservations on line, see pictures on line, rates on line, and see the camp map. If i has to recommend any sites it’d be 151 for tenting and wanting to be alone, away from everyone. Campsite number 17 for camping with a tent/ pop up because it over looks the beach and has a huge deck to sit on, have dinner on or drink coffee while watching the beach another three sites I’d recommend, tents only is number 61 63 or 65. They are down further than the rest of the campsites, they are also a little more secluded and with a beach view. This would be perfect for a set of three friends camping together to rent. This is also main entrance to beach are. I also wouldn’t mind renting the first cabin when you enter campground as it’s bigger. There is one cabin I wouldn’t suggest and that’s 106. It’s in the middle of a triangle area for traffic. It was exactly across from our cabin and a lot of traffic going by it from many different ways. Finally thanks S’mores for the amazing stay; they truly accommodated us and we appreciate it.

The campground is part of a larger park. There are multiple playgrounds, tennis courts, splash pads and even an amphitheater and ice rinks within the park.

There is a lot of traffic during the day from park visitors. The evening is mostly quiet, but with traffic noise from the outside of the park streets and occasional loud vehicles that can be disruptive. Morning was largely quiet as well.

The campsites themselves are small — if you have a camper there’s not much room outside. Even the tent spaces are small.

There are no open fires allowed - which didn’t bother us given it was just an overnight stop. You can use grills etc though.

Being a city park it is quite well lit - which has its pros and cons. The back left corner where the nonelectric tent sites are seems to be one of the less bright areas. We slept fine with the rain cover off.

There is a 2 day minimum for online reservations. That’s not required for walk up self registration so you can do one day as a walk up. Self registration has a 3 day maximum.

There is a bathroom/shower for the campers. As a walk up registrant you will have to contact the phone number on the board to get the code. Not sure if online registrations get it in the email. There are other bathrooms (no showers) that are not locked that are a further walk into the park though.

Overall it was a nice place to stay over spending $100+ for a hotel room on a quick overnight on our way further north.

The Chequamegon-Nicolet forest roams throughout middle Wisconsin. A variety of national forest campgrounds are found. Choosing Ada Lake would be a great move. Only 3 other campers stayed the night. A local family drove in to spend the day at the Ada Lake beach. My neighbors brought kayaks and their puppy joined them on the water. Birds chirping and minimal mosquitoes were also part of making this a beautiful stay.

Campground review:

To get here, you must negotiate a few miles of gravel and dirt road but others brought their larger rv’s. The site we choose is right on the water. A few trees added to the scenic view of Ada. Sites vary quite a bit. One was a multi-layer setup while others were more hidden as they moved further away from the lake. The picnic tables look very new and the vault toilets are well kept. We had room to set up the teardrop camper and the screen room with plenty of space left to roam around in. Once the night settled in it became very dark. I’m glad we sought out the toilet before having to find it by flashlight.

Insider tip: There is a atv trail right at the entrance. This trail connects to others and gave us some nearby hiking options. I didn’t find these on the maps that I had so it was a good bonus! There is a boat ramp a bit further on if yours is too big to carry (ie a kayak or canoe).

We planned to only stay for the night but our neighbor convinced us to give it a longer look. We’re glad we spent the extra day here. Driving over to the Cathedral of the Pines and hearing the nesting herons was a highlight. This will be on my list of places to come back to.

Product review:

As a Dyrt Ranger, sometimes I get products to review. This time I was sent some Snapbuds to try out. Their tempting claim is to solve the tangled mess of headphone wires that happen in your pocket or bag.

The packaging was straightforward. I loved how the plastic also held the different pieces in place - a promising start to keeping things organized! Next I noticed the color choices - white, gray or black. These should fit with a variety of headphones. The rubber bands holding the upper and lower pieces together were labeled and I found myself checking them to be sure I was using the right parts.

“Snapbuds will permanently attach to your headphones!” This warning was in several places. It also means that they don’t move around on your cord. The directions unfold to the length of standard headphones. They have 2 styles laid out and offer more on their website. I choose the wrap around style that fits wrapped around my phone or hand. The directions label where to put each magnet but I didn’t follow those locations.

My phone and case must be larger than the one their design calls for. This was easily accounted for by measuring how many inches it was around my phone - 7 if you are interested. This helped me locate the first lower magnet. Once that was attached (it’s a really easy snap on design) I just wrapped the cord around the phone to get the next location. As with to the upper magnets when I got to the single strands going to each ear and it was installed. Snapbuds are a snap to attach :)

Trying them out:

I carried them wrapped around my phone in my pocket as we hiked. Even using the phone for a map or to take photos was not a problem. The cords stayed snapped together. When listening to music, I found the magnets can snap together to take up extra cord. This was handy since my dog’s leash is a challenge. Normally I have to put the cord inside my shirt to avoid the leash or my hands.

I wrapped the cords around my hand and the magnets snapped together nicely. The anchor has a spot to tie in your earbuds to the headphone jack. This whole thing I put in my pocket. I wanted to see if they would stay untangled this way. After hiking and driving I pulled them out. This time a couple of upper magnets came undone. When I tried to unravel the headphones there were a few snags. Even with some tangle, this was still better than the pile I started with. Looking closer at my installation led me to discover that the upper magnets try to snap together opposite of the lower ones. I must have put the magnets facing the opposite direction. Something you should pay attention to when you put yours on.

I paid more attention to how I put the bundle in my pocket and this time the Snapbuds stayed connected throughout our hike. Carefully placing them in your pocket will pay off in the end.

Pros:

Lightweight, magnets adhere together quickly, straightforward installation, great packaging, Snapbuds stay in place on the cords, anchor holds headphones to jack once attached

Cons:

Magnets caused a tangle on one hike but not on a second, use your own phone as a guide in addition to the one provided, anchor is difficult to attach both headphones to (this might be user error but it takes me awhile)

Overall:

The Snapbuds do a great job at keeping things better situated. I give them a thumbs up and say you should check them out. They may even give me more options as I continue to use them on our adventures. 5/5 on Snapbuds doing what they are designed to do. 4/5 for usefulness in my gear set up. This may rise with more use.

Check them out at www.snapbuds.us