Wisconsin

Wisconsin’s Top Ten Campgrounds #9

Posted on by kdiederich1

It’s been awhile but I haven’t forgotten. So now that the snow has melted (and hopefully stays that way) and we can see the grass it’s time to get our Wisconsin camping minds ready. As if they haven’t been ready for a few cold months now.

Number 9 Diamond Lake Campground, Porterfield, WI

Located in Northeastern Wisconsin in Marinette County, just off highway 41.

We have only been here once. But we loved it and every year we try to go back. But we have so many places that we want to go and some places get pushed off. Especially when they are the ones that you need to book a year ahead.  Booking ahead is key for the prime summer weekends here. It’s not a huge campground but we were spoiled with a site across from the pond and really enjoyed that so we are now picky.

The sites at Diamond Lake are of varying size to accommodate all sorts of rigs and tents, well wooded and have ample separation from the next site. They have full hook up sites, water/ electric sites, pull-thru sites and back in sites. They even have cabins, a bunk house and a Yurt you can rent.

The pond is huge and located across from a handful of sites, the cabins and the Yurt. It has large inflatables and a slide down the hill to enjoy, as well as a small sand beach to hang out on. The playground is located next to the pond as is a large activity field/ grassy area and a group pavilion. There is also a group site that can be reserved at one end of the pond. If all of this is not enough to keep one busy there is a mini golf course to enjoy as well.

The campground does rent golf carts for you to use. We did not do this since we were so close to everything but it is always a great option to have.

They also have theme weekends all summer long. They utilize the pavilion and field near the pond to host things like karaoke, cook offs, and tournaments.

My mom did have to make a drive up here to deliver one of the kids who had a party of some sort on Friday night. No problem with her driving in and visiting for a short amount of time with everyone. I’m sure if she had stayed for an extended period there would have been a day fee but it was one of the easiest drop offs we have ever had.

Best of all the owners are friendly and know how to make a weekend enjoyable for a group of families with a ton of kids!

It’s hard not to have a good time when you are with several families that all get along well. Adults and kids alike meshing together in nature is always promising. But a great pond and playground led to a great afternoon. Which then led to an excellent group dinner while watching a Brewer game. All of this is possible due to a great well run family campground.

Wisconsin’s Top 10 Campgrounds. # 10

Posted on by kdiederich1

Not so long ago I posted a Top 10 Wisconsin Campgrounds on our IG. IG is a great way to get a quick snapshot of your thoughts. But it isn’t always enough to do it complete justice. So here is my attempt at a better description of my current favorite campgrounds as I posted on IG. This Top 10 is not perfect and it is not set in stone. They even each may have something I don’t love about them.

Everyone will not agree with my choices and that is OK. I know that we have so many wonderful campgrounds and RV parks in Wisconsin.  The variety of campgrounds and RV parks we have here is amazing especially because we don’t all look for or like the same things. Some things bother some of us more than others. We all have different wants and needs, likes and dislikes. That is great. Even better when it gets us to try new things, go new places and make new discoveries that we wouldn’t have done without openly listening to the opinions of friends, family and strangers. 

And yes my top 10 can change at anytime- honestly had I waited a month it would have been different  But we’ll get to that

(I will make this post a series giving each campground it’s own glory)

Number 10 Lake Dubay Shores Mosinee, WI

The best part about Lake Dubay Shores Campground is the location. It is located directly on Lake Dubay in Mosinee, WI. Lake Dubay is a full wake lake and the campground has its own boat landing for campers to use. 

The campground rents fishing boats, pontoons, canoes, and peddle boats. They also have slips you can rent if you bring your own. There is a swimming area and dog beach. The swimming area starts shallow if you have little kids and then gets deeper for the more adventurous ones. There is also a large park like area to enjoy near the swimming beach. This area has picnic tables and large swings if you prefer to watch while others swim.

The lake sites are my favorite(but there are not many that are rented over night.) They are located on a ledge overlooking the water and are a decent size. They are partially shaded but open for easy parking. There is stair access to the dock and they provide great morning and sunset views. It is an absolutely beautiful view to wake up to and enjoy morning coffee to.

Most sites have water and electric hook ups (20 and 30 amp.) There are also some full hook up sites closer to the office.

The campground has a playground, basketball court, horseshoe pits and game room. There is also a small store located at the office.

If you don’t have an RV and aren’t a tenter they do also have a couple rental units available

They do charge for visitors ($5 per person) and watch for parking passes in all the vehicles that drive through. If your pass is not showing they will stop you to make sure you are registered. They deliver wood if you buy it from the store and have basic groceries, beer, RV supplies and bait.

I have not used the bathroom and shower facilities but it has been a couple years since we have been here. Back then the kids considered themselves campground bathroom/ shower experts. This wasn’t the best one in their opinion. But it wasn’t the worst either.

Like I said we haven’t been here in a few years. Actually we haven’ t been here since the last time I posted about it. But it still ranks up there for me and I do look forward to going back one day- after we check out more of what Wisconsin has to offer.

Vista Royalle Campground, Bancroft WI

Posted on by kdiederich1

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Long weekends are the best for camping.  It’s always great to get an extra day. Even better when you can get there close to check in on arrival and there’s a late check out time. However they can be a little long with a broken leg. But broken legs don’t stop you from driving as long as you are able to caravan and your chair is ready for you once you are settled.

 

 

 

Vista Royalle is a fairly large, well groomed campground. It has just over 200 sites and a handful of cabins.  They offer both water and electric as well as full hook up sites and also have a group area. The trees perfectly outline the sites.  There are several sites that back up to the swimming pond.

 

 

 

There were two bathroom areas. One was located at the store and the other more centrally located in the campground.

The camp store is large with a variety of items you may have forgotten at home.   It also has a good selection of candy and 3 flavors of slushies. There is a snack shack near the pavilion.  It serves hand scooped and soft serve ice cream as well as a selection of hot food and snacks. They also sell wood- $6 a bundle, the bundles were decent size.

There is a swimming pond with a large sand beach and several inflatables for use.  It’s a great place to use the sand toys, catch some rays and cool off on a hot day. Next to the pond is a jumping pillow, large playground. Across from the store are mini golf, a gaga pit, horse shoe hits, shuffle board court, volleyball court.  There is also a fishing pond at the other end of the campground.

 

 

 

The campground offers scheduled activities.  The weekend we were there they had a Glow Run and silent auction with proceeds for charity, DJ’s, and a craft for the kids.  The DJ was great and played later than I expected on Saturday and Sunday night. And because he was loud no-one noticed how loud we can get!

Group dinner was fun as always.  We used the kabob grill and the dutch oven. We highly recommend fun ways to cook while camping.  The kabobs are a group effort, everyone brings the various food items and helps prep them. This year we had marinated chicken, steak, shrimp, hot dogs a variety of veggies, and Texas toast for garlic bread.  In the dutch oven we made French Onion Soup, topped with Muenster for lunch and apple croissants for dessert. It was the first time we have made soup in the dutch oven and won’t be the last! The soup was a last minute idea while we were at the grocery store in near by Plover, WI.  And it was a good one!

 

 

 

The free WIFI worked great. And yes, even though we are camping we still like to stay connected.

 

 

 

Camping with a broken leg is interesting.  Not much you can do but sit around, scoot to the lake and let others do all the hard work.  Sitting around is always a good time, especially when the kids join in. And when sitting around creates extra family bonding and memories it is even better.

 

 

 

Thankfully the RV is easy to level, we have an able teenage son- who is willing to help, and PBS came in very clear for the times that the leg needed to be elevated.  Found a great show to watch and a new way to make garlic bread over the fire!

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Overall another great weekend at a great campground.  Lots of laughs with friends over wine and in front of the fire.  Even poured my Sunday morning screwdriver into a stemmed glass so I could use my wine hook www.thewinehook.com

 

 

 

Want to see more of the campground?  Check out our 360 video here

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