Camping, fishing, kid-friendly beaching, hiking- a great place to visit in the Kettle Moraine…read moreNorthern Unit! My son and I have camped at Long Lake for many years, and we've visited Mauthe many times to hike the path around Mauthe Lake (really nice), and recently visited for fishing. There's a nice big pier to fish from, and of course, fishing from the shore along the path. We noticed how close the campground is to the beach area, and that's a huge plus for families with young kiddos, especially. Mauthe is a pretty small lake, but good for kayaking, canoeing, SUPing, and swimming. KM Northern Unit has so many trails, it's sick. So if you're an active camper like me, Mauthe can be a great jumping off point for hiking, and biking- there's actually a 6.5 mile bike trail between Mauthe and Long Lakes that's a really nice ride! Mauthe (and Long) Lake for the win!

The camp hosts and rangers constantly monitor campsites. I do not see them clean or do anything…read moreelse that would be helpful. They just drive around, waiting for someone they can scold. It makes me feel unwelcome on the grounds, like a prisoner in a panopticon. Also the woods in this area are infested with buckthorn and autumn olive.

I like this lake just because of its shape. This is an addition to my list of county parks in the…read moreManitowoc area. The county park department maintains an 8.5 acres park at Horseshoe Lake. There is a picnic area with grills and tables. Playground equipment has been developed on the hillside northwest of the parking lot. A picnic area with a grill and a small shelter and toilet are located near the parking lot on the lower level. The lake access has a pier, which is used for both launching and fishing. This 19-acre lake offers good rainbow trout fishing as well as large mouth bass, crappie, bluegill, perch and northern pike. Use of motors on this lake is prohibited. You will see fishermen with high power bass boats moving slowly, using just their electric trolling motors. The wooded area between the two arms of the lake yields an area that promises good birding. Good fishing draws attention. At any given time you will see folks wetting a hook. There are 1.2 miles miles of shoreline. The lake averages 25 feet, with 54 feet being the deepest spot. The boarding dock, and the route of travel to it, is ADA accessible. This lake is described as a seepage, "two-story" lake. If you are looking for a nice fishing spot, a place for a picnic, a place for small gathering, or a nice place to get into the woods it would behoove you to find this nice little park off of county highway XX. Bring your light rig.

As far as community pools go this one, in Oshkosh is top notch. There is so much to do! They have a…read morecouple of slides, a tube slide, a body slide and a drop slide. They have a couple of kid areas with all the bells and whistles and even have a small lazy river for relaxing on a tube. It is not the largest pool in the area but with so many things to do the place never feels too crowded even on a holiday like July 4th. They have a small "cafe" with standard options and clearly state that no "carry ins" are allowed but we saw a number of people with their own food there and not once did I see anyone get hassled about. Be smart though and don't flaunt it. Prices are great, for all they have. Only $4.00 per adult and $3.00 per kid. This is so worth it and even though we have a couple of good pools in Fond du Lac, we find it well worth the 20-25 minute drive.

This is a fantastic park for all ages. We went on a Sunday afternoon. It was really warm but the…read morewater in all parts of the park was nice and cold. The lazy river is surprisingly large and a good place to take a few relaxing laps. They have a splash pad with a big structure to play on for the younger visitors. I came here with my girlfriend and her toddler. He loved that structure. It never felt too crowded even though there was a good number of people. Its a reasonable price to get in as well. It's $4 for adults, $3 for ages 3-17 and 60 and above. Free 2 and under. All those prices are decreased by a dollar if you come in after 5PM. They have a snack bar for reasonably priced drinks, snacks, and concession stand meals. Summer passes really are only worth it if you will go at least 15 times in the summer. It also is probably worth it if you have a family of 4 as they have a family package. Definitely, check this place out if you need a cool place to keep cool this Summer.

As lakes go, this one is often overlooked. Driving for east of the lake I'd definitely more rural…read moreand very pleasant country driving. The better route north or south with a little more time added. High cliff state park a nice place to settle in nature.

Lake Winnebago is a huge lake. Not Lake Michigan huge, of course, but it feels like it as you…read morecannot see the shore on the opposite side lake! And if you are use to cruising around inland lakes, Winnebago will take the cake. Because of its vast size, the wind and consequent waves can be wicked. I recommend that if you are prone to sea-sickness and going out on the water, you need to bring favorite motion sickness medication as a precaution. Winnebago is a shallow lake, so be mindful of your boat prop position. This is a great lake for tubing, water skiing, and fishing. There are multiple parks along the banks. The boat launch located in North Fond Du Lac is awesome with 5 slots and it is easy to get your boat in and out and park for only a few dollars. There is plentiful wildlife and birds to watch. Seeing the pelicans fly over the lake is an amazing experience. Speaking for experience, I don't recommend staying on the water after sunset. It is very, very dark. And extremely difficult to find that inlet that leads to the North Fond Du Lac boat launch.... I've always had fun, memorable experiences the few times I have visited and highly recommend boating on Winnebago in the WI summer. I hope to do some fishing next summer so I can share my experiences in an updated review.

This place is so unique it has everything a kid would want! My partner and I tried mini golf and…read morethe courses were well maintained and very different from other places. The staff were friendly, I would definitely come back.

We stopped at Fondy Sports Park randomly and did a lap in the go karts. We were the only two on the…read moretrack, and our ride time seemed generous. The ride for two cost about $9, and the employees were friendly.

Wonderful walk along the boardwalk in the Marsh. So many varieties of birds in the area, I expect…read morethe park is magnificent in the spring and fall. It was good to see so many people taking advantage of both the first day of spring and an amazing park.

Loved this place:), the nature center provides a map:), neat place to see birds , can't wait to…read morecome back:)

We didn't get to explore as much as we would have liked to just because we were short on time but…read morethe hike we did take was very nice. The staff at the office were very helpful. I highly recommend making the climb up the tower and the trails around it were not too hard to navigate or too rugged to manage. We spotted quite a few different mushroom species and the fall colors were just starting to pop.

Update! KM Northern Unit has so much to offer! Since my earlier review having camped at Long Lake…read morefor years (and still love it), I've explored and grown to appreciate: - Fishing & Hiking around Mauthe Lake - Mauthe Lake is the best for family friendly camping - Long Lake camping is still my fave - Several Ice Age Trails wind through here at Butler Lake and elsewhere - Explore all of the hiking options here, my favs are Dundee Mtn, Mauthe Lake Loop (also bike friendly), Greenbush Kettle - Bike friendly crushed gravel path between Long and Mauthe Lakes - Ice Age Interpretive Center is top notch My last camping trip coincided with a Friends of KM Northern Unit potluck, guided hike, and flute & drum circle. Follow them on FB for updates! It's all happening at KM State Forest Northern Unit!

If you're looking for a place to bring the family (with little kids) or somewhere where you're…read moreguaranteed to catch a fish without completely feeling like you're at essentially just netting some fish out of an aquarium, this is a GREAT place to go. It can be expensive, since you're paying by the pound ($8.95/lb) and you're not allowed to throw any back ($5 fee for every fish you throw back). But the experience is worth it if you're in town for a weekend or looking for something a little different to do, but not wanting to be disappointed going home empty-handed. This place was made up of 2 ponds where you could fish, and they were both stocked with trout. Because it's nestled in the forest, you do feel like you're in a legitimate place to fish, and not necessarily at a stocked pond. The pond itself is also murky, like you'd expect nature to be, so you don't really see all the fish in there, but if you catch a glimpse of the fish by the shore, you get the feel that you're pretty much surrounded by fish. Not complaining though! When you arrive, you can rent fishing rods for a $1 each. One of ours broke and he replaced it with another complimentary. He also provides you with worms as bait for $0.50. The owner isn't the friendliest but I don't think means anything by it. We were there for a couple hours and caught four trout, our last one being the biggest, twice as large as the others! We caught three trout that were all around 1-1.5lbs each and then the last one was about 3 lbs! So the pond has a wide variety of sizes to catch from. The owner cleans the fish for you, and you get the choice of cleaned/gutted or filleted. Keep in mind that filleted doesn't necessarily mean fillets like you see at the grocery store, where things are boneless, and you just have the meat. Here, the fillets are essentially cleaned, the main spine is removed, head and tail removed, and split in half but still has the skin and is essentially one piece of fish with two sides. He puts it on ice so it helps keep it fresh on your way home. I'd highly recommend bringing a cooler and your own ice to keep it fresh for longer, in case you were going to do other things in the area after. We left it in the truck, in the ice, in the cooler overnight, and by the time we got back home it had been a little over a day before we got to it. The fish themselves tasted so much better than you get from the store though! It was orange flesh, which means they've been feasting on some good grub like crustaceans, grub, etc., rather than fish food. And the meat was tender, mild yet flavorful, incredibly fresh and delicious.