Wisconsin State Park Mission: April 2011

Monday, April 11, 2011

Trip # 10 Yellowstone Lake State Park, Site #59

August 2001

"One of the few lakes in southwestern Wisconsin, 450-acre Yellowstone Lake is a popular recreation area year-round. Fishing, swimming, boating, family and group sites."

Blanchardville, Wisconsin

http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/parks/specific/yellowstone/

This is a great park. The drive around the lake up into the campground is really pretty. It was HOT this weekend! The lake was really warm too. It's not a clearwater lake, in fact it was really murky. I'm guessing the dark water is why it was so warm. I'm pretty sure this is a man made lake. There is one end of it that is completely straight and the land is significantly lower on the other side. You can rent fishing boats at this park. We caught a lot of catfish/bullheads. Regulations state that you can't keep a catfish larger than 15 inches, which sounds backwards to me. I caught one that was 16 inches. It put up a great fight. Even if we could have kept it, I don't know that I would have. I'm not familiar with cleaning catfish. I would really recommend this park to others. I'm kind of sad I can't go back here until I'm done with my mission.

I think this was the first time using the tent without the fly. Sleeping under the stars is the best!

Still can't get over how clean our sites were.

Yellowstone Lake from the campground.

Bullhead we caught by the dam.

Mmmmm corn and cheddar wurst.

Breakfast is served. Spam anyone?

Goofin around. I was so tiny back then.

Beach at Yellowstone Lake.

End of the lake. It was a lot higher on the lake side. I've never seen anything else like it.

Sitting on the boat, dying of heat!

My catfish that I didn't want to touch. It was 16 1/2 inches.

Yellowstone Lake from on the boat.

The dam near where we caught the bullhead.

Standing on the dam looking down. Cool pic!

Alice (mom) Street in Darlington, Wisconsin

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Trip # 9 Point Beach State Forest, Site #59

June 2001

"Located on a point jutting into Lake Michigan, 6 miles of lakeshore and dunes offer natural respite."

Two Rivers, Wisconsin

http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/parks/specific/pointbeach/

Another fun weekend. This is a really pretty park. I used to stay here as a kid all of the time, so this wasn't a new one for me. They had some great parties here back in the day. I also remember a time as a kid when we camped here and the horse flies were so bad, my brother and I had to wait in the car while our parents packed up the site. Other than that, it's a great place to camp. The fire pits here are great for cooking.

Our site. Check out the grate on the fire pit!

Beautiful Beach. It was way to cold to go in though.

Kind of looks like palm trees.

Me again. We went for a walk that night.

Rochelle hangin on the site.

Me in front of the nature center. This parking lot is where I remember the parties when I was younger.

The beach upside down. Not just the camera either ;)

Eatin good!

Rochelle and I/Camping buddies!

Trip # 8 Devil's Lake State Park, Site # 195

May 2001

"Wisconsin's largest state park offers magnificent views from 500-foot Quartzite bluffs overlooking a 360-acre lake. Enjoy lakeshore picnic areas, sandy swimming beaches, bird watching, or ease into the backcountry solitude. A beautiful year-around park with an intriguing natural history along the 1,000-mile Ice Age Trail."

Baraboo, Wisconsin

http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/parks/specific/devilslake/

This was a fun trip and a great park. Also, the first trip with Rochelle! She was one of my best friends for a long time. This is a huge park. Our group was split onto two sites, and they were in different campgrounds. They were far enough apart that you had to drive to them. Also, I have a picture of Cassy, Mike, Jamie and Adam, but I don't remember who's site they were on or why I only have one picture of them. Maybe there weren't there all weekend. The park has some great amenities. We rented a fishing boats at this park, which was pretty cool. The fishing wasn't too good though. I can't believe how clean our site always looks on these older trips. We're so much more experienced now and we've accumulated so much camping gear our sites are never this organized anymore. This was a nice weekend, no rain, but I do remember it being a little chilly.