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Open the Outdoors
- Kettle Moraine State Forest - Northern Unit
- Contact information
- For information, contact:
- Forest Headquarters
N1765 Highway G
Campbellsport WI 53010
262-626-2116
Ice Age Visitor Center
920-533-8322
Jerry Leiterman, Forest Superintendent
Jackie Scharfenberg, Naturalist
Jason Quast, Assistant Superintendent
Deb Harder, Visitor Services
Mauthe Lake Recreation Area Entrance Station
262-626-4305
Long Lake Recreation Area Entrance Station
920-533-8612
Kettle Moraine State Forest—Northern Unit Camping and reservations
The Kettle Moraine northern unit has several camping areas.
Reservations
Camping reservations for outdoor campsites can be made online or by calling 888-947-2757.
Frequently asked questions
Mauthe Lake campground
Mauthe Lake campground has 135 sites, including 51 electrical sites, one shower building with flush toilets and several vault toilets. The beach area has playground equipment and vending machines with snacks and beverages. Concessions are available for watercraft rental. A private concessionaire provides firewood when the entrance station is open. Campsites accessible to people with disabilities are available. A sanitary dump station and recycling/garbage station is provided for registered campers. Mauthe Lake is open for camping year round. Call for more information.
Reservations are recommended from mid-May through September. Reservations may be made up to 11 months in advance either online or by calling toll-free (888) 947-2757, TTY (800) 274-7275.
Teepee at Mauthe Lake
Enjoy the unique opportunity to camp in a canvas reproduction of a Native American plains teepee from mid-May through September. The teepee is 16 feet in diameter and supported by 25-foot-long wooden lodge poles. Four cots are provided. If you have more than four members in your camping party, there is room on the site to accommodate an additional tent if desired.
Special tepee camping rules apply at the Kettle Moraine Northern Unit. No smoking, fuels, flames, or equipment such as stoves, gas lanterns, heaters or candles are allowed inside of the tepee. Pets are not allowed. Do not spray insect repellent inside or near the tepee. This is a non-electric "tent only" site. No wheeled campers are permitted.
Reservations are recommended from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Reservations must be made through the Web or by phone, 888-947-2757, TTY 800-274-7275.
Long Lake campground
Long Lake campground provides 200 sites, flush and vault toilets and showers. A private concessionaire provides firewood when the entrance station is open. Campsites accessible to people with disabilities are available. A sanitary dump station and recycling/garbage station is provided for registered campers. Long Lake Campground is open for camping the first weekend in May through mid-October. Call for more information.
Reservations are recommended from mid-May through September. Reservations may be made up to 11 months in advance either online or by calling toll-free 888-947-2757, TTY 800-274-7275.
Backpack shelters
Five backpack shelters are available year round for rustic camping along the 31 miles [PDF] of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail. One backpack shelter is available from April 1 through November at the Zillmer Trail [PDF] area. Each site offers a roofed trail shelter, fire ring and pit toilet. Drinking water is available less than a mile from each site.
These sites are not accessible by vehicle. All camping equipment must be backpacked in and all refuse packed out. A camping permit is required and you must camp at a designated shelter campsite.
Only one reservation (camping party) is allowed per site per night. Reservations are limited to ten persons per site and are limited to one night per site. Another site may be reserved for a second night and a third night at a third site. You must call Reserve America at (888) 947-2757, TTY (800) 274-7275 to make backpack shelter reservations—backpack shelter reservations cannot be made online.
If you do not have a reservation, you must stop in at either the Forest Headquarters, Ice Age Visitor Center or Mauthe/Long Lake Entrance Stations (when open) to obtain a camping permit. Site availability is limited for spring and fall weekends and reservations are recommended. A reservation is required for stays longer than two nights along the trail.
If all the backpack sites are reserved for a weekend night on your hiking trip, consider staying one night at the Mauthe Lake campground.
Greenbush group campground
The Greenbush group campground offers nine outdoor sites which accommodate groups up to 40 individuals. Only tent camping is allowed on the actual campsite. Sites are near the Greenbush trails, where campers can enjoy hiking or off-road biking. An enclosed shelter building, drinking water and vault toilets are available nearby. Greenbush group campground is open for camping April through November.
Reservations are required. Reservations may be made up to 11 months in advance either online or by calling toll-free 888-947-2757, TTY 800-274-7275. Discounted camping rates are available for resident chartered non-profit youth groups.
New Prospect horseriders' campground
The New Prospect horseriders' campground has 22 family campsites and three group sites. In the family camping area, each site has a picnic table, fire ring and a 30-by-30-foot graveled area with picket posts and/or pipe corrals where horses are to be kept. The camp area has one drinking water source, an open air picnic shelter, vault toilet, covered stable with 24 box stalls, and manure pits.
In the group camp area, each site has a drinking water source, fire ring, four picnic tables and a manure pit. Group sites A and C each have nine, 10-by-10-foot metal pipe corrals. Group Site B has two tether post areas and 12 pipe corrals. The group camp has a vault toilet. No more than 20 people may occupy a group site.
Campers are responsible to place all hay and manure in the manure pits which are located throughout the campground; wheel barrows and forks are provided. Horses are to be kept in designated areas to protect the green space of the campground.
The campground is centrally located in the state forest and provides easy access to the 33-mile bridle trail which traverses the length of the forest. There also are two loop trails, the 2.5-mile Crooked Lake Loop and the 4-mile Forest Lake Loop. All horse riders 16 years and older must have a state trail pass while using the designated bridle trails in the state forest. The campground opens the first weekend in May and closes the last weekend in October.
Firewood
Firewood notice: Due to the potential of carrying harmful tree pests and diseases, firewood from out of state or from more than 25 miles away is not allowed on Wisconsin State Park or Forest properties. Also, firewood that has been in the Wisconsin emerald ash borer quarantined area is not allowed on properties outside of the quarantined area. Please buy firewood at or near the park or forest where you are going. Call the DNR toll-free Firewood Hotline, 1-877-303-WOOD (1-877-303-9663) for information before packing for a trip. For more information, see firewood facts, rules and advice or ask the park or forest office. Maps are available to view the 25-mile radius of allowable firewood on state properties.
