We arrived at Lake of the Pines knowing sites were reservable. We didn't know they had to be reserved. There were no less than eleven signs at the entrance. You could purchase a vehicle pass required for entry but could not pay for camping. The instructions said to call a telephone number. With no cell service we were about to drive until we could call. Luckily a very pleasant maintenance women told us there was a dedicated phone for reservations at the forest headquarters a few miles away. We apparently missed that sign.

We took a chance and paid for an out-of-state annual vehicle pass for $38 as opposed to buying an $8 pass every day. We checked out the park and there were only two sites occupied. We chose one next to some campers on motorcycles because it had a partial view of the lake and drove to the headquarters. We called and asked for a specific site number. The person said she had no Lake of the Pines in her system. We figured out it was Flambeau/Lake of the Pines and confirmed that the adjacent site was occupied. We reserved the site and paid by card over the dedicated reservation phone. They said we would receive a confirmation email but...no cell service. Returning to the campground we found that the site we reserved was the one occupied. Apparently the motorcycle guys blew off the whole camping reservation and fee. We set up on another site and hoped no one reserved that one. All the site number signs said first come-first served? We corrected the site number at the phone at the forest headquarters the next day. First we tried the office which had hours posted but was closed, so we used the dedicated phone line.

After all this, we had a nice time paddling the milder sections of the Flambeau River. Shuttle prices for private canoes at local tavern/outfitters were reasonable. No one we saw other than DNR wore masks. Wisconsin DNR needs to get their act together. There is no reason to have a payment drop box for vehicle permits but not camping. Consolidate your check-in signs.