Best Glamping near Onalaska, WI

The main camp area of the 3 parts of Sidie Hollow Parks. There are around 20/30 or so site. You can put a tent or small camper on any and be pleased. Nothing to do but connect with nature or take long country drives. The winding roads that lead to this special little park show some of Wisconsin’s prettiest views. Definitely even worth a day trip.

we had so much fun playing on the river and exploring the park! Everything is right there and the river is so pretty! Despite the rain we had a great time! Because of the rain we went to the eagle center near Wisconsin. A must see if your looking for something indoors!

Tons of activities at this campground! They have inflatable rafts, a game room, a pool, boat dock, permanent and non sites, sand pit for kids, pounce pad, basketball court and playground; it has more than enough to keep everyone busy!

This place is priced around the same as other places you might camp around Wisconsin and I believe is privately owned. The facilities are kept clean...there are always staff running around picking up or cleaning. WiFi was not free.

Loved staying at this campground. I was in the area to run the driftless marathon and needed a place to stay for one night. I loved it so much that I’ve already planned another trip! My site was hike in but the distance was pretty short. There were wagons available for transporting things to sites but I just carried my pack. No pit toilets but the bathroom facilities were close enough. Really beautiful spot in my favorite region of Wisconsin!

A beautiful location in the Driftless Area of Wisconsin. Near hiking, biking, fishing attractions.  The campground is well groomed with lots of camping spots available. First come First serve with all sites being group sites.  A membership is required and covers all the amenities, well worth the cost. The club raises trout and does conservation work locally helping the environment.  Onsite showers and flush toilets. For rent on site is a cabin, 2 Native lodges and a clubhouse for large groups, events, and meetings.  Reservable from the website.  A very laid back and enjoyable campground with friendly people.

Many years ago I went to Wildcat Mountain State Park with my future son's dad. It was the first time I farted in front of him. We were on our way from northern Wisconsin to Gurnee, Illinois and Great America theme park, circa 1977. Years later, circa July 6th, 1984, we again spent the night there with our then 1 year old son, setting up the tent in the glow of the headlights from our 1977 Honda Civic. At that time we were on our way to The House on The Rock, where we weren't allowed to use our stroller, so had to carry that just barely walking 1 year old baby boy. Good times, and fond memories both times.

This is a small state park in terms of overall number of campsites, but its network of hiking and horseback riding trails is extensive. What makes this state park particularly interesting from a camping perspective are the walk-in(or cart in) sites. There are 12 sites you can't drive to, and the park provides very nice carts for each site(unlike other state parks where there is one or two carts for all of the sites or none at all(Blue Mounds and Gov. Dodge State Parks respectively). 

Walk-In Sites

If you are looking for privacy, cart-in site 119 is quite a ways off the trail and far from the parking lot, but it's a bit small. It has some nice midday sun but is otherwise obscured by a lot of foliage which gives it a nice amount of privacy. Number 103 is in a heavily-wooded area and doesn't get a lot of sun but is nicely situated off the main path providing it quite a bit of privacy, but not too far from the parking area. On the other hand, number 104 directly across the gravel path from 103 is situated with a east-facing view of a very nice prairie, providing ample morning sunshine. However, a grove of trees on its western side provides very nice afternoon shade. 

Now for the "car camping" sites. All of the electric sites are in a wide open in a large grassy area, and do not provide any privacy between sites or from the road. On the other hand, the non-electric sites afford a bit more privacy on their loop. The sites on the right hand side of the one-way street have far more privacy than the ones on the other side of the road. I would not like sites 1 through 5 because they are located between the main road and the campsite loop road, which would mean lots of car traffic and headlights in your tent all night long. On the left hand side of the road site 6, 9 and 11 are decent. 

I would like to add a special note about sites 13 through 16. Three of these are on the outside of a small cul-de-sac loop, and are nicely situated in the woods, though they are close to the main road and would experience a fair amount of traffic noise. However, if you have a choice I would highly recommend avoiding site 16, it's in the middle of the loop has no privacy and isn't very pleasant except that it is completely shaded. 

About the Park Itself

This state park has an extensive system of horseback riding and hiking trails. The nice thing is that the horseback trails are shared by hikers. This state park also has one of the most beautiful and well-maintained overlooks, peering down into and across the Kickapoo River Valley. 

I highly recommend visiting this overlook in the morning, at sunset, and even in pure darkness. We saw a wide array of stars and the Milky Way thanks to low light pollution. I'm not saying there is no light pollution, but it's pretty darn dark. I fell in love with this state park. It has fewer than 50 campsites, well maintained shower and vault toilet blocks, and a beautiful selection of walking trails. It also has a very accurate map of the walking trails, so you can hike confidently. 

The park office sells firewood for$5 a bundle, which is about the same kind and quantity as they sell for$7.50 at the gas station 7 miles down the road in Ontario, Wisconsin. If you need a groceries or gasoline, the Cenex gas station has a small but sufficient grocery supply if you you need something. We forgot to bring eggs and pancake mix and they had both.

Kayaking the Kickapoo

This is a great place to start your Kickapoo River kayaking adventure. We booked two kayaks with one of the Ontario-based outfitters and spend a glorious September day paddling and floating the absolutely beautiful river. I HIGHLY recommend taking a day to explore the beautiful scenery from the silence of a river kayak.

We stayed over Memorial Day Weekend at site 183. It was spacious and very well kept, with a great view of the lake. Wry easy to back in and get set up, almost level and took very little adjustment to get our spot in order. Neighbors were friendly, kids found other kids to play with, and lots of activities to keep them busy. We found the seasonal campers super friendly and nice to chat with. The sites are all flat with a gravel pad, some also have concrete patio and all have nice fire pits. While there aren’t a lot of trees or shade, it was a great site with our awning out. There is a nice sized heated swimming pool with a kid splash pad area, and you can boat on the lake. Bathrooms are well kept and clean, with nice shower facilities that area accessible. We have camped here before, and have already booked again for Labor Day weekend. The staff are helpful and friendly, and the outdoor movies on the weekend are a fun way to wind the kids down. Nearby recreation of the LaCrosse River trail for biking is a short drive away, and plenty of exploring can be done within a 30 min drive. Bring your bikes and enjoy this gorgeous area.

What's Appealing?

This campground is nestled in the woods above the Mississippi River. There's a beautiful view from King's Bluff Overlook which is about a 2.5 mile roundtrip from the parking area. You could make it about 5.5 miles if you hike from campground. There are also short walks to a few other overlooks.

We were just spending the night but I'm not sure there's anything else to do. The information sheet says there are 7 miles of hiking trails, but there really isn't anything interesting other than the overlooks. It was a quiet place for a one night stay.

I think fall would be the best time to visit after the mosquitoes are gone and when the leaves have turned. Winter would also be good. There are 9 miles of groomed X-country ski trails; you need a MN Ski Pass.

The Basics

There are 31 pull in/back in sites (38 is the highest number but some numbers are skipped), 4 cart in sites, and 5 sites for bicyclists (off the Great River Road bike route below the campground across from the Mississippi River). The sites are spacious and shaded and have a picnic table and fire pit.

Very Basic Campground

There's a bathroom with toilets, showers, and sinks. The showers are push button so you get no heat control and the water shuts off after about 30 seconds. There are also pit toilets that may be closer to your site. Drinking water and trash dumpsters are near the bathroom.

Cost

It's $19 plus the $7 MN state park fee. There was no camp host on site, but I saw a ranger drive through. We have a MN parks sticker on our window and paid online the day we came in because the office was closed. There was no online reservation fee when we paid online on the day of our stay.

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Spent the whole day hiking the Great River Bluffs. The trail system is very well labeled with maps along each trail. The trail system is mostly level and I would label as easy hiking with rolling hills. The park contains two viewing areas King’s and Queen’s Bluff.

The campsites are spacious, completely shaded, and have a fire pit as well as picnic tables. Since the park is in a heavily wooded area you do have to watch out for the Minnesota state bird (the mosquito).

Tips:

• Bring bug spray
• Bring binoculars; the river valley is a great viewing area for waterfowl, eagles, and hawks.

My friends and I have mixed feelings about this place. We thought it was beautiful. Loved our quick hikes (don’t need more than 2.5 hours here to hike a lot of the trails).

We camped one night here at the cart in campsites. Sites were nice with fire pits , nearby vault toilets (2 of them and super clean with TP and hand sanitizer), and an easy path to get to and from car. Site 4 recently had all the trees cut down.

However, two thirds of us slept no more than 4 hours total. Highway noise from the highway running along the river and from I-90 (while not really noticeable during the day) is ridiculously loud at night. [I live on the main street through Uptown Minneapolis—I can sleep through a lot of traffic noise—but this was loud!] Added to this were the half dozen trains that ran through the night (horns going off too) AND the light aircraft flying into Lacrosse airport (which is only 10-15 mins away).

I would never camp here again. Which is a shame because the campsites are great.

Campground has a lot of dense undergrowth and trees separating campsites some neighbors are visible but seem far enough away. Nice bathroom/shower facilities

the view was amazing. The campsites were very small. And KEEP BARKING DOGS AT HOME PLEASE.

They have gravel on all there campsites with tents horrible on the tent put a hole inn the bottom of the tent with sharp gravel. I would bring a padded floor with next time.

As expected, bugs are an issue in this woodsy campground.  Bathrooms had several issues but they were being addressed as we were there (ie broken sink).  There's some hiking trails and nice overlook of the Mississippi River.  Longish gravel road to get there, no sign of camp host.

Great River Bluff State Park is located outside of Winona, MN. The trails at this park are very easy to hike with hardly any incline. The trail system is well mapped and easy to direct yourself through

I found the campsites to be very simple. Each site did have a picnic table and fire ring. The mosquitos were very bad when I visited. I suggest going in late fall when the weather is cooler.

Great views of the driftless region. Lots of incredible overlooks just a short hike away. Gravel access road. Sites are small and some are not very level. No electric hookups. Be aware that the only water fill is about 75 feet from the road. The sites close to the water fill as seen on the map, would have closer access. 2 bars of Verizon LTE.