Tent camped here with a group of private boat paddlers from all over the country. Campground operations had not really started for the season. I arrived after dark and could not find the tent campsites. Nearly drove into deep mud on gravel road past RV sites. Fortunately had just enough cell signal to access their website. Found a campground map three layers deep on reservation page and located my group.
Tent sites were well-located along the river with basic tables and fire rings. I never found the store to be open so paid camping fee at bar and cafe at entrance. Great breakfast. $25/night for tents. Grass had not been mowed and was deep in tent area. RV sites appear to be a work in progress with much erosion around the new pads and access road. What may have been a shower house had key code locks but there was never anyone to ask. Bathrooms near the entrance lacked tp in some stalls. All one afternoon and evening a group of kids with gas weed trimmers noisely worked on a slope adjacent to the RV area.
This campground should improve over time a the management appears to be developing the grounds.
This campground has three restrooms. One is boarded up and should be razed. One in the ranger station was closed but the lights were on. The one open restroom had no power or water in the sink. Apparently there was a trickle in the women’s side sink. Fortunately the toilets flushed.
As tenters, we camped near the restrooms. Road noise was considerable during late afternoon and early morning. There were other sites further from the road but also the restroom. The adjacent trails and historic features were outstanding.
The NPS should absolutely charge a fee for the level amenities. This campground is optimized for RVs. There are pull thru spurs with multiple campsites sites but the tables have been moved and monopolized by RVers…including ones with tent pads. Generators running at 3:00 am. On the plus side, heated bathrooms were absolutely clean. Water fountains are distributed through the campground but one spigot to fill a jug. Good access to Little Mountain Trail. There were six empty sites made unusable by RVs parking in between them. Maybe when a camp host is onsite they will clean this up.
The close proximity to US 65 Highway detracts from what is otherwise a beautiful campground. Truckers seem to favor Jake brakes when descending into the river Valley…especially at 4:00 am. Campsites have pullouts and tent pads. Bathroom and showers need some upgrading of walls and fixtures but worked well. Water but no hookups.
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.
Campground surprisingly full on a Sunday night. Bathrooms simple but clean. No host on-site. Generator hours not followed. Hard to find a level spot for a tent but this seems typical. Many mosquitos at dusk. Good access to Big Buffalo Wilderness
The view from site 14 was wonderful especially after smoke haze cleared. Clean bathrooms but water system closed due to absent backflow preventer since 2019. All area Forest Service campgrounds have bags/tape on hydrants. People at Twin Lakes store openly hostile when asked about water. We stayed four nights and had to go to Buena Vista to fill our jug. Fee reduced $3 to $21 presumably because of no water. Get rid of concessionaires and fix the parks.